How similar to Wild Shape is activating the Stone Form feat? Do you retain weapons? Racial traits? Spellcasting? etc.
The question comes up due to a rules issue myself and my dm are having with the Stonespeaker Guardian class. The class is clearly meant for melee combat, requiring you to be a Goliath or Feral Gargun race. These classes both have the Powerful Build racial trait, which allows them to wield a weapon one size category larger than their size, among other things. This, to me, implies that a Stonespeaker Guardian would be wielding a weapon one size category larger than themselves.
However, my DM claims that since Stone Form is a Wild Shape feat, one does not retain Powerful Build because of the rules of Wild Shape. Then, if we assume Stonespeaker Guardians are meant to have Powerful Build to wield larger weapons while in Stone Form, then we need to takw the Powerful Wild shape feat as well (also in races of stone). This allows Powerful Build to carry over while wildshaping. This also grants natural weapons a size category boost to damage, which makes the slam attack in Stone Form stronger.
This then causes a redundant class ability in Stonespeaker Guardian. At level 3, their slam deals damage one category larger, which my DM claims does not stack with the effect of Powerful Wild shape. Thus it is clearly a waste, since one would not become a Stonespeaker Guardian if one were not able to wield larger weapons, and in order to do that you need a feat which overwrites a class ability. This makes no sense to me.
My interpretation is as follows: using Stone Form doesn't turn me into an animal with new stats and abilities. It states I assume an unspecific rocky form at the cost of a Wild Shape use, which I think implies that I am still myself, just rocky, and I am only applying the +4 save against poison, nat armor, and slam attack to my already existing character. I feel this doesn't cause me to lose my racial bonuses since my race is not changing, and I remain in the form for the duration that I could remain in any form assumed with Wild Shape.
Powerful Wild shape states I retain the Powerful Form ability when turning into a creature I could normally turn into. It is designed to become a stronger Bear or Wolf or something. The bonus it gives to natural weapons is meant to replace the fact that as a non-animal a Powerful Build character can wield larger weapons. Additionally, this makes the Stonespeaker Guardian class ability which boosts the slam attack actually mean something, as if the class grants you the Powerful Build version of a natural attack.
sorry for the wall of text