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Allows the selected item(s) to be interactively rotated in 3D space. This can be done with mouse movement or arrow keys for freeform adjustments, or typed number input for precise offsets.

By default, vertical mouse movement and arrow keys will rotate the selected object on the global Z axis. The axis of rotation can be changed with the [color=!control]X[/color], [color=!control]Y[/color], [color=!control]Z[/color], and [color=!control]P[/color] (for [link=pivot_anchor]pivot[/link]) keys. The [color=!control]Spacebar[/color] key resets the applied rotation, returning the selected item to its starting orientation when the operation was invoked. While moving the mouse or using arrow keys, the [color=!control]Shift[/color] key can be held to move more slowly, and the [color=!control]Alt[/color] key can be held to move more quickly. While holding either of these modifiers, the [color=!control]Ctrl[/color] key can be held to increase the effect.

At any time, a number value can be typed to rotate by a specific number of degrees or radians. See [link=numeric_input]Numeric Input[/link] for details. When using numeric input, mouse and arrow key input is disabled. By default, rotations are given in degrees; the [color=!control]D[/color] key can be used to toggle between radians and degrees.

Pressing the [color=!control]=[/color] key will switch to absolute mode, where the object is rotated to a specific orientation. When using the mouse or arrow keys, this only affects how angles are displayed. However, when using numeric input, typed values are interpreted as an absolute angle compared to a reference orientation. The reference orientation depends on the axis of rotation, and is calculated based on the local normal of the selection. Generally, reference orientations attempt to orient the selection toward the horizon at 0 degrees. If the rotation axis is more vertical than horizontal, the reference orientation faces the +X axis.

By default, the entire selection will be rotated from an origin point at its average center. This origin can be altered using [color=!control]Tab[/color], [color=!control]Alt+X[/color], [color=!control]Alt+Y[/color], and [color=!control]Alt+Z[/color]. The Tab key cycles through several fixed reference points: The pivot position, the anchor position, the global origin of {0, 0, 0}, and the selection center. When the object origin is set to selection center, Alt + an axis letter will cycle through three different reference points on that axis: One at the minimum value, one at the maximum value, and one in the center. If the origin you wish to rotate from is not in one of these positions, move the pivot or anchor to the desired origin before starting the rotate operation, and use Tab to switch to pivot or anchor origin.

The axis orientation of the rotate operation can be adjusted with the [color=!control]G[/color] (global), [color=!control]L[/color] (local), [color=!control]C[/color] (camera), [color=!control]P[/color] (pivot), and [color=!control]R[/color] (region) keys. The axis orientation determines how the X, Y, and Z axes are defined, as follows:
[list-]
[*]Global orientation uses {1, 0, 0} for X axis rotation, {0, 1, 0} for Y axis rotation, and {0, 0, 1} for Z axis rotation.
[*]Local orientation uses the average normal of all selected items as the direction of the Z axis, and values orthogonal to this direction for X and Y. The X axis is kept level with the horizon.
[*]Camera orientation uses the current view direction for all axes, matching X and Y to horizontal and vertical directions onscreen, and Z to the direction the camera is facing.
[*]Pivot orientation uses the pivot direction as its Z axis, and orthogonal vectors for X and Y, calculated in the same way as local orientation.
[*]Region orientation splits the selection into multiple segments, each with its own origin and orientation. Region segments are defined by locally connected geometry. Each region's orientation is calculated using the average of all normal vectors within the items belonging to it. In absolute mode, all regions will be rotated to the same orientation.
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If you wish to constrain angles of rotation to regularly-spaced increments, press the [color=!control]F[/color] key to toggle constraint mode. By default, this will snap rotation angles to 32 unique values. The number of angle snapping values can be changed with the mouse scroll wheel or the [color=!control]\[[/color] and [color=!control]\][/color] keys.