the mimic is fatally flawed

i think i might have identified a fatal flaw in the design of the mimic.

traditional, a mimic's tactic is to

i) assume the form of an object,
ii) wait for an enemy to draw near, and then
iii) surprise that enemy with an attack.

the mimic has a power called shapeshift, which allows the mimic to assume the form of an object (step i above). while in object form, a mimic is immobilized and cannot attack. the problem is that shapeshifting into or out of object form is a minor action.

the rules for a surprise round read, in part, as follows:

Limited Action: If you get to act in the surprise round, you can take a standard action, a move action, or a minor action. You can also take free actions, but you can’t spend action points. After every nonsurprised combatant has acted, the surprise round ends, and you can act normally in subsequent rounds.

so, how does the mimic surprise its enemy with an attack (step iii above)? technically, it cannot. according to the rules as written, the mimic burns through its surprise round with the minor action of shapeshifting to its natural form (a standard action, a move action, or a minor action). it would not get to attack its enemy until after the surprise round. i do not think that this is what the designers intended.

how can this mistake be corrected? well, in a surprise round, the mimic can also take free actions. if shapeshift were changed to a free action or, more limited, if the mimic shapeshifting back to its natural form were a free action, then the mimic could both shift and attack during the surprise round.