An Eidolon, in a nutshell, is a familiar or pet that a summoner can have. Their progress is completely reliant on their summoner, but they do have their own stats and abilities that are separate from their summoner to the point where they can almost be treated as their own class. That being said, in order to have an Eidolon, you’d obviously have to be a summoner, then the summoner would have to level them up through evolution points.
Below are a few lists that can be used to figure out how to utilize your friendly Eidolon. They are slightly different from classes and have their own ability scores, saves, speeds, and sizes. Make sure to keep this in mind when choosing and evolving your Eidolon.
Best Eidolons Base Forms
There are only six base forms (that I know of) that a summoner can choose from. Therefore, for this list will actually be my opinion on the best base form going from the best to worst. This is purely my opinion on the matter and in no way means the only “right way” to play.
1. Quadruped
Their base stats are debatably the best out of all of the base forms. They have great speed, good ability scores, and already have the bite attack . Meaning when it comes to evolving them, it’s only a matter of making them better- more damage to attack and an extra pair of limbs. They are weaker in Strength compared to the Biped, but I personally prefer having it have more mobility with the 40 ft. speed for the sake of survivability.
2. Biped
I personally feel like this comes to a close second to the Quadruped mostly because Quadrupeds have 40 ft speed. Bipded’s speed is the standard 30 feet and although their stats may be higher than the Quadruped, they do 1d4 damage instead of a 1d6 with their claws. They also have more Strength than the Quadruped so if the summoner prefers their Eidolon to be a harder hitter, they could just as well choose the Biped.
3. Tauric
Taurics would’ve been in second if they weren’t summoned as Small. They have Quadruped’s speed, which is 40 ft. with similar stats to the Quadruped as well. The only thing is that they are Small until the summoner puts two evolution points into it and they don’t have limbs at all. This means that they will have to put evolution points into both arms and legs hence why I put it in third.
4. Serpentine
The only eidolon that has two separate attacks (bite and tail slap), both doing 1d6 damage. They, however, are also the eidolon with the slowest speed and the only one that does not grow limbs.
Serpentines aren’t much use until the summoner puts evolution points into them, but once they do, they can be a formidable foe since they can grapple and have Reach. I like the versatility of the Serpentine since it can either be a damage soaker, a grappler, or an attacker, but the fact that it has the least amount of speed at 20 ft makes a huge difference for me.
5. Avian
The only reason why this base form isn’t in last is because Aquatic can only be used underwater and is therefore useless until the summoner uses evolution points for limbs. They do the least amount of damage and need to have an excessive amount of evolution points to be able to have 40 speed and be Medium or larger. Even then, they only do 1d3 damage per Claw attack.
6. Aquatic
As stated before, the Aquatic Eidolon is useless until the summoner uses evolution points for limbs. Unless the adventure is underwater, which is extremely rare, there should be no reason that the summoner chooses this base form. In my opinion, the only thing going for them is their +4 natural armor long with the evolution to get improved natural armor. Even with that, though, Aquatics are still pretty useless.
Best Skills
These skills are the only ones that I feel are worth it. The rest seems pretty useless on basically all of the Eidolons since they mostly involve having some sort of Charisma or Wisdom which is not an ability that Eidolons excel in.
1. Perception (Free)
The more eyes, the better, as they say. Why not have the Eidolon be able to sense or find anything in the area? Since Perception is the most used ability check in the game, it would make sense for the Eidolon to be proficient in it even if they don’t have the highest Wisdom.
2. Stealth (Free)
The idea of having the Eidolon being able to set up an ambush, get intel, or infiltrate enemy lines just seems like the correct way to use them. This works especially well with Serpentine and Avian. Being prepared for a fight while not being noticed or even being there is extremely useful for any player.
3. Fly (Free)
A great skill to have on any of the Eidolons except for Avians who already know how to fly. It works especially well on the Eidolons that the summoner can use as a mount. Since you have the option as a free skill, it just seems right to do if you don’t want to use Stealth or Perception. Who doesn’t want to have a free ride through the skies? It also synergizes well with the Steal skill and the Acrobatics skill.
4. Acrobatics (Selected)
Pretty self- explanatory. It’s really good for attacking Eidolons to move through combat without the enemy getting an opportunity attack on them. The last thing we need is the Eidolon to be on the wrong footing of a fight.
Best Evolutions
1. Pounce (1-Point)
If the summoner wishes for their Eidolon to be an aggressive attacker, pounce is practically essential. This is especially so when the Eidolon gets access to or more attacks.
2. Ability Increase (2-Point)
A no-brainer to get. If you want to make sure your Eidolon hits harder, survives longer, or enhances any other aspect, of course you would need to increase one of their abilities. Most likely, you’d want to put the ability increase on Strength, Dexterity, or Constitution.
3. Limbs (2-Point)
Use to make sure that the Eidolon gets to use all of their attacks. I feel like it also helps out with out-of-combat aspects like stealing something or getting themselves out of a trap. Limbs are just essential for Eidolons.
4. Fast Healing (4-Point)
It’s actually crazy that Eidolons have the potential to have this ability. Being able to heal completely in a short amount of time just makes it so the Eidolon can take fights almost consistently.
5. Swallow Whole (3-Point)
Why waste a spell on banishing an enemy for later when you can just have the Eidolon swallow them whole? Familiars and Eidolons are great for this.
Tips and Tricks for an Eidolons in pathfinder
All of these tips and tricks are ones that I thought of after doing research on Eidolons. There is no “true” or “correct” way to use and play Eidolons- this is just a small guide on what I think is the best way to utilize them.
1. Base Matters!
An Eidolon’s base form makes a significant difference on the playstyle and out-of-combat encounters a summoner may encounter. Try to determine what kind of Eidolon would come in handy for the adventure and possibly adventures to come. If you don’t know, maybe think about how the summoner would play?
Try to find an Eidolon that would synergize well with the summoner. For example, if the summoner is having trouble with an enemy that is getting in then getting out, maybe go for an Eidolon with high speed so they can catch up to that enemy and possibly grapple them.
2. Limited Ability Score Increase
When it comes time to increase your Eidolon’s ability score, try to plan ahead. Compared to regular classes, Eidolons do not get a lot of bonuses or increases in anything as they level up.
In total, they only increase an ability score three times unless the summoner uses their evolution points to do so, which they should only do two times at the very most. That being said, use your ability score increases on either the Eidolon’s strongest ability (either Strength or Dexterity) or Constitution for more health.
3. Minmax Evolution Points
The evolution points work as a point-buy system. Each time the summoner levels up, they receive evolution points that must be put into their Eidolon. If they get 3, for example, they can buy three 1-point Evolutions (ex: Bite, bleed, claws). Or they can buy one 2-point evolution and a 1-point evolution (ex: Contrict and Pull). On top of all that, their evolutions STACK.
Meaning, the summoner can buy multiple bites as they progress. Personally, they should prioritize limbs and their Eidolon’s attacks first then start stacking damage while sprinkling on some abilities to make sure that their Eidolon is rather unkillable and/or unstoppable.
They should also try not to use their evolution points on too many separate abilities. There’s a good chance not all of them can be used or it would simply be better if the Eidolon just did more damage since the summoner can also rely on their party members to have certain abilities such as Minor Magic or Ultimate Magic.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- A Familiar, but Stronger: with an Eidolon, the summoner would practically be playing two characters as one person. They are treated as an extra servant with its own progression, stats and abilities. With the evolutions requiring higher points, there’s even a possibility of them doing magic or having resistances just as a normal class or race would, making them extremely versatile. They also do more damage than normal familiars and actually have the potential to do as much damage as a low-leveled fighter due to the evolutions (if the summoner so wishes for them to).
- No longer Blindsided: As well as having their own stats, the Eidolon can act as another member to the party. The only difference is that they belong to the summoner and are devoted to them. That being said, the summoner basically has an extra pair of eyes to rely on, have them sneak through enemy lines, gather intel or just do anything that they don’t have the capability of doing.
- Control Over Progression: the evolutions that the summoner has access to works perfectly since they can build their Eidolon however they wish. This of course makes the Eidolon extremely versatile in how they can be built due to all the possibilities and options the summoner has. Maybe they want their Eidolon to compliment their playstyle or maybe they want them to make up for where they fall short. It’s all up to the summoner.
- Eidolons are Easy: the concept of Eidolons and evolving them are a pretty simple concept and extremely easy to get a hang of.
Cons
- Weak Early Game: Eidolons abilities are determined by their summoner’s level, however, their evolutions are also completely reliant on their summoner’s level. Since evolution points cannot be saved, the summoner will most likely only be using 1 or 2-point evolutions in the beginning.
- Not a Lot of Bases: when it comes to figuring out which Base Form a summoner should choose, there’s honestly not a lot to choose from. The only ones that are worth using for both early and late game are Quadrupeds and Bipeds. The rest are extremely situational, but for normal adventures there’s only really two that seem to be as strong as a player would want them to be.
- Summoners are Hard: While the concept of Eidolons are simple, I found that the ones who bring them forward are not exactly the easiest class. Unfortunately, Summoners are the only ones that can bring forth an Eidolon and after doing extensive research, it is highly recommended that beginners should not be playing them.