[Tuna-Fish]

Also, you keep asking for summons. Personally, I dont think pythium is a summon-nation, but instead they should base on a more conventional army with great battlefield magic. Just give those principes of yours mistform, luck, mass protection, whatever, and they become a force that even the most powerful SC's take frigging decades to kill. Then use them to shield your mages that can cast some real nasty damage spells with the help of communion. Even paralyse is very very nasty when cast by a mage that has effective astral of 8, and a spell focus...

I personally like a pythium strategy that has an e-10 cyclops as a pretender. He gives your mages, and most importantly, communicants, great reinvigoration, and also can cast the spell "enliven statues" with frightful efficiency when you slap on earth boots. Statues are very good sc-fodder, and when boosted by just a little they become very very hard to kill. Also, the cyclops can cast things like army of lead, blade wind with gazillion blades, and earthquake.
Just give him a load of gems and a staff of storms (to protect him), and perhaps some armour, and attack enemy army, cast earthquake twice, and flee: instant army-shredder.

Also, when you have army of lead up, earthquake is not really very harmful for you.