Overview
Summoner (SMN) is a Disciple of Magic job unlockable at level 30 as an upgrade from the Arcanist class and is a Magical Ranged DPS job. The two jobs branching off Arcanist were the only ones added at the release of A Realm Reborn.This was due to the need to be able to form a full party of eight players each with unique jobs. FINAL FANTASY XIV Letter from the Producer LIVE Part VII (Youtube).
Unlock and Guild Information
- Guild: The Arcanists' Guild is in the city of Limsa Lominsa.
- Guild: Arcanists must choose to specialize into summoner (or scholar) once they reach level 30, and complete the quests Sylph-management and Sinking Doesmaga.
Equipment
The summoner is a disciple of magic and wears armor and accessories "of Casting." They use grimoires as weapons. Prior to level 50, Arcanist, Summoner, and Scholar all share the same weapons with few exceptions.
History and Lore
Origins and the Allagan Legacy
The modern art of summoning finds its dark roots in the ancient Allagan Empire. The Allagans were the first to systematically study, capture, and weaponize primals, a practice epitomized by their creation of the dreaded Dalamud, an orbital prison for the elder primal Bahamut. While the empire fell, records of their techniques survived in fragments. The Summoner's soul crystal is a relic of this era, containing the crystallized knowledge and aetheric patterns of Allagan primal binding.
For centuries, this knowledge was considered too dangerous to pursue. The act of summoning a primal traditionally requires immense faith, concentrated prayer, and a vast reservoir of aether—often in the form of crystals—typically leading to the creation of a fully autonomous, tempering entity. The Summoner's path is a radical departure from this.
The Modern Discipline
The breakthrough of modern Summoners was the realization that one need not create a new primal. By using the soul crystal as a focus, a practitioner can channel the concept of a primal whose aetheric signature has already been imprinted upon the world. The Summoner calls upon the "memory" of the primal, drawing forth its power and attributes without manifesting its full consciousness or will. This process requires immense scholarly discipline, aetherial control, and a strong will to avoid being influenced by the primal's residual nature.
A Summoner is, at their core, a scholar of the arcane and the historical. They must deeply understand the nature, history, and elemental alignment of the primal they wish to channel. This makes the job a natural evolution for an Arcanist, who is already trained in geometric magic, aetherial manipulation, and scholarly research. The Summoner turns this academic prowess toward the most dangerous subjects imaginable, mastering them to protect others from their kind.
The Primals of the Summoner
The core trio of a Summoner's arsenal are the primals of the beast tribes encountered early in the Warrior of Light's journey:
- Garuda (The Lady of the Vortex): Channeling Garuda grants the Summoner swift, wind-aspected spells and enhanced mobility, reflecting the primal's swift and merciless nature.
- Titan (The Lord of Crags): The essence of Titan provides sturdy, earth-aspected magic that offers moments of stability and potent, focused damage, mirroring the primal's defensive and relentless power.
- Ifrit (The Lord of the Inferno): Ifrit's fire is channeled into devastating, cast-time spells that deliver immense burst damage, embodying the primal's raw, destructive fury.
By mastering this elemental cycle, the Summoner builds towards their ultimate expressions of power: the Demi-Summons. These are semi-autonomous, scaled manifestations of legendary beings.
- Demi-Bahamut: Channeling the dread wyrm of the Allagan Empire, the Summoner calls forth a spectral, miniature version of Bahamut that executes a devastating astral flare.
- Demi-Phoenix: Following the cycle of destruction and rebirth, the Summoner can later channel the essence of the primal Phoenix, which heals allies while bathing enemies in cleansing, fiery light.
Current Mechanics
- Job Gauge: Aetherflow & Trance Gauge
Trivia
- The Summoner's original incarnation, from A Realm Reborn through Shadowbringers, was a complex job focused on managing multiple Damage-over-Time spells and pet commands for Ifrit-Egi, Titan-Egi, and Garuda-Egi. The Endwalker rework simplified and unified this fantasy.
- The questline to unlock the Summoner job involves confronting the lingering trauma and memories of the Seventh Umbral Calamity, directly tying the job's mastery to overcoming the legacy of Bahamut.
- In PvP (Crystalline Conflict), the Summoner's gameplay is further condensed into a single, fluid gauge where using Ruin fills a meter to unleash primal abilities, culminating in a powerful summon like Demi-Bahamut or Demi-Phoenix.
- The job's aesthetic and ability names are deeply rooted in Final Fantasy series tradition, with "Demi-Bahamut" and "Akhmorn" (a reference to Akh Morn, Bahamut's signature attack) being classic summons and abilities.
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