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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Celebrim" data-source="post: 5511749" data-attributes="member: 4937">I have two basic problems with the Summon Monster spells:1) They are mechanically time consuming.  I treat this as a table/game problem and only weakly as an in game problem.   Mostly all I want is a requirement that the summoner have a stat block for the creatures he's summoning ready ahead of time (much as I require any spellcaster to have the spell description available at the beginning of his turn if he wishes to cast it).   Provided he does that, I'm very flexible with what is allowed to be summoned; axomatic, anarchic, elemental templated, and the like are all fine just so long as you have everything ready and don't expect me to work out the math on the fly or to call a time out while you do so.The only reason I might limit it further is because I like the idea of spellcasters having strong themes.   However, at least for Wizards, I would make it easy to evade those themes if they really wanted to.   However, that's just ideas I'm toying with, and nothing I've bothered to implement.2) At low levels, the duration of the spell is too short to make them worth the effort (compared to color spray, sleep, etc.).  I address this by giving the spells a duration of 4 rounds + 1/caster level.   I'm ok with the uglier math.  I also have various summoner boosting feats for those that want to go that route; one of them allows a summoner to turn the duration of a the Summon Monster spells to Concentration which lets you walk around with your pet until you need it.Most of your concerns seem syntactic rather than semantic.  You are concerned with how the spell is described and its underlying flavor in the game and less with what it does.  I would suggest that the best way to address your own concerns is improve or change the descriptions of the spells, and not alter greatly the mechanical effects of the spells.As for what 'Nature's Summoning' does, in my game it summons a being from the spirit world, which takes on animal form temporarily to assist the Shaman.  If its material form is destroyed, the spirit certainly suffers pain, discomfort, and inconvienance, but it doesn't die.As for where my concerns overlap yours, my only real concern with the spell is the fact that it puts intelligent beings in the position of doing things that they would not do.  It hasn't ever came up, but if you want an evil deed performed, summon an evil being because I'll be tempted to flat out refuse to have good beings knowingly commit evil acts whether summored or not.   And vica versa, evil summoned creatures shouldn't be forced to advance the cause of good.   The unstated assumption of the spell is that the being wants to help the caster; otherwise, the spells would work like the Calling spells do.</blockquote>

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