Summoner solo/duo/small group vs Abysea NM Compendium

[Mokeil]

My apologies! I should have posted this sort of info back in my very first post...

TL;DR version first, since I know I can ramble - I run /sch, and I have a really solid -perp/Auto-Refresh set.

1) Which support job are you using?

Unless I state otherwise, I will always be /sch. I find I prefer its set of benefits over those of /rdm. Since I have almost twice as much MP as I have HP, Convert is almost more effort than it's worth for me to make useful. Refresh and Sublimation are nearly equal in terms of MP recovery (with the MP cost to cast Refresh balancing out the 30 second window between Sublimation uses), so those are actually non-factors in my decision.

My strongest reasons are for Reraise, and the better Stoneskin and Aquaveil due to Light Arts.

2) Which methods are you using to manage MP, particularly when not using a refresh atma.

For those avatars which I have a completed -perp Magian Trial Staff for, I can have an avatar out and still get back a passive 4MP per tick in Auto-Refresh. This is a whopping 80MP per minute - outside Abyssea, without Favor up, and before getting into sublimation or the Refresh spell! (In fact, due to the way Favor works, I don't actually get any more MP back with it up, either.)

Having a max -perp set with some left over Auto-Refresh really changed the way I could approach fights, both inside and outside Abyssea.

This plus sublimation covers a lot of general use. As long as I'm not riding both of my Blood Pact timers to the second, I can maintain a single avatar for a rather long period of time without noticing a drop in my MP. Even just using the Rage commands every 45 seconds I can be fine. Throwing in constant Wards will start to drain on me rather quickly, though. This is why I like to use the +20 Auto-Regen from Mounted Champion to cover healing needs whenever possible.

When Soloing NMs, I have never used Aspir or Spirit Taker. Long habit keeps me in Addendum: White more often than not, for the buffs and -na Spells. (Paralyze can kill a Summoner as easily as Silence can!) I'm also trying to keep minimal hate gain in a longer fight. If something unexpected does happen and I need to resummon, my Taru HP pool needs my new avatar to get hate off of me ASAP!

In the case of Glavoid, he was one of the longer solo kills I've done. Holding back on my Rage BPs to avoid healing him really helped, and not just because it meant I wasn't healing him. The longer I wait between commands, the more my Auto-Refresh and Sublimation can cover me. Even so, I did actually find myself down to under half my MP. Another five or so minutes and I would have begun to consider using a temp item to get MP back. Using a Dawn Mulsum or two would also have spared me a few Whispering Winds, saving MP on those, too.

Speaking of, if I ever use an item for any reason - temp or otherwise - I will make sure to mention it in my notes of the fight. Likewise i will make sure to note if I do some sort of offensive action on the mob that is not purely avatar related - e.g. using Spirit Taker or casting Dispel/Drain/Aspir.

As a final note of caution, do not use a handy, nearby Martello in the middle of a fight! It is a fiendish trap tailor-made to catch innocent Summoners! Talking to the nice Martello will cause your avatar to go completely passive, shedding all hate, and not even moving to auto-attack the big, mean NM that is now moving over to introduce you to its teeth. Once you finish speaking to the Martello, your avatar will begin behaving as it should once more, but it will have to start over at 0 accrued hate.