Personally, I decided to ultimately choose Wild Hunter instead. The 0th level hide skill, the huge buff for hp and critical while riding, and the fact that Soul Arrow wasn't lost pretty much decided for me. That, and the complete absence of MP eater made it pretty much a second rate cleric type.
But yea, I'm having to agree with Omar. You wouldn't believe how many times I've lost boss battles because of status ailments, and how effective my elemental defense has been.
BTW, does zombify reverse blood drain? I wouldn't think so, but that would be really bad.