the Jester
Legend
Life Drain allows a saving throw; Strength Drain does not.
Life Drain does not hamper the victim's immediate ability to fight; it only hampers recovery.
Strength Drain is significantly worse.
While that's true, life drain is a serious problem if the pcs have any further encounters before they can recover from it. That 'reduced maximum hps' thing is a BITCH.
I think it comes out as a wash, assuming that the pcs can't simply avoid further encounters before regaining their strength/maximum hps. But I say this having not yet used either shadows or any life-drainers in my game yet, except for a single one-off attack as part of a curse.