Locate Remains

This spell attunes the caster to the physical remains of dead beings in the area of effect. Locate Remains will thus easily detect the presence of unburied corpses or corporeal undead (such as skeletons, zombies, or ghasts), but has no effect on noncorporeal undead (such as ghosts or specters). The area of effect extends in a 60' cone, facing in the caster's current direction. Scanning in a direction requires one round, during which time the caster remains motionless in concentration.

Locate remains is mostly unaffected by walls or obstacles, though the spell is blocked by more than 5 feet of solid stone, ten feet of wood or packed earth, one inch of metal or a thin sheet of lead.

In the most general application, the spell precisely locates any and all physical remains of individuals in the area of effect, regardless of sex, species, and undead status. This spell does not impart any knowledge regarding the identity (or undead nature) of the remains; only the current locations of corpses within the area of effect are learned. If a personal item or a small fragment of the deceased individual is available at the time of casting, the spell can be used to locate the remains of that specific individual. In that case, the spell does not register the presence of any remains except those of the desired individual.

Both the general and specific versions of the spell have no effect if cast on a living creature of any kind. The material component for the general version of this spell is a small piece of bone from a cadaver of the caster’s own race. Additionally, the specific version of this spell requires an article of clothing, personal possession, or a strand of hair is required as a focus that is not used up by casting this spell. This spell is popular in regions with strict burial customs.

This spell will not bypass any defense to prevent scrying.