> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.chatropic.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Actions overview
> How your agent's tools are created from skills and managed
Actions are the tools your agent invokes when a conversation matches their description: an API lookup, a form, a widget, or an escalation. You do not build actions by hand. **All actions are created from [Skills](/user-guides/agent-management/skills)**: when you save a skill that contains a webhook step, Chatropic creates the linked HTTP action and lists it under **Actions > Available actions**.
## What is an action?
An action defines:
| Field | Role |
| ---------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Display name** | Human-readable label in the dashboard |
| **Action ID** | Snake-case identifier used in chaining (auto-generated from the display name) |
| **Description** | When to call, read by the planner each turn |
| **Parameters** | Fields the agent collects from the user |
| **Config** | HTTP endpoint, widget mapping, or response mapping |
| **Enabled** | Toggle without deleting |
```mermaid theme={null}
flowchart LR
U[User message] --> P[Planner]
P -->|matches description| A[Action]
A --> API[Your API or widget]
API --> R[Reply + optional UI]
```
## Where actions come from
Describe the feature under **Agent settings > Skills > New skill**, including the API call if one is needed. See the [Skills guide](/user-guides/agent-management/skills).
Each webhook step in the skill creates (or updates) a linked HTTP action automatically.
Open **Actions > Available actions** to see the linked action, test it with sample parameters, and enable or disable it.
Edit an action's URL, headers, and body from its skill's webhook step rather than from the action page, so the skill and its linked action stay in sync.
## How the agent fills parameters at runtime
1. The planner selects an action when the user's message matches the action **Description**.
2. It fills the parameters from the message and prior turns, using the property names from the parameter schema.
3. Chatropic substitutes `{{parameter}}` placeholders in the URL and body before calling your API.
4. If a **required** parameter is missing, the agent asks a follow-up question instead of calling the API with an empty value.
This is why the description matters so much: write it like an instruction to a colleague, for example *"Search the catalog by keyword when the user asks about items, prices, or availability."*
## Go deeper
Create the playbooks that generate actions.
Static and customer-login credentials for API auth.
Multi-step workflows with on\_success.
Shape API JSON for chat widgets.
Hand off to a live agent queue.
Quick-reply chips and starter prompts.
Do not put secrets in action URLs or headers. Use [Manage tokens](/user-guides/actions/manage-tokens) and reference them with `@` in header fields.