The points were shared at the City Ground with the visitors coming back from 2-0 down to snatch a point.
Forest took the lead on 30 minutes when the Mike Pollitt spilt a cross. The ball rebounded off a defender and the predatory Marlon Harewood struck from close range.
Forest should have taken the lead as early as the seventh minute when Eoin Jess latched on to a bad back pass. He was clean through but his shot rebounded off the keeper.
The second goal was scored in the 36th minute. Andy Reid set up Harewood and the Forest striker rounded Pollitt to get his, and Forest's, second goal.
The visitors came close to pulling a goal back on 40 minutes when Chris Sedgwick fired just wide from 30 yards.
On the stroke of half time, young Irish midfielder Reid produced a magic moment when he ran the length of the visitors half, danced past four defenders and shot - the keeper needing two attempts to parry the ball to safety.
Ronnie Moore, the Rotherham manager, fired his side up at half time as they came out for the second half a different team.
As early as the 47th minute, the writing was on the wall for Forest as Darren Byfield slipped past Michael Dawson and fired in a close-range shot which Darren Ward did well to save.
Three minutes later, the visitors got the goal they were after. Byfield burst through the Forest defence and shot home from close range.
The goal seemed to give the visitors renewed enthusiasm because five minutes later they were on level terms as Martin Butler made it 2-2.
The ball went from one end of the box to the other with Forest not clearing their lines. Butler eventually scored from close range after Ward had saved well from Byfield.
Forest and the ever-impressive Harewood had several chances to win the game. Harewood almost completed his hat-trick in the 61st minute. His darting run took him into the box but his shot took a deflection and went wide.