INTRODUCTION: WHAT IS SUMMON MAGIC? WHY DID IT NEED ITS OWN KODE PAGE?
PART 1: RULES OF SUMMONING
PART 2: THE EIDOLONS

v1.0, last updated 2/22/13

RECENT UPDATES:
2/22/13: Here it is. Summoner underwent a major overhaul, and is now quite unique -- and quite complex, so I made this thingy.

INTRODUCTION: WHAT IS SUMMON MAGIC? WHY DID IT NEED ITS OWN KODE PAGE?
Like so many of the other job classes, the Summoner comes directly from the Final Fantasy series. Its skillset is called Summon Magic, and consists of a number of different creatures it can summon. If you've played pretty much any Final Fantasy, you're probably familiar with most of them: Ifrit, Shiva, and so on. I also included a few summons from non-Final Fantasy sources, because I could. Anyway, summon magic was pretty simple: you'd summon a monster, and it would launch a powerful attack against all enemies, like summon magic in pretty much any Final Fantasy game from 3 to 9. (A few summons had other uses, but mostly it was damage.

But as time went on, summon magic became less useful. The system change in 2006 powered down a lot of multitarget attacks, to the point where summon magic was of questionable use except against large groups. Other magic-using classes outshone it; the only reason to play a summoner was to get access to its very useful non-offensive summons. Which is nice, but it left the skillset with a lot of dead weight, especially on a job class that was supposed to be good at offense.

Thus, in 2013, an idea was proposed to make summon magic more like newer Final Fantasy games: instead of having a monster appear briefly to throw one crappy attack, they would actually join battle, receive turns, have their own stats and skills, and generally be more useful. (Also I decided to use the term "Eidolons" for the monsters themselves, a term that appears in Final Fantasy 9 and the more recent remakes of Final Fantasy 4.) However, such a gimmicky system would have to have a lot of rules and notes in place to prevent any confusion -- or any game-breaking. And I didn't wanna clog up the main Kode with a huge list of those rules. Furthermore, I wanted a place to detail the summon monsters' stats and skills, for easy reference. There's already a precedent for a whole Kode side-page dedicated to a single job class (NetNavi), so I decided I might as well do one for Summoner too.

And so, here we go.

PART 1: RULES OF SUMMONING

With most classes, you get a turn, you use a move, something happens, and that's the end of it until your next turn. Summon Magic is a little trickier, so we had to make this entire Kode section to see how it works. So... let's see how it works! (By the way, I'll use the term "Summoner" a lot, but unless otherwise specified, this also applies if you have Summon Magic as your secondary.)

Okay, so! You have a turn, and you decide to summon an Eidolon. You pay the MP cost, and then you disappear from play, receiving both MIA and Stop status. This is a special kind of MIA, too; you can't be Warped back by a time mage, and you also can't be hit by moves or hazards that would normally hit MIA fighters. The Stop status is to ensure that you come back with the same CT you had when you used the summon spell.

So you disappear from the battlefield, and the Eidolon appears in battle, with its own stats (as seen further down in this document). Its CT is immediately set to 100, so it will receive its turn immediately (or almost immediately). The Eidolon will remain in play for a total of three turns; after the third turn, the Eidolon disappears and the summoner returns to play. The Eidolon's turns are taken by the summoner; it responds only to the summoner's commands. It is player-controlled, not ref-controlled.

Each Eidolon has exactly three skills (not counting Eidolon Dismissal, which we'll get to in a bit). There's an offensive skill and a defensive skill, both of which are pretty straightforward. (Some of them have MP costs listed, but Eidolons have infinite MP so this is not an issue for them.) The third skill listed is the Eidolon's signature move, and it's usually pretty powerful, be it offensive or defensive. However, signature moves require some charging: low-tier Eidolons require 4 ticks for their signature moves, mid-tier Eidolons require 5 ticks, and the strongest Eidolons take 6 ticks to perform their signature moves. Furthermore, once an Eidolon has performed its signature move, it immediately disappears from play and the summoner returns to the battlefield, even if it hasn't had three turns yet. If it IS the third turn, the Eidolon remains in play until the move goes off, and it disappears afterward. It's up to you whether you want to perform the signature move immediately upon summoning (which minimizes risk to the Eidolon and gets you results fairly quickly) or keep it around a while first to help out with its other moves.

I mention risk to the Eidolon because they do have HP values and you do need to keep an eye on them. If your Eidolon runs out of HP, you die as well: the summon ends immediately, you are returned to the battlefield and your HP immediately goes to 0. So don't let your Eidolons die on you. Even if you are revived, you won't be able to summon that Eidolon again.

Of course, Eidolons have much higher HP than regular player characters, so they won't die easily, and they are immune to instant-death effects. However, they also can't be healed in battle. Further, Eidolons are immune to all status effects -- both good and bad. You don't have to worry about losing an Eidolon's turns to Paralysis, but you can't try to protect it from enemies with an Aura or the like. So status immunity is kind of a double-edged sword. The one status Eidolons can receive is Adrenaline Rush, which we'll get to. Eidolons also cannot have their stats or skills affected by items; for instance, you wouldn't want to give a materia to an Eidolon.

When an Eidolon leaves play, it doesn't recover its HP... well, not right away. For every turn the summoner receives, any inactive Eidolons recover 100 HP; that becomes 150 HP if you use Wait, and 200 if you use Idle. However, this only applies to turns received by the summoner himself; an Eidolon won't heal if another Eidolon is out.

When an Eidolon receives a turn, you can dismiss it early; the Eidolon leaves the field and the summoner returns immediately. This is a good way to save an Eidolon who's taken a beating, or if you just want to summon a different Eidolon or even use a secondary skill (or a primary skill, if Summon Magic is your secondary). This appears in all the Eidolons' skillsets as "Eidolon Dismissal". Normally, the summoner returns with low CT, so it's basically a lost turn and only advisable in emergencies. However, there is a support skill called Dimensional Tactician; with this skill, when you dismiss an Eidolon early, your own CT is raised to 100 and you get a turn pretty much immediately. That turn may not be used to summon another Eidolon, but it's better than losing the turn entirely. The Summoner job class has this skill by default; if you want these free turns in some other job class, you need to bring Summon Magic secondary as well as the Dimensional Tactician support skill.

I mentioned that there is one status change that Eidolons can receive. Summoners and Eidolons share an adrenaline gauge; if a summoner has 50 Adrenaline and summons Shiva, Shiva will spawn with 50 Adrenaline. Eidolons receive Adrenaline normally, they can receive Adrenaline Rush and perform double-power attacks. The summon spell itself may NOT be Rushed; a summoner can't cast Rush Bahamut, but if you summon Bahamut, it inherits your Rush and it can cast Mega Flare at double power. On a similar note, summon magic is incompatible with EX Attack.

Speaking of status changes, a summoner will be immediately cured of Poison, Regen, Seizure, and/or Morph when summoning an Eidolon, so your HP/MP will not change while you're out of play. Other status changes will time out normally while you're gone. Do beware of Death Sentence; you can succumb to a Death Sentence mid-summon, and when you die, your summon will end abruptly.

An Eidolon may use its final turn (including signature moves) to boost its summoner with support moves, such as healing and status effects. Therefore, the summoner himself can reap the benefits of moves like Healing Horn or Kekkai En.

If multiple fighters have access to summon magic, they each get their own set of Eidolons. You can even have two of the same Eidolon in play (they will be marked with the summoner's name or initials so you can tell them apart).

Summon Magic users have a special bond with Eidolons; job classes which use their allies' skills cannot use summon magic unless they have the skillset. Amnesiacs can use the Eidolons' skills, but not the summon magic itself (which is marked !Am); the same goes for Mimics.

The Call Script ability appears in the Summon Magic skillset, but it is not an Eidolon; it's a standard "get a turn, do a thing" skill, and none of the above rules apply to it. As such, it's a nice option for your instant turn if you use Dimensional Tactician. And it doesn't cost any MP, either!

Well... that's a lot of rules and notes. However, it's not so bad once you get used to it after a battle or two! So let's move on to the Eidolons themselves, and see what they're capable of...

PART 2: THE EIDOLONS

The Eidolons come in three "tiers". The strongest Eidolons, with the strongest moves, are "high-tier"... they have some powerful effects, but they have less HP and speed than weaker Eidolons, and their signature moves require more charging. The more powerful the Eidolon, the more careful you have to be. We'll start at the low tier and work our way up.

The horned Eidolon of blazing fire, this demon engulfs enemies in the flames of Hell itself.

HP: 350 SPEED: 12
ATK: 85 DEF: 65
MATK: 85 MDEF: 50
ACC: 60 EVADE: 55

Meteorite Spike: Punches a flaming rock at up to two enemies, dealing 2x fire-elemental physical damage.
Burning Strength: Imbues up to two targets with fiery passion, giving Attack Up status. (12 MP)
Hellfire: A fiery dash attack engulfs all enemies in Ifrit's signature inferno. 40 MP worth of damage, requires 4 ticks of charging. (40 MP, !Rf)

A beautiful female Eidolon, known as the queen of ice. Her attacks are mystifying, but deadly.

HP: 350 SPEED: 12
ATK: 50 DEF: 50
MATK: 90 MDEF: 75
ACC: 50 EVADE: 55

Hypothermia: A blast of cold air stings all enemies for 15 MP worth of ice-elemental damage, with a 50% chance per target to cause Sleep status. (28 MP, !Rf)
Crystalline: Erects a shimmering icy barrier, giving Magic Defense Up status to up to three targets. (18 MP)
Diamond Dust: Chill all enemies to the bone, as Shiva impales them in a shower of icy blades. 40 MP worth of damage, requires 4 ticks of charging. (40 MP, !Rf)

Just a crotchety old man? Hardly. This Eidolon carries a staff that discharges powerful thunderbolts.

HP: 350 SPEED: 12
ATK: 50 DEF: 50
MATK: 95 MDEF: 60
ACC: 50 EVADE: 50

Gigavolt: Blasts one enemy with a massive thunder blast, dealing magic damage. (33 MP)
Power Infusion: Up to two targets begin crackling with magical energy, and get Magic Attack Up status. (12 MP)
Judgment Bolt: Rains down pain from on high, as Ramuh showers all enemies with powerful lightning. 40 MP worth of damage, requires 4 ticks of charging. (40 MP, !Rf)

An Eidolon with powerful fists and a sturdy body, who invokes the rage of the earth to devastate foes.

HP: 350 SPEED: 12
ATK: 90 DEF: 70
MATK: 80 MDEF: 50
ACC: 60 EVADE: 55

Tremor: Punches the ground, creating a shockwave to attack all enemies. Deals earth-elemental physical damage.
Stone Skin: Imbues up to three targets with the earth's resilience, giving Defense Up status. (18 MP)
Gaia's Wrath: Titan leaps into the air, landing with enough force to cause a massive earthquake on all enemies. 40 MP worth of damage, requires 4 ticks of charging. (40 MP, !Rf)

Tiny, gentle Eidolons that resemble fairies. Their true power is unleashed when many of them attack as one.

HP: 350 SPEED: 12
ATK: 50 DEF: 50
MATK: 80 MDEF: 55
ACC: 50 EVADE: 60

Wind Gust: One target is caught in a whirlwind, taking wind-elemental damage. They are tossed about, and land with scrambled CT (random from 0 to 99). (18 MP)
Sylvan Speed: Enables up to two targets to run like the wind with the quickness of a fairy; add Haste status. (11 MP)
Whispering Wind: Many Sylphs band together, riding the winds to attack one enemy for magic damage. Damage cannot exceed the target's current HP, and half of the damage is absorbed by all allies. Requires 4 ticks of charging. (25 MP, !Rf)

A massive Eidolon made of rocks, who protects others from harm with his own impressive body.

HP: 300 SPEED: 11
ATK: 90 DEF: 75
MATK: 50 MDEF: 50
ACC: 65 EVADE: 60

Rocky Kick: A kick hurts, sure... but if the creature kicking you was made out of heavy rocks? 2x damage, with a 20% chance to reset CT.
Steady Hand: Grants single-minded focus to up to three targets, giving Accuracy Up status. (15 MP)
Earthen Wall: Protects the entire party from harm with Golem's rocky body. All physical damage is cut in half for 11 ticks. Requires 5 ticks of charging. (26 MP, !Rf)

A small blue Eidolon whose power comes from the ruby in its forehead. It protects others from magic attacks.

HP: 300 SPEED: 11
ATK: 50 DEF: 50
MATK: 50 MDEF: 75
ACC: 50 EVADE: 65

Ruby Laser: A bright red laser beam pierces the target, dealing 60 HP damage. (16 MP)
Ruby Illusion: Creates illusory copies of up to three targets, adding Evade Up status. (15 MP)
Ruby Light: Protects the entire party with the reflective glow from Carbuncle's ruby. All magic damage is cut in half for 11 ticks. Requires 5 ticks of charging. (26 MP, !Rf)

A holy Eidolon resembling a horse. Its pure horn has the power to heal and refresh allies.

HP: 300 SPEED: 11
ATK: 70 DEF: 50
MATK: 70 MDEF: 65
ACC: 60 EVADE: 60

Holy Light: A hybrid horn attack that hits one target for physical damage, then generates a bright white explosion that hits all enemies for 10 MP worth of holy-elemental magic damage. (14 MP, !Rf)
Tranquility: Gives up to two targets the ability to stay calm and relaxed, because you're not worried about status ailments. Adds Safeguard status. (24 MP)
Healing Horn: Purifying light from Unicorn's horn restores HP to the entire party (12 MP worth of healing), removing status ailments as well. Requires 5 ticks of charging. (30 MP, !Rf)

A being of many talents, including those of an Eidolon. She controls massive magic power, using wild surges to turn the tide of battle.

HP: 300 SPEED: 11
ATK: 50 DEF: 50
MATK: 90 MDEF: 55
ACC: 50 EVADE: 55

Shadow Bomb: Bombards an enemy with dark energies from beyond the void, dealing massive amounts of magic damage and causing a wild surge. (45 MP)
Chaotic Heal: Taps into forbidden energy to heal the injuries of the entire party. 20 MP worth of healing, but it causes a wild surge. (35 MP)
Quadra-Surge: Alters the battle using Surge's infamous unpredictability. Four wild surges are spawned on a selected target or targets; caster chooses one or more to go off (but must choose at least one). Requires 5 ticks of charging. (19 MP, !Rf)

One of the strongest Eidolons out there, the Lord of All Waters is a large serpent who wields a massive tsunami as proof of his power.

HP: 250 SPEED: 10
ATK: 85 DEF: 60
MATK: 85 MDEF: 60
ACC: 60 EVADE: 60

Dive: Submerge, then reappear below one target with a powerful attack. Deals 2x water-elemental physical damage, and ignores defense.
Cleansing Waters: Uses pure water to soothe allies' wounds (10 MP worth of healing). (17 MP)
Tidal Wave: A giant tsunami crashes and devastates foes, showing the full power of Leviathan's waters. 50 MP worth of damage, requires 6 ticks of charging. (50 MP, !Rf)

This Eidolon was once a ninja, and eventually became a flame dragon. He specializes in creating powerful barriers.

HP: 250 SPEED: 10
ATK: 80 DEF: 65
MATK: 50 MDEF: 65
ACC: 50 EVADE: 50

Dragon Rush: A full-body attack on one target, with a very large and scaly body. Deals 3x physical damage, but has 75% as much accuracy as a regular attack.
Sneaky Stealth: Utilizes the power of the shadows to protect people from their foes. One selected target receives Vanish status; another receives Shadow status. (29 MP)
Kekkai En: A flame shield protects the team courtesy of Madoka, the Barrier King. All allies receive 30-HP auras. Requires 6 ticks of charging. (45 MP, !Rf)

Generally regarded as the strongest Eidolon there is, the king of dragons breathes destruction... literally.

HP: 250 SPEED: 10
ATK: 65 DEF: 65
MATK: 90 MDEF: 65
ACC: 65 EVADE: 65

Nuke: A short, but brutal attack that simply cannot be survived by the weak. Magic damage to one target, ignoring the critical rule. (35 MP)
Dragon's Favor: Increases your offensive prowess with gifts from the lord of all dragons. Two targets (repeats OK) have Atk and MAtk increased by 10. (20 MP)
Mega Flare: Bahamut's sheer destructive prowess is on display as he exhales a giant, exploding laser beam at all enemies. 60 MP worth of damage, ignoring defense; requires 6 ticks of charging. (60 MP, !Rf)

This Eidolon appears to be a large, blazing bird. Its gentle flame raises those who have fallen in combat.

HP: 250 SPEED: 10
ATK: 50 DEF: 50
MATK: 85 MDEF: 70
ACC: 50 EVADE: 65

Fire Ball: Shoots two fireballs at selected targets, dealing 20 MP worth of fire-elemental damage. (20 MP)
Phoenix Feather: Even better than a Phoenix Down, but nearly impossible to come by, up to two of these are given out. The targets receive Auto-Life status.
Flames of Rebirth: Phoenix's flames carry the mystical ability to raise the fallen. All KO'ed allies are brought back with full HP. Requires 6 ticks of charging. (64 MP, !Rf)

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