Welcome
Hello! If you are reading this section, then you might be thinking on whether you should learn Summoner (SMN) as a job. Then you’ve come to the right place.
SMN is a job that is relatively easy to learn and forgiving to new players. It offers high damage and utility through raise and is typically a highly sought after job in end game content.
Getting to the level cap can take a while especially if you are starting from scratch. However don’t be disheartened! Enjoy the journey. It can be exciting learning a new job, however, take your time and pace yourself with learning how the job plays.
Do not worry about elements of the SMN rotation further down the line until you have the pieces of the puzzle readily available to interact with. It will make much better sense when all the tools are present.
Levels 1-29
Lv. 1-29 Opener
- Hardcast
Miasma - Cast
Bio then use 
Energy Drain into 
Fester - Hardcast
Ruin - Cast
Egi Assault into Fester - Hardcast Ruins
Lv. 1-29 Quick Rotation Goals
- Keep Bio and Miasma on long lived targets at all times
- Keep Energy Drain on cooldown. Spend Aetherflow stacks on Fester
- Ensure that
Emerald Carbuncle/Garuda is summoned - Use Egi Assault to weave and keep one charge on cooldown
- Cast Ruin when you have nothing else to do for that GCD
Lv. 1-29 Rotation
Early on you will not have many abilities available to you. However, some of the core SMN abilities will be available from the very beginning.
Your primary goal at this level is to keep your Bio and Miasma damage over time effects (DoTs) on your target at all times.
If your target will not live for a very long time it is better to cast Ruin and avoid using DoTs.
At Lv. 10, you will unlock Egi Assault. This instant cast spell allows you to deal damage while moving and weave Energy Drain.
Energy Drain is one of our core abilities and grants us two stacks of Aetherflow. These function as ammunition for Aetherflow abilities and can be spent freely. They are not linked to any other job mechanic.
Try to keep your Energy Drain ability on cooldown at all times in order to maximise the number of uses you get.
Be sure to use all your Aetherflow stacks before using another Energy Drain to avoid overwriting your stacks.
At Lv. 26 your Bio will be replaced by 
Bio II. It is a straight potency upgrade and functions the same.
Pet Usage
The choice of which pet you should use will depend on what’s currently available to you at a specific level as well as multi-target (AoE) vs. single target priorities.
As you first begin leveling from Lv. 1 to 15, only Emerald Carbuncle will be available to you to be used.
On reaching Lv. 15, 
Topaz Carbuncle will become available. At this point use:
- Topaz for single target damage situations
- Emerald for AoE damage situations
Levels 30-39
Lv. 30-39 Opener
- Hardcast Miasma
- Cast Bio II then use Energy Drain into Fester
- Hardcast Ruin
- Cast Egi Assault into Fester
- Hardcast Ruins
Lv. 30-39 Quick Rotation Goals
- Keep Bio II and Miasma on long lived targets at all times.
- Use
Bane to spread DoTs in multitarget situations - Keep Energy Drain on cooldown
- Spend Aetherflow stacks on Fester
- Look for AoE opportunities to use Bane and
Energy Siphon where applicable - Use Egi Assault to weave oGCDs
- Cast Ruin when you have nothing else to do for that GCD
Lv. 30-39 Rotation
While you level through this next section your rotation will be nearly identical to the initial rotation you performed in the previous section.
You will receive a few added abilities, however, with Bane and Energy Siphon unlocking during this section.
Both of these oGCDs will begin to provide some AoE damage potential to your rotation, with Bane allowing you to spread your DoTs to any additional targets within an 8y radius.
Energy Siphon is the AoE equivalent skill to Energy Drain and should only be used at 3+ targets.
On reaching Lv. 38, you will unlock 
Ruin II which will be your instant cast GCD.
As Ruin II can be used on demand, this will become your primary option for oGCD weaving when Egi Assault charges are not available, as well as maintaining GCD uptime if you’re required to move.
Pet Usage
As you finish your Lv. 30 and 35 job quests you will gain access to your 3rd pet 
Summon III with 
Ifrit-Egi, as well as your Topaz Carbuncle transforming into 
Titan-Egi.
During this leveling section Ifrit-Egi will become your primary pet option, even in cases of small count AoE (3 or less targets). This is because the Egi transformations are significantly stronger compared to the early Carbuncles.
Levels 40-49
Lv. 40-49 Opener
- Hardcast Miasma
- Cast Bio II then use Energy Drain into Fester
- Hardcast Ruin
- Cast Egi Assault into Fester
- Cast
Egi Assault II - Hardcast Ruins
Lv. 40-49 AoE Rotation
- Have
Garuda-Egi summoned - Hardcast Miasma
- Cast Bio II then use Bane
- Hardcast
Outburst - Cast Egi Assault II then use Energy Siphon
- Hardcast Outburst
- Hardcast Outburst
- Cast Egi Assault II
Lv. 40-49 Quick Rotation Goals
- Keep Bio II and Miasma on long lived targets at all times.
- Use Bane to spread DoTs to additional nearby targets
Keep Energy Drain on cooldown
- Spend Aetherflow stacks on Fester
- Look for AoE opportunities to use Bane, Energy Siphon and Outburst where applicable
- Use Egi Assault and Egi Assault II to weave oGCDs, Egi Assault II may also be prioritised for AoE damage opportunities
- Cast Ruin when you have nothing else to do for that GCD
Lv. 40-49 Rotation
During this leveling section the changes to rotation concepts will be mainly focused with AoE damage in mind.
On reaching Lv. 40, you will gain access to Outburst, which will become your “filler” GCD during AoE rotations.
We will also gain Egi Assault II to use our Egi’s 2nd ability.
For single target, Egi Assault II will be prioritised the same as Egi Assault for oGCD weaving and movement.
For AoE prioritise its use to hit as many targets where possible.
Pet Changes
Upon completing the Lv. 45 job quest you will unlock your final Egi transformation with Garuda-Egi.
As Garuda-Egi will replace Emerald Carbuncle, you will now have a stronger pet for AoE situations, and from this point forward should be prioritised as such.
Levels 50-60
Pre Lv. 56 Opener
- Hardcast Miasma
- Cast Bio II then use Energy Drain into Fester
- Hardcast
Ruin III - Cast Egi Assault into Fester then
Enkindle - Cast Egi Assault II
- Hardcast Ruin IIIs
Lv. 58+ Opener
- Cast Egi Assault into
Tri-disaster then 
Dreadwyrm Trance - Cast Egi Assault II into Energy Drain
- Cast Ruin III
- Cast Ruin III into Fester then Enkindle
- Cast Ruin III
- Cast Ruin III into Fester
- Cast Ruin III
DWT AoE Example - Lv. 58+
- Have Garuda-Egi summoned
- Cast Egi Assault II into Tri-disaster then Dreadwyrm Trance
- Cast Outburst into Energy Siphon then Bane
- Cast Egi Assault into
Painflare - Cast Outburst
- Cast Egi Assault II into Painflare
- Cast Outburst into
Deathflare
Lv. 50-60 Quick Rotation Goals
- Keep Bio II and Miasma on long lived targets at all times
- Use Tri-disaster instead of manual DoTs when available
- Keep Energy Drain, Dreadwyrm Trance and Enkindle on cooldown
- Look for AoE opportunities to use Bane, Painflare, Energy Siphon and Outburst where applicable
- Use Egi Assault and Egi Assault II to weave oGCDs and handle any movement requirements
- Cast Ruin III when you have nothing else to do for that GCD
- Cleave as many targets as possible with Deathflare
Lv. 50-60 Rotation
Starting at Lv. 50 you gain access to Enkindle.
Enkindle is your Egi’s signature ability and is best used on cooldown especially for multiple targets.
On reaching Lv. 52 you’ll gain access to Painflare.
Painflare is an AoE alternative to Fester that consumes one stack of Aetherflow and should be used when there are 3 or more targets.
Your next unlock at Lv. 54 will be Ruin III which is your upgraded replacement to Ruin.
At Lv. 56 you will gain Tri-disaster.
Tri-disaster is a skill that will become key to your rotation as it applies our DoTs instantly while also doing a decent bit of direct damage.
Its cooldown is reset by Trances, the first of which is Dreadwyrm Trance at Lv. 58.
Tri-disaster should be used as a priority when DoTs need to be refreshed and should be on cooldown before Dreadwyrm Trance is used to avoid losing Tri-disasters.
Dreadwyrm Trance should be used on cooldown. It comes with a bonus - spells cast while in Dreadwyrm Trance have their cast times reduced by 2.5s making most spells instant. This is very useful for mobility and oGCD weaving.
Your final ability unlocked at Lv. 60 will be Deathflare.
Deathflare is the finisher ability from Dreadwyrm Trance and will simply function as another high potency oGCD for both single target and AoE damage opportunities.
Levels 61-70
Lv. 64+ Opener
- Cast Egi Assault into Tri-disaster then Dreadwyrm Trance
- Cast Egi Assault II into Energy Drain then
Aetherpact - Cast Ruin III
- Cast Ruin III into Fester then Enkindle
- Cast Ruin III
- Cast Ruin III into Fester
- Cast Ruin III into Deathflare
Lv. 61-70 Quick Rotation Goals
- Keep
Bio III and 
Miasma III on long lived targets at all times - Use Tri-disaster instead of manual DoTs when available
- Make sure Tri-disaster is on cooldown when Dreadwyrm Trance is used
- Keep Energy Drain, Dreadwyrm Trance, Enkindle and
Devotion on cooldown - Look for AoE opportunities to use Bane, Painflare, Energy Siphon and Outburst where applicable
- Use Egi Assault and Egi Assault II to weave and keep one stack of Egi Assault on cooldown
- Attempt to minimise the number of instant casts used to cut down on Ruin II casts
- Cast Ruin III when you have nothing else to do for that GCD
Lv. 61-70 Rotation
At Lv. 62 you will gain another of SMN’s core job mechanics: Enhanced Ruin II.
Enhanced Ruin II grants you one stack of 
Ruin IV upon using Egi Assault.
One of the goals of endgame SMN gameplay is to cast as few Ruin IIs as possible by using Egi Assaults and Ruin IV to weave instead.
We will eventually stockpile up to a maximum of 4 Ruin IVs as they will be needed in the Bahamut window for weaving.
At Lv. 64 you will unlock Aetherpact, which commands your Egi to cast Devotion.
Devotion is SMN’s offensive party utility, granting a 15 second 5% damage buff on a 3 minute cooldown. At this point in time you should be looking to use it on cooldown while aiming to put as much potency as possible into the damage window.
At Lv. 66 and 68 you will gain Miasma III, Bio III, and the trait Enhanced Enkindle. The DoT upgrades are strictly potency upgrades and the Enhanced Enkindle trait lowers the cooldown of Enkindle from 3 minutes to 2 minutes. These changes will not affect your rotation much in practice but are nice to have.
On reaching Lv. 70 you will gain the ability 
Summon Bahamut to use 
Demi-Bahamut.
When Summon Bahamut is used your Egi will despawn with Demi-Bahamut taking its place for 20 seconds.
During this time, Demi-Bahamut will provide two different forms of damage:
- His
Wyrmwave (WW) “auto attack” which will proc upon each GCD spell you cast. Your goal is 8 WW - His “ultimate” attack from
Enkindle Bahamut, which will command Demi-Bahamut to cast 
Akh Morn
Like Deathflare, Akh Morn is a high potency attack that will also deal damage to enemies surrounding your primary target.
In order to use Summon Bahamut at this level you will be required to complete two Dreadwyrm Trances.
This means you will only be able to use Demi-Bahamut approximately once every 2 minutes.
Example Bahamut Rotation
- Use Summon Bahamut
- Cast Ruin IV into Enkindle Bahamut then Fester
- Cast Ruin IV
- Hardcast Ruin III
- Hardcast Ruin III
- Cast Ruin IV into Enkindle Bahamut
- Hardcast Ruin III
- Cast Ruin IV into Energy Drain then
Swiftcast - Cast Ruin III into Fester
Levels 70-79
Lv. 72+ Opener
- Cast Egi Assault into Tri-disaster then Dreadwyrm Trance
- Cast Egi Assault II into Energy Drain then Aetherpact
- Cast Egi Assault
- Cast Ruin III into Enkindle
- Cast Egi Assault II into Fester
- Cast Ruin III into Deathflare then Summon Bahamut
Lv. 70-79 Quick Rotation Goals
- Keep Bio III and Miasma III on long lived targets at all times
- Use Tri-disaster instead of manual DoTs when available
- Make sure Tri-disaster is on cooldown when Trances are used
- Cycle through Dreadwyrm Trance and
Firebird Trance. Keep them on cooldown - Keep Energy Drain, Enkindle and Devotion on cooldown
- Look for AoE opportunities to use Bane, Painflare, Energy Siphon and Outburst where applicable
- Use Egi Assault and Egi Assault II to weave oGCDs, build Ruin IV stacks and handle movement
- Save up to 4 Ruin IV stacks for weaving, movement and Demi-Bahamut phases
- Avoid overcapping on Ruin IV stacks
- Cast Ruin III when you have nothing else to do for that GCD
Lv. 70-79 Rotation
On reaching Lv. 72, we will gain two important tools that will finish shaping our rotation:
- Firebird Trance (FBT)
- Enhanced Dreadwyrm Trance II trait
FBT, like DWT, will provide the same benefits of cast time reductions and resetting your Tri-disaster.
It will also provide the use of unique GCDs that may only be used while in FBT:
Fountain of Fire
Brand of Purgatory
These GCDs will be alternated during the 20s duration of FBT, as casting Fountain of Fire will give you the Hellish Conduit buff which will “proc” Brand of Purgatory , thus performing a “1-2-1-2” combo repeatedly.
You should never cast any spell except these two while in FBT.
FBT GCDs
Fountain of Fire into Brand of Purgatory. Repeat this 4 times.
The Enhanced Dreadwyrm Trance II trait provides the 2 Dreadwyrm Aether required to use Demi-Bahamut after each DWT.
This with the addition of FBT will now complete rotation cycle that you will experience from now on and including Lv. 80.
As you perform this rotation cycle think of yourself performing a series of “mini phases”.
Rotation Phases
- Dreadwyrm Trance phase
- Demi-Bahamut phase
- Filler phase #1
- Firebird Trance phase
- Filler phase #2
- Looping back to the Dreadwyrm Trance phase
As each Trance cooldown comes up you will perform that specific Trance phase with Demi-Bahamut following after every Dreadwyrm Trance.
At Lv. 74 you will gain Enhanced Egi Assault as a trait.
This gives you Ruin IV charges for using Egi Assault II which will make it much easier for you to bank 4 Ruin IVs for Demi-Bahamut and avoid casting any Ruin IIs.
Be careful not to overcap on the maximum of 4 Ruin IV stacks.
At Lv. 76 and 78 Enhanced Outburst and Enhanced Bane are your respective traits. They offer a good boost to AoE damage.
Outburst receives a flat potency increase from Enhanced Outburst.
Enhanced Bane makes it so that Bane will always spread 30 second duration DoTs instead of the current remaining duration.
Once you reach Lv. 80, you will unlock your capstone ability for the expansion, originating from the Enhanced Firebird Trance trait.
With this trait your Firebird Trance will now summon 
Demi-Phoenix replacing your Egi for 20 seconds.
Like Demi-Bahamut, Demi-Phoenix has the same interactions also providing two forms of damage with some additional healing utility:
- His
Scarlet Flame (SF) “auto attack” which will also proc upon each GCD spell you cast. Your goal is 8 SF - His “ultimate” attack from
Enkindle Phoenix, which will command Demi-Phoenix to cast 
Revelation - His party wide
Everlasting Flight (EF) heal over time
With that, those are the last tools and improvements you will gain until you hit Lv. 80.
Congratulations on reading through this whole levelling up section - we hope that your leveling experience was fun and smooth!
If you wish to know more on how endgame Summoner plays, read on!