Which is better for PvE stuff, Elemental Swarm or Planar Conduit?

[TheBlueWizard]

So, sorry if this is a daft question. I'm a painfully casual player, but a painfully casual player who's been going along with a Shaman character who is about to hit epic levels.

Up to this point I'd never used a character that got access to Elemental Swarm before, so it was all knew to me. When briefly and roughly planning out the character I was fully intending to go for Planar Conduit, as I thought 'Epic Spell = better spell'. But now I'm not so sure?

I tend to only find time to go wandering around the areas of Arelith, enjoying the mechanical aspects of it in that way, so PvP is something I'm not gearing myself to caring for. So with that in mind, is the Elemental Swarm of 4 things better than the Planar Conduit summons?

One brief little extra query.. is Epic Dragon Knight worth taking as a ... one off insurance "beat the toughest baddie" spell, if I'm otherwise relying on Elemental Swarm? Seems like that, since buffing summon's doesn't work like it did, it's not too much of a waste just throwing out fresh summons all the time.

Thanks?

[ZombieDuck]

I think Planar Conduit still bests Elemental Swarm in almost all(if not all) aspects.
Planar Conduits main points:
- Decent Dmg Immunity and high Dmg Reduction
- High Regenation
- Decent/High AB/AC
- Decent or straight up immunity to certain elemental dmg(Depending on which you summon)
- High Dmg
- 2 summons to buff instead of 4 with Sequencers

I think Elemental Swarm only beats Planar Conduit on being able to cast more than 1/day and Fire Elementals dmg shield being handy for some situations.

As for Dragon Knights main points:
- Perma Hasted
- 32 Spell Res
- True Seeing
- Spell Breach
- Freedom

It only lasting few minutes definetly makes it situational, but sometimes having a summon just for boss fights or when your other summons die that comes out decent unbuffed can be very handy, just wouldn't count on it for more than 1 fight(And Planar Conduit is generally stronger than Dragon Knight). Some casters prefer using Gate over Dragon Knight, but Shaman doesn't seem to have that option.
https://wiki.nwnarelith.com/Summons

[-XXX-]

Being able to recast elemental swarm is a big deal.
Planar conduit might be more efficient in comparison, but if the summons die you might just as well lens out and go home.

Furthermore, planar turning is a thing in some areas of the PvE content, so it's not always just about stats.

EDK has decent SR, which shields it from the most common go-to anti-summon counterplay, but it's in a bad spot even when compared to Gate, much less to Conduit or Mummy Dust, mostly because it cannot attack anything larger than medium sized creatures - so completely unviable for boss fights actually (it has been that way for a while now).

[Eyeliner]

In general four weaker summons attacking one enemy in PVE is more effective than one or even two stronger. Two are better than one so Planar Conduit is still good but I'd pick elemental swarm every time (and manage them in a fight, don't just send them in to attack whoever but focus on one enemy at a time)

[TurningLeaf]

Elemental swarm I prefer for logistical reasons, like they are good at blocking a hall so my cleric can zen archery from behind. They are strong but still quite possible all four eles lose to the one Planar Conduit summon if they fought. I don't see any reason why it has to be one or the other, though. If I had both I would probably do Swarm through most of the dungeon then break out Conduit for the boss fight.

[MRFTW]

I take and use both.

[Hrothgar Bloodaxe]

So, I've played "*a lot* of Shamans.

If you can, take both. Shaman basically has two approaches: Conjurer, and Necromancer. Judging by your question, assuming you're going conjure.

For a conjurer's 9th level spells, you really only will make use of a couple; Elemental Swarm shouldn't "take away" from your other choices.

If you have to choose, I'd say go with Planar Conduit, based on quite a bit of experience.

Elemental Swarm, IMHO, is just not really up to the task of end-game content, at least since the "summon buffing nerf" came out.

Specifically, Elemental Swarm doesn't regenerate. The one exception is the water elemental, but the water elemental isn't powerful enough to survive the actual battles. And if you toggle your stream to just water, then you end up with even weaker elementals. Yes, as Shaman, you will have access to healing spells, but they're not unlimited; you'll burn through them quick if your summons can't regen.

Basically, if you go Elemental Swarm as your "primary" summon, you're going to either need 1,000 healing kits per dungeon, or you're going to eat through your daily spells simply healing them; taking away offensive casting abilities or party buffs.

Lastly, just on the merits, Planar Conduit summons, the Slaads in particular, are likely the most powerful in the game, at least for non-necro summons (I have tested head to head with pretty much any other summon). And they regenerate, which allows you to save healing spells for the heat of battle, rather than simple HP maintenance as you work your way through the dungeon.

As well, assuming you're going to be using sequencers....you'll need twice as many sequencers for Elemental Swarm, as conduit.

The sum total of these differences is the Elemental Swarm is just a lot harder, and slower, to use. The "summon economics" on them is much more intensive.

So, if you have to choose, go Planar Conduit, but you should have a 9th level spell available, and I'd recommend Elemental Swarm as your backup option.