True Bearing

The true bearing spell, used primarily by mariners of the Land of Fate, allows the recipient to pinpoint the direction in which a familiar landmark or geographical site lies. For one turn, he has a mental compass reading for a particular city, town, significant land feature, or the like. He must have visited this place before, even if it occurred by means of teleport or a magical gate. Further, the site sought by true bearing must be on the same plane of existence as the recipient. Its distance is irrelevant; the spell still reveals the proper direction, though not how far away it lies. If the site is hidden by magic (that is, concealed from magical detection), the spell fails. It also fails if the site no longer exists (for example, an oasis that has dried up or a town that has been completely razed). The spell will not guide the recipient toward a living thing. Nor can it locate a portable item, such as a gem or a magical item, even if the item is currently stationary.

In order to cast this spell, the wizard seeking a true bearing must have water at least 10 feet deep beneath his feet. This, coupled with the “beeline" nature of the spell, makes it most useful to mariners far from land.

Yet stories are told of one Habib Al-Anzaro, nicknamed “The Squishy," who made great stilts out of hollow tubes and filled them with water. Habib was last seen galloping across the open desert like a crazed stork in pursuit of some ruins he had visited as a child.

The material component of this spell is a pinch of iron filings, swallowed by the caster.