Description

1st round: Presence or absence of ((alignment)).

2nd round: Number of ((alignment)) auras (creatures, objects, or spells) in the area and the power of the most potent ((alignment)) aura present.

If you are of the directly opposing alignment (evil vs good, or chaos vs law), and the strongest ((alignment)) aura's power is overwhelming (see below), and the HD or level of the aura's source is at least twice your character level, you are stunned for 1 round and the spell ends.

3rd round: The power and location of each aura. If an aura is outside your line of sight, then you discern its direction but not its exact location.

Aura Power: An ((alignment)) aura's power depends on the type of ((alignment)) creature or object that you're detecting and its HD, caster level, or (in the case of a cleric) class level; see the table below. If an aura falls into more than one strength category, the spell indicates the stronger of the two.

Lingering Aura: An ((alignment)) aura lingers after its original source dissipates (in the case of a spell) or is destroyed (in the case of a creature or magic item). If detect ((alignment)) is cast and directed at such a location, the spell indicates an aura strength of dim (even weaker than a faint aura). How long the aura lingers at this dim level depends on its original power:

Animals, traps, poisons, and other potential perils are not possessed of an alignment, and as such this spell does not detect them. Creatures with actively alignment-specific intents count as ((alignment)) creatures for the purpose of this spell. The classic example would be that a creature with actively evil intentions, such as actively malicious, would be detected by casting Detect Evil. Similarly, a creature with active intentions to create chaos would be detected by casting Detect Chaos.

Each round, you can turn to detect ((alignment)) in a new area. The spell can penetrate barriers, but 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt blocks it.