At this point, I think it is harder, yes. Monster DL depends on character level, so you won't start finding, say, mithril gear, till around level 6-7 IIRC. I don't know if specific mods are level dependent, or if it is just mod probability is level dependent like in ADOM I. It might just be devastation/fatal are really, really rare. Armor penetration has not yet been implemented yet, IIRC, so that mod might just not be available at all. Or if it is, it would do nothing. I've found that overpowered armor is pretty easy to find though. I've had a couple games where I've had [+12,+10] platemail armor sitting in the Terinyo shop or something.
On average, I think you find an awful lot more gear in ADOM II than in ADOM. Especially in terms of weapons and shields, IMHO.
Hoping to win with every class, doomed. Archer, Barbarian, Bard, Beastfighter, Druid, Elementalist, Farmer, Fighter, Monk, and ULE Priest down.