Is a summoner build viable for PvE endgame content?

mk53v3n

Coming from other RPGs, I usually always play some kind of summoner. I want to do this in ESO, too, and therefore I am planning to make a Sorcerer that heavily focuses on the two pets (the imp and the matriarch). I found this build and it looks exactly like the thing I want to do: https://alcasthq.com/eso-magicka-sorcerer-pet-build-pve/

However, while searching for adequate builds, I read a lot of negative comments about the combat pets. Therefore, I'm wondering if such a build is viable, especially including the end-game-content like veteran dungeons (and whatever comes after that, I'm not so far into the game, yet). I'm doing mostly PvE stuff, only rarely PvP. Thanks!

FrancisCrawford

I think if you check you'll see that comments along the lines of "Pets mess things up" will have been posted/published quite some time ago.

ZoS does keep fiddling with pet damage numbers; for example, pet damage was cut by ~10% in the Elsweyr patch via a nominal 15% nerf to the Daedric Prey bonus. But on the whole pet sorcerers are in a good place right now for damage and healing alike. The toughest soloing and duoing I've done has been on pet sorcerers; so has the toughest non-templar healing; they've gotten my highest test-dummy DPS figures as well.

WuffyCerulei

Pet builds are still pretty viable. If you’re concerned about pets triggering mechanics and whatnot, Zos fixed that awhile ago. They don’t take damage in trials and dungeons. They don’t proc various mechanics (besides HoF final boss, which is when the pet targets the boss during terminal phase). And they don’t do sucky damage anymore. The familiar isn’t as great as it once was, but a lot of end-game sorcs use the Twilight in their rotations. It deals good single target damage, and I mean good.
If you want a reasonable build, I did work on something that gets about 38-40k self buffed with no vMA staff on the PTS. It’s 5 Necropotence, 5 Crafty Alfiq, 2 Ilambris. Both staves are infused lightning staves, one with shock enchant and one with fire enchant. Blue food. The rotation follows 2 heavy attack rotations, and I’m sure there’s vids on it. Race doesn’t really matter. Breton and Altmer are probs the best tho, considering the max magicka.

ZeroXFF

Despite the nerf to pet damage, overall pet sorc damage went up quite significantly due to other changes. My pet sorc's damage went up by 5k each of the last 2 patches. Doing 50k now with an easy 2x heavy attack rotation.

Gear:
Ilambris + Mother's Sorrow(body) + Infallible Aether(front bar and jewelry) + vMA back bar.
Both staves lightning with infused trait. Back bar lightning enchant, front bar fire.
I used Necropotence instead of Mother's sorrow up until yesterday, but MS is consistently better according to my testing, and it's not any harder to get.

Mundus:
Shadow

Rotation:
(back bar) LA, Lightning Flood, LA, Blockade, swap
(front bar) HA, Daedric Prey, HA scamp, swap, repeat

Because you won't be using the active ability of the Matriarch, you can take the healing morph and use that as your defensive skill when you're in trouble. In the remaining skill slots put bound armor and inner light (both of them on front bar, and one of them on back bar). As ulti use storm atro (front bar) for single target and destro ulti (back bar) for AoE.

This build is not the best you can do, but it's VERY easy to execute (which means it's perfect for beginners and those who have difficulty getting started as a DD), and aside from the vMA staff, the gear is also very easy to get. There are always some pugs in craglorn farming nAA/nHRC/nSO (where you get IA), though I'd recommend doing vet versions if you're comfortable there, because that way you can get golden jewelry. MS is an overland set, so you can buy it from traders, and Ilambris drops in a base game dungeon. Nothing comes even close to the return on investment as this build (simplicity of the rotation, gear acquisition and positioning requirements in actual fights since you can play fully ranged). Until you get vMA staff, use a 2nd IA staff on back bar.

And yes, it absolutely is viable for end game, in fact it's good enough for doing DLC vet HM trials. Healers will even be grateful, because they won't have to use IA for the debuff and can use other sets instead and focus on healing. However once completion of literally all PvE content in the game is not enough for you and you'll start thinking about leaderboards, you probably will want to switch to a stronger build with a more complex rotation.

Tasear

I got a friend a pet Sorcs hitting 60k self buffed on 6 million dummy. Pets are fine

spacebandit

Haters gonna hate. Petsorc is awesome

mk53v3n

Thank you very much for the detailed replies! That sounds great.