Summoner tips?

[Ryuko]

My rotation for a single target mob is:

Bio II > Miasma > Thunder > Bio > Fester > filler (usually Ruin except for the occasional Ruin II for blind) > refresh DoTs as needed, repeat.

The reason I use Thunder before Bio is because I figure if I'm going to have to wait on the GCD anyway, I'd rather the Thunder+Bio be 'closer' together in time left. (Since Thunder takes time to cast and Bio is instant, if you cast Bio first, Thunder will be a few seconds behind.) Please note, Thunder deals damage and also adds a DoT effect. Bio is simply a DoT, so the effects are comparable even if you are waiting for Thunder to cast.

If you are in a rush to cast Fester right away, you can always follow the typical "Bio II > Miasma > Bio" pattern others have listed, but keep in mind that if you use Fester on cooldown without using any other charges, you will still need to wait for Aetherflow to come back up before being able to Fester again... So doing it my way is never 'wasted' DPS. This is just personal preference, so it's really up to you... I thought I'd give you insight into why I do it this way, though.

For the pet... Unless you want to save your Enkindle for a strategic time, I generally pop all pet cooldowns (Rouse+Spur, followed by Enkindle) at the start of a boss fight to get the recast timers rolling right away for maximum DPS. If you are fighting a boss like Titan, you'll want to save this combination of abilities for the Heart... but you CAN pop Rouse periodically since the cooldown is so short... and you should. Feel it out.

For adds, I will get my DoTs up and Bane them to other targets before throwing Shadow Flare down. The reason I do this is because I want to give the tank time to position the mobs before throwing down a ground AoE. Also, I don't think Shadow Flare DPS is as important as the ticks of all the other DoTs going off first. If your tank is well-equipped and skilled, they will be able to handle this. If not, go easy on the DPS and throw down Shadowflare to buy you some time before spreading all DoTs.

You can also run up and Miasma II the mobs after Shadow Flare if you so choose, pulling out the maximum amount of DoTs you can. It costs a decent amount of mana, but mana really isn't an issue while killing trash. If there are a LOT of mobs, Tri-Disaster is sensible, but only if there are a LOT... otherwise single-target nuke until you need to refresh/spread DoTs again. When refreshing DoTs, always refresh and spread the DoTs from a target with high HP. If you choose a target with low HP, you might not get to spread before the target dies... wasted time

Kevee's comment above reminded me of this...

Note: whether you are casting Bane or Fester, you must wait a split second after your last DoT is up (usually Bio) before using the ability... because if you do it TOO soon, that DoT won't count in your DoT spread or you won't be able to get the max DPS from Fester. It's silly and frustrating but you'll get used to it.

[Spythe]

My rotation for a single target mob is:

Bio II > Miasma > Thunder > Bio > Fester > filler (usually Ruin except for the occasional Ruin II for blind) > refresh DoTs as needed, repeat.
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This person knows what he/she is talking about, that is my exact same rotation. Just switched from my MNK(wasted myths getting him +1) to my SMN and loving the class a lot more. It kinda sad that people thought SMN had bad DPS just a few weeks ago. With a Gurada wep v my MNK +1 and darklight I'm pretty sure they pull about the same DPS. Fester is just plan amazing, Bane/Shadow Fury, Misama gives SMN insane AOE dmg, DOTs/Pet DMG give them great single target DPS and knowing while you move you're still doing dmg AND you still have Ruin II to toss out. Great class and well designed by SE

A good rule of thumb is never cast Bio by itself, it should always followed by a casted spell unless its trash or adds but even then a Thunder to a Bio works really nicely since Thunder does some initial dmg. Has anyone found a reason to ever use Ifit over Garada? She seems to be the best with a little pet control and has a godly 4th ability.

[Kevee]

A good rule of thumb is never cast Bio by itself, it should always followed by a casted spell

There's no reason to ever think/do this.

Always start Bio II -> Miasma -> Bio.

Always.

Period.

There is no reason to delay Bio, and subsequently Fester/Bane and the next Aetherflow.



What do you think you're gaining by doing Thunder->Bio and not Bio->Thunder? You're still applying 1 DoT/GCD and they're the same total potency, but doing Bio first allows you to use other abilities sooner.

I don't want to activate Aetherflow in advance because you are full MP at the start? I use it as a mana restore, and Energy drain to keep my mana in check. Why would I want to activate it when my Mp is full and it does not boost my dams at all?

You activate Aetherflow in advance so you have 3 stacks at the beginning of the fight.

[NekoTheCat]

As a Bard that decided to roll summoner as an off-class for our coil group that's up to turn 5, I've been gearing it up, Going from what Kevee has been saying for a Rotation I can already see how what he/she says is optimal for GCD min-maxing, Did Ifrit with Full Demagogue with HQ level 49 Jewelry and a Grand Company level 50 Summoning book, against a Semi-Darklight summoner with a Normal relic, I set him to focus target to see how he would play, he opens with Thunder before bio wasting GCD's and being inconsistent with his Rotations by refreshing too early, I managed to out DPS him by a full 100k, and even replaying the fight back to watch EVERY cast he did in order, All in all I find it a serious DPS loss to waste GCD opportunities.

TLDR, Ask yourself, if someone is claiming their Rotation is superior, give it a try instead of being stubborn

Edit: I've played Summoner at level 50 for less then 5hours practicing Kevee's Rotation as he/she is a well known Summoner.

[Kevee]

Going from what Kevee has been saying for a Rotation I can already see how what he/she says is optimal for GCD min-maxing,

And like I said in the post, that's the general safe way to get all your timers working.

If you want to min/max further you can move around the ruin/ruin II during RS if you know you have time to cast everything, you can use one of the pet CDs earlier(during the first Bio), etc. That's something I need to work on doing, but generally in a fight like Titan or Turn 2 of Coil, I'm fine with executing the general rotation. That's my current issue is that I have put that general starting rotation into my "muscle memory," even though I know in some circumstances I can move the abilities around to get 1-2 extra DoT ticks.

I accept there are improvements to be made. In some instances, it's also better to Swiftcast Shadowflare as it shaves ~.5s off total time. There's little things you can do to improve.

Edit: And something to note if you're pushing timers. Bio/Bio II have animation lag. Roughly .5-1s after the cast/finished cast. Miasma is near-instant after the cast, and Thunder has travel time, but is near-instant to the projectile hitting. There is a delay between when a debuff completely drops off, and when you can re-apply it. It seems to be a ~.5s window of sorts. If miasma is dropping off(say, from RS), you want to start casting in between the 1-2s timer of DoT left on the mob. Bio II you can start casting end of ~2s on timer. Remember, when it says 2 is left on the timer, that is anywhere from 2.99~s to 2s left.

[Spythe]

There's no reason to ever think/do this.

Always start Bio II -> Miasma -> Bio.

Always.

Period.

There is no reason to delay Bio, and subsequently Fester/Bane and the next Aetherflow.

Because doing Thunder to a Bio makes the timer line up perfectly instead of having Bio ending before Thunder. You can do Bio after Miasma then a Thunder to a Fester but at that point its only a 2-3s difference in getting the fester off quicker. I just like the Thunder being linked to Bio which may be a personally preference but it just makes the job play smoother imo. Whenever I have to recast Bio Thunder always comes first, it just easier for me to keep track of dots that way, the other way I found I was forgetting to cast Thunder sometimes which is a must. You can get off to Fester before you have to reply apply Miasma/Bio again, I also manually control my Garuda so pushing the dots 15s is never an issue.

[Kevee]

snip

Well if it's a personal issue/preference, that's fine.

You even acknowledge the time difference.

Have my LIKE.

[Spythe]

Well if it's a personal issue/preference, that's fine.

You even acknowledge the time difference.

Have my LIKE.

Thanks for the like and I only been playing a SMN at 50 for a day so still getting use to it may change up the rotation later down the line. What do you suggest for adds that don't have much life? Full row of dots to a fester or half dots to ruin spam?

[Kevee]

snip

Can you give an example of low-HP adds?

Only thing I can think of is Garuda, and for that(if you even kill the feathers), you should have a higher timer so you can Bane right as they spawn.

Maybe the first boss in AK? Bane the DoTs on the Golems if you can, if you can't Thunder-> Miasma -> Ruin Spam. Make sure to use OBEY so your pet helps.

Demon Wall? Should be able to Bane on to the Gnats. If not(and if you have a melee LBing one of them since you don't have enough DPS to ignore them), Obey your pet on to the one that is being LB'd on, start putting your full DoTs on the other.

For last boss of AK I always tell whoever else is in the party to ignore the add, as it's best for SMN to take care of it(full rotation of DoTs), as we will still have DoTs rolling on the boss anyways.