While I like the mechanics behind Brute, do we really need another generic fighter? Champion already does that pretty well.
The Fighter's Fighter, perhaps even moreso than the Champion. This may, or may not, be a testbed for the subclass-swapping features that they talked about when discussing how they are going to fix the Ranger.
...why not just shelf them for now, and work on truly NEW additions such as ... (3) alternative class features mechanics?
But rather than coming right out with a UA and saying "Hey, here's some alternate features for the Champion, whatcha think?"... and then getting whole heaps of people screaming at them "Why are you working on these?!? The Champion is FINE!" Or "I don't want a Champion, I want PSIONICS!"... they create these subclasses with the barest hint of fluff just so we'd spend time actually debating the mechanics, rather than whether the mechanics were necessary to "help" the subclasses the mechanics were meant for.
Under that light... I think its easier to see what these game mechanics could be used for. The Brute's are possible alternate feature for the Champion... the Inventor's are alternate features for the Wild Mage *and* new mechanics for the Artificer... and the Circle of Spores could actually be its own real subclass since it has the most cohesive theme behind it. And hell, if I didn't know any better... the Circle of Spores has at its essence the theme of death and decay, which is the primary theme of the Children of Winter druidic sect in Eberron. There's been talk that perhaps the Artificer has been moved up while the Mystic has been pushed back... maybe what we're seeing here is the potential previews of what could be April's book of the Five Nations Adventure's Guide?
I think dual-wielders should get a bone somewhere.The Brute is clearly an effort to fix the issues people have noted with the Champion. They might want to tweak it so that you don't get a big advantage from dual wielding (maybe you don't get the bonus damage on off-hand attacks?). Other than that, it seems fine. Not my cup of tea, but there's nothing wrong with that.
I think dual-wielders should get a bone somewhere.
Unless you mix Champion 3 with something like Booming Blade or sneak attack or something else to add bonus dice, Brute wins and it's not close. Champion would add 2d6 (assuming greatsword) to 5% of all attacks, which is about 0.35 extra damage per attack., and less if you switch to other weapons. Brute adds 2.63 average damage per attack, and scales more quickly.Has anybody done a numerical analysis of Champion vs. Brute?