Writing a character who uses Conjuration without summoning spam?

[BardCollegeQuill]

I'm working on a Nord mage OC who's drawn to Conjuration for the lore angle - binding souls, the whole "daedric pact" thing - but every time I write him actually casting spells, it feels like he's just... summoning two dremora lords and calling it a day. How do you make Conjuration feel like a real, interesting magic school in fic when the in-game playstyle is basically "summon, stand back, watch"? I want his magic to feel weighty and deliberate, not like he's cheating through every encounter. Are there aspects of Conjuration lore or mechanics I'm missing that could make this feel less one-note?

 

[ScrollsOfTamriel]

honestly, the issue is that Skyrim's conjuration is designed around action economy - you summon, enemies focus the summon, you nuke them. it's a valid playstyle but yeah, narratively it feels hollow. here's what actually works in fic though:

the soul binding angle is your gold mine. forget about just... summoning random daedra. your character could be obsessed with binding specific souls - hunting down particular necromancers or powerful mages to trap them, or studying how soul gems actually work in-universe (which is genuinely disturbing if you think about it - you're fragmenting and imprisoning consciousness). that's weighty. that's deliberate. that's a character with a philosophy, not just a combat rotation.

there's also the daedric pact element you mentioned. what if he's not just summoning on a whim? what if each summoning costs him something, or requires negotiation, or he's bound to a specific daedric prince in a way that creates tension? like, he wants to summon a dremora but he's got a standing deal with Mehrunes' Dagon and calling on the wrong prince means consequences. that turns it into actual magic with weight instead of "I cast summon and nothing happens to me."

mechanically in-game there's also stuff like the conjuration perks that boost duration or let you summon two creatures - use those as worldbuilding. maybe he's spent years binding a particular atronach or dremora to his will, and that's why he can keep it around longer than a normal mage. it's not just a game mechanic, it's his character's life's work.

what kind of daedric prince is he drawn to? that'll change everything about how the magic should feel.