Scrying — Complete D&D 5e Spell Guide

Table of Contents

• •Quick Answer
• •Overview
• •Stat Block
• •When NOT to Use This
• •Spell Slot Efficiency
• •Pro Tips
• •Common Mistakes to Avoid
• •Usage Tips
• •Rules Notes
• •Synergies
• •Anti-Patterns
• •Tactical Modules
• •Countermeasures
• •Scrying in the 2024 Rules
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Quick Answer

Scrying is a 5th-level divination spell for Bards, Clerics, Druids, Warlocks, and Wizards. Over a 10-minute casting, you pick a creature on your plane of existence. It makes a Wisdom save, adjusted by how well you know it (+5 to −5) and what you hold of it (−2 to −10). On a failure, an invisible sensor follows it for up to 10 minutes (concentration) and you see and hear through it. On a success, you can't scry that creature again for 24 hours. You can instead target a location you have seen, with no save.

Overview

Scrying lets you watch someone from anywhere on the same plane. There is no range limit beyond that. The sensor sits within 10 feet of the target and moves with it, so you see what the target does and hear what is said around it.

The spell's math is the interesting part. The target's Wisdom save gets a bonus or a penalty from two tables: what you know about the target, and what physical connection you have to it. A creature you've only heard of gets +5 to its save. A creature you know well, when you hold a lock of its hair, takes −15. That swing turns the same target from nearly impossible to nearly certain.

You need a focus worth at least 1,000 gp, such as a crystal ball or silver mirror. The spell doesn't consume it, so one purchase covers every future casting.

Stat Block

When NOT to Use This

• •You only have a secondhand rumor and the target has a good Wisdom save. The +5 makes failure unlikely, and a success locks you out for 24 hours.
• •The target is on another plane. The spell only reaches creatures on your own plane of existence.
• •The target can see invisible things. The 2014 sensor is visible to a creature that can see invisible objects, as a fist-sized glowing orb.
• •You need information within the next minute. The casting alone takes 10 minutes.

Spell Slot Efficiency

When worth the slot: Locating a villain before a raid, checking on a hostage, or watching a known room before teleporting in.

When NOT worth the slot: A long-shot attempt on a high-Wisdom target you've only heard of.

Upcasting

Scrying has no "At Higher Levels" entry. A higher slot changes nothing.

Pro Tips

Tip #1: Collect a body part before you need it.

Why it works: A lock of hair, a nail clipping, or any body part gives −10 to the target's save, the biggest modifier in either table. A strand of hair from a hairbrush counts, and it keeps for whenever you need it.

This avoids the mistake of: Scrying on a +5 secondhand rumor and failing for 24 hours.

Tip #2: Stack both tables.

Why it works: Knowledge and connection both apply. "Familiar" knowledge (−5) plus a body part (−10) is −15 total. Against DC 17, a target needs a Wisdom save bonus of +12 or more to have any chance of passing.

This avoids the mistake of: Using only one modifier when you have both.

Tip #3: Scry a place instead of a person.

Why it works: If you target a location you have seen before, there is no save at all. The sensor appears there and stays put.

This avoids the mistake of: Giving a strong-willed target a save when you could watch the room it lives in.

Tip #4: Scry first, then teleport.

Why it works: Teleport needs a destination known to you, and it defines "viewed once" as "a place you have seen once, possibly using magic." Seeing a place through your sensor counts. In the 2014 table, "viewed once" lands on target on 74–100. Whether scrying the same place on several days upgrades it to "seen casually" (on target on 54–100) is a DM ruling, not rules text.

This avoids the mistake of: Trying to teleport somewhere nobody in the party has seen.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Forgetting the 24-hour lockout

Why it's bad: On a successful save, "you can't use this spell against it again for 24 hours." A careless first attempt costs a full day.

Do this instead: Gather knowledge or a physical connection before your first try.

Thinking the sensor is undetectable

Why it's bad: The sensor is invisible, not hidden from everything. In 2014, a creature that can see invisible objects sees it as a fist-sized luminous orb. A lich has truesight out to 120 feet.

Do this instead: Assume casters with truesight or See Invisibility will notice it.

Assuming you can cast spells through the sensor

Why it's bad: The spell grants sight and hearing through the sensor and nothing else. Your spells' ranges are still measured from you. The 2014 SRD's legendary Crystal Ball of Telepathy is what adds casting Suggestion through the sensor.

Do this instead: Treat Scrying as information gathering.

Scrying across planes

Why it's bad: The target must be "on the same plane of existence as you."

Do this instead: Use Contact Other Plane or travel to the plane first.

Usage Tips

The save modifier tables (2014 SRD):

Worked example: a noble. A 9th-level wizard with 20 Intelligence has spell save DC 17 (8 + 4 proficiency + 5 Intelligence). The same DC applies when you use a crystal ball, which casts the spell at DC 17. The 2014 noble has a +2 Wisdom save.

Worked example: a lich. The 2014 lich has a +9 Wisdom save. Secondhand knowledge gives +14, so it fails only on a 1 or 2 (10%). Firsthand knowledge and a stolen possession give +5, so it fails on 11 or lower (55%). Familiar knowledge and a body part give −6, so even a 20 totals 14 and fails. The lich can still spend a use of Legendary Resistance to succeed, and its truesight lets it see the sensor.

• •Couatl (2014): Its Shielded Mind trait makes it immune to scrying. The 2024 trait only blocks thought-reading and unwanted telepathy.
• •Rakshasa: The 2014 rakshasa can't be affected or detected by spells of 6th level or lower unless it wishes, so 5th-level Scrying fails. The 2024 version says no spell can observe it remotely without its permission.
• •Related guides: Clairvoyance for a shorter-range look at a known place, Arcane Eye for a scout you steer, Detect Thoughts, and the spell guide index.

Rules Notes

• •Target: a particular creature on your plane, or a location you have seen before.
• •The target makes a Wisdom save modified by both tables. The location option has no save.
• •If the target knows you are casting the spell, it can fail the save voluntarily (2014 text).
• •Success: no effect, and you can't target that creature with Scrying for 24 hours.
• •Failure: an invisible sensor appears within 10 feet of the target and moves with it.
• •You see and hear through the sensor as if you were there. That is all the text grants.
• •The focus is not consumed.
• •Concentration, up to 10 minutes. See the concentration rules.
• •Does the target know it was scried? The 2014 text doesn't say. The 2024 text says it feels uneasy during the save but doesn't know why. What a 2014 target notices is a DM ruling, not rules text.

Synergies

• •Teleport: Scrying a place gives you a "viewed once" destination.
• •Crystal ball variants (2014 SRD): A Crystal Ball of Mind Reading adds Detect Thoughts on creatures within 30 feet of the sensor. A Crystal Ball of Telepathy adds telepathy and one Suggestion per day through the sensor. A Crystal Ball of True Seeing gives truesight around the sensor.

Anti-Patterns

• •Casting on a secondhand rumor against a high-Wisdom target.
• •Spending a full casting to look at a location you could reach with Clairvoyance.

Tactical Modules

• •Pre-raid recon: Scry the villain an hour before you strike. Learn who guards it and where it is.
• •Hostage check: Scry a captured ally you know well (−5) using a garment they left behind (−4). Willing allies who know you are casting can fail the save on purpose.
• •Scry and strike: Scry the villain's sanctum, then teleport in while the picture is fresh.

Countermeasures

• •Threat: An enemy is scrying on you. Response: Carry something that sees invisible objects, or travel with a creature that has truesight. Fallback: Keep your hair and belongings out of enemy hands.
• •Threat: A failed attempt locks you out. Response: Scry a location the target uses instead. Fallback: Have a second caster try once you have a better connection.
• •Threat: The target is on another plane. Response: Use another divination spell. Fallback: Wait until it returns.

Scrying in the 2024 Rules

The 2024 SRD keeps Scrying as a level 5 divination spell for the same five classes, with a 10-minute casting time, concentration up to 10 minutes, and a 1,000+ gp focus that isn't consumed.

The save modifiers are the same numbers. "Familiar (you know the target well)" is renamed "Extensive (know the target well)" at −5.

What changed:

• •The target doesn't know what it's saving against. The 2024 text says it "feels uneasy" during the save. The 2014 text was silent.
• •Voluntary failure moved to the general rules. The 2014 spell lets a target that knows you're casting fail on purpose. The 2024 spell drops that line, but the 2024 general saving-throw rules let any creature choose to fail a save without rolling.
• •The sensor is "Invisible, intangible." It appears as a luminous orb to anything that can see it.
• •Location targeting: "a location you have seen" (2014: "a location you have seen before").
• •Focus examples: a crystal ball, mirror, or water-filled font, instead of a silver mirror or a font of holy water.

The 2024 couatl's Shielded Mind no longer mentions scrying.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does Scrying work in 5e?

You cast it over 10 minutes with a 1,000 gp focus and choose a creature on your plane. It makes a Wisdom save modified by how well you know it and what you hold of it. On a failure, an invisible sensor follows it for up to 10 minutes and you see and hear through it.

What are the Scrying save modifiers?

Knowledge: secondhand +5, firsthand +0, familiar (2024: extensive) −5. Connection: likeness or picture −2, possession or garment −4, body part or lock of hair −10. Use one from each table that applies.

Does the target know it's being scried?

In 2024, the target feels uneasy during the save but doesn't know what it is saving against. The 2014 text doesn't say. In both editions, a creature that can see the invisible sensor sees a fist-sized glowing orb.

Is the Scrying focus consumed?

No. The 1,000 gp focus, such as a crystal ball or mirror, is not consumed, so you can reuse it every time.

Can you scry on a location in 5e?

Yes. You can target a location you have seen. The sensor appears there and doesn't move, and there is no saving throw.

What happens if the target succeeds on its save?

Nothing happens, and you can't use Scrying on that creature again for 24 hours.

Can you cast spells through a Scrying sensor?

No. The spell only lets you see and hear through the sensor, and spell ranges are still measured from you. The 2014 Crystal Ball of Telepathy is the SRD exception: it lets you cast Suggestion through the sensor once per day.

Does Scrying work across planes?

No. The creature must be on the same plane of existence as you.

Citations: SRD 5.1 (2014 rules), SRD 5.2.1 (2024 rules)

Includes material from the System Reference Document 5.1 and 5.2.1 by Wizards of the Coast LLC, licensed under CC BY 4.0.