How to play Summoner

[Razushu]

Well, it is a really funny story.

FF5 made me like the MNK+SMN job combo. Later FFs made me lean towards the SMN job more. It peaked at FF10, where I could control my own pet. So that was what I was hoping for in FF11.

First step was testing the job system. Original idea, re-do the MNK+SMN job combo. Quickly I learned SMN/MNK wouldn't be particularly good. So I was thinking I'll just go for SMN. Much main healing and very little avatars later, PUP came around.

This really threw me for a loop, since PUP was just what I wanted, but with the most ugly pets I've ever seen. But since SE seemed to suggest a C ranker like PUP should melee, then it opened up the idea that then a B ranker like SMN can as well. And it was pretty fun to melee on SMN as well.

I'm still slightly pondering to leech up PUP, but it is so much skilling up involved on pets. But a dat swap on automatons and it would be a pretty good job. It is a shame I don't have a correct dat swap method to get animations right though.



I also prefer more to explore new paths than follow the latest cookie cutter build. Like in Diablo 2 I could attempt to build a Paladin with support focus, instead of the basic Hammerdin for plowing through all monsters. That was a real failure though, since all people on battle.net are "rush rush, ball runs!" so I never really had any to support, and if I did support them it meant I wasn't close to the item drops.

If SE had given me all the facts and jobs from the start though, I believe I would have been a PUP. The most uncertainty with this is that the puppets are so ugly. I picked mithra because it was cutest, picking PUP then is like undoing my first choice.

The PUP C rank was a serious F' up though, I think SE thought people would accept a PUP based solely on their automaton.

I'd level PUP if I we're you. I'm not saying GTFO SMN you crazy meleeing fool. Just from what little I know of you and what I know of PUP I think you'd love it. Ugly pets aside, although PUP armor looks nice on Mithras.

My friends keep suggesting it to me saying "it's SMN but a melee". Which I always found weird because I've said since day one that I find melee boring lol.

Avoiding the cookie cutter is what got me into SMN in the first place. I liked the idea of SMN from other FFs, it really seemed like the job for me. Then I found out it wasn't very popular with other players, and my stubbornn streak kicked inXD

[Malamasala]

Just from what little I know of you and what I know of PUP I think you'd love it.

The selling point is definitely H2H. The only weapon type I consider interesting. And don't let any PUP tell you they should have gotten Alexander... that dat swap just fills your screen so much that it is annoying.

[Razushu]

The selling point is definitely H2H. The only weapon type I consider interesting. And don't let any PUP tell you they should have gotten Alexander... that dat swap just fills your screen so much that it is annoying.

What?! They're saying that?

[Tarage]

Summoner is a support job. We cure, we buff, and we assist in DD. We are a versatile job that can solo, but we are not designed to be heavy DD, nor are we designed to be all support.

There's nothing more to say.

[Dallas]

A whole thread devoted to hating me because they haven't posted thousands of times in every other thread. Awesome!

There is only one playstyle. Everyone bragging about playing half the job is also dealing half the damage. What do they have to show for it? A few fights that no one is dumb enough to melee.

I say 99% is melee-able. They say 1% is melee-able. The difference is skill, with the higher damage always going to the melee SMN.

[Tarage]

A whole thread devoted to hating me because they haven't posted thousands of times in every other thread. Awesome!

There is only one playstyle. Everyone bragging about playing half the job is also dealing half the damage. What do they have to show for it? A few fights that no one is dumb enough to melee.

I say 99% is melee-able. They say 1% is melee-able. The difference is skill, with the higher damage always going to the melee SMN.

You have quite the ego buddy. Not once did I mention you. I don't care how well you DD as a melee SMN, you're still doing it wrong.

Seriously, you must be one sad fellow if you feel the need to puff yourself on a forum like this.

[Dallas]

You have quite the ego buddy. Not once did I mention you. I don't care how well you DD as a melee SMN, you're still doing it wrong.

Seriously, you must be one sad fellow if you feel the need to puff yourself on a forum like this.

Here's a helpful hint: I'm not looking for any tips how to play the job worse. Troll all you want, at no point will I be acknowledging your playstyle as anything but a subset of mine.

[Tarage]

Here's a helpful hint: I'm not looking for any tips how to play the job worse. Troll all you want, at no point will I be acknowledging your playstyle as anything but a subset of mine.

It's cute that you think I'm a troll. Are you so far gone that you don't believe that people don't look at you in awe? That perhaps the pedestal you have placed yourself upon is a creation of your own inflated ego?

[Razushu]

It's cute that you think I'm a troll. Are you so far gone that you don't believe that people don't look at you in awe? That perhaps the pedestal you have placed yourself upon is a creation of your own inflated ego?

Not just his, his mommy tells him he's special every morning.

[Secondplanet]

i see smn as a job that no one can write a guide on cause its really a job that is invented by the player using it, the more of an imagination you have the more options you can find in this job, from tanking NM's/mobs when needed to helping the party in a time of need, this job can allow a person who knows it well to play almost any roll even if for only a brief moment and in this game a brief moment most times can mean the difference between winning and losing.