I'm of the opinion that S-E has been way too cautious with SMN's potential in FFXI. Historically, Summoners have been the most powerful jobs in the FF series. People know the Avatars/Eidolons/GFs/Espers by name and face. If perpetuation costs are indeed necessary, it should be expected that the avatars have the same damage potential as any melee job and the same magical capabilities of any mage (this goes especially for elemental spirits). This whole fear of being overpowered has rung hollow for years given that S-E threw game balance out the window with various melee jobs (see: Warrior, Samurai, Monk, among others).

I'd want perpetuation costs for spirits cut to celestial avatar levels and the new spells, excluding AoE-based elemental spells, from 76 to the current cap included (yes, even Comet). I'd also want the casting times for avatars to be cut in half. There's no good reason for this anymore and needlessly hampers our ability to react to situational changes. For the perpetuation we currently expend, I'd also want avatars' Delay addressed with a Martial Arts-type job trait and their overall attack/accuracy/MAtk/MAcc improved to scale more in line with any other job as we level.