I vastly prefer this version to the original - the change is subtle, but impactful. This enemy is primarily an action sink, so having it be perfectly symmetrical in Fight/Evade values while also having all the keywords in the world PLUS the ability to Retaliate while exhausted made it just slightly too annoying to tackle, especially considering how omnipresent it is. This version has evolving Fight/Evade values, and it's not able to bite back anymore when it is being hit while down, so the annoyance is slightly mitigated. Also, putting Damage on it is now a more viable strategy, simply because it's now the more efficient way to get rid of it.