Your small size lets you quickly duck out of sight.
Prerequisites: Dex 13, Small size or smaller.
Benefit: During the first round of combat, flat-footed opponents are considered not to have noticed you yet for the purposes of Stealth skill checks, allowing you to make a Stealth check that round to hide from them.
I have a goblin rogue PC in my group who is very curious to know how this feat works in surprise rounds. Does it not work at all in the surprise round? If it does, would the way it works in a surprise round change depending on who is ambushing who and who is aware?
I would read it at face value.
First round is the first anyone play, so:
you surprise someone else: they haven't seen you, this probably doesn't even need this feat.
you get surprised: they haven't noticed your party rogue yet, so if at the second round (first round he can act), he acts before the ennemies, he can make a stealth check to remain hidden, or something like that.
However the GM should be a bit realistic, if you get ambushed, and everyone in the group has that feat, ... they ambush your group and notice nobody???
If person with go unnoticed loses initiative in the second round (first round he can act), the feat wouldn't help him anymore, and the ennemies could spot him.
If I would GM, I would judge that at least 2 PC's have to be 10 feet or closer. One of them must be medium size.