I would suggest scrapper. Since scrappers just barely get to their cap in Smashing/Lethal resistance, and brutes have the same base numbers as scrappers, just higher caps, they will have the same amount of resistances. Therefore the the only difference between the brute and scrap will be the scrap will do a little more damage and the brute will have a little more HP. With similar builds the scrap will have around 2.4k hp and the brute will be just shy of 3k HP so a difference of some where between 300-400 HP (really one hard hit).
Take what you will, I feel the damage loss by picking a brute isn't worth it for me.
Your character does not have capped defense. Depending on your AT the cap is between 175% - 225%. Your defense is not teal in the combat window, it can go higher. STOP SAYING IT IS CAPPED! The correct term is Soft Cap.
I enjoy playing in Mids. I specialize in Melee Characters, other AT's usually bore me.
If you don't have a hard coded preference towards one or the other (BRUUUUUUUUUTE! *ahem*) when deciding between scrapper and brute ask yourself 'Which is more important to me: Damage or durability?'
Further sample questions may involve 'How much do I team, what do I want to do on a team, and how much do I idle between spawns chatting'.
Weight training: Because you'll never hear someone lament "If only I were weaker, I could have saved them."
DM, damage wise, is better overall on the Scrapper due to the persistent damage of Soul Drain.
You can close some of the gap with Gloom, but I think the Scrapper will still come out ahead on ST.
As a Brute, if you go Soul you'll get access to Gloom, Darkest Night and Dark Obliteration.
I think overall that, plus perma Dull Pain able really leverage the higher Brute HP cap will make for a very strong overall package and is worth the loss of straight DPS you'd get by going Scrapper.
Brute is my choice for this combo.
I had one of these as a Brute over a year ago. Very strong, was considering one again. Would this be better as a Scrapper, or should I go Brute again?