Detect Magic vs Identify
Both reveal magic, at different resolutions.
Detect Magic
- Level
- 1
- School
- Divination
- Casting Time
- Action
- Range
- Self
- Components
- V, S
- Duration
- up to 10 minutes
- Concentration
- Yes
- Ritual
- Yes
- Classes
- Bard, Cleric, Druid, Paladin, Ranger, Sorcerer, Warlock, Wizard
For the duration, you sense the presence of magical effects within 30 feet of yourself. If you sense such effects, you can take the Magic action to see a faint aura around any visible creature or object in the area that bears the magic, and if an effect was created by a spell, you learn the spell's school of magic. The spell is blocked by 1 foot of stone, dirt, or wood; 1 inch
Full entry →Identify
- Level
- 1
- School
- Divination
- Casting Time
- 1 Minute
- Range
- Touch
- Components
- V, S, M
- Duration
- Instantaneous
- Concentration
- No
- Ritual
- Yes
- Classes
- Bard, Wizard
You touch an object throughout the spell's casting. If the object is a magic item or some other magical object, you learn its properties and how to use them, whether it requires Attunement, and how many charges it has, if any. You learn whether any ongoing spells are affecting the item and what they are. If the item was created by a spell, you learn that spell's name. If you
Full entry →Which one should you pick?
- Pick Detect Magic: Pick Detect Magic to sweep a room for magical auras — fast, ritual-castable.
- Pick Identify: Pick Identify on a specific item to learn its full properties — also ritual-castable, costs a 100-gp pearl.
- Tiebreaker: Both being ritual spells means no slot tax during downtime; cast freely.