Why are summoners so neglected?

[Shurrikhan]

My issue with Dreadwyrm Trance is that while it looks cool, it's also VERY limiting in concept. It's really something that's clearly built without much room for growth, because the most you would add to it between the 60 and 70 level caps would be more powerful skills to take the place of Ruin 3 and Pain Flare once trance is up. Sure, we can go back to my earlier point about how Bahamut is the end all of summons, but that makes the idea of summoner sort of pointless if you have only one entity that actually counts (you might as well name the job "Dragon Caller" if you're going that route).

Agreed. Sadly, I haven't much to say you haven't already said. To me, the chaotic trance that comprises Bahamut should be due to the more essential or focused primal uses proceeding it, via the combination in those elements. At that point you have synergy/harmony vs. chaotics, where either can look really goddamn awesome.

Melee would get really crowded if you went that direction. At least Survival hunters are stationary, so even though they take extra space because of their pet, you don't have anyone shuffling from rear to flanks like we do here.

I'd be fine with that. I'm in no rush to see Beastmaster, and would honestly rather not see it at all than see something painfully shallow. In that time, we might be able to build up a few more ranged classes, leveling out that melee portion of the job-base. tl;dr: I'm already sad enough that RDM isn't a true hybrid melee/ranged/caster. He just looks like a ASTBLM to me with a thrown in, little-to-no synergy plunge/repel.

This would definitely necessitate splitting SCH and SMN completely, which I'm not opposed to.

I'm not opposed to it, either, necessarily, but I don't actually see why that would necessitate it either. SCH and SMN already each have unique AF-consuming actions. And if we can already add or remove effects just based on being in PvP, why would it be conceptually (I can't argue code here, as I don't have theirs to look at anyways) impossible to have one job add or subtract an effect or condition from a given action or buff or nerf another one (e.g. giving Spur an AF cost). Job traits seem like the only thing holding it back, as SMNs would otherwise have more means of AF generation.

You'd have to design content to require less movement or give SAM passive damage reduction/evasion when using animation-locked skills. And that has a ton of room for abuse. This wouldn't be like WoW Demon Hunters that have just an increased dodge chance on some of the more animated skills (and really, they have that because certain skill animations put them in front of the mob, where they'd get their faces crit off followed by a dirt nap).

That's what I'm saying though. We already know that SAM is going to have significant ani-lock that we're going to "have to be careful in using". That's been in the live letters. I'm just saying that as long as there's something to balance that out, that won't make the job, or even the idea of including ani-locks, conceptually flawed -- which, my best guess, will be an immediate heated complaint before people get used to it. As long as there's still enough control given, the ani-lock is irrelevant. (Similar to a sprinting caster staying in an AoE for longer before darting out. His being a caster doesn't utterly screw him over, because there's something to balance it.)