Summoner (R&R) and other summon-focused PrCs

drnuncheon

Explorer
Does anyone out there have experience with the Summoner from Relics & Rituals? How do you think the class rates in terms of balance? TOo good, weak, just right?

Also, are there any other summon-focused PrCs out there? I think the Arcane Negotiator from Path of Magic - could someone sum up that class for me? (no rules text, just an overview)

Anyone know of any others?

Thanks!

J
 

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gfunk said:
The Alienist from Tome and Blood is a good summoner class in the Call of Cthulu style.

Not quite what the player is looking for in this case, I'm afraid - something a little more heroic, a little less ooky.

J
 

A player in my game plays a character by the name of Collin who has taken the Summoner prestige class. In general, I'd classify it as high power. That free "domain" summon that you can apply a free bonus metamagic feat (such as twin or maximize) to AND summons from the next highest summon list is devastating (if somewhat time consuming to cast).

If you can handle 10 lantern archons doing 20d6 damage per round via touch attacks to your dragon, then you should be good. If this sounds like too much to you, it might be too big for your game.

Edit: You can read about some of the feats of summoning that Collin has pulled off by following the link in my sig.
 
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(if somewhat time consuming to cast).

It isn't time consuming if they choose Quicken Spell as the feat they can add for free.

I made the main Wyst Summoner in Speaker In Dreams a member of this class and the ability to cast a quickened Summon Monster V was definitely rough on the party.
 

That's also a good possibility. Though with Collin, it works better to use the twin spell feat prior to the encounter, then send the troops in, then follow up as necessary. :( :)

But for an NPC, I could definately see how Quicken would be right up there. :)
 

There's a really cool Summoner Prestige class in Path of Magic. A Wizard in a game I'm playing in is aiming towards it.
 

Summoner is incredibly powerful. I have designed smacks dealing thousands of damage at level 12 with that class. If your PC manages to get that class and combine it with the summoning PrD he will be unstoppable.

Btw - the best summoners will always be clerics. They can take alignment domains increase the caster level of the summon spells that are of that type netting +2 caster level (and with the summoning domain double their caster level), and they have access to spells such as bless, prayer, recitation, and Righteous Wrath of the Faithful (I think that is the name of it - the one where all of your devout allies gain an extra partial action - stackable with haste!!! - and bonuses to hit and damage).

Picture a 5th level cleric with law and good domains who progresses in summoner class until he can get to the contemplative so at level 11 he will be Clr 5/Summoner5/Contemplative 1

His effective caster level when casting summon spells (including the planar ally spells) is 26. Use all the 4th, 5th, and 6th level spells slots (as well as the 7th granted by the summoner class) to summon lantern archons (the 7th would be an empowered 5th level). That's ~ 13 spells (assuming high Wis) each taking a full round which yields ~24 lantern archons. Better yet, have your sorcerer cohort cast haste on you, him and every one of your cohorts (=26 hastes, will at least be able to cast 19 automatically, lets assume he has a few scrolls to finish the job). So you are both at 13 rounds of actions. Finally you cast bless and recitation. Your archons meanwhile were all aiding themselves. You took the augment summoning feat (bringing your feat total to 3 so far) so each of your little archons has additional hp, and att/dmg bonus. All at once your archons teleport to your enemy (w/o) error each getting 2 shots in (from the hastes) netting 26d6+104 total damage possible with touch attacks at +7 to hit. lets assume they hit 75% of the time and do average damage. That means 146 damage. That was just the surprise round. Let's go ahead and make this a smack. Lantern archons have II so let's say that roughly 50% of themwill win initiative next round (assume enemy also has some initiative bonus). Now those that win initiative get 3 attacks adding in an additional 110 damage That certainly gets you into smackdown territory. And this is only at level 11. Moreover, and more importantly, this damage is done in 7.5 dmg increments that ignores damage resistance. So that's ~ 34 7.5 dmg dealings to distribute however the archons see fit that cannot be reduced by any means.

Add in Divine Disciple to be able to telepathically communicate with any summoned creature and the other 5 levels of summoner and this character is literally unstoppable. He just sits in his fortress summoning his little lantern pets to teleport thousands of miles if need be to dispatch his foes.
 
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Crothian said:
There's a really cool Summoner Prestige class in Path of Magic. A Wizard in a game I'm playing in is aiming towards it.

Yeah, I finally noticed that there was a Summoner as well as an Arcane Negotiator. What's the difference?

Gaiden - the PC in question is a sorcerer, so I'm not worried about the Summoning domain. And for a combo that takes 15 rounds to do, it seems pretty low on the damage scale.

I can see that the protection from... spells would be very valuable to an enemy though.
 

In the massive hardcover adventure necropolis there is a really cool evil summoner prestige class. I only read it in the store so I can't give you a description, but I liked it a lot.
 

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