How should I build a summoner that fights in melee with their eidolon?
Most importantly, how can I make said character able to survive aoe spells that would hit both eidolon and themselves and boost survivability in general, given their weak proficiencies.
Pick the Primal list because gives the earliest "Form" spell, pick Tandem Strike, transform into a bear, fight together.
I was thinking side by side, beyond that no plans. I was hoping to have a character that sometimes melds into eidolon but can "split" himself in two and attack in unison when the situation calls for it. Just because i like that character concept to be perfectly honest.
I hear that being near your eidolon is just asking to be hit by aoe effects and die though, so I wanted to know what the work arounds for that might be.
Though ive just come across some threads saying that issue is exaggerated, so perhaps im just looking for other helpful tips and suggestions.
Primal gets you access to a lot of form spells, which can be handy for this kind of thing since they do decent damage (and will generally last a whole fight which makes them pair well with your limited spell slots).
Devotion is also interesting, because it can reaction strike people who hit you and if you stand next to your eidolon it's much easier to activate that.
As for defensive options. Defend Summoner (feat 4) is effectively Raise A Shield if you stand next to your eidolon. Protective Bond (feat 10) lets take the lesser of any AoE damage instead of the greater. Reaction though so doesn't pair well with the aforementioned devotion phantom.
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Going Primal for a form isn't as necessary as it might seem at first blush; you don't ever want to attack with your Summoner before Tandem Strike at sixth level regardless since you're just reducing your eidolon's MAP for no reason, and by that point arcane and occult both have Ooze Form. Turning into an ooze has nice synergy with Devotion since it gives you the most temp HP and makes you immune to crits. If you want to get hit may as well make it less likely to down you.