Had to choose between a pellet smoker and a stick burner at the last minute

My old offset rusted out two days before my nephew's graduation party in Austin, so I panicked and had to pick between a buddy's loaner pellet smoker or driving 3 hours to rent a stick burner. I went with the pellet because it seemed easier, especially since I was cooking for 40 people and had zero time to babysit a fire. Big mistake, honestly. The bark came out decent but that smoky flavor was just... polite, you know? Like someone whispered 'smoke' at the meat instead of actually hitting it. Meanwhile my cousin's brisket from his backyard pit had that deep, in-your-face Texas smoke taste that everyone kept talking about. I ended up having to add liquid smoke to my sauce just to fake it, which felt like cheating. Now I'm wondering if I should just buy a cheap offset again or learn to love the pellet for weekday cooks. Has anyone else made this last-minute swap and regretted it, or am I just too snobby about real wood?