Divine Magic • Core Spell Reference
Augury
Choose your edition before using the spell. Its level, casting procedure, targets, effects, and limits follow the rules in the selected panel.
Augury at a Glance
| 5.5e (2024) | Level 2 |
|---|---|
| 5e (2014) | Level 2 |
| Pathfinder 1e | Level 2 |
| D&D 3.5e | Level 2 |
| Browse | Cleric spells • Cleric class |
Spell Rules
Augury — 5.5e (2024)
Cleric spell level 2. Edition source.
| Spell | Level 2 Divination (Cleric, Druid, Wizard) |
|---|---|
| Casting Time | 1 minute or Ritual |
| Range | Self |
| Components | V, S, M (specially marked sticks, bones, cards, or other divinatory tokens worth 25+ GP) |
| Duration | Instantaneous |
You receive an omen from an otherworldly entity about the results of a course of action that you plan to take within the next 30 minutes. The GM chooses the omen from the Omens table. Omens Omen For Results That Will Be … Weal Good Woe Bad Weal and woe Good and bad Indifference Neither good nor bad The spell doesn’t account for circumstances, such as other spells, that might change the results. If you cast the spell more than once before finishing a Long Rest, there is a cumulative 25 percent chance for each casting after the first that you get no answer.
Augury — 5e (2014)
Cleric spell level 2. Edition source.
| Spell | 2nd-level divination (ritual) |
|---|---|
| Casting Time | 1 minute |
| Range | Self |
| Components | V, S, M (specially marked sticks, bones, or similar tokens worth at least 25 gp) |
| Duration | Instantaneous |
By casting gem-inlaid sticks, rolling dragon bones, laying out ornate cards, or employing some other divining tool, you receive an omen from an otherworldly entity about the results of a specific course of action that you plan to take within the next 30 minutes. The GM chooses from the following possible omens: • Weal, for good results • Woe, for bad results • Weal and woe, for both good and bad results • Nothing, for results that aren’t especially good or bad The spell doesn’t take into account any possible circumstances that might change the outcome, such as the casting of additional spells or the loss or gain of a companion. If you cast the spell two or more times before completing your next long rest, there is a cumulative 25 percent chance for each casting after the first that you get a random reading. The GM makes this roll in secret.
Augury — Pathfinder 1e
Cleric spell level 2. Edition source.
| School | divination |
|---|---|
| Level | cleric 2 |
| Casting Time | 1 minute |
| Components | V, S, M (incense worth at least 25 gp), F (a set of marked sticks or bones worth at least 25 gp) |
| Range | personal |
| Target | you |
| Duration | instantaneous |
An augury can tell you whether a particular action will bring good or bad results for you in the immediate future.
The base chance for receiving a meaningful reply is 70% + 1% per caster level, to a maximum of 90%; this roll is made secretly. A question may be so straightforward that a successful result is automatic, or so vague as to have no chance of success. If the augury succeeds, you get one of four results:
- Weal (if the action will probably bring good results).
- Woe (for bad results).
- Weal and woe (for both).
- Nothing (for actions that don’t have especially good or bad results).
If the spell fails, you get the “nothing” result. A cleric who gets the “nothing” result has no way to tell whether it was the consequence of a failed or successful augury.
The augury can see into the future only about half an hour, so anything that might happen after that does not affect the result. Thus, the result might not take into account the long-term consequences of a contemplated action. All auguries cast by the same person about the same topic use the same die result as the first casting.
Augury — D&D 3.5e
Cleric spell level 2. Edition source.
| School | Divination |
|---|---|
| Level | Clr 2 |
| Components | V, S, M, F |
| Casting Time | 1 minute |
| Range | Personal |
| Target | You |
| Duration | Instantaneous |
An augury can tell you whether a particular action will bring good or bad results for you in the immediate future.
The base chance for receiving a meaningful reply is 70% + 1% per caster level, to a maximum of 90%; this roll is made secretly. A question may be so straightforward that a successful result is automatic, or so vague as to have no chance of success. If the augury succeeds, you get one of four results:
- Weal (if the action will probably bring good results).
- Woe (for bad results).
- Weal and woe (for both).
- Nothing (for actions that don’t have especially good or bad results).
If the spell fails, you get the “nothing” result. A cleric who gets the “nothing” result has no way to tell whether it was the consequence of a failed or successful augury.
The augury can see into the future only about half an hour, so anything that might happen after that does not affect the result. Thus, the result might not take into account the long-term consequences of a contemplated action. All auguries cast by the same person about the same topic use the same dice result as the first casting.
Material Component: Incense worth at least 25 gp.
Focus: A set of marked sticks, bones, or similar tokens of at least 25 gp value.
Historical and Mythic Context
The historical name fits the spell unusually well. Roman auspices were fundamentally practical: they could favour or oppose an undertaking without providing a detailed narrative of everything that would happen afterward. In that sense, Roman augury is strikingly close to the tabletop spell—an omen over a proposed act rather than a complete revelation of the future. A useful surviving overview can be found in the LacusCurtius account of Roman augury and auspices.
The world of 1454 also has its own learned traditions of divination. The British Library’s Sloane MS 314, dated 1425–1449, preserves a treatise on geomancy alongside Geoffrey Chaucer’s Treatise on the Astrolabe and an account of a necromantic ritual. Astronomical instruction, geomancy, and ritual material could therefore circulate together within a single fifteenth-century learned manuscript.
For a more powerful expression of the oracular tradition within the world, see the Pythia, Delphic Oracle, whose magic moves beyond simple omens into deeper divination and direct supernatural counsel.
Mythically, Augury preserves the tension between knowing an omen and controlling an outcome. A warning may be correct and still be ignored. A favourable sign may encourage disastrous overconfidence. A mixed omen may tempt someone into believing the benefit can be taken while the price is somehow avoided.
The unseen world speaks, but it does not take the next step for the living.
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