Detect Metal

Divination
Tier: 3
Components: Verbal, Somatic, Focus
Casting Time: 1 major action
Range: 120 ft.
Effect: Cone-shaped emanation
Duration: Concentration, up to 1 minute/level
Saving Throw: None
You scan about with the rod, feeling it pull gently towards the hidden cache.

You can detect large accumulations of metals, whether worked or unworked. The spell will detect everything from a vein of iron ore to a pile of gold coins, even through solid stone or other barriers. When you cast this spell, you must concentrate on a small sample of the metal you're searching for. If an accumulation of that metal 10 pounds or larger is within the spell area, you will unerringly sense it (most coins are 50 to the pound).

Each round you can turn to detect things in a new area. The amount of information revealed depends on how long you study a particular area:

1st Round
Presence or absence of the particular metal.

2nd Round
Approximate weight of the metal.

3rd Round
Distance and direction (measured in a straight line) to the metal or mineral.

As long as the spell is active, you can change the metal you're trying to detect by simply concentrating on a different sample (it takes a major action to refocus on the new sample). If you stop concentrating on a sample, the spell ends.

If your sample is unworked, you will detect only unworked accumulations of the metal, such as ore deposits and mineral veins. You will only detect worked metal, such as gold coins or mithral armor, if your sample is likewise refined.

Focuses:
A small sample of the metal to be detected.
A dowsing rod (a forked, Y-shaped branch or device, which is held in both hands and used to scan about).