Divination · Seventh-Level Arcane Spell

Greater Arcane Sight

Greater Arcane Sight reveals exactly which spells and magical effects are active upon visible creatures and objects. It builds on the original Arcane Sight but does not itself dispel the enchantments, identify every magic item’s properties or allow the caster to see through solid walls.

Greater Arcane Sight at a Glance

D&D 5.5e / 2024	No same-named spell in SRD 5.2.1
D&D 5e / 2014	No core spell by this name
Pathfinder 1e	Sorcerer/Wizard 7; active spells revealed; Spellcraft item checks remain possible under base Arcane Sight
D&D 3.5e	Sorcerer/Wizard 7; does not identify magic items

Rules by Edition

5.5e / 20245e / 2014Pathfinder 1eD&D 3.5e

2024 — No Direct Spell

There is no same-named spell in SRD 5.2.1. Current Detect Magic and Identify have their own rules; this older seventh-level spell is not a free modern conversion.

2014 — No Direct Spell

No spell named Greater Arcane Sight appears in the 2014 core spell lists. Modern characters must use the detection and identification spells of their own edition.

Pathfinder 1e Rules

School	Divination
Level	Sorcerer/Wizard 7
Casting Time	1 standard action
Components	V, S
Range	Personal; sight to 120 ft.
Target	You
Duration	1 minute/level (D)
Saving Throw	None
Spell Resistance	No

As Arcane Sight, except you automatically know the active spells and magical effects on visible creatures and objects. Pathfinder’s base Arcane Sight allows Spellcraft checks to identify magic-item properties, excluding artifacts; the greater spell does not automatically identify everything about an item. Greater Arcane Sight cannot be made permanent.

Source: Pathfinder Core Rulebook — Arcane Sight, Greater.

D&D 3.5e Rules

School	Divination
Level	Sorcerer/Wizard 7
Casting Time	1 standard action
Components	V, S
Range	Personal; sight to 120 ft.
Target	You
Duration	1 minute/level (D)
Saving Throw	None
Spell Resistance	No

As Arcane Sight, except you automatically know the active spells and magical effects on visible creatures and objects. The original 3.5e rule explicitly says Greater Arcane Sight doesn’t identify magic items. It also cannot be made permanent by Permanency, even though the lesser version can.

Source: D&D 3.5 SRD — Arcane Sight, Greater.

What Changed Between Editions?

Both d20 versions automatically reveal active spells on visible subjects. The D&D 3.5e text expressly excludes identifying magic items; Pathfinder retains the check-based options of base Arcane Sight, but neither edition grants automatic knowledge of every hidden item property. Neither greater spell can be made permanent. Fifth edition contains related magic-detection spells but not this exact spell.

Using Greater Arcane Sight in Play

At the gate of a guarded castle, a wizard can examine the visible sentry and iron doors, recognising active spell protections before approaching. An ambassador carrying magical wards might likewise betray the presence of ongoing enchantments in a court. Knowing the spell does not reveal who cast it, why the subject is protected or whether the effect is safe to remove.

The spell can be particularly useful when the party has a limited number of attempts to remove defences. Rather than dispelling magic blindly, they can identify an important active protection and plan which spell to counter first. The wizard must still deal with distance, line of sight, opaque barriers and hostile creatures aware of magical observation.

Worked Encounter — The Enchanted Gate

A 13th-level caster uses Greater Arcane Sight. For thirteen minutes, magical auras within the spell’s 120-foot sight limit are apparent. Two spells are active upon a visible guard, and another protects a door; the wizard learns the names or effects of those ongoing spells under the chosen d20 rules.

That information does not end any spell. To remove a ward, the caster must use the applicable Dispel Magic or another suitable effect. If the guard also wears an enchanted ring, the 3.5e version cannot identify the ring’s inherent powers; Pathfinder can use the base Arcane Sight item-check rules if their requirements are met.

Counterplay and GM Rulings

Visibility: a magical aura cannot be read through an opaque wall just because the caster can guess the ward lies behind it.
Spell versus item: an ongoing spell on an item is not the same thing as all of the item’s inherent magical properties.
No permanence: the published greater spell cannot be extended using Permanency in Pathfinder 1e or 3.5e.
No automatic dispelling: identifying an active effect neither suppresses it nor exposes every magical secret.
Keep classes separate: the published caster list is Sorcerer/Wizard 7; do not infer Witch access from a linked archive.
Use the right source: Pathfinder Spellcraft item checks must not be imported into the 3.5e item-identification exclusion.

Mythical Context

The Egyptian Wedjat eye evokes the healed vision of Horus, offering a symbolic parallel for seeing what ordinary eyes cannot. The spell’s detection of magical auras is a separate fantasy ability. See the Met’s discussion of the Wedjat eye.

Historical Context

Surviving Ptolemaic gold amulets represent the eye of Horus with human and falcon details. They document the symbolic use of sight in protection, not a historical ability to see magic. See the Met’s gold Wedjat amulet.

Rules Sources and Licensing

The original D&D 3.5e spell and the independent Pathfinder 1e text are Open Game Content under their respective OGL v1.0a terms. The modern edition panels are status notes, not invented conversions. The illustration comes from the existing site media library.

D&D 3.5e SRD · Pathfinder rules