Summoner rework is a huge dissapointment

[Bookkeepper]

I started playing the game midway through Shadowbringers. I chose to start as Arcanist, because I love the idea of being a spell caster, and the healer/dps split intrigued me. I ended up absolutely loving summoner - I was proud to call it my main class.

Then came the rework. At first, I was excited. Things were different! There was a whole new rotation to learn! And then I slowly realized I wasn't having fun anymore. There's no resource to build/spend, so the path to maximum DPS is to simply dump all your damage as fast as possible. No nuance, no sense of reward. My carbuncle only stares at me, its blank, unfeeling eyes silently asking me why it even exists. I press the buttons with the glowing border. I run around the battlefield, slinging spells - wait, what is THAT? Oh, it's my cast bar. I almost forgot I had one. Which arcanum do I use next? Doesn't matter - I must use all of them, as quickly as possible, so I am ready for my next bahamut/firebird phase.

I start with garuda. Instant cast 4 emerald-flavored Ruins. Then, slipstream, a long cast, but it's also got a secondary effect so I am rewarded if I time it so the target stays still. But I can't hold it for later; neither can I afford to delay it, since both are a damage loss. I could re-order the arcanum so I time it right! Except I can only move that window by roughly 15s or 30s - and ONLY by those amounts, because anything in between means cutting short ifrit or titan, and that ALSO is a damage loss. So I sigh and cast Slipstream anyways.
Titan. Everything is instant cast. I get to weave an oGCD. A good time for movement, because outside of this I have...let's see...three spells with a cast time. Oh. So really there is nothing that makes Titan stand out. A roughly 15 second phase where I can move and use oGCD can also describe Bahamut with energy drain, or firebird with energy drain.
Ifrit. The gap closer is so much fun to use! Except I almost never get to use it. What normally happens is I tap Crimson Cyclone and scoot forwards about 2 inches because I'm already right next to the boss from the last Crimson Cyclone and I didn't need to move away. If there's a mechanic where I do need to move towards the boss, though, I can align my whole rotation around getting Ifrit at the right time so I can dash forwards...or I can just walk there normally at any other point in my rotation. It's not like I have a cast time to worry about.

Ruin IV...might as well be a third stack of aetherflow, because realistically I'm going to weave it alongside Fester.

The new summoner just feels...empty. I can't stand to play it as my main anymore because it gets boring so, so quickly. I guess I just wanted to say goodbye to what used to be my favorite class. On the bright side, the rework convinced me to main scholar, and I'm really enjoying being a healer! I've had a great time leveling astrologian and sage, too.

[Grimoire-M]

I can feel aveyond-dreams already preparing the obligatory WoWlock comparison post.

[Silly_Rabbit]

I disagree i love rework. While i would agree that it need's some additions but base is solid and fun.

[Vainbaal]

I agree with OP, the job feels unfinished and rushed to meet the deadline of the Job Action Trailer, since there was no mention of a job rework until they showed off the new actions. Taking a look at what Summoner has, the Raiding Rotation is near complete at level 22, since you have the Aethercharge (teaches to RuinIII spam in Bahamut/Red Bahamut) you have your 3 Summons (Ruby, Topaz, Emerald) all that is missing is Ruin IV, Searing Light, and the Astral Flow + Enkindle Buttons. Which all of these skill buttons are just a press once and done abilities and does not require any skill to blend into the main core rotation. It does not leave a good feeling when you know that the Job you Main can be reduced to a 1 button macro.

As for all this "Good Base" statements there is no "Base" for Summoner right now. A base would indicate that more Unique Action/Spells can be added into the job, however given how tight the rotation is already not really much outside of OGCs or Button Swaps (IE. Ruin III > Ruin V) can or will be given to Summoner in 7.0, and that does not fit the definition of adding in new skills. A Base also suggests that there are layers of complexity built within the job that requires the players to put in effort to master. And within Summoner right now there is no such complexity just situational differences on when to use what and that is more requiring knowledge of a fight which all jobs are required to have in order to clear, rather than it being an in-depth execution of skill.

This is why I am hoping for some form of rework (and announcing it ahead this time) in place to fix the underlying issues. Of course, it will not be till 7.0 for a full rework and will have to deal with job action adjustments till then in the 6.X patches. To note I am not saying Summoner needs to go back to the DoT style of 5.X (even though it was fun to play), but I would appreciate a bit of complexity like the other casters (BLM has Juggling the timer and thunder procs /RDM does mathematic additions with Black and White mana pools +proc management, and both have skill resources [ie. Acceleration and Sharpcast] to manage). It can be as simple as having the elemental magics play off each other causing different effects or even empower Bahamut granting Flare Breath(Ifrit), Earthshaker(Titan), and Tempest Wing(Garuda). Summoner could use a bit more in the thematic department as well. As FFXIV claims a Summoner to be "A Mage that commands a biddable Avatar of the Primals." So, with the Primal/Egi just jumping in for a single hit and leaving does not fully fit to what FFXIV defined as a Summoner, even if it meets with past Final Fantasy Summoner Job actions.

At the end of the day, I just want to see Summoner to be more than just a Casual Job and offer a wider range of experiences for players for those who want to master it in difficult content.

[MrJPtheAssassin]

snip

Personally, I don't want them to do a completely new rework for smn just because I have really have no faith they nail it down even with another rework. I rather they continue to work on this version of smn and make it feel more compete and rewarding. I like the core idea of using different summons thought out the rotation and rather see them improve upon those systems. That is the reason I say this smn has a decent base, I think it does have the potential of being better and having more. But hey if you rather see them throw everything out the window and start over so be it but I can tell you, you most likely be disappointed again with another whole rework since they will most likely just rush that one also. I think it is better for them to set up a base and continue work on it moving forward, kinda like they did with mnk in the middle of ShB and you see how that is working out. Also, remember smn HAD to be reworked since as Yoshi p said old smn was at a breaking point bc of old systems. So who knows this smn could be just a placeholder so they can continue to work on making it better. Am I happy with this smn overall? No, I do wish it had more flexibility and had more decision making but I still think it's a decent place to start. Only time will tell where smn goes from here.

[rewd]

*shuffles cards*

DoTs are never coming back. If you want to be a Warlock, please show your enthusiasm to the devs for a new caster job in 7.0.

[Sequora]

SMN has its issues, but it’s astounding how many posts have been made, especially with the job being more popular than its ever been.

[IruruCece]

SMN has its issues, but it’s astounding how many posts have been made, especially with the job being more popular than its ever been.

It's not very astounding if you consider that flashbang dopamine sucks rocks in its current state.

[Rolder50]

It's not very astounding if you consider that flashbang dopamine sucks rocks in its current state.

Minor correction. The theme itself is fine and it's fun for about two dungeons. Then the new job smell wears off and you realize you've been hitting the same two buttons for the last 20 hours and you realize there's no depth and drop it.

[Mondschnee]

SMN has its issues, but it’s astounding how many posts have been made, especially with the job being more popular than its ever been.

Many people are still leveling SMN because it's considered a "new" job and they wanna try it out. Just because they're playing it doesn't mean they're happy with it. Even I still play it but am I happy? Not really.
It's by no means representative, but in the forums I've been in, quite some people ended up disappointed with the rework upon reaching level cap, for various reasons.

Personally I agree with OP's post 100 %. The new SMN lacks flexibility, depth and buildup. I really hope something can be done about it, and hopefully not only in 2 years :/