Summoned creature psychology

[Gez]

Hush!

I was just saying that there's already that. There's conjuring spells for each idea already.
"Bringing a reluctant creature and making it do something": planar binding
"Bringing in a willing creature and making amends for the trouble": planar ally
"Making the creature out of thin air": astral construct

It leaves us with summon monster and summon nature's ally, which can imitate one of the other, or work a unique way.

 

[Zappo]

I had to face a similar problem while playing a LG sorcerer. I had summon monstered a bunch of Bralani celestials, and I sent them to a certain death against a creature they could hardly annoy (think sentient sphere of annihilation) in order to slow it down and allow for a friend to escape. Actually, I wasn't even sure that they would have slowed it down, and the guy was likely to be fine anyway. Suicidal order for very little benefit, basically.

This got me a couple of comments on my alignment, to which I answered: "They are summoned creatures, not conjured ones. They cannot die, they only go back to their plane. And they have been disintegrated, so they didn't even suffer. I didn't enjoy doing it, but I certainly don't feel guilty about it. I will send to certain death a million summoned celestials before risking the loss of a friend". That character really doesn't like taking chances.

Sticking to the PHB, summoned creatures are physically and really there, but instead of dying they return home. This means that they feel pain, but that's it. IMO, even a good character should feel justified in giving them suicidal orders, except in very strange circumstances. Putting them through pain for nothing is certainly evil, but as long as there is a good reason there should be no problem.

What do they think about it? Intelligent outsiders probably know about the possibility of being summoned, and know that they aren't really risking anything permanent. Celestials will be fine with getting "killed" or even suffering for a good cause. As paragons of good, they are ready to sacrifice their real lives for Good, so what's a bit of pain? I expect that they need very little justification. They will never like being used for selfish or evil purposes, but again I think that to them, pain and a virtual "death" are secondary to the purpose.

Fiends will not be so enthusiast; being extremely egoist they'll not want to suffer, no matter the reason. Maybe, just maybe, a Lawful fiend will accept that he has to suffer to further the plans his master. But who cares what a summoned fiend wants anyway? Whatever you do to him, he probably deserves it. Good characters won't enjoy putting them through needless pain, but they won't feel guilty either.

Low-intelligence outsiders, OTOH, are likely to have no idea of what's happening to them. They will be in total panic. They will be convinced that they are going to die. But they won't.

I think that there is no moral problem in using summoned creatures to do whatever you want. You may have a problem the moment you start to put them through pain or humiliation without a shade of necessity (more so for terrorized creatures that don't know they have nothing to fear, less so for fiends that deserve everything they get). You definitely have a problem if you enjoy doing this. But no good character would find himself in such a situation anyway.

 

[barsoomcore]

Hush!

You hush. I'm busy being pedantic and irritable.

 

[ph0rk]

I am reminded of the summoning done by the arcanist in our last campaign. Once epic, and for nor discernable reason, he got his hands (somehow) on the true name for one very unremarkable goblin.

This goblin was then summoned to 'test' virtually every visible trap or pit or lake of acid the party encountered. We named him lucky.

The funny part is, the arcanist was an arcane trickster with max ranks in search and disable device

 

[Particle_Man]

On reading the title of this thread, I was siezed with the idea of a group of beings elsewhere in the cosmos, penning up creatures in a massive farm that sits at the intersection of various mystical ley lines. All summoned creatures originate from this place, and the keepers of the beasts capture the psychic anguish that the animals feel upon being "killed" and trade it to other strange beings. Kind of like Liquid Pain from the BoVD.

Y'know, I had that idea with respect to the special mounts that Paladins can get that is sort of like your idea (well, except for the anguish, and feeding off of it/trading it. I was thinking more of a nice hobby farm on the Celestial Planes. Maybe it would be more accurate to say my idea is sorta not like your idea). I had not extended it to other critters, though.

 

[MacMathan]

This thread reminds me of the poor hapless Hound Archon IMC. Now it is almost always summoned to fight evil but it is usually a BBEG so poor Hound only lasts a couple of rounds. We have made a running joke that it is the same Archone every time and he feels beset by his penance to serve us I mean if I was sent to my death on such a regular basis I might be wondering why I was on the good guys side at all.

 

[kigmatzomat]

In the game I run, I have all Summon Monsters summon an extra-planar servitor while Nature's Ally calls on the archetype of the given animal (aka a totem spirit of some fashion). Non-sentient servitors generally have all the powers and less of the personality in most cases. I assume the clerical variants' servitors wander around their god's demense while the arcane casters, ummm, borrow the divine types using various words of Power they are compelled to obey without question. (Basically, they been hacked)

What gets interesting is that the sentient creatures use their own priorities when given broad orders. A summoned Lantern Archon sent against the party detected, shouted "Evil!" in a high pitched voice, and began zapping the rogue (the only evil creature in the party). Not given any other orders, the archon was happy to continue blasting away at the rogue, who was getting mighty unhappy at the continuous nuisance pain. (It's now a running gag "Let loose the archons of heaven and cry 'Evil!")

By the same token, a demon will go for a paladin or cleric of good over an evil or neutral character, as long as there's no specific risk involved in attacking them over anyone else. Evil summoned creatures are more likely to go after the weak (or weak appearing) opponents unless specifically directed.

Summoning something and yelling "help us!" gets real interesting with the more powerful monsters.

On an unrelated aspect, anyone have names for groups of summoned creatures? We have constellations of archons, storms of arrow hawks, and boatloads of celestial dire bears (How many dire bears does it take to capsize a boat? Usually just the one)