Ifrit is dead. What OTHER avatars would you like as Summoner?
Whenever I hear/read discussions about Summoners in FFXIV 2.0, I always hear the same thing: "It won't be Summoner if we can't summon the celestial avatars from XI, but they've already been adapted as the elemental Primals in XIV! What's the point of adding Summoner if the lore says we can't summon those?!" Thread after thread is then made voicing the complaint, "FIX THE LORE IF YOU MUST, BUT WE NEED TO SUMMON THE CELESTIAL AVATARS OF XI."
Sorry, fellow XI fans, but we're going to have to accept that it's time to move on. You can fight it all you want, but every game has to have its own lore -- otherwise it's just a remake or a sequel, neither of which XIV is intended to be. The devs are not likely to change this intention. As XIV must have its own lore in order to stand on its own, new lore also dictates that we should expect different avatars in XIV. This has been the case in every single Final Fantasy game so far.
(And with that in mind, if your love of Summoners comes only from your love for those eight celestial characters from XI, rather than your love of Summoner's ability to summon, then you should already be happy. Those eight beloved characters are already being included for you to witness in this game. They've been omitted from more Final Fantasy games than they ever appeared in, and they could have just as easily been omitted from this game completely, but they weren't. With that in mind, the fact that these characters are being included in XIV, let alone that we also get to fight them the same way that we did in XI, feels to me like a very generous tip of the hat, and is already far more than we ever should have expected.)
If a Summoner class is added to XIV, then we're going to have to accept that this game will provide players with its own unique mix of things to summon. Rather than cry to the devs in futility about how difficult it is for us to accept change and new ideas, why don't we simply accept that this particular change is inevitable? We can still be heard as a part of the Summoner development process! We just need to give the devs some new ideas, which they actually CAN listen to and use.
With that being said, I propose that those who are interested in a Summoner class start to offer some actual constructive ideas regarding the possible avatars of XIV's potential Summoner. Use this thread to cast your vote on which avatars you would like to one-day see summoned in XIV, excluding the elemental Primals that already exist in FFXIV lore.
To start you off with some ideas, I've compiled a list of the summons that have already appeared in Final Fantasy games. As FFXIV lore is not likely to permit Primals to be summoned by individual players, I have excluded Ifrit, Garuda, Titan, Leviathan, and Odin from this list. I also excluded the likely Primals of Ramuh, Shiva, and Alexander based on the assumption that XI's celestials will continue the trend of appearing as XIV's Primals.
Abaddon
Adrammelech
Ahriman
Alraune
Angelo
Anima
Aquarius
Argy
Ark
Asura
Atomos
Bahamut
Bahamut Fury
Bahamut ZERO
Balasa
Barbariccia
Behemoth
Belias
Bismarck
Boko
Bomb
Brothers
Brynhildr
Cactoid
Cactuar
Cagnazzo
Cait Sith
Calcabrina
Carbuncle
Catoblepas
Cerberus
Chaos
Chimera
Chocobo
Cockatrice
Coeurl
Crusader
Cu Sith
Cuchulainn
Cyclops
Death Knight
Deathgaze
Demon Wall
Diabolos
Djinn
Doomtrain
Dragon
Eden
Exodus
Faerie
Famfrit
Fenrir
Garchimacera
Giant of Babil
Giga-Phoenix
Gigas
Gilgamesh
Gnoam
Goblin
Golem
Gun Dragon
Hades
Hashmal
Hecatoncheir
Iron Giant
Ixion
Ixion Type-Zero
Kain
KigenDragon
Kirin
Kjata
Knights of the Round
Kraken
Lakshmi
Lamia
Land Worm
Lich
Little Pirate
Madeen
Maduin
Magic Pot
Malboro
Mandragora
Marilith
Mateus
Meteor Master
Midgarsomr
Mindflayer
Mini Mog
Minion
Moogles
Moomba
Mu
Ochu
Omega
Palom
Pandemona
Phantom
Phoenix
PuPu
Quetzalii
Quezacoatl
Ragnarok
Raiden
Ramih
Remora
Rubicante
Sagittarius
Sahagin
Salamander
Scarmiglione
Scorpion
Seraph
Shade
Shemhazai
Shinryu
Shivan
Shivar
Siren
Six to eight different lesser elementals already present in XIV
Sphere
SwordDragon
Syldra
Sylph
Tentacle
The Magus Sisters
Tiamat
Tonberry
Tri-Disaster
Typhoon
Ultima
Ultros
Unicorn
Valefor
Valigarmanda
White Hare
Whyt
Wyvern
Yojimbo
Zalera
Zeromus
Zodiark
Zona Seeker
That's a long, rich history of summonable avatars, all of which existed previously as summons somewhere in Final Fantasy's lengthy past. They were all fun to summon in the games that they appeared in, and they all have the potential to be made into something fun again.
So let's move on from the futile push for summoning XI's celestial avatars, and start giving the devs some input about Summoners that they actually CAN use! Let's offer some ideas for avatars that they actually CAN implement! Cast your votes on what "new" summons you would like to see by posting here. Make your voice heard, and let's get to talking!
Note: The above list is just ideas from past games to start you off. You're not limited to picking ideas from those that are on this list. Brand new ideas, descriptions, and illustrations are all welcome input as well!
