Rogue Race vs gear

[Wattser]

So I went to create my rogue today and was looking at starting stats for them all. Knowing Velious is quite a bit away I have to prioritize. Personally I love halflings <3, but with them I cant wear gear such as a Treeweave or hero bracer and that +20 easy str gone. And I see in the gear post on the wiki that these are 2 pieces that are still very good with Kunark gear. I know Leveling would be faster as a Halfling but would the loss in gear make it more worthwhile to be a wood elf or even a barb?