Summoner is so confusing for this returning player

So I just returned to the game after six years. I played on PS4 back then, and now I'm on PC. I had maxed all the classes, and jobs to 60 before I left like most people did back then. Back when I played I loved Summoner, it was my main class. I loved raiding, doing hard primal's etc. But now the class is so confusing, and makes zero since. The other classes I have, I have been able to figure out, but Summoner just seems over complicated, and unfamiliar now. I tried watching guides on YouTube like the people in Novice chat recommended, but that just made it worse. I was hoping I wouldn't have to start a new character just to relearn it but it's not even the same class it was when I last played. At least to me it feels that way. I have no idea what to even start with, how to summon any of the primals you used to summon, or even how to attack enemies without just clicking the buttons, and hoping for the best.
Could really use some help with the order of my ability buttons for just basic DPS while questing, what that dragon thing is with the three stones and how it works, etc. I just want to casually play now, and just enjoy all post Heavensward content. It's the main class I really love but its so confusing, and really discouraging me from even attempting to move past Heavensward. Please be kind if you respond. I'm not trying to hate on the Summoner class, I just want to be able to get a basic understanding until I can get reacquainted with it through questing, and experience. Any help would be deeply appreciated. :)

So Here is what you do:

1. before a fight, Precast Ruin III/Tri-disaster (for AOE) to get into combat (If you are lvl 70 or above you can skip to next step though its not necessary)
2. Hit Dreadwyrm Trance/Firebird Trance
3. Spam Astral Impulse, (Purple Bahamut button for Single target, Green Bahamut button for AOE) and use your oGCDs (Energy Drain, Festers, Ahkmorn and Deathflare) /// Same transfers to Phoenix, Dark red for Single target, Orange for AOE
4. Once you end trance, use a egi summon (Topaz/Titan, Emerald/Garuda, Ruby/Ifirt)
5. Use your recolored Ruin III/Tri-disatser spells, called Gemshine/Precious Brilliance Till you run out of charges for the egi (4 charges for Titan and Garuda, 2 for Ifrit)
5a. The charges and current egi can be seen on your Job gauge, hence the crystals
6. Repeat step 5 untill you used each egi once. Use your Ruin IV from energy drain when you best see fit but not during a egi window, Cast Ruin III untill Trance is off CD
7. Start at step 2

Basicly you summon Demi, then 3 egis, them Demi again. filling any empty space with Ruin III & IV, Use energy drain off CD, and if possible save festers for your Searing light windows which should line up with bahamut pendin on SPS.

Note, Carby is just a cheerleader now who gives a shield, for now.

Thank you so much! I will write this down, and give this a try. I really appreciate you putting into steps, and making it simple enough to understand.

Eventually (Lv86) you'll gain Favors for each elemental summon and will need to add those new actions to your rotation: a two GCD instant gap closer and follow up for Ifrit, a GCD AoE puddle for Garuda, and four woven oGCD attacks for Titan. At that point, your filler Ruin IIIs will drop from 4/min down to just 1/min.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JacobNewblood

Use your Ruin IV from energy drain when you best see fit but not during a egi window, Cast Ruin III untill Trance is off CD

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Ruin IV during a Demi summon is a loss, but it's okay to use Ruin IV for movement during an elemental summon (most likely Ifrit, since Garuda and Titan both use instant Gemshine/Brilliance anyway).

For working on leveling jobs and not being at level cap (where all recent/relevant guides seem aimed), or even at current expansion, I've been taking a peek at this site, which offers a convenient slider to select your levels to see how rotations evolve as you progress. Although, perhaps in this case mildly misleading, the way it appears to suggest using Summons consecutively, could maybe be clearer about using the attuned Ruins between Summons..

SMN's been trimmed a lot, to mixed reviews. Lost a lot of complexity. But, many argue, actually feels like what you might expect from a Summoner now. It's fairly straightforward, once you see how the pieces fit together.

Start by summoning Carbuncle.

1. Press Aethercharge / Deadwyrm Trance / Summon Bahamut / Summon Phoenix. It's the same ability but will have one of those names depending on your level.

2. Ruin will turn into a new attack with no cast time, imbued with the attack of that summon. Just spam that 1 button and you're good.

3. Enkindle Bahamut (turns into Enkindle Phoenix when Phoenix is active). Press this when available too.

4. Astral Flow turns into Deathflare or Rekindle. Press this when available too.

5. After Bahamut or Phoenix runs out, 3 abilities become available to you.
Summon Ruby / Summon Ifrit / Summon Ifrit II
Summon Topaz / Summon Titan / Summon Titan II
Summon Emerald / Summon Garuda / Summon Garuda II
You can press them in any order, so choose one.

6. After choosing one, Gemshine becomes imbued with the element of that summon. Spam that 1 button.

7. After choosing one, Astral Flow, which you used earlier, gets imbued with a special attack from that summon. Use that too.

8. Cycle through the other 2 summons, then repeat from the beginning.

There is an aoe version of all these abilities (Tri-disaster and Precious Brilliance) and there is Energy Drain into Fester and Ruin IV, but you can ignore these at first until you grasp the above things. It's a braindead job that just cycles through each primal spamming 1 or 2 buttons that are imbued with an element, mostly.

But I do find it fun.