Summoning Stones: My new addiction!

wts 60 automaton gole summon tonic bshit!

60 mins time limit,
noty




or is it 30?

I must admit that I love the new summoning stones too.
For me it started with the imp. He helped make Charr farming in pre so much easier. But it isn't really the easy thing that I love. It's that they are a pet for all the cool creatures that you can't get a pets - and without needing a ranger secondary.

My favourite, the glacial summoning stone. I loved this monster (and I can't spell it's name), and now having one bounding along in my party - regardless of how long it lives or how useful it is - is a novelty I won't tire of any time soon.

And yes, I think we will see everlasting/perma forms of these stones at least from the zchest, and I'm not even sure we will have to wait for May. I would pay serious money for an everlasting glacial.

I look at them as I do consets, making the game more about cash and time spent instead of skill.

I havent used any for the same reason, and from what I have read and heard others say, theres also the issue of them not getting a slot on the party screen and the monks are having to "litterally" target the sommoned thing to keep it healed...unlike the rest of the party.
And I have also heard that the hero monks wont heal them at all unless you hit the skills for them on the summoned things.
So until that issue is proven wrong, or fixed...whichever the case may be, Im not wasting my money on them.
In the mean time, I hope everyone has a great time with them. I love the idea of them, and I do look forward to seeing them in action one day.

I think they should implement more everlasting summoning stones into the game. If a person really wants one they would buy enough for it to last the entire game and would make the game more interesting. They clearly have no problem with making one (case of the fire imp) so. I would definately not have anymore healing problems with a gaki on my side.

waste of inv space

I personaly loved the idea, and was eager to the get a few. That's until I found out they were a one time use only. Waste of money, won't buy them.

But ... But that would be new highend thing actually worth getting.

- Rules get broken time and time again. This is nowhere close to what the game used to be three years ago. When a mission is designed to average balanced party of 8 players, what's the big idea that players should be able to swarm theirs summons, bypass tactical finesse with imbalanced skills and buff levels above 20 with consumables, shrines, etc.? Do you guys remember when there were armors that gave bonuses like +15 versus cold damage? Rangers had to bring Winter to Ring of Fire missions with fire nukers. What difference does it make when you slap +100 armor on top of anything? Bosses kill themselves in seconds with Pain Inverter. These summons are nothing but novelty. "Why not?". Just some extra nudge to widen the gap between player and enemy teams.

meh, the golem stones kind of put a bad taste in my mouth. He dies within seconds of being summoned. Im not enthusiastic about the new ones but i may get around to trying them out.

go go go Pikachu ~~

The Gaki summon is beast! Downside is he like to run to melee for some reason when i use him. So i think he just winds up healing himself, but i busted him out in HM versus some destroyers and he just tanked them and then we proceed to continue rolling the rest of the mission.

The juggernaut doesn't have anymore skills cuz he just runs around kd'ing people for 5s. for 5s! If he somehow gets on a monk its just gg.

Gaki and Juggernaut are my favorites so far. Haven't gotten a hold of the Oni yet.

The fact that the raptor can solo shiro is pretty epic though.

They all still blow the golem out of the water. He sucks nuts. I used one everytime i zoned just to get rid of em.

u allways talk a shit.
allways

Love you too!
*send hands-free hugs and air-kisses*

So you are saying that you like the idea of summoning something and then not being able to use it again for 60 minutes?
Great, I don't.

That's why you party with other humans, darling.

If SY! didn't make me want to party with others - I doubt this will.
Besides - you are still limited to just one summon at any given time. And it's not like this rule makes them ANY less imbalanced.
I'd LOVE to use them (especially since minions and rituals are one of my favorite game mechanics!) - but the way that they are implemented does nothing for me.

i gotta get me a S-Turtle i can see how uber they are O_O ooze are helpful for a SH nuker in pve imo.

i gotta get me a S-Turtle i can see how uber they are O_O ooze are helpful for a SH nuker in pve imo. they should make it reusable however.

the siege turtels are awesom =D

I would use them if they were infinite. Raise the cost to make them and give them an insane cool down (a few hours) and I'd use them but I can't afford to pay a few platinum every 30mins (or till they die) and I refuse to waste time I could spend having fun by farming for the next summon.

I think many of the people on these forums don't understand the point of a money sink.

I have to cast my vote with those who think the summoning stones are just way too expensive for what you get. They definitely aren't going to become part of the way I normally play the game in their current incarnation.

(Mind you, I'm not saying that they're too expensive in the absolute -- I've got enough materials lying around for a pretty good number of turtles, juggers, and whatever else -- but they simply aren't anywhere close to worth their cost.)

If you want me to use them all the time, make the cost less than the farming value of the time they cut off whatever task I use them for.
If you want me to use them now and then, make the cost greater than the farming value of the time they save, but less than the value of the loot + reward if I succeed in my task.
If you want me to use them only occasionally, make the cost so high that I have to do several zones to recoup the cost of one stone.
And, if you want me to never, ever use them except to go "oh look, a turtle!" make them require an hour or two of farming to pay for a half-hour summon. That's about how they're priced right now.

Now, I'm assuming that these were **meant** to get incorporated into the way people normally play the game. Since they've failed in that respect, at least for me, I'd like to suggest a few possible alternative fixes:

1. Everlasting Summoning Stones. Yeah, this has been suggested before. But I bring it up again because it would work. I'm balking at paying 1 skill pt + 10 granite + 25 scales + 5 jade + 2 monstrous eyes + 1k for a single-use turtle, but I'd gladly fork over 10 or 20 or even 50 times that much for an everlasting turtle. (Yes, I'm aware that would defeat the use of summoning stones as a permanent money sink, but that may well be the cost of making them a truly meaningful feature.)

2. Retention Chance. Add a retention chance similar to the way lockpicks work. At the current prices, I think a retention chance that scaled from 75% to 95% along with the stone's associated title would be enough to get me to invest in a stack of them and use them on a quasi-regular basis. (Also, to make them a little more dungeon-friendly, allow the summons to last from zone to zone so long as they survive.)

3. Skill-Encouraging Rework. Change the application of summoning sickness from 60 minutes for the person who uses a stone to 30 minutes for the whole party whenever a summon dies (not including expiration from old age). Change summoning stones so that they are reusable by default, but are consumed if used under summoning sickness. The motivating policy would be to encourage more skillful play so that you can keep your summons alive.

4. Ten for the Price of One. Since the current prices would be hard to reduce without cutting some of the ingredients altogether, increase the payout by making summoning stones come in stacks of 10. At that price, I'd at least consider buying them.

As a final consideration, the price differences between the different types of stones is going to be a problem if they ever really catch on and demand goes up. Spirit wood can be crafted; monstrous eyes cannot. In fact, as far as I know, monstrous eyes don't even have a reliable farming spot. If demand ever really picks up, turtles are going to become MUCH more expensive then juggers. (Forget about jade and amber -- they've become easy farms.) Thanks to Callista Sedgewick, kveldwolfs don't have any ingredients that aren't a very, very easy farm; which, if high demand really happens, will make them far cheaper than any other summon. While devourers cost FOUR monstrous eyes, which means they'll never get purchased when a turtle costs two.

I think a better idea would be to make them cost a substantial amount of money, but not too much... 50k + 50 jade or something, have unlimited uses and have a 1-day cooldown.

Well, actually I think 1-day cooldown is needed either way. This isn't ursan, but more consumables dumbing down the game is always bad.

I see them as being a hell of a lot more useful than those tonics.

Someone should go and kindly ask Linsey to make them everlasting.

Afraid of a consumable in a party

Men there can be just 1 con be activated at the same time, ok so when 8
people take each a stone then you have for 4 hours a Juggernout, Ooze,
Turtle or what ever. But still 1 at the same time.

And again with so many other things, if you dont like it...dont use it.

Its a fun extra and many players like to farm materials just for the stones.
So, if it gives players a new goal to spend time in GuildWars than its just ok.

I like them there something fun to play with and thats the point to keep some of our interest I guess till GW2.
Now I vote for a Hero Summoning Stone for 60min and cooldown time 30 min or 60min an extra hero on top of your max hero's could be fun.

If you summon one, it should appear in your party window as an ally, makes it easier to heal it...

Chitenous Summoning Stone (devourer) is overpowered.

It has an IAS + blocking stance. It stays close to you, out of trouble if you're a caster or ranged attacker, always in range of shouts, chants and wards. It has a self heal. It inflicts poison and bleeding. It has Forked Arrow and Volley - just add Battle Standard of Honor/Splinter Weapon/Great Dwarf Weapon for SICK DAMAGE.

Insta-win in those pesky 4-man HM missions!

Yeah money sink now, good investment later? GG Arenanet.

Never really messed with them lol, but permanent one's would be awesome.

Truth is stranger than fiction. I was selling the Gaki stone from Urgoz Warren in Kamadan for 3k. This player seemed really eager to buy it and went to get money from other characters. When I finally opened trade with him, he looked at it for a minute, then cancelled.



THESE PIECES OF **** ARE ****ING USELESS! What business ANET has designing something like this? Do I spend three hours on boring dungeon earning shit that isn't worth 200g? Hey ANET, if you're so against power creep by putting restrictions like Double-click to summon a Gaki ally of your level that lasts for 30 minutes or until slain in combat. Summoning stones can only be activated once every 60 minutes per character, and only one summoned ally from a summoning stone can be present in an instance at a time. This item can only be used in explorable areas. Only gotten at the quantity of 1 from the deepest bowels of the most inaccessible dungeon, why design this in the first place???

You could just... use it. Rather then trying to turn everything into a profit cash benefit anaylsis.

If they make an infinite it would of course be in the lame-o zaishen chest and cost 250 ecto, so it's probably better you don't ask for it. Then gold buyers would literally finally be getting a good advantage in the game.

- I'm certain you know that majority of cash funds in GW economy come from selling weapon and salvage item drops to merchant, not from using these items for their intended purpose. You could get 100 gold drop occasionally, but that chips into 12g on your purse. These items have no value, the only saving grace for them is the kind NPC merchant which takes them at some pre-defined price. Time spend picking up this trash accumulates wealth, which is then used for buying desired items, like the latest additions to game.

The point is, when I open the Urgoz chest, I'm picking up same trash as I picked up all the way to last chamber. If the game designer had half a brain, he'd rather avoid the situation where the player is seriously considering to skip the no-merchant-value "reward" of the dungeon to use the last inventory slot in favor of another 75g white trash weapon. If the latest addition is generally not even worth bothering, as confirmed by my futile selling attemps, then what is? What breaths life to old areas and makes the gameplay feel rewarding? People spend millions for the most tedious ale-clicking title, because once you're done with it, it stays with you. Same thing for farming weapons and armor. I ask 3k for this "high-end" treasure and folks in the streets of Kamadan laugh at me. Mission failed, ANET.

The first time I finished the Deep after the update, I saw someone pop his Oni as soon as he picked it up. Yes, after the mission was over. I didn't understand why then, but I do now.

Basically, they're worthless to sell, but somewhat fun to use. I'd never buy one, but I save them for fun while vanquishing or whatnot. And I suppose that's all they are meant to be.

That would be great ye I was thinking of something like that too, but let's not make this game TOO easy

I have never ever used a summoning stone, I still have my full 160 of the Golem stones which would probably get more rare as time goes by. Do they disappear when you zone?

I would probably never craft one since traditional consummables are already good enough in the toughest areas in the game (and I almost never use one).

Also it is too expensive for a 1 time limited time use and 1 hour cool down. Sure, it is a cool new thing but it is alot more expensive than a full conset!

You are obviously to 1337 to need any help. Remember; if things get too easy, you can always go vanquishing, solo, wearing nothing but ego and boxers,- that should give even you a challenge!

Meanwhile, people who either want faster vanquishing or actually need the extra help because they are fairly new to the game, have that extra option.
Personally, I think that is nice.

Did anyone else find it funny he spent 3 hours in Urgoz?

Anyway, I like them. Somewhat helpful in certain situations (The gaki one at least). Would be better if they lasted 60 minutes so when your stone's time was up so is your summoning sickness.

Dunno why anyone thought they'd be unlimited too. Even a few people in the guild thought they were to my amazement.

There's a difference between challenge and handicapping yourself to create challenge. The latter is stupid. It's like playing Guild Wars with one hand - it creates more of a challenge, but what the hell is the point when everyone is playing with 2?

A game should be naturally challenging, you should not have to handicap yourself to create the challenge.