A more summonery Summoner

[pandabearcat]

In most FF games summons were actually far worse than actually doing pretty much anything else.

So...if thats what people want, then whomp whomp.

Storyline wise there have been a few summoners but they were always tragic heroes that had to go die or were maidens in distress or what not (Terra is a slight exception, but not really).

Not many guy summoners.

Also also, summons were mostly used to tank in later FF games (10 and later) and in many they were just bad, bad. Flashy, but bad.

So I'm not sure why anyone would want that. Flashier graphics? Sure I'm all for it, except until you realize you can't see any void zones. Being more egi-focused? Hell no.

And there isn't a summoner in the series who isn't just as powerful or more so doing things other than summoning.

[SoloWingMetatron]

In most FF games summons were actually far worse than actually doing pretty much anything else.

Storyline wise there have been a few summoners but they were always tragic heroes that had to go die or were maidens in distress or what not (Terra is a slight exception, but not really).

And there isn't a summoner in the series who isn't just as powerful or more so doing things other than summoning.

Well I must stress that I love the FFXIV's SMN as it is! It is the only job I really play and without it I'm not sure I would play FFXIV at all to be honest. I love the Bahamut Trance and I love the fact we will be getting more Egi via glamour. I just hope the Egi AI is improved to be more responsive.

However in terms of SMN throughout FF as a whole, about half of the main series titles have had a SMN job, so in fact there has been quite a number of SMN's.

Also in regards to the actual Summons being worse as far as damage goes, I disagree to some extent. FFX and FFXII in particular allowed for very strong Summons, in FFX you could customize their stats and break their damage limits so they can be just as powerful as any other ability in the game. It's all just a case of preference. As for FFXII there were a number of optional Summons that were actually stronger than the final boss and with their signature move you could take him out as well as any other boss super easy. Spin off FF titles such as Tactics also gave Summons a worthwhile use.

Furthermore in regards to the SMN/Summons in the story of FF titles, the Summons have almost always been important to the story in some way and have always been depicted as deity like entities. In FFIV we had Rydia who hails from a secret "special" land of SMN's, in FFVI we had Terra who's father was a Summon! Giving her special abilities like having a Summon form as well as a plot point where she struggles with her identity as a Summon hybrid. In FFIX both Dagger and Eiko hail from yet again a legendary "special" land of SMN's, and throughout a number of points in the story we see the Summons lay waste to towns and cities (Bahamut, Atomos) We also see a scene where Dagger and Eiko save the day with Alexander (Holy Judgment) All of these were major plot points. In FFX we see Yuna a SMN who must go on a pilgrimage acquiring her Summons through a series of trials so she can ultimately acquire the Final Aeon and defeat Sin. Which was believed to be the only way to defeat Sin and save the world. FFX was all about SMN's...

I would also like to point out that Terra was a strong character, so not sure what your "but not really" remark refers to. Also Yuna was not a tragic hero as she never died, she went all the way and defeated Sin and came out of it alive!

But all of that is just semantics as the fact still remains that SMN/Summons are one of FF's biggest icons, always have been since FFIII onwards and always will be.