Acting while surprised.

[Corwin_of_Amber]

How can I act while flat footed?

I want to be able to activate an immediate action magic item before I have gone in the initiative order/while flat footed.

[Zombimode]

How can I act while flat footed?

In most cases you can't (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/actionsInCombat.htm#immediateActions).
The only actions you can take outside of your turn are immediate action and you can't take them while you're flat-footed.

There are some exceptions, though. If you have the feat Combat Reflexes you can make attacks of opportunity even while flat-footed.
The spell "Nerveskitter" (Spell Compendium) can be cast at the start of combat before/at the same time you roll for initiative, despite being an immediate action.
There may be other possibilities.

Activating an item on the other hand will probably be very difficult to achieve if not outright impossible.

[ericgrau]

Ya you're stuck. If we knew what the item was we might think up a work around. For example maybe you only need to use it before half the foes act and a good initiative will do, or maybe there's some other defense that can protect you round 1 until it can pop.

[Corwin_of_Amber]

Ya you're stuck. If we knew what the item was we might think up a work around. For example maybe you only need to use it before half the foes act and a good initiative will do, or maybe there's some other defense that can protect you round 1 until it can pop.

I'm playing my Kensai-style Artificer (from a previous thread) and I want to be able to protect myself with Wings of Cover if I lose the initiative, since my character is the type that always wants to be in the front, charging in. I have refluffed it as me using the item to invoke the protection of my ancestors.

Normal uncanny dodge doesnt help, not losing Dex to AC still makes me flatfooted, right?

[Demonic_Spoon]

IIRC the Divine Oracle has a class feature for this. And there's the ever classic shapeshifting into a dire turtle.

[ericgrau]

Either uncanny dodge doesn't help.

Item of contingency with the trigger "If I am attacked while flat-footed". False life for some extra temp HP. Moment of prescience gives a +15 or higher to AC against a single attack or to a save or other roll, even when flat-footed.

But the best and most cost effective solution I can think of is some kind of illusion. Foes don't get a save until they interact with it, which is going to be after combat starts unless they watch you carefully in preparation for an ambush. Some illusions don't give a save period. Glamered armor could make you look heavily armored, silent image could conceal you or put you behind some kind of heavy fortification while you travel (until you stop concentrating on it to attack), or the very best option would be a ring of invisibility: always invisible until you attack. 20,000 gp, but less for you since you're an artificer right?

[eggs]

With an Artificer, you might have the freedom to either make Contingent Spell Items (complete arcane) or access Foresight (Time Domain gets it as a level 8 spell, so it's relatively accessible via shenanigans).

Any Contingent Celerity line spell will grant an action immediately once its triggered. Even Lesser Celerity can often translate into full cover. The downside is a Daze effect through the following round, but if you get immunity to Daze (or Quick Recovery)...

[Malachei]

Foresight. Or Foresight + Celerity

[demigodus]

There is the cunning property you can get on a weapon of legacy, that makes you never flat footed... You still can't act while flat footed, but that doesn't matter if you are never flat footed.

[Corwin_of_Amber]

There is the cunning property you can get on a weapon of legacy, that makes you never flat footed... You still can't act while flat footed, but that doesn't matter if you are never flat footed.

That's cool. Can you craft Weapons of Legacy or are they like artifacts?

[demigodus]

There are rules in weapons of legacy for doing rituals to make custom weapons. The thing is it doesn't require crafting feats, so I'm not sure if the Artificer crafting pool can be used to cover the xp cost. If not, it would cost you 2,800xp to get up to the lesser ritual. The earliest you can get the Cunning property is level 12 too, so that might be a bit later then what you want.