You attune your senses to the lingering disturbance left by hastily worked magic. For the duration, you perceive magical residue left within range by a spell cast during the past 24 hours, provided that spell was cast using a spell slot, an innate magical ability, or another non-ritual means of casting. A spell cast as a ritual leaves no trace detectable by this spell. When you first detect a residue, and as an action once you have completed isolating a trace, you may focus on one trace for 5 minutes to learn:
- the school of magic of the spell;
- the spell’s approximate level (cantrip; 1st–2nd; 3rd–5th; 6th–8th; or 9th);
- roughly how long ago it was cast: within the last hour, within the last 6 hours, within the last day, or older;
- the direction in which the caster traveled immediately after casting, if they departed the area within 10 minutes of doing so.
- If the spell created, summoned, transformed, or teleported a creature or object, you also learn the general nature of that effect—for example, “a creature was compelled,” “a ward was broken,” “something was carried through a magical passage,” or “a form was altered.” This information does not identify the exact spell.
A residue is normally stationary, lingering at the point where the spell was cast or where its principal effect occurred. However, if the spell’s target left the area after casting, you can follow a faint trail of residue left by that target. The trail persists for a number of hours equal to 24 minus the number of hours since the spell was cast, and can be followed only while you maintain concentration.
At Higher Levels. When cast using a spell slot of 3rd level or higher, the maximum age of detectable residue increases by 24 hours, and the duration increases by 5 minutes, for each slot level above 3rd.
Comments