Search
Search (INT)
You can find secret doors, simple traps, hidden compartments, and other details not readily apparent. The Spot skill lets you notice something, such as a hiding rogue. The Search skill lets a character discern some small detail or irregularity through active effort. Search does not allow you to find complex traps unless you are a rogue (see the "Special" section below).
Check: You generally must be within 10 feet of the object or surface to be searched. It takes 1 round to search a 5-foot-by-5-foot area or a volume of goods 5 feet on a side; doing so is a full-round action.
| Task | DC |
|---|---|
| Ransack a chest full of junk to find a certain item | 10 |
| Notice a typical secret door or a simple trap | 20 |
| Find a difficult nonmagical trap (rogue only)* | 21+ |
| Find a magic trap (rogue only)* | 25+ spell level used to create |
| Notice a well-hidden secret door | 30 |
- Dwarves (even if they are not rogues) can use Search to find traps built into or out of stone.
Special: Elves get a +2 racial bonus on Search checks, and Half-Elves get a +1 racial bonus. An Elf (but not a Half-Elf) who simply passes within 5 feet of a secret or concealed door can make a Search check to find that door.
Active Abjuration spells within 10 feet of each other for 24 hours or more create barely visible energy fluctuations. These fluctuations give characters a +4 bonus to Seaarch checks to locate such Abjuration spells.
While anyone can use Search to find a trap whose DC is 20 or less, only a rogue can use Search to locate traps with higher DCs. (Exception: The spell Find Traps temporarily enables a cleric to use his Search skill as if he were a rogue.) Finding a nonmagical trap generally has a DC of at least 20, and the DC is higher if it is well hidden. Finding a magic trap has a DC of 25 plus the level of the spell used to create it. Identifying the locaation of a Snare spell has a DC of 23.
The spells Explosive Runes, Fire Trap, Glyph of Warding, Symbol and Teleportation Circle create magic traps that a rogue can find by making a Search check and then attempt to disarm by using Disable Device. Spike Growth and Spike Stones, however, create magic traps that can be found using Search, but against which Disable Device checks do not succeed. See the individual spell descriptions in Chapter 11: Spells for details.
A dwarf, even one that is not a rogue, can use the Search skill to find a difficult trap (those with DCs above 20) if the trap is built into or out of stone. They gain a +2 racial bonus to do so from their stonecunning ability.
Special: A character who does not have the Track feat can use the Search skill to find tracks, but can only follow tracks if the DC is 10 or less. (See the Track feat, page 85.)