Shapeshifter

Shapeshifters in Thedas
Rumors speak of barbarians that hold secrets of transforming the body into the form of animals. The Circle of Magi denies such stories. But this rare art survives in the forgotten corners of Thedas. While the Circle of Magi would prefer that it be so, theirs is not the only tradition of magic in Thedas. Prior to the Circle’s formation, magic was either practiced by the Magisters of the Tevinter Imperium or in remote areas, knowledge handed down from one generation of practitioners to the next. “Hedge mages,” as Enchanters of the Circle refer to them, or “witches” as legend would name them, do not always employ forbidden magic. Quite often their talents lie in the creation of charms, the use of curses and the ability to change their own forms.

It is this last talent that has, over the centuries, been incorporated back into the Circle. Said to have been first introduced by hedge mages that joined the Circle (perhaps by force), the path of the Shapeshifter is one that crosses the boundary between mage and warrior. Some mages see it as a form of self-mastery, while others use it as a method of survival, a physical bag of tricks that enable the mage to be unpredictable in battle.

Shapeshifters must master one form at a time, the most common ones being those that are found in the Fereldan wilds. The mighty bear is popular as are wildcats, spiders, and even birds. Legend tells of mages who mastered even more fantastical and deadly forms. To a skilled Shapeshifter, no door is impassable, no fight is unwinnable, and no terrain inhospitable, as long as they know a shape that can meet the task at hand.

This skill is also known by Keepers of the Dalish clans, as revealed in a possible conversation between Morrigan and the Dalish origin Warden.

Notable shapeshifters during the Dragon Age include Morrigan and her mother, Flemeth.

Unlocking

 * Morrigan will teach you if your approval is neutral; she is not willing to do so once her approval rises above 30.
 * You can purchase a Shapeshifter Manual from Varathorn in the Dalish Camp at the Brecilian Outskirts for around 12.

Shapeshifting Mechanics
When the caster assumes a new form his strength, dexterity and constitution attributes are replaced by those of his chosen forms, which in turn are determined by his total spellpower. If any of the caster's attributes were originally higher than those of his chosen forms these will be left unchanged. Bonuses from items that improve any of the mage's attributes (including bonuses to armor, armor penetration, defense, damage and others) are calculated after changing forms.

Spider
Spider Form is the most versatile of the Shapeshifter forms. It comes with its own debuff, its own attack skill and Master Shapeshifter grants it the powerful Overwhelm skill. It's also the only form that makes use of both its strength (normal attack) and dexterity (Poison Spit, defense) attributes in combat. The Spider Form's attributes scale the slowest with increasing spellpower, however, making it the weakest form for magic-based Shapeshifters.

Bear
Bear Form is the toughest of the forms, and also the most physically damaging. Its attacks are much slower than Spider Form's however so switching to a staff (for auto-hit and armor penetration) is recommended before changing into Bear Form, especially at lower levels. Bear Form scales faster than Spider Form with increasing spellpower, and can remain useful throughout the game.

Flying Swarm
The Flying Swarm's damage-over-time attack does not harm allies and is capable of doing higher tick damage than most damage over time spells, especially if the mage's spellpower is very high. It is the fastest of the forms and is the only one that does not improve any of the mage's main attributes. Instead, Flying Swarm improves the mage's base missile deflection stat, making it particularly useful for form-centric Shapeshifters.

Mage strategies
There are generally two types of Shapeshifters: those that focus on nuking and only using the Shapeshifter talents for a specific use of an ability/form or after the depletion of mana, and those that focus on improving their forms.

The human form player does not invest at all in the strength and dexterity attributes. They only shift forms when they wish to surprise their enemies or tank specific bosses (as the forms are immune to powerful boss abilities like grab and knockback). The former invests on all the necessary attributes to improve their forms: strength, dexterity and magic.

Second specializations
If you plan on being in form for the majority of the time picking up a second specialization is less utilized than any other combo and play style. Choosing the passive abilities of a specialization maybe what should be looked into and/or for if and when you are in human form get the most benefit.

Arcane Warrior
Arcane Warrior passively in form would give the flexibility to equip strength items. Otherwise playing in human form Shapshifter would be considered more of the second or third specialization when in combination with Arcane Warrior and using Shapeshifting after the depletion of mana or when needing to use a form ability.

Blood Mage
The Blood Mage is, a high risk-high gain specialization. Blood Mage talents can and will partially mitigate some of the survivability granted by shapeshifting, although the combination results in a pretty deadly caster with access to powerful offensive skills.

Spirit Healer
The Spirit Healer enables the mage while in human form to act as a supporter/healer. Access to Spirit Healer talents grants Shapeshifters means to bring their parties back from brink, while the Shapeshifter's versatility enhances the Spirit Healer's focus on defense since shifting back to human form is instant, and most Spirit Healer talents are instant-cast.

Battlemage
Battlemage enables a mage while in human form to inflict high AOE damage and using Shapshifting after the depletion of mana or when needing to use a form ability. Of course this can be reversed as well staying in Shapeshifted until the need to use the abilities that require human form.

Keeper
Keeper enables a mage while in human form to inflict damage, heal and crowd control using Shapeshifting after the depletion of mana or when needing to use a form ability. Of course this can be reversed as well staying Shapeshifted until the need to use the abilities that require human form.

Notable shapeshifters

 * Flemeth
 * Morrigan
 * Witherfang/Lady of the Forest