Summoner Archetype - Suggestions?

[Lazaryus]

I'm making an archetype for the Summoner with the following features:

• Your Eidolon forms a special bond with one of your allies. The ritual to summon your Eidolon requires both you and this ally to take part. Once the ritual is complete, the ally fuses with and controls the Eidolon like a Synthesist (the Eidolon is still based on the summoner's level). You may cast spells on this ally as though they were the Eidolon, even if the Eidolon isn't summoned. Should the ally die, you may reattune the Eidolon to a new ally after a week of mourning with a 24 hour ritual costing 200 gp per summoner level. Alters Eidolon
• Both the Summoner and the bonded ally may sacrifice hit points. The Eidolon's fusion with the ally allows it to always be at full strength, but if the Summoner or the ally move further than Medium spell range from each other, the Eidolon is immediately sent back to its home plane. Alters Life Link
• The Summoner may call their Eidolon upon themselves like a synthesist a number of times per day equal to 3 + their Charisma modifier. This ability lasts for a number of rounds equal to their Summoner level and employs the Eidolon. As a result, this ability can only be used when the Eidolon isn't summoned. The Eidolon has a different set of evolutions and has an effective level equal to half the summoner's level when it is called this way. At 10th level, the Eidolon has an effective level equal to 3/4 the summoner's level, and at 18th level, the Eidolon has an effective level equal to the summoner's level when called this way Replaces Summon Monster, Aspect, and Greater Aspect
• At 14th level the bonded ally may transfer hit points from his own hit points or the temporary hit points from the Eidolon. Alters Life Bond
• At 16th level, as a swift action, the summoner can make the Eidolon and the bonded ally to split forms as a Synthesist. The ally controls themselves and the Summoner controls the Eidolon while they are split, and both the ally and the Eidolon can transfer hit points through Life Bond. Replaces Merge Forms
• At 20th level, while the Eidolon is summoned, the Summoner may expend an use of his Eidolon calling ability to gain the benefits of the called version of the Eidolon for 20 minutes. Replaces Twin Eidolon

I haven't come up with the name for the archetype or any of its abilities yet. Any suggestions?

[GM Rednal]

Very hesitant on the attuning to 1 ally and only switching it if that ally dies. Sometimes people leave adventuring parties for a different reason, and the way that's worded, it could *cripple* your character.

[Lazaryus]

I'll change it so that you can reattune if the ally dies or leaves the party for longer than a week. In the meantime, you still have the call Eidolon ability as an emergency backup. I'll also make it so that the ally counts as the Eidolon for the purpose of summoner class abilities except the call Eidolon ability that replaces Summon Monster, and while split, both the ally and the Eidolon can provide the greater shield ally benefit to you and each other (not sure if I want the benefit provided to the summoner from both the ally and the Eidolon being adjacent to stack or not).

[Lazaryus]

Any suggestions?

[Lazaryus]

Any ideas for what I should name the archetype or its features?

[GM Rednal]

Hmm... Imbuer, maybe? Since you're imbuing an ally with power more than using it yourself.

That said, this definitely feels like it only fits a very special kind of game. Giving power to allies beyond normal buffs is actually kind of hard. Either they're already gonna be good at martial stuff, in which case this doesn't make much of a difference, or you're complementing their existing abilities in a way that takes up most of your class abilities and essentially leaves you with a handful of spells and not much else to do (while the other person may be well above the power curve everyone else is at, depending on the table in question). Kiiiinda boring for the user when you're not taking the eidolon back for yourself - which defeats the main point of the archetype.

[Lazaryus]

I'm doing this mostly for a NPC concept, but I'm trying to follow the Golden Rule. I take it there's more things to fix, then?

[GM Rednal]

Well, if it's for an NPC, it's definitely going to raise their CR - the extra HP alone is a fairly significant boost, to say nothing of the possibilities for min-maxing someone.

[Loxsis Bale]

I propose the following alternatives that might fit your concept:

1.) Weakening the Eidolon so that it only augments the host's body (no extra HP, replaced stats, or altered motivations), but allows you to bind it to anyone without the need for attunement. The call Eidolon ability instead serves as an emergency summoning ritual, with the Eidolon still augmenting the Target's body.

2.) Have the Eidolon augment the host's body instead of encasing them (keep the extra HP, no replaced stats, always tries to protect its Summoner to the best of its ability while the Summoner is in immediate danger) and allows you to bind it to anyone without the need for attunement, but the Eidolon takes over control of its host and does not always follow its Summoner's commands, effectively being a NPC with an initial attitude of indifferent towards its Summoner and hostile towards everyone else. The call Eidolon ability instead functions as a quick Eidolon ritual, with the potential to hijack an enemy.

[Lazaryus]

I might use both of your alternatives as different branches of the archetype, with #1 being non-evil and #2 being non-good.

[Lazaryus]

Any criticism?

[Lazaryus]

Any more suggestions?

[The Sideromancer]

I would consider having the attunement occur the first time per day the eidolon appears, or as a standard "start of day" activity like preparing spells or the Medium's seance.

Edit: Wording is hard.

[Lazaryus]

I'll go with that. Should I alter some of the secondary features?