In the UA 8 video, Crawford talked about how "subclass quartets", or thematic dual pairings/clusters of subclasses representing "different corners of class identity," are driving their decision-making about which ones get included in the new core book. I found the concept pretty interesting, but I'm not sure I understand what all of them might be.
The examples he gave were:
Evoker (offense) vs Abjurer (defense)
Illusionist (lies/deception) vs Diviner (truth/exposure)
Clockwork Magic (Order) vs Wild Magic (Chaos)
Some of the others seem fairly obvious (e.g. Druid has Land vs Sea / Moon vs Stars, Bard has Lore vs Valor) but others elude me (Draconic vs Aberrant? ...Dance vs Glamour?) So I wanted to see what everyone thought the other pairs/quartets represent, and what this might tell us about the subclass likely to replace the now defunct Brawler Fighter.
Here's Crawford's exact words for those who don't want to watch/rewatch the UA video:
"Often when we've been deciding what the quartet of subclasses be for each class, we're looking for subclasses that essentially represent different 'corners' of class' identity. The quarters have succeeded at that at varying degrees... the Abjurer is a fantastic counterpoint to the Evoker, where we have the offensive wizard represented iconically by the Evoker, and we have the Abjurer being the ultimate defender among our mage-like classes. And then the Illusionist and the Diviner are also a pair of opposites, because the Illusionist is showing how you can use magic to beguile and deceive and misdirect, while the Diviner is showing how you can use magic to illuminate and clarify. At some point in a future video, we should go through and talk about all the quartets, because our subclass decisions have often been chasing this notion. I've seen people asking about the presence of Clockwork Sorcery in the new Player's Handbook; we chose Clockwork not only because it's highly rated, but because Clockwork Sorcery is the opposite of Wild Magic; one is the magic of Chaos and the other is the magic of Order.
The new PHB is going to be explicit about these quartets; as we guide you in subclass selection, we're going to point out this sort of 'archetypal' space each subclass occupies, because that's not always obvious, especially if you're not familiar with the game and you just see the names - and we wanted to make sure that when we talk about the subclass options in a particular class, that there's a clear set of aesthetic and mechanical hooks." ... "An example of a class where the hooks tend to be more mechanical than aesthetic is the Fighter, where the quartet in the Fighter is actually about four very different ways of play. That can be for a future video where we delve into the subclass quartets of every class in the 2024 PHB."
Draconic vs Aberrant Mind - Dragons are depicted (especially in Fizban’s Treasury) as being intrinsically linked to the Material Plane, whereas Aberrants are entirely alien and antithetical to it.
Cleric:
Life vs War (fairly self-explanatory)
Light vs Trickery (Light Domain has a strong theme of revelation)
Rogue:
Martial (Assassin and Swashbuckler) vs Subterfuge (Thief and Arcane Trickster)
Ranger:
Hunter (works against beasts/monsters) vs Beastmaster (works with beasts)
Fey Wanderer (Feywild) vs Gloomstalker (Shadowfell)
Personally, I'm not sure I would have put Clockwork Soul into the PHB but not Shadow or Divine Soul. A big part of why Clockwork Soul is highly rated is the bonus spell list, in which case, they should give that to all sorcerers, not just two of them. Power creep is inevitable, but putting it right into the PHB is just blind.
Rogue: Assassin (never seen) vs Swashbuckler (centre of attention) Thief (non-magical) vs Arcane Trickster (magical)
Fighter: Champion (non-magical) vs EK (magical) Battlemaster (weapon & tactics) vs Brawler (fists & improvisation) -> thus suggests maybe Samurai is the most likely as the "diplomat" vs "strategist"
Barbarian: Wildheart (animal) vs Tree one (tree) Beserker (mindless) vs Zealot (idealist)
Bard: Lore (brain) vs Valor (brawn) Dance (action) vs Glamour (appearance) -> this one doesn't really work b/c glamour's signature ability is also related to movement, which is why I personally hate the Dance Bard.
Paladin: Devotion (love) vs Vengeance (hate) Glory (self) vs Ancients (family) -> this one also doesn't really work mechanically b/c Glory gets tons of support features [Should really be Redemption vs Vengeance, Devotion vs Glory]
Monk: - this is a total fail for their "system" it should be: Open Hand (fists) vs Kensei (weapons), Shadow (dark) vs Radiant Soul (light) Open Hand (non-magical) vs Elements (magical) Shadow (darkness/hate) vs Mercy (mercy/forgiveness) -> this really doesn't work b/c Mercy's best feature is Hands of Harm which is poisoning your enemy, while Shadow's best feature is Shadow step which is just useful for infiltration
Draconic vs Aberrant Mind - Dragons are depicted (especially in Fizban’s Treasury) as being intrinsically linked to the Material Plane, whereas Aberrants are entirely alien and antithetical to it.
Ooh, do you have a quote/citation or page number? I haven't read through FToD in detail so this would be interesting to me.
Fighter: Champion (non-magical) vs EK (magical) Battlemaster (weapon & tactics) vs Brawler (fists & improvisation) -> thus suggests maybe Samurai is the most likely as the "diplomat" vs "strategist"
Ugh, I hope not. Besides, they need to "de-culture" Samurai like they're doing with ki.
Barbarian: Wild Heart/World Tree vs. Zealot, maybe? Kinda representing nature-based religion versus gods and such
Bard: Lore vs. Glamour/Dance, maybe? Knowledge emphasis versus performance emphasis
Cleric: Life vs. War, Light vs. Trickery
Druid: Land vs. Moon
Fighter: Battle Master vs. Champion, Brawler vs. Eldritch Knight
Monk: Hand vs. Four Elements
Paladin: Devotion vs. Vengeance
Ranger: Beast Master vs. Hunter, Fey Wanderer vs. Gloom Stalker
Rogue: Swashbuckler vs. everybody else
Sorcerer: Clockwork vs. Wild Magic
Warlock: Fiend vs. Celestial, Great Old One vs. Archfey
Wizard: Abjurer vs. Evoker, Diviner vs. Illusionist
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
Rogue: Assassin (never seen) vs Swashbuckler (centre of attention)
Makes sense, I suppose.
Thief (non-magical) vs Arcane Trickster (magical)
I really don't buy this one. Thief is definitely more magical than Assassin and Swashbuckler. Its 13th level feature is literally called Use Magic Device.
Fighter: Champion (non-magical) vs EK (magical)
Again, Champion isn't any less magical than other subclasses, so it's weird to pair them. I put Champion (raw strength) against Battle Master (martial discipline).
Battlemaster (weapon & tactics) vs Brawler (fists & improvisation) -> thus suggests maybe Samurai is the most likely as the "diplomat" vs "strategist"
I suppose I see what you mean, but I don't think there's any reason a Brawler can't be tactical or a Battle Master can't use fists. I don't get why Samurai would be in opposition to Battle Master.
Barbarian: Wildheart (animal) vs Tree one (tree) Beserker (mindless) vs Zealot (idealist)
I guess these make sense.
Bard: Lore (brain) vs Valor (brawn)
Maybe. Valor is all about the stories of heroes, though. It's still pretty brainy.
Dance (action) vs Glamour (appearance) -> this one doesn't really work b/c glamour's signature ability is also related to movement, which is why I personally hate the Dance Bard.
Yeah, this doesn't make sense.
Paladin: Devotion (love) vs Vengeance (hate)
Agreed.
Glory (self) vs Ancients (family) -> this one also doesn't really work mechanically b/c Glory gets tons of support features [Should really be Redemption vs Vengeance, Devotion vs Glory]
How is Ancients about family?
Monk: - this is a total fail for their "system" it should be: Open Hand (fists) vs Kensei (weapons), Shadow (dark) vs Radiant Soul (light) Open Hand (non-magical) vs Elements (magical)
Agreed.
Shadow (darkness/hate) vs Mercy (mercy/forgiveness) -> this really doesn't work b/c Mercy's best feature is Hands of Harm which is poisoning your enemy, while Shadow's best feature is Shadow step which is just useful for infiltration
How is Shadow connected to hatred?
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
🤔... Perhaps Eldritch Knight doesn't rule out Arcane Archer? What if the theme of the pairing is "Magical Melee vs. Magical Ranged?"
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
🤔... Perhaps Eldritch Knight doesn't rule out Arcane Archer? What if the theme of the pairing is "Magical Melee vs. Magical Ranged?"
Eldritch Knight isn't necessarily melee, though.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
🤔... Perhaps Eldritch Knight doesn't rule out Arcane Archer? What if the theme of the pairing is "Magical Melee vs. Magical Ranged?"
Eldritch Knight isn't necessarily melee, though.
As I've previously noted, while a Fighter is not technically supposed to favor melee, how many pieces of art for them have you seen where they're even carrying a bow?
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
🤔... Perhaps Eldritch Knight doesn't rule out Arcane Archer? What if the theme of the pairing is "Magical Melee vs. Magical Ranged?"
Eldritch Knight isn't necessarily melee, though.
As I've previously noted, while a Fighter is not technically supposed to favor melee, how many pieces of art for them have you seen where they're even carrying a bow?
Not sure exactly what point this would prove, but... plenty? Even if you're going under the assumption that they're significantly less common, it doesn't make sense to foil a magic subclass for any discipline with a magic subclass for archery, specifically. That's not what foiling is.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
🤔... Perhaps Eldritch Knight doesn't rule out Arcane Archer? What if the theme of the pairing is "Magical Melee vs. Magical Ranged?"
Eldritch Knight isn't necessarily melee, though.
As I've previously noted, while a Fighter is not technically supposed to favor melee, how many pieces of art for them have you seen where they're even carrying a bow?
Not sure exactly what point this would prove, but... plenty? Even if you're going under the assumption that they're significantly less common, it doesn't make sense to foil a magic subclass for any discipline with a magic subclass for archery, specifically. That's not what foiling is.
Let me reiterate slightly, how much official 5e art for the Fighter class have you seen even carrying a bow? Because I can't find any in Tasha's or the PHB and only one small picture for the Arcane Archer in XGtE. The books really don't do much to sell the idea that Fighters are equally into ranged and melee.
I suppose I was thinking about the 2 melee Wizard cantrips, Booming Blade & Green Flame Blade, that are often used with the War Magic feature. It seems like that is the usual build: melee with melee cantrips. However, I don't see why one couldn't just as well have a ranged build using ranged cantrips. I guess I just don't hear about that option as much.
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
🤔... Perhaps Eldritch Knight doesn't rule out Arcane Archer? What if the theme of the pairing is "Magical Melee vs. Magical Ranged?"
Eldritch Knight isn't necessarily melee, though.
As I've previously noted, while a Fighter is not technically supposed to favor melee, how many pieces of art for them have you seen where they're even carrying a bow?
Not sure exactly what point this would prove, but... plenty? Even if you're going under the assumption that they're significantly less common, it doesn't make sense to foil a magic subclass for any discipline with a magic subclass for archery, specifically. That's not what foiling is.
Let me reiterate slightly, how much official 5e art for the Fighter class have you seen even carrying a bow? Because I can't find any in Tasha's or the PHB and only one small picture for the Arcane Archer in XGtE. The books really don't do much to sell the idea that Fighters are equally into ranged and melee.
That's not the hugest sample size ever. Anyways, my point still stands.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny. Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
If they do go with EK vs AA or EK vs RK, I think it'll be spell magic vs innate magic or something like that. But I do think Psi Warrior has better odds than both.
I think in the future when we get Enchanter (mind/mental) it will be opposed by Transmuter (body/physical). Not sure what that means for Conjurer and Necromancer though.
If they do go with EK vs AA or EK vs RK, I think it'll be spell magic vs innate magic or something like that. But I do think Psi Warrior has better odds than both.
I think in the future when we get Enchanter (mind/mental) it will be opposed by Transmuter (body/physical). Not sure what that means for Conjurer and Necromancer though.
Rune, Psi, and AA are all too similar to Battlemaster I think. (Even though Rune is by far the my favourite subclass). I expect it will be Cavalier or Samurai. Though they might pull a monk and put in Rune Knight simply because everyone loves it which would be nice.
If they do go with EK vs AA or EK vs RK, I think it'll be spell magic vs innate magic or something like that. But I do think Psi Warrior has better odds than both.
I think in the future when we get Enchanter (mind/mental) it will be opposed by Transmuter (body/physical). Not sure what that means for Conjurer and Necromancer though.
Rune, Psi, and AA are all too similar to Battlemaster I think. (Even though Rune is by far the my favourite subclass). I expect it will be Cavalier or Samurai. Though they might pull a monk and put in Rune Knight simply because everyone loves it which would be nice.
Those two need too much work; if the primary reason they scrapped Brawler was due to not having the time to iterate on it enough to make it delightful, I don't see these being any better. Samurai is just plain weird (rando Long Rest abilities, and a whopping 1 temp HP per level?) on top of having the kind of cultural baggage they seem to want to be getting away from, and Cavalier's mounted combat feels too niche for core, on top of just not being all that good even if it does work.
It's almost certainly going to be a Tasha's subclass - in Crawford's own words, Tasha design is close enough to their modern design technique that it doesn't really need much if any additional work. That's why they brought in Aberrant/Clockwork Sorcerer, Mercy Monk, Stars Druid etc.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
In the UA 8 video, Crawford talked about how "subclass quartets", or thematic dual pairings/clusters of subclasses representing "different corners of class identity," are driving their decision-making about which ones get included in the new core book. I found the concept pretty interesting, but I'm not sure I understand what all of them might be.
The examples he gave were:
Some of the others seem fairly obvious (e.g. Druid has Land vs Sea / Moon vs Stars, Bard has Lore vs Valor) but others elude me (Draconic vs Aberrant? ...Dance vs Glamour?) So I wanted to see what everyone thought the other pairs/quartets represent, and what this might tell us about the subclass likely to replace the now defunct Brawler Fighter.
Here's Crawford's exact words for those who don't want to watch/rewatch the UA video:
The new PHB is going to be explicit about these quartets; as we guide you in subclass selection, we're going to point out this sort of 'archetypal' space each subclass occupies, because that's not always obvious, especially if you're not familiar with the game and you just see the names - and we wanted to make sure that when we talk about the subclass options in a particular class, that there's a clear set of aesthetic and mechanical hooks."
...
"An example of a class where the hooks tend to be more mechanical than aesthetic is the Fighter, where the quartet in the Fighter is actually about four very different ways of play. That can be for a future video where we delve into the subclass quartets of every class in the 2024 PHB."
Some off-the-top-my-head thoughts:
Sorcerer:
Draconic vs Aberrant Mind - Dragons are depicted (especially in Fizban’s Treasury) as being intrinsically linked to the Material Plane, whereas Aberrants are entirely alien and antithetical to it.
Cleric:
Life vs War (fairly self-explanatory)
Light vs Trickery (Light Domain has a strong theme of revelation)
Rogue:
Martial (Assassin and Swashbuckler) vs Subterfuge (Thief and Arcane Trickster)
Ranger:
Hunter (works against beasts/monsters) vs Beastmaster (works with beasts)
Fey Wanderer (Feywild) vs Gloomstalker (Shadowfell)
Personally, I'm not sure I would have put Clockwork Soul into the PHB but not Shadow or Divine Soul. A big part of why Clockwork Soul is highly rated is the bonus spell list, in which case, they should give that to all sorcerers, not just two of them. Power creep is inevitable, but putting it right into the PHB is just blind.
Warlock:
Fiend vs Celestial (obviously?)
Archfey vs Great Old One (perhaps nature and passion vs alienness and apathy?)
Archfey vs GOO is "heart" vs "head" or "emotion" vs "logic"
Rogue:
Assassin (never seen) vs Swashbuckler (centre of attention)
Thief (non-magical) vs Arcane Trickster (magical)
Fighter:
Champion (non-magical) vs EK (magical)
Battlemaster (weapon & tactics) vs Brawler (fists & improvisation) -> thus suggests maybe Samurai is the most likely as the "diplomat" vs "strategist"
Barbarian:
Wildheart (animal) vs Tree one (tree)
Beserker (mindless) vs Zealot (idealist)
Bard:
Lore (brain) vs Valor (brawn)
Dance (action) vs Glamour (appearance) -> this one doesn't really work b/c glamour's signature ability is also related to movement, which is why I personally hate the Dance Bard.
Paladin:
Devotion (love) vs Vengeance (hate)
Glory (self) vs Ancients (family) -> this one also doesn't really work mechanically b/c Glory gets tons of support features
[Should really be Redemption vs Vengeance, Devotion vs Glory]
Monk: - this is a total fail for their "system" it should be: Open Hand (fists) vs Kensei (weapons), Shadow (dark) vs Radiant Soul (light)
Open Hand (non-magical) vs Elements (magical)
Shadow (darkness/hate) vs Mercy (mercy/forgiveness) -> this really doesn't work b/c Mercy's best feature is Hands of Harm which is poisoning your enemy, while Shadow's best feature is Shadow step which is just useful for infiltration
Ooh, do you have a quote/citation or page number? I haven't read through FToD in detail so this would be interesting to me.
Not too sure about this one, Assassin seems more subterfuge to me than the subclass that needs to go around loudly chanting half the time.
Hmmm... I would view the first as Hunter (Lone Wolf) vs Beastmaster (Pack).
I completely agree with the other one!
Ugh, I hope not. Besides, they need to "de-culture" Samurai like they're doing with ki.
If the question is what the replacement for Brawler will be, I guess this would suggest something that foils Eldritch Knight. That kinda rules out Arcane Archer. Rune Knight and Psi Warrior might be options, though, as very different approaches to magic.
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
Makes sense, I suppose.
I really don't buy this one. Thief is definitely more magical than Assassin and Swashbuckler. Its 13th level feature is literally called Use Magic Device.
Again, Champion isn't any less magical than other subclasses, so it's weird to pair them. I put Champion (raw strength) against Battle Master (martial discipline).
I suppose I see what you mean, but I don't think there's any reason a Brawler can't be tactical or a Battle Master can't use fists. I don't get why Samurai would be in opposition to Battle Master.
I guess these make sense.
Maybe. Valor is all about the stories of heroes, though. It's still pretty brainy.
Yeah, this doesn't make sense.
Agreed.
How is Ancients about family?
Agreed.
How is Shadow connected to hatred?
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
Psyren: re Dragons and the Material Plane - it’s a theme throughout Fizban’s Treasury, but page 6 The First World is a good start.
Bard:
Maybe -
- Lore vs Dance (cerebral vs physical/somatic)
- Glamour vs Valour (social pillar vs combat pillar)
🤔... Perhaps Eldritch Knight doesn't rule out Arcane Archer? What if the theme of the pairing is "Magical Melee vs. Magical Ranged?"
Eldritch Knight isn't necessarily melee, though.
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
As I've previously noted, while a Fighter is not technically supposed to favor melee, how many pieces of art for them have you seen where they're even carrying a bow?
Not sure exactly what point this would prove, but... plenty? Even if you're going under the assumption that they're significantly less common, it doesn't make sense to foil a magic subclass for any discipline with a magic subclass for archery, specifically. That's not what foiling is.
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
Let me reiterate slightly, how much official 5e art for the Fighter class have you seen even carrying a bow? Because I can't find any in Tasha's or the PHB and only one small picture for the Arcane Archer in XGtE. The books really don't do much to sell the idea that Fighters are equally into ranged and melee.
I suppose I was thinking about the 2 melee Wizard cantrips, Booming Blade & Green Flame Blade, that are often used with the War Magic feature. It seems like that is the usual build: melee with melee cantrips. However, I don't see why one couldn't just as well have a ranged build using ranged cantrips. I guess I just don't hear about that option as much.
That's not the hugest sample size ever. Anyways, my point still stands.
Look at what you've done. You spoiled it. You have nobody to blame but yourself. Go sit and think about your actions.
Don't be mean. Rudeness is a vicious cycle, and it has to stop somewhere. Exceptions for things that are funny.
Go to the current Competition of the Finest 'Brews! It's a cool place where cool people make cool things.
How I'm posting based on text formatting: Mod Hat Off - Mod Hat Also Off (I'm not a mod)
If they do go with EK vs AA or EK vs RK, I think it'll be spell magic vs innate magic or something like that. But I do think Psi Warrior has better odds than both.
I think in the future when we get Enchanter (mind/mental) it will be opposed by Transmuter (body/physical). Not sure what that means for Conjurer and Necromancer though.
Rune, Psi, and AA are all too similar to Battlemaster I think. (Even though Rune is by far the my favourite subclass). I expect it will be Cavalier or Samurai. Though they might pull a monk and put in Rune Knight simply because everyone loves it which would be nice.
Those two need too much work; if the primary reason they scrapped Brawler was due to not having the time to iterate on it enough to make it delightful, I don't see these being any better. Samurai is just plain weird (rando Long Rest abilities, and a whopping 1 temp HP per level?) on top of having the kind of cultural baggage they seem to want to be getting away from, and Cavalier's mounted combat feels too niche for core, on top of just not being all that good even if it does work.
It's almost certainly going to be a Tasha's subclass - in Crawford's own words, Tasha design is close enough to their modern design technique that it doesn't really need much if any additional work. That's why they brought in Aberrant/Clockwork Sorcerer, Mercy Monk, Stars Druid etc.