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Your thoughts on Summoner
Alright, SMN seems like a pretty hot topic. And this is the big o' thread for it. To start things off, let's take a look at a quote concerning SMN.
http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?pa...=3&cId=3148759
That seems like a good idea right? Lowering perpetuation cost for avatars. But then I started thinking about it...
Bahamut's Staff or a HQ Elemental Staff (Apollo's Staff) reduces the cost by 3.
Penance Robe reduces the cost by 2.
Nashira Gages reduces the cost by 1.
Evoker's Ring reduces the cost by 1.
Evoker's pigaches +1 reduces the cost by 1.
And that's some of the basic equipment for lowering the cost. Summoner's Doublet and Summoner's Horn can also reduce the cost by 3 each, but they are dependant on day/weather conditions. And let's not forget about Carbuncle Mitts.
So not counting those last two Summoner pieces or the mitts, it adds up to -6. Factor in SMN's auto-refresh and throw in a Yagudo drink for Refresh +3. Heck you can already get a free Carby even without the mitts. Fenrir would only be 2mp/tick, the other avatars would be 4mp/tick. And again, this isn't even counting Summoner's Doublet or Summoner's Horn. At higher level, SMN can do just fine.
But let's look at that again, "at higher level" SMN can do just fine.
See now, there's your problem. It's not the avatar's perpetuation cost, it's the lack of equipment to do anything about it at lower levels. Sure, there's Carbuncle Mitts, but you have to defeat a lvl 70 NM to get them... But what about the Dragon Staff? Oh right, you have to win against The Wyrmking Descends... Honestly, unless you did these before with a higher job or could get some people to help you with these, you're not going to get anything to help you with the perpetuation cost until you reach lvl 50.
So, there are two things I have thought of to help with this. One or the other could work. The first would be an Exclusive item that could be an additional reward to the lvl 20 solo avatar fights. For example, "Ifrit's Ring. Ifrit perpetuation cost -1. Lv. 20 SMN" There would be one for each of the six elemental avatars.
And as much as I like that idea, I know it would be a pain for SMNs to carry six rings around with them. So I came up with an alternative idea. It would be an enchantment item, probably similar to the Mana Cloak except the enchantment would be "Avatar perpetuation cost -1" (The item should be either a cloak, gloves, or a ring. And the lvl requirement could be 21+). I don't know if it should be a normal store item though.
So there's a thought from me. But remember, there's more to discuss than just what I've been talking about. Like for example, how do you feel about not having Bahamut summonable? Do you think the SMN group two merits are worth it, or should they be made into normal Blood Pacts and give us new merits? Are the Astral Flow Blood Pacts worth it at higher levels or should they be changed?
SUMMONER: One observation the development team has noticed has been the tendency of Summoners to only cast an avatar when they need a specific spell (i.e. Aerial Armor), and then to release them. The team would like the Summoner to leave the avatars out longer. To achieve this it's considering giving the Summoner more MP, although in reality a lower perpetuation cost might be more effective. The duration of Summoner-derived party buffs will depend -- finally -- on the level of a Summoner's summoning magic skill. The FFXI team is planning to add more abilities for avatars. There are no plans to add Bahamut as an avatar. The reason for this is because if the developers were to add Bahamut as a summonable avatar, they would have to reduce his strength considerably, and the team didn't want to do that. New avatars will, however, be added in the future.
That seems like a good idea right? Lowering perpetuation cost for avatars. But then I started thinking about it...
Bahamut's Staff or a HQ Elemental Staff (Apollo's Staff) reduces the cost by 3.
Penance Robe reduces the cost by 2.
Nashira Gages reduces the cost by 1.
Evoker's Ring reduces the cost by 1.
Evoker's pigaches +1 reduces the cost by 1.
And that's some of the basic equipment for lowering the cost. Summoner's Doublet and Summoner's Horn can also reduce the cost by 3 each, but they are dependant on day/weather conditions. And let's not forget about Carbuncle Mitts.
So not counting those last two Summoner pieces or the mitts, it adds up to -6. Factor in SMN's auto-refresh and throw in a Yagudo drink for Refresh +3. Heck you can already get a free Carby even without the mitts. Fenrir would only be 2mp/tick, the other avatars would be 4mp/tick. And again, this isn't even counting Summoner's Doublet or Summoner's Horn. At higher level, SMN can do just fine.
But let's look at that again, "at higher level" SMN can do just fine.
See now, there's your problem. It's not the avatar's perpetuation cost, it's the lack of equipment to do anything about it at lower levels. Sure, there's Carbuncle Mitts, but you have to defeat a lvl 70 NM to get them... But what about the Dragon Staff? Oh right, you have to win against The Wyrmking Descends... Honestly, unless you did these before with a higher job or could get some people to help you with these, you're not going to get anything to help you with the perpetuation cost until you reach lvl 50.
So, there are two things I have thought of to help with this. One or the other could work. The first would be an Exclusive item that could be an additional reward to the lvl 20 solo avatar fights. For example, "Ifrit's Ring. Ifrit perpetuation cost -1. Lv. 20 SMN" There would be one for each of the six elemental avatars.
And as much as I like that idea, I know it would be a pain for SMNs to carry six rings around with them. So I came up with an alternative idea. It would be an enchantment item, probably similar to the Mana Cloak except the enchantment would be "Avatar perpetuation cost -1" (The item should be either a cloak, gloves, or a ring. And the lvl requirement could be 21+). I don't know if it should be a normal store item though.
So there's a thought from me. But remember, there's more to discuss than just what I've been talking about. Like for example, how do you feel about not having Bahamut summonable? Do you think the SMN group two merits are worth it, or should they be made into normal Blood Pacts and give us new merits? Are the Astral Flow Blood Pacts worth it at higher levels or should they be changed?
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