SMN pet not responding 100%

[Takaokami]

Thanks everyone of sharing the pain and giving tips!

Strange, there is a delay, but Garuda-Egi pretty much does what I ask her when I ask her. All that happens is she waits to finish her current action first.

Doesn't happen always with me. As said, sometimes it works flawlessly, skill after skill execution. Other times, it executes one skill, order it to do another and... nothing! Garuda spents 10 seconds autoattacking even though I am pressing the right skill button! Very weird.

[Takaokami]

Also on a side note, NEVER stop what you're doing when giving the rude bird a command. All of the pet commands can be executed even when you're casting with the exception of Enkindle. Enkindle is an oGCD skill by the summoner her/himself. Weave Enkindle between instant GCDs, and continue your rotation (your pet will use it when she finishes her current action).

OK, but if I wanted to Contagion before doing Bane, there's no other way around it than wait. Maybe pop some Ruins in between or whatever...

[SnugglesD]

OK, but if I wanted to Contagion before doing Bane, there's no other way around it than wait. Maybe pop some Ruins in between or whatever...

Use that time to run in for miasma 2 and blizz 2.

Also, if you're having a problem with the ability not going off at all, its probably due to latency. WTFast fixed it for me. There IS an ability queue. Pets will finish their current casts and use whatever you ordered them to do after.

[MicahZerrshia]

OK, but if I wanted to Contagion before doing Bane, there's no other way around it than wait. Maybe pop some Ruins in between or whatever...

Yep never stop doing what you are doing

Bio 2, miasma, bio, contagion spam, swiftcast/shadow flare, bane

alternate in case it doesn't go off at first (but it will almost always does in the above set up) if you spam that contagion while doing other stuff

Bio 2, miasma, bio, contagion spam, swiftcast/shadow flare, ruin 2/3 or painflare, bane

running in for a m2/blz2 is very situational so never something to rely on, esp in an opener.

Smn is literally the only job that never really needs to not be dpsing, even when dodging you can r2

And also remember to hold that contagion til you can snapshot those buffs, like trance, whenever possible to max your dps

so in that case trance, tri-disaster, start contagion spam, ruin 3 til it goes off, bane, ruin 3 spam, deathflare

[DBthaONE]

Question for people with long-term SMN experience!

Sometimes (when on OBEY) while Garuda-egi is already engaging the enemy and auto attacking, it just doesn't feel like responding to that AERIAL SLASH, CONTAGION and ENKINDLE command, even though I see the skill button lighting up and indicating that it is being pressed. My SMN mostly isn't performing any other skills during that time. So I just end up standing there, spamming one of them until they are actually executed.

I know this wasn't your question but remember your pet is an extension of you. Therefore, if you are attacked your pet will attack in response, this also occurs when you are not attacked, but a fight begins (such as a boss fight/raid).

Why is this happening? Am I timing it badly during a pet attack animation or? Anybody experienced this?

When your pets begins its attack rotation, there is a sort of queue that it goes through. Generally that queue is just a Wind Blade spam in the case of Obey Mode. Unlike you, the actual player, your pet CANNOT cancel out of their current attack. However it will, for the most part, execute your command when it has completed the attack. The times it does not is when the command is given the same time the system begin the attack, which is more of an issue with the system than with the pet. If you just hit the command again, it will register as it should. I get impatient myself, so I tend to spam something like Contagion while casting something else like Ruin.

Usually pet skill execution works fine, but sometimes it seems like the pet is stubborn :/

Executing any of the above skills before Garuda-egi starts auto attacking is mostly instant, without the issue mentioned earlier.

Amazingly enough, it not so much that your pet is stubborn, but rather that it is stupid and cannot figure out what its master is intending. Also, considering the information above, if your pet has not started its attack rotation, there is nothing in its queue, so whatever command you give it will do immediately.

Lastly, I know OP didn't bring this up, but for others wondering Enkindle is a Summoner abiltly not a pet ability. If you cast enkindle, as long as the system reads it (like any other cast) your pet will execute it. It will do so as soon as it on GCD.

[SnugglesD]

Snipped for length

First, if you're contagion baning, you're dealing with trash and your single target opener goes out the window. Start with shadowflare instead of popping it after bio like in your normal opener. Painflare should be used in that GCD after bio while you're waiting for contagion to go off and while you're running in for miasma 2/blizz 2. Those are NOT situational in trash; they are optimal.

[Rongway]

I macro contagion to make three attempts at 1 second intervals so that one of them will catch her in between casts.

/micon "Contagion" pet
/pac "Contagion" <t>
/wait
/pac "Contagion" <t>
/wait
/pac "Contagion" <t>

It would be better just to have a full 14 lines of
/pac Contagion <t>

Each press effectively gives you 1/4 - 1/2 second of spamming it.

[SnugglesD]

It would be better just to have a full 14 lines of
/pac Contagion <t>

Each press effectively gives you 1/4 - 1/2 second of spamming it.

If you really want to macro it you're better off adding Stay or Heel instead. They'll both interrupt her current cast.

[Drasyra]

If you really want to macro it you're better off adding Stay or Heel instead. They'll both interrupt her current cast.

Yup! Learn to interrrupt your pet! It will give you a ton more control if you ever play SCH too. The Healer subforum has a great guide on Faerie control including interrupt macros, which can be adjusted very easily for SMN if you don't want to do so manually. http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...ehensive-Guide

[Delta041]

Something weird I've been noticing with Garuda:
If she's attacking target A, and I tell her to Contagion target B, she'll pretty much immediately do it where she could lag a second or two with target A.