Travel Devotion question

[Barsoom]

The Travel Devotion feat says, in part:


Once per day as a swift action, you can activate this ability to move up to your speed as a swift action each round. Thus, you can move your speed and then take a full-round action, or move and take two other actions (two move actions or one move action and one standard action).

Now, the way I see it, it's impossible to gain the benefits of the extra move on the turn when TD is activated, because both movement and activation are swift actions. So you have to activate in on round 1, and gain the benefit of added movement starting from round 2. At least that's what the RAW text seems to indicate.

My question is: how much of a big deal is it to hand-wave it, and just let a character activate it, and move on the same round? Would you have agreed to hand-wave it as a DM?

[Diarmuid]

I dont think it's a big deal to allow the ability to be activated and used in the same round and I imagine that's probably how most people play it anyway.

I hadnt noticed that little clause when reading it before, but by RAW you are 100% correct that it doesnt allow for activating and moving (my means of the feat's ability) in the same round.

[Curmudgeon]

Once per day as a swift action, you can activate this ability to move up to your speed as a swift action each round.
Requiring separate swift actions for activation and use would necessarily make that "each subsequent round", which isn't the stated benefit; hence, I believe the activation and first use must happen via the same swift action in order for that Benefit statement to be correct.

[A_S]

Requiring separate swift actions for activation and use would necessarily make that "each subsequent round", which isn't the stated benefit; hence, I believe the activation and first use must happen via the same swift action in order for that Benefit statement to be correct.

I disagree; the fact that it says "each round" rather than "each subsequent round" means you have the ability to move as a swift action starting the round you activate the ability, but it doesn't mean you have a swift action to spend on it. It's analogous to Produce Flame (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/produceFlame.htm) not giving you an extra standard action after casting it to attack with the flames the round it's cast, even though you gain the ability to attack with the flames as soon as the spell goes live.

Now, if you were a Ruby Knight Vindicator, you would be able to move the round you activate Travel Devotion with one of your extra swift actions. If the text were "each subsequent round," this wouldn't be possible.

*edit* On topic, though, I don't think handwaving this would be any problem at all.

[Curmudgeon]

It's analogous to Produce Flame (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/produceFlame.htm) not giving you an extra standard action after casting it to attack with the flames the round it's cast, even though you gain the ability to attack with the flames as soon as the spell goes live.
The problem with your Produce Flame example is that you don't need a standard action in order to attack. (One way of attacking with the spell is by making attacks of opportunity. Without that spell, most casters wouldn't threaten within their reach while unarmed.) Travel Devotion, on the other hand, needs a swift action to be used.

[Barsoom]

Thanks for the responses! There seems to be a concensus that it's okay to allow TD activation and extra movement on the same round, so I'll allow it in my group.

[TuggyNE]

Now, if you were a Ruby Knight Vindicator, you would be able to move the round you activate Travel Devotion with one of your extra swift actions. If the text were "each subsequent round," this wouldn't be possible.

Of course, at this level of strictness, the RKV would have to burn a standard action to get that extra swift. :smallamused: