Shape-shifting in 3rd and 3.5 was obviously in need of a re-work, but the results in Pathfinder are pretty lackluster. They're not broken, but that's because they're not dramatic; they're minor adjustments, which feels counter to what changing one's shape should entail.
I'm not looking for something that will work in every game ever; when I see one of my players trying to abuse a rule in a way that will result in a poorer experience for myself or other players, I put a stop to it, it being technically allowed or not.
Still, I'd like to see what other people have to say on the subject. Here's what I have, currently:
When taking on an animal's form, the shaman's physical attributes become those of the animal. Her Intelligence drops to a 3 and she takes a -4 penalty to Wisdom (this penalty cannot result in a lower score than the animal normally has. If the animal's score is normally higher, the shaman retains her original score).
Most shamans will remove equipment and clothing before changing their shape, as such items will be destroyed in the process.
A shaman may safely remain in animal form for up to 1 hour/level. After that, the shaman must make a Will save (DC15+1/hour beyond 1/level) or suffer a -1 penalty to her Charisma until she resume her true form.
Once this penalty is equal to get current Charisma score, the shaman becomes the animal, losing all abilities and memory until she is the subject of a Restoration and Remove Curse.
When attempting to retake her true form, a shaman must make a Will save (DC15+1/hour beyond 1 hour/level). Failure results in remaining in animal form. A shaman may attempt to
change once per hour.
The game I'll be running will start at lvl5, characters wI'll not be "optimized", and the setting will include nomadic subarctic communities in the far north, much like the inuit tribes.
I have a few ideas for common forms that the Druid can use. Seals and musk ox and arctic foxes and such. Thoughts?