>2. They are the least versatile of all the mage classes.

Don't forget you still have some spells, wands, staves, scrolls, and all the tricks a humanoid character is capable of. It would be a stupid (or very intentionally role-hampered) shifter who regularly ran around trying to whip people in human form, but a well-played shifter will know when to make decisive use of it.

Consider that even offense/defense (probably the most boring shifter choice possible) can brandish a staff at a key moment or, much more frequently, revert and word away from any of many situations in the game that make fleeing difficult or impossible. A warrior has to burn a legacy to have even the poor man's version of that.

Versatility or lack thereof is a function of foci choice, too. A utility major has an excellent chance of having a good use for every form they have at hero. Defense/air, not so much. Not to say that every shifter should be a utility major, but if versatility is what you really want, maybe you should be.

>3. Not being able to speak is possibly the worst set back to
>any classes power. Ever.

It depends on the character. It means a lot less to, say, a Maran shifter, who shouldn't really get slept by necromancers and anti-paladins very much. It means nothing to a purely solo uncaballed character.

I'll readily agree, though, that it's much worse of a drawback than most players give it credit for.

>4. While their strengths/weaknesses vary with combo's, this
>remains true - Shifters have more vulnerabilities tactically
>than any other class.

I don't agree with this.

>Every single class out there bar healers, has the ability to
>cripple a shifter.

Eh. I don't necessarily agree with that; even when it's true, it generally comes at a painful opportunity cost. For example, maybe I can really screw you with a certain sequence of maledictions and insure you can't win if you stick around past round six, but I run out of hit points in round four.