Conjuration / Transmutation · Remote Manipulation

Mage Hand

Mage Hand extends the caster’s reach without extending the caster’s body. A key beyond prison bars, a vial across a trapped floor or a latch on the far side of a gate can all become accessible—provided the target, weight, range and action cost fit the active edition.

Quick Reference

At a Glance

5.5e / 2024	Conjuration cantrip · Bard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard · 30 ft. · 10 lb. limit
5e / 2014	Conjuration cantrip · Bard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard · 30 ft. · 10 lb. limit
Pathfinder 1e	Transmutation · Bard 0, Sorcerer/Wizard 0 · one unattended nonmagical object up to 5 lb.
D&D 3.5e	Transmutation · Bard 0, Sorcerer/Wizard 0 · one unattended nonmagical object up to 5 lb.

Rules

Mage Hand by Edition

5.5e / 2024 5e / 2014 Pathfinder 1e D&D 3.5e

Mage Hand — 5.5e / 2024

Level	Conjuration Cantrip
Classes	Bard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard
Casting Time	Action
Range	30 feet
Components	V, S
Duration	1 minute

A spectral floating hand appears at a point within range. It vanishes if it is ever more than 30 feet from you or if you cast Mage Hand again.

When you cast the spell, the hand can immediately manipulate an object, open an unlocked door or container, place an item into or retrieve one from an open container, or pour out a vial. On later turns, you use a Magic action to control the hand again and can move it up to 30 feet as part of that action.

The hand cannot attack, activate magic items or carry more than 10 pounds.

Mage Hand — 5e / 2014

Level	Conjuration Cantrip
Classes	Bard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard
Casting Time	1 action
Range	30 feet
Components	V, S
Duration	1 minute

A spectral floating hand appears within range and lasts for the duration or until you dismiss it as an action. It also vanishes if it ever moves more than 30 feet from you or if you cast Mage Hand again.

You use your action to control the hand: manipulate an object, open an unlocked door or container, stow or retrieve an item from an open container, pour out a vial, and move the hand up to 30 feet each time you use it.

The hand cannot attack, activate magic items or carry more than 10 pounds.

Mage Hand — Pathfinder 1e

School	Transmutation
Level	Bard 0, Sorcerer/Wizard 0
Casting Time	1 standard action
Components	V, S
Range	Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target	One nonmagical unattended object weighing up to 5 lb.
Duration	Concentration
Saving Throw	None
Spell Resistance	No

You point at one legal object and can lift and move it at a distance. As a move action, you can propel the object up to 15 feet in any direction.

The spell ends if the object ever moves beyond the spell’s range. The object must be both nonmagical and unattended, and the 5-pound weight limit is absolute.

Mage Hand — D&D 3.5e

School	Transmutation
Level	Bard 0, Sorcerer/Wizard 0
Casting Time	1 standard action
Components	V, S
Range	Close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target	One nonmagical unattended object weighing up to 5 lb.
Duration	Concentration
Saving Throw	None
Spell Resistance	No

The 3.5e spell uses the same classic model as Pathfinder: point at one unattended nonmagical object of 5 pounds or less, then use a move action to propel it up to 15 feet.

It ends if the object goes beyond Close range.

Edition Changes

What Changed?

2024 gives the hand an immediate use when the spell is cast.
2014 uses your normal action to control the hand and explicitly lets you dismiss it as an action.
Modern D&D permits object manipulation, unlocked doors/containers and open-container retrieval; PF1e/3.5e are written as moving one object.
The modern load limit is 10 pounds; the legacy limit is 5 pounds.
PF1e/3.5e require the target to be nonmagical and unattended and use Concentration rather than a fixed 1-minute duration.

Tactics

Tactical and Exploration Guidance

Measure the Whole Route

The object must physically fit through the path you intend to use. A key may pass through prison bars while a box cannot. Range still matters at every point.

Know the Action Cost

In 2024, later control requires a Magic action. In 2014 it requires an action. PF1e and 3.5e use Concentration plus a move action to propel the object.

Name the Exact Object

Legacy Mage Hand targets one object. A loose key is obvious. A key fixed to a heavy ring, chained to a guard or built into a mechanism may no longer be a legal target.

Expect Witnesses

The modern spell visibly creates a spectral hand. It offers distance, not automatic secrecy.

GM Guidance

Running Mage Hand

Core ruling: reward a clever use when the object, route, weight, range and action cost all fit the active edition. Require another rule when the proposal becomes an attack, theft contest, tool check, forced movement or stronger telekinesis.

Ask the player to identify the exact object and describe its route.
Count firmly attached material as part of the load where appropriate.
Do not make every useful object mysteriously too heavy; this cantrip is meant to solve small spatial problems.
Do not grant perfect information about mechanisms the caster cannot see or understand.
Remote lockpicking and pickpocketing require rules that specifically provide them.

Examples

Examples of Play

The Gaoler’s Key — 2024

A key hangs on a peg 20 feet beyond the cell bars. The wizard creates the hand beside it and takes the key when casting. On the next turn, a Magic action brings the hand and key back through the bars. The key weighs less than 10 pounds and the hand never exceeds 30 feet.

The Idol on the Plate — Pathfinder 1e

A four-pound stone idol rests on a pressure plate. The sorcerer targets the unattended nonmagical idol and moves it 15 feet with a move action. The spell moves the idol; it does not disarm whatever the pressure plate controls.

The Fallen Scroll Case — D&D 3.5e

A two-pound wooden case lies at the bottom of a narrow shaft. The bard moves it upward in 15-foot stages while maintaining Concentration. The spell ends if the object goes beyond Close range.

World Use

Mage Hand in the World

A common cantrip changes how small secure spaces are designed. Gaolers keep keys inside closed boxes rather than on open hooks. Archivists weight loose papers and use cabinets whose latches cannot be reached through viewing grilles. Apothecaries keep dangerous vials away from open counters.

The spell also has legitimate uses. Apprentices retrieve light tools from hot furnaces, flooded channels and contaminated rooms. Scribes can move loose sheets without crossing wet ink. Healers can pass light objects through isolation screens.

A spectral Mage Hand moving a silver cup during a crowded court banquet — At a crowded court, a moving cup can become evidence, warning or accusation before the whole hall.

Adventure Hooks

The Key Behind the Grille

A bronze key hangs beyond iron bars. Moving it is easy; doing so without waking the thing that counts every object in the chamber is not.

The Cup That Moved First

At a ducal feast, a poisoned cup slides away from its intended victim. One witness calls it a rescue, another an attempted murder, and a third swears the hand belonged to someone who never cast a spell.

The Bell-Pull in the Empty Room

A sealed tower room rings its bell each midnight. The cord is light enough for Mage Hand, but no living caster stands within range.

The Five-Pound Testament

A murdered wizard left evidence inside a locked archive. The only accessible tablet weighs exactly five pounds, and experts disagree about whether its iron frame is part of the target.

Historical Parallels

Remote Hands and Action at a Distance

Mage Hand belongs to a long fascination with action at a distance. Spiritualist séances, psychokinesis claims and stage illusions all turned moving objects without visible contact into evidence of an unseen force.

Fantasy gaming makes that uncertain spectacle reliable and measurable. The result is not unlimited telekinesis, but a carefully bounded magical reach with a known range and load limit.

The Hand of Glory

European folklore imagined a severed hand prepared as a magical aid for thieves. Its purpose differs from Mage Hand, but both use the image of a detached hand as an instrument of illicit reach.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Mage Hand visible?

In modern D&D, yes: the spell explicitly creates a spectral floating hand. PF1e and 3.5e describe remote movement without stating that a visible hand appears.

Can Mage Hand pick a lock?

Not automatically. Ordinary Mage Hand does not grant thieves’ tools proficiency or a remote lockpicking procedure. A feature that specifically expands Mage Hand can change that.

Can Mage Hand steal a carried item?

PF1e and 3.5e forbid attended objects. Modern Mage Hand supplies no automatic pickpocket procedure.

Can Mage Hand activate a magic item?

Not in modern D&D. PF1e and 3.5e cannot target a magic item with the spell because the target must be nonmagical.

Can Mage Hand deal damage?

The modern hand cannot attack, and the legacy spell provides no attack mode. Environmental consequences should use the normal rules for the object or hazard rather than invented cantrip damage.

Related Magic

Related Spells

Detect Magic — identify magical objects before approaching them.
Mending — retrieve a damaged item, then repair it.
Open/Close — a legacy spell built specifically for light portals and containers.
Prestidigitation — minor sensory and cosmetic magic.
Unseen Servant — a longer-lived magical helper.
Telekinesis — the stronger answer for heavier lifting and combat manipulation.
Bard Spells

Sources & Licensing

Rules Sources

The 2024 and 2014 panels follow their corresponding public D&D spell entries. Pathfinder 1e and D&D 3.5e use their open rules versions. Their different target, weight, action and Concentration models are kept separate.