Handler ( and summoner ) on nightmare diff

[Kappa]

Just finished my first run on vet ( I really liked the last boss fight ).
I tried leveling up some other archetypes on nightmare, using the handler ( lvl 10 ) because of fast movement around the map.

It does seem that the pet lasts 3/4 hits from a regular creep, ending up with the character having to ress them a lot, while being unable to use their archetype skill, because the pet is dying. I always try to get aggro from enemies, in order not to let them hit my pet, obviously.

Summoner feels somehow the same ( the big summon got killed by 3 creeps in 15 secs more or less ).

And I can't help but guess that this is going to be even worse on apocalypse.

On the one hand I am happy we won't allow higher difficulty to pet users ( this would, in other game, simplify the content way too much ), but on the other hand it does feel wrong to have a couple archetypes unable to even perform.

What's your impression of companions/summons?

[Mr.America]

They feel more like a bullet sponge / aggro diversion.

Especially on bosses I tended to get into a rythm of dodging attack sequences, then dog takes aggro, I shoot the boss, pet dies, short delay between attack sequences -> I ress pet, repeat.

On other bosses with loads of tiny minions (hatchery!) the pet is really nice to keep the small fries off of me.

[Lokilogic]

So I am currently on a Vet adventure world, using the flying summons. The seem to work really well on clearing things up until the boss. The last two bosses I've come across the summons are no where to be found. I have no idea if they are even firing or not. I think they needs some work. They also get in the way a lot.

[verarticus]

I started and have been soloing the game on nightmare. Started handler and ended up with summoner on my first world (and even the rugged trait for summon HP, but idk if that's guaranteed or not), and played through most of the game like that. Multiplayer nightmare I can't speak for on this, but on solo I can.

The combo overall is really well, you rarely have to worry TOO much about anything less than specials and bosses, That being said they CAN get overrun and then things can get hairy since you can't get them back up quickly. The dog being able to buff or heal the minions is nice, but the healing is quick small for the summons.

The first summon is nice for group control as they draw aggro and have some reasonable bulk and they're pretty good at staggering an enemy before it hits them, they are however useless against anything airborne don't do that much damage, and can get in the way or push you around annoyingly. They're also not that amazing for most bosses as they can't draw its aggro, and literally useless against a few of them.

The second summon has the advantage of flying, a ranged attack and more damage however it does trade its ability to draw aggro as well and is very frail. This summon is much more situational in my opinion but the situations it is good on it excels at, some bosses really can't even hit them for example.

The third summon I haven't used AS much but overall it's easily the powerhouse of the summons having a strong ranged attack, melee attack, and even combos for both. The main drawbacks for it are how slow it is, and the long cooldown time it has. It's pretty bulking, but tends to take more small hits because it's slower leading to it sometimes have less longevity during exploration than the first summons would. The slow speed and lower summon count also means you'll take more heat in combat, as you'll get there first and have less things pulling aggro.

Overall it's been one of the stronger combos I've used, but isn't really an easy cruise through everything.