Warforged using Alter Self

[Patlin]

You keep all extraordinary special attacks and qualities derived from class levels, but you lose any from your normal form that are not derived from class levels.

Your creature type and subtype (if any) remain the same regardless of your new form

I'm trying to figure out what happens to my warforged artificer if he uses an Alter Self item. He has the adamantine body feat, and may eventually get the improved fortification feat.

Let's say he changes into the form of a Warforged Charger from Monster Manual III. This accomplishes the following (I think)

He becomes large, gains 10' reach, gains 2 1d8 slam attacks, and use of its two racial bonus feats adamantine body (possibly redundant) and powerful charge. It's speed is 30', but reduced to 20' by the adamantine body feat.

Can he still use his morningstar and shield? It's "gorilla like" and they give rules to use them as characters, so I assume it can hold things in its hands, but it's a nuckle walker, and that might interfere.

Can he still cast spells? It speaks, but only "haltingly." Unclear whether the halting nature of its speach is a product of its form or its intelligence. And once again, I'm unclear about the hands... are they adequate for somatic gestures?

If the character has enchanted his adamantine composite plating, does this have any effect while in the altered form?

How vulnerable is it to critical hits? Presumably the character doesn't benefit from its moderate damage reduction, which is an extraordinary special quality, but does the character also lose the light fortification he would naturally have? Is that an ability derived from "normal form" or from type and subtype? The two quotes from the SRD above would suggest this is an important distinction.

If he has the improved fortification feat, does he keep the immunity to critical hits? If he loses that ability, does he regain the ability to benefit from conjuration (healing) spells?

As an alternate example, suppose he turns into a hammerer automaton from Monster Manual II. He would gain the +11 natural armor bonus, a slam attack for 2d8+str*1.5. He would not (fortunately) gain the unreliable special quality as it is extraordinary. He couldn't use any of his equipment or cast spells.

In addition to the above questions, does the character's adamantine body feat do anything? The automatons otherwise have no armor bonus to AC.

 

[Artoomis]

For reference, here is Alter Self:

You assume the form of a creature of the same type as your normal form. The new form must be within one size category of your normal size. The maximum HD of an assumed form is equal to your caster level, to a maximum of 5 HD at 5th level. You can change into a member of your own kind or even into yourself.

You retain your own ability scores. Your class and level, hit points, alignment, base attack bonus, and base save bonuses all remain the same. You retain all supernatural and spell-like special attacks and qualities of your normal form, except for those requiring a body part that the new form does not have (such as a mouth for a breath weapon or eyes for a gaze attack).

You keep all extraordinary special attacks and qualities derived from class levels, but you lose any from your normal form that are not derived from class levels.

If the new form is capable of speech, you can communicate normally. You retain any spellcasting ability you had in your original form, but the new form must be able to speak intelligibly (that is, speak a language) to use verbal components and must have limbs capable of fine manipulation to use somatic or material components.

You acquire the physical qualities of the new form while retaining your own mind. Physical qualities include natural size, mundane movement capabilities (such as burrowing, climbing, walking, swimming, and flight with wings, to a maximum speed of 120 feet for flying or 60 feet for nonflying movement), natural armor bonus, natural weapons (such as claws, bite, and so on), racial skill bonuses, racial bonus feats, and any gross physical qualities (presence or absence of wings, number of extremities, and so forth). A body with extra limbs does not allow you to make more attacks (or more advantageous two-weapon attacks) than normal.

You do not gain any extraordinary special attacks or special qualities not noted above under physical qualities, such as darkvision, low-light vision, blindsense, blindsight, fast healing, regeneration, scent, and so forth.

You do not gain any supernatural special attacks, special qualities, or spell-like abilities of the new form. Your creature type and subtype (if any) remain the same regardless of your new form. You cannot take the form of any creature with a template, even if that template doesn’t change the creature type or subtype.

You can freely designate the new form’s minor physical qualities (such as hair color, hair texture, and skin color) within the normal ranges for a creature of that kind. The new form’s significant physical qualities (such as height, weight, and gender) are also under your control, but they must fall within the norms for the new form’s kind. You are effectively disguised as an average member of the new form’s race. If you use this spell to create a disguise, you get a +10 bonus on your Disguise check.

When the change occurs, your equipment, if any, either remains worn or held by the new form (if it is capable of wearing or holding the item), or melds into the new form and becomes nonfunctional. When you revert to your true form, any objects previously melded into the new form reappear in the same location on your body they previously occupied and are once again functional. Any new items you wore in the assumed form and can’t wear in your normal form fall off and land at your feet; any that you could wear in either form or carry in a body part common to both forms at the time of reversion are still held in the same way. Any part of the body or piece of equipment that is separated from the whole reverts to its true form.

 

[Patlin]

Yes, I quoted selected lines from that in my original post. I don't think it's particularly clear though.