In my opinion, summoning is still quite relevant in the late game, especially with high spell power, as raising the dead will be one of the most useful spells at the end of the battle. You can play as Vlad and he will raise a lot of troops. In general, in the late game, it's unlikely that anyone will switch from Darkness to Light, so you have to switch to summoning.
And I would also like to express my IMHO regarding the question of ideology. You don't need to look at and tie the ideology of a race too closely to real battles, as originality is always welcome and helps to win battles.
For example, Light doesn't suit Necromancers (this is being discussed), and machines don't suit the Elves, but machines are a very useful thing for the Elves (you know why, I won't explain), and now, because of ideology, should they not be taken? You need to use all the ways to achieve victory (I think I went too far)...