Conjuration + melee hybrid—summons aggro everything before I can land hits

[RiftenWanderer]

I'm running a Nord warrior with conjuration as backup (level 22, Adept difficulty) and it's working great for tough fights, but my summons keep pulling aggro the second they spawn. By the time the enemy is focused on my Dremora Lord or whatever, I'm already taking hits from adds I didn't see coming. Am I just summoning at the wrong time, or is there a perk order that makes this less of a headache? Also on Switch so no mods to help manage this. Should I just lean harder into pure melee and use conjuration only for specific boss fights?

 

[TamrielTactician]

Your summons are pulling aggro because that's literally what they do - they're designed to tank and draw attention. The problem isn't timing, it's that you're expecting them to work like a backup DPS when they're actually your frontline.

Here's the thing: on Adept with a melee build, you don't need to be landing hits while your summon fights. You need to be using that window to close distance safely or set up your own engagement. Summon the Dremora Lord, let it charge in and grab aggro, then sprint around the side and backstab or power attack from behind while the enemy's focused on the summon. You're not waiting for your turn - you're using the summon's aggro as cover.

If you're getting swarmed by adds before your summon even spawns, that's a positioning problem, not a conjuration problem. Don't summon in the middle of a pack. Back up, get some distance, summon behind cover or in a doorway, then engage. Takes maybe 2 seconds and changes everything.

For perks, the one that extends summon duration is worth grabbing eventually since it means fewer recasts mid-fight, but honestly at level 22 you're probably fine just upgrading your melee tree first. Conjuration works with almost any warrior build without needing specific perk synergy - it's just a "oh crap" button or a "this boss is annoying" button.

Don't lean harder into pure melee. This hybrid is working. You're just learning when to summon, which is a positioning thing, not a build thing.

 

[DragonbornVet]

That reply nailed it. The one thing I'd add: you're probably summoning into the fight instead of before it.

I do this all the time on my melee builds - I'll spot a group, immediately panic-summon while I'm still in their line of sight, and yeah, suddenly I've got three draugr + my Dremora Lord all converging at once. The trick is to actually back off first. Like genuinely disengage, put a pillar or doorframe between you and them, then cast. By the time they've closed the distance on you, your summon's already got aggro locked and you're free to circle around and do your thing.

Also, if you're on Switch without mods, you don't have the luxury of aggro management tools, so positioning is literally your only control. It sucks but it also means you'll get better at it faster than someone relying on mods to fix it.

The duration perk (whatever it's called - the one in the Conjuration tree that makes summons stick around longer) is genuinely nice to grab when you hit level 30-ish, but yeah, right now spend your perks on your weapon skills and maybe some armor perks. Conjuration at base duration is fine as a "I need breathing room" tool, which is exactly what you're using it for.

Your build's solid. Just stop summoning into the thick of it.