Subbing SMN A Viable Idea?

With the addition of several pieces of gear for GEO that offer the possibility of maximum avatar perpetuation reduction (3 pieces of Hagondes set would do it) I started to theorycraft a bit. I'm assuming that the buff timer durations are based on the summoners level, so 49 SMN would require +30 Summoning Magic Skill in gear to cap their durations due to having 150 base skill.

30s Base Duration Buffs - 1min cap
Crimson Howl - AoE Warcry

60s Base Duration Buffs - 2min cap
Rolling Thunder - AoE Enthunder

90s Base Duration Buffs - 3min cap
Hastega - AoE Haste
Glittering Ruby - AoE Random stat+
Lightning Armor - AoE Shock Spikes
Frost Armor - AoE Ice Spikes
Aerial Armor - AoE Blink

180s Base Duration Buffs - already capped
Noctoshield - AoE Phalanx
Ecliptic Growl - AoE Stats +
Shining Ruby - AoE Protect/Shell effect

Other Useful Abilities
Earthen Ward - AoE Stoneskin (15min)
Spring Water - AoE Heal & a -na/Erase effect
Whispering Wind - AoE heal
Healing Ruby - Single Target Heal

ItemSet 318431

Plenty of ways to cap buff timers for GEO, mix and match any of the above for 30 skill. There are other pieces that offer less in each slot as well.

Blood Pact timer delay pieces are the main issue here with only the magavan slops being available for -2s. Likely you'll only see yourself cycling 3 buffs.

I could see starting out with buffing with Earthen Ward then cycling Hastega, Ecliptic Growl and Warcry for your party if going all out attacks. Hastega is amazing in MP conservation. You can Haste 6 people for 129MP, it would take 240MP to Haste a full party otherwise. It lasts for the same duration and gives the same 15% as the spell Haste.

Noctoshield, Shining Ruby, Earthen Ward would probably be ideal for going all out defense on fights where surviving is your primary focus. Various other buffs/heals used as needed.

For fights that deal damage that is spread out amongst targets keeping an avatar out would greatly help the party as well. I'm talking about moves such as 1,000 Needles. For perpetuation, you have a large array of possibilities. Easiest way would be to augment any 3 pieces of the Hagondes set with -5 each.

While this is intended mainly for GEO this could still be applied to SCH and RDM with a few differences; SCH wouldn't need to use Earthen Ward for example.

So what do you think, would it be worth a consideration in some fights now?

Can you even have a summon out with the luopan? I think that one is a pet too.

Oh shoot... I'll run out of town and check. Hadn't even thought of that :(

Edit: Nope... Can't have a pet out while a luopan is present. So you wouldn't be able to make use of the additional reduction with 1k Needles type moves but you could still buff the party in between luopans.

No

They should all be at the capped durations you listed.

Regardless, something like Stoneskin's potency is based on the sub level, so it's going to be weak; that and the heals.

Some of it might be useful, but only once per minute; it isn't that much gain from a sub job, and very expensive on your already strained MP.

I guess it will just depend on what other sub job options you have. Red Mage for Refresh is kind of good and hard to pass up, etc.

http://wiki.ffxiclopedia.org/wiki/Blood_Pact:_Ward

^ I was using that for the buff durations. If you have under 300 skill you have hard caps. The durations are only increased as you go over the SMN's current skill cap. So a 49 summoner would have 150 skill, requiring 180 skill to reach hard caps I believe.

Should get 148 Stoneskin if Titan's level is = to your SMN level. If it's = to your main job level it should be 248. Still not as good as a /SCH Accession Stoneskin obviously but it does help.

It may be once per minute but the bulk of the abilities last for 3 minutes so you could effectively keep up and cycle 3 of your choice as the situation demands.

You also get naturally higher MP and Auto-Refresh as well as saving yourself or someone else's MP and time with Hastega at least.

Hastega would be the only one really worthwhile as it hits everyone so 4~6 people at once for 3min.

There is no scenario for GEO that /SMN is optimal, because:

-GEO is typically never in a party where it can make effective use of these buffs.

-Assuming 1 GEO in an alliance, you will be making use of offensive indi spells, to which you would want the defensive capabilities /RDM offers, among other things.

-Assuming 2 GEO's in an alliance, and we assume only one GEO is utilizing offensive Indi spells. Having the other sub a standard support mage (ideally WHM for -na/erase) to support the front-line GEO and/or nuke/enfeeble will offer greater use than /SMN. To substantiate this point: see point 1.