Divination • Legacy Magical Script

Read Magic

A spellcaster using a crystal prism to decipher magical writing for Read Magic

Choose the rules edition before using this spell. Where an edition does not contain a spell by this name, that panel is a status note rather than an invented conversion.

Read Magic at a Glance

5.5e / 2024 No standalone Read Magic spell
5e / 2014 No standalone Read Magic spell
Pathfinder 1e Level 0 Divination
D&D 3.5e Level 0 Divination
Witch archive Linked from the legacy Witch spell list; modern Witch access follows the edition’s own class rules.

Spell Rules by Edition




Read Magic — 5.5e / 2024

Status: Read Magic is not a standalone spell in SRD 5.2.1. Modern spellcasting and identification rules handle magical writing differently.

Read Magic — 5e / 2014

Status: Read Magic is not a standalone core 2014 spell. Use the edition’s own rules for spellbooks, scrolls and identifying magical text.

Read Magic — Pathfinder 1e

Cleric orison (level 0). Edition source.

School divination
Level bard 0, cleric 0, druid 0, paladin 1, ranger 1, sorcerer/wizard 0
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, F (a clear crystal or mineral prism)
Range personal
Target you
Duration 10 min./level

You can decipher magical inscriptions on objects—books, scrolls, weapons, and the like—that would otherwise be unintelligible. This deciphering does not normally invoke the magic contained in the writing, although it may do so in the case of a cursed or trapped scroll. Furthermore, once the spell is cast and you have read the magical inscription, you are thereafter able to read that particular writing without recourse to the use of read magic. You can read at the rate of one page (250 words) per minute. The spell allows you to identify a glyph of warding with a DC 13 Spellcraft check, a greater glyph of warding with a DC 16 Spellcraft check, or any symbol spell with a Spellcraft check (DC 10 + spell level).

Read magic can be made permanent with a permanency spell.

Read Magic — D&D 3.5e

Cleric orison (level 0). Edition source.

School Divination
Level Brd 0, Clr 0, Drd 0, Pal 1, Rgr 1, Sor/Wiz 0
Components V, S, F
Casting Time 1 standard action
Range Personal
Target You
Duration 10 min./level

By means of read magic, you can decipher magical inscriptions on objects—books, scrolls, weapons, and the
like—that would otherwise be unintelligible. This deciphering does not normally invoke the magic contained in the
writing, although it may do so in the case of a cursed scroll. Furthermore, once the spell is cast and you have
read the magical inscription, you are thereafter able to read that particular writing without recourse to the use
of read magic. You can read at the rate of one page (250 words) per minute. The spell allows you to
identify a glyph of warding with a DC 13 Spellcraft check, a greater glyph of warding with a DC 16
Spellcraft check, or any symbol spell with a Spellcraft check (DC 10 + spell level).

Read magic can be made permanent with a permanency spell.

Focus: A clear crystal or mineral prism.

What Changed?

  • 5.5e / 2024 and 5e / 2014: Read Magic is no longer a separate spell.
  • Pathfinder 1e and D&D 3.5e: it remains a level-0 divination for deciphering magical inscriptions and preparing the reader to understand similar writing later.

Using Read Magic in Play

Read Magic is an investigation and preparation spell. Use it before attempting to work with an unfamiliar scroll, spellbook or magical inscription; understanding the writing does not by itself make a trapped or dangerous text safe.

Related Witch Magic

← Witch Spell Lists

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