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Rituals are complex ceremonies that create magic effects. You don't memorize or prepare a ritual; a ritual is so long and complex that no one could ever commit the whole thing to memory. To perform a ritual, you need to read from a book or a scroll containing it. A ritual book contains one or more rituals that you can use as often and as many times as you like, as long as you can spare the time and the components to perform the ritual.  A ritual scroll contains a single ritual, and you can perform the ritual from that scroll only once. After that, the magic contained in the scroll is expended, and the scroll turns to dust. Anyone can use a ritual scroll to perform the ritual it contains, as long as the appropriate components are expended.

How to Read a Ritual
Rituals are described in a consistent format, the elements of which are outlined below.

Name and Flavor Text
Beneath a ritual's name is a short passage of flavor text that tells what a ritual accomplishes, sometimes expressing that information in terms of what the ritual looks like or sounds like as it's being performed.

Level
Each ritual has a level. You have to be that level or higher to perform the ritual from a book or to copy it.

Time
Performing a ritual takes the specified amount of time.

Duration
This entry shows how long a ritual's effects last after the completion of the ritual. The effects of a ritual usually last longer than those of a power.


Category
A ritual is classified in one or more categories, which describe the ritual's general nature and function. Each of the nine ritual categories is associated with one or more skills (given in parentheses in the following list).

• Binding (Arcana or Religion)
  These rituals seek to lure, ensnare, control, or protect you from other beings, sometimes from other planes.
  
• Creation (Arcana or Religion)
    These rituals are used to craft magic items and other special objects.
  
• Deception (Arcana)
    Deception rituals cloak reality behind various facades.
  
• Divination (Arcana, Nature, or Religion)
   These rituals provide advice, information, or guidance.
  
• Exploration (Arcana, Nature, or Religion)
    A catch-all category, exploration rituals include a variety of effects useful in everyday adventuring.
  
• Restoration (Heal)
  These rituals remove ill effects from the living or bring back the dead.
  
• Scrying (Arcana)
   Scrying rituals let the caster spy on locations, objects, or creatures.
  
• Travel (Arcana)
  Travel rituals transport characters from one place, or plane, to another.
  
• Warding (Arcana)
  These rituals provide various forms of protection.

[*] Component Cost
This is the value of the components that must be expended to perform a ritual. A ritual's key skill determines the kind of components required.

• Alchemical Reagents (Arcana)
  Typically these are small vials full of powdered metals, rare earths, acids, salts, or extracts from creatures such as dragons or basilisks.
  
• Mystic Salves (Heal)
   Restoration rituals use mystic salves, dabbed or painted on the creatures to be healed. These salves come in small jars and include blessed oils and unguents made from rare spices.
  
• Rare Herbs (Nature)
  Rare herbs are usually collected and preserved during certain times of year, such as when the moon is full.
  
• Sanctified Incense (Religion)
  Sanctified incense is prepared during certain religious rites and is burned as a powder or a stick.

[*] Residuum (Any)
The concentrated magical substance that results from performing the Disenchant Magic Item ritual, residuum can be used as a component for any ritual. You can't usually buy it on the open market; you acquire it by draining it out of magic items.

You can use the components associated with a key skill for any ritual that uses that skill. For example, if you stock up on alchemical reagents, you can use them when you perform any Arcana -based ritual. Ritual components are not interchangeable; you can't use alchemical reagents to perform a ritual requiring sanctified incense, for example. But you can use residuum for any ritual.

You can buy ritual components at some shops, your allies can provide them (sharing the cost of a ritual with you), or you might find them as treasure. However you acquire components, record their value on your character sheet. When you perform a ritual, mark off the ritual's cost from the appropriate components.

Some rituals' descriptions note other costs, including healing surges or a focus item (such as a mirror or a crystal ball for a scrying ritual). A focus item is not expended when you perform a ritual.

Market Price
This entry is the cost to purchase a ritual book containing the ritual or to copy a ritual into an existing ritual book. A scroll containing a ritual costs the same amount.

Key Skill
A ritual's key skill determines the type of components required to perform the ritual, and if a ritual requires a skill check, the key skill is used for the check. If this entry ends with "(no check)," then the ritual does not require a skill check.

If a ritual has more than one key skill, you choose which skill to use. Your choice determines both the components you use and the skill you use for any checks required by the ritual.

Unless a ritual's description says otherwise, you make your skill check when you finish performing a ritual. You can't take 10 on one of these skill checks.

Effects
The text that follows the foregoing information describes what happens when you finish performing a ritual.