Rune Trace
DivinationDivination spells enable you to learn secrets long forgotten, predict the future, find hidden things, and foil deceptive spells.
Many divination spells have cone-shaped areas. These move with you and extend in the direction you choose. The cone defines the area that you can sweep each round. If you study the same area for multiple rounds, you can often gain additional information, as noted in the descriptive text for the spell.
PFS Legal
Available to
- Casting Time
- 1 minuteMost spells take 1 standard action; others list 1 round, 1 minute, or more, or use a swift or immediate action.Full rule on Archives of Nethys ↗
- Components
- V, S, M (pinch of powdered gemstones worth 25 gp)V (Verbal): A spoken incantation; you must be able to speak in a strong voice. A silence effect or a gag spoils it, and being deafened risks failure.S (Somatic): A precise movement of the hand; you must have at least one hand free to perform it.M (Material): One or more physical substances consumed by the casting. Cost is negligible — covered by your spell component pouch — unless a gp value is listed.Full rule on Archives of Nethys ↗
- Range
- touchHow far the spell reaches. Close = 25 ft + 5 ft/2 levels; Medium = 100 ft + 10 ft/level; Long = 400 ft + 40 ft/level. Personal = yourself; Touch = a creature or object you touch.Full rule on Archives of Nethys ↗
- Target
- rune touchedHow the spell is aimed: a Target (specific creatures or objects), an Effect it creates (e.g. a wall or a summoned creature), or an Area shape (burst, cone, line, and so on). Some areas are shapeable. "Target or Area" means the spell uses either, at your choice.Full rule on Archives of Nethys ↗
- Duration
- instantaneousHow long it lasts. Instantaneous resolves at once; Concentration lasts while you keep focusing; Permanent lasts until dispelled. A trailing "(D)" means you can dismiss it as a standard action.Full rule on Archives of Nethys ↗
- Saving Throw
- noneIf a save is allowed, the target rolls Fortitude, Reflex, or Will: the result negates, gives partial, half, or no effect. "harmless" lets a willing target decline. Save DC = 10 + spell level + your casting ability modifier.Full rule on Archives of Nethys ↗
- Spell Resistance
- noWhether a creature's spell resistance can block the spell (Yes/No). For "harmless" spells a willing creature may lower its SR to be affected.Full rule on Archives of Nethys ↗
By immersing yourself fully in the intricacies of a carved or written rune of any kind, you can divine the elements of that rune’s nature. While casting rune trace, you must run your fingers (which cannot be gloved at the time) over the rune, glyph, symbol, or other marking you want to examine (hereafter referred to as the “rune”). This does not trigger any effects that touching the rune would normally trigger. Runes, symbols, and other effects that trigger when read still trigger as normal if you do so— but note that this spell does not require you to view and read the rune that you’re targeting. When the spell’s casting time ends, you instantly receive flashes of insight regarding the rune’s nature, history, and purpose, including the following information.
Age: You learn if the rune was placed within the last 24 hours, within the last month, within the last year, within the last decade, within the last century, or prior to the last century.
Insight: If you have cast rune trace on a magical rune, you gain a +5 bonus on all skill rolls and checks to dispel, disable, or otherwise tamper with the rune.
Language: You learn what language the character of the rune is taken from, or in the case of a rune that has no language, you learn that it is a unique image.
Purpose: You learn the general purpose of the rune (such as whether it’s a decoration, information, a magical defense, or a warning).
Age: You learn if the rune was placed within the last 24 hours, within the last month, within the last year, within the last decade, within the last century, or prior to the last century.
Insight: If you have cast rune trace on a magical rune, you gain a +5 bonus on all skill rolls and checks to dispel, disable, or otherwise tamper with the rune.
Language: You learn what language the character of the rune is taken from, or in the case of a rune that has no language, you learn that it is a unique image.
Purpose: You learn the general purpose of the rune (such as whether it’s a decoration, information, a magical defense, or a warning).