I'm glad to hear experienced SMN's throwing their two cents in about how to perform well. I think in the DoT heavy classes, it's easy to write off that dmg, but if you manage to stack enough, it sounds you ultimately keep up with just about any melee dps + your egi on the field.

SMN has always been my favorite conceptually, but I think I'll level CNJ/WHM after I'm done with GLD/PLD for tank-healer utility w/ things and just to see people set up better strategies like the ones mentioned here. Thanks for the info!