Ellywick's Chronometer

This spell taps into the lifespan of a creature known to you, allowing you to estimate with mild accuracy if they are dead, alive, or near death. The target of this spell must be on the same plane of existence as you when you cast the spell, forcing a Wisdom saving throw. This saving throw is modified by your familiarity with the target, or if you happen to have a physical connection to them.

If they fail the saving throw, the direction the sand flows tells you the state of their lifespan. If the sand flows downward, with gravity, their life proceeds as normal and they are alive. If the sand flows backwards, it means they are dead. If the sand does not move at all they are near death, or in danger of imminent (as determined by the DM) death.

If the creature succeeds on the saving throw, the sand’s effect is random. This spell, regardless of saving throw, has a cumulative 25% chance of giving a random reading each time it is cast on a particular creature in a 24 hour period. It takes 24 hours to decrease this chance by 25%; for example, if you cast this spell three times on a given day, the third casting of the spell would have a 50% chance of giving a random result. Thereafter it would take 48 hours to reset this probability to 0, but after only 24 it would decrease down to 25% again.