Swift actions and immediate actions

[Orcwart]

Which book did these first appear? Do they really change anything?

[Logos]

Minatuer's shandbook was first althought they are explained in every book that has them in now right near the begining

doesn't change much (They're both reclassifictions of free action) a swift action is like a free action but takes more time than a free action and still less than a move or a standard action. You get one a round whenever you could otherwise do a free action on yur turn, casting a quicked spellis a swift action ( it was the protoptye for it to begin with as well the free action you an only do once round)

a immediaate action is like a swift action but you can do it even when it's not your turn., an immediate action during your turn counts as your swift action, and you cannot do another imediate action until after the begining of your next turn( Protype seen in feather fall.

Paraphrased via Fair Use (hopefully) and also seen in Complete Adventuer Pg 137 and other books

Logos

[Amaril]

Logos wrote:

Paraphrased via Fair Use (hopefully) and also seen in Complete Adventuer Pg 137 and other books

You can also find it in the psionics section of the SRD.

[James Jacobs]

These types of actions have actually been in the game since the start; they just didn't get names until the Miniatures Handbook, I believe. The feather fall spell, for example, is an immediate action.

[Kang]

IIRC (though I may be mistaken) they originally appeared in the 3.5 psionics handbook, rather than the minis handbook. Or am I mixing up the order of publication for those 2 volumes?

Anyhow, here are the definitions, copied from www.d20SRD.org:

Swift Actions
A swift action consumes a very small amount of time, but represents a larger expenditure of effort and energy than a free action. You can perform one swift action per turn without affecting your ability to perform other actions. In that regard, a swift action is like a free action. However, you can perform only a single swift action per turn, regardless of what other actions you take. You can take a swift action any time you would normally be allowed to take a free action. Swift actions usually involve spellcasting or the activation of magic items; many characters (especially those who don't cast spells) never have an opportunity to take a swift action.

Casting a quickened spell is a swift action. In addition, casting any spell with a casting time of 1 swift action is a swift action.

Casting a spell with a casting time of 1 swift action does not provoke attacks of opportunity.

Immediate Actions
Much like a swift action, an immediate action consumes a very small amount of time, but represents a larger expenditure of effort and energy than a free action. However, unlike a swift action, an immediate action can be performed at any time — even if it's not your turn. Casting feather fall is an immediate action, since the spell can be cast at any time.

Using an immediate action on your turn is the same as using a swift action, and counts as your swift action for that turn. You cannot use another immediate action or a swift action until after your next turn if you have used an immediate action when it is not currently your turn (effectively, using an immediate action before your turn is equivalent to using your swift action for the coming turn). You also cannot use an immediate action if you are flat-footed.

Kang

[PsychoticWarrior]

Kang wrote:

PS. Is there some way to...

Of course not! Psychotic Warrior is my real name too!

BTW quoting you it says 'Kang' but on the thread it says Jeff Stinson - weird.

Darn you and your edits anyway!

[Michael Griffith]

Thanks for the post, Kang. Helps clarify things (and I did not know they were in the SRD).

[Kang]

PsychoticWarrior wrote:

Kang wrote:

PS. Is there some way to...

Of course not! Psychotic Warrior is my real name too!

BTW quoting you it says 'Kang' but on the thread it says <Kang's real name> - weird.

Darn you and your edits anyway!

Yup, figured it out for myself, updated my profile, and had hoped to do the edit to remove the question before anyone discovered I'd inadvertently revealed my secret identity. But you work too fast... Have a heart and edit that out of your post before people realize I'm not really a half-orc, willya? Thx.

Kang