[NobleNick]

Originally posted by Aerich: ...I tend to view all summons, with the exception of the druid's shamblers, as mobile and expendable meat shields/distractors. They're great for taking the attention of archers and spellcasters, but don't expect them to kill a whole lot. I'm not fond of all the illusionist school monster summoning spells, as they have less than the full allotment of HP (but do full damage). It makes them less effective for what I want my summons to do.

Agreed with Aerich: The Monster Summon is mostly a defensive tool; but an excellent one. Although each of these cute little guys has a life span of about 1 **hit** (for Monster Summoning I), as a group they can delay melee contact for about 2 rounds, which can make all the difference. These meat shields can also be used as part of an offensive plot: to bunch up foes in a spell (e.g. Fireball or Skull Trap) killing zone.

One shining example of offensively packed summons is the Bard's Berserkers: Anything that doe not require enchanted weapons to hit is toast. And if a monster does take enchanted weapons to hit? The Berserkers still make excellent meat shields.

@Aerich: With the very effective Berserkers on call, I have not paid attention to the Druid's summons. Now that I have heard that the Berserker's kills do not give the party XP, I think I'll pay more atention to what the Druid has to offer.

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What's a party,
without a song?
Bards ROCK!
Party On!!