This spell allows you to scribe a potent rune of power upon a surface. When triggered, a symbol of mirroring creates one illusory duplicate of each creature within 60 feet of the symbol. These duplicates function as mirror image, moving with the original creatures and mimicking their movements, sounds, and actions exactly. If an illusory double is destroyed, a new one appears on the creature's turn. The images last for as long as a creature remains within 60 feet of the symbol, and for 1 round/level thereafter. Once triggered, the symbol remains active for 10 minutes per caster level.

Until it is triggered, the symbol of mirroring is inactive (though visible and legible at a distance of 60 feet). To be effective, a symbol of mirroring must always be placed in plain sight and in a prominent location. Covering or hiding the rune renders the symbol of mirroring ineffective, unless a creature removes the covering, in which case the symbol of mirroring works normally.

As a default, a symbol of mirroring is triggered whenever a creature does one or more of the following, as you select: looks at the rune; reads the rune; touches the rune; passes over the rune; or passes through a portal bearing the rune. Regardless of the trigger method or methods chosen, a creature more than 60 feet from a symbol of death can't trigger it (even if it meets one or more of the triggering conditions, such as reading the rune). Once the spell is cast, a symbol of mirroring's triggering conditions cannot be changed.

In this case, “reading” the rune means any attempt to study it, identify it, or fathom its meaning. Throwing a cover over a symbol of mirroring to render it inoperative triggers it if the symbol reacts to touch. You can't use a symbol of mirroring offensively; for instance, a touch-triggered symbol of mirroring remains untriggered if an item bearing the symbol of mirroring is used to touch a creature. Likewise, a symbol of mirroring cannot be placed on a weapon and set to activate when the weapon strikes a foe.

You can also set special triggering limitations of your own. These can be as simple or elaborate as you desire. Special conditions for triggering a symbol of mirroring can be based on a creature's name, identity, or alignment, but otherwise must be based on observable actions or qualities. Intangibles such as level, class, HD, and hit points don't qualify.

When scribing a symbol of mirroring, you can specify a password or phrase that prevents a creature using it from triggering the symbol's effect. Anyone using the password remains immune to that particular rune's effects so long as the creature remains within 60 feet of the rune. If the creature leaves the radius and returns later, it must use the password again.

You also can attune any number of creatures to the symbol of mirroring, but doing this can extend the casting time. Attuning one or two creatures takes negligible time, and attuning a small group (as many as 10 creatures) extends the casting time to 1 hour. Attuning a large group (as many as 25 creatures) takes 24 hours. Attuning larger groups takes an additional 24 hours per 25 creatures. Any creature attuned to a symbol of mirroring cannot trigger it and is immune to its effects, even if within its radius when it is triggered. You are automatically considered attuned to your own symbols of mirroring, and thus always ignore the effects and cannot inadvertently trigger them.

Read magic allows you to identify a symbol with a Spellcraft check (DC 10 + the symbol's spell level). Of course, if the symbol is set to be triggered by reading it, this will trigger the symbol.

A symbol of death can be removed by a successful dispel magic targeted solely on the rune. An erase spell has no effect on a symbol of mirroring. Destruction of the surface where a symbol of mirroring is inscribed destroys the symbol but also triggers it.

Symbol of mirroring can be made permanent with a permanency spell by a caster of 10th level or higher for the cost of 5,000 gp.

Note: Magic traps such as symbol of mirroring are hard to detect and disable. While any character can use Perception to find a symbol, only a character with the trapfinding class feature can use Disable Device to disarm it. The DC in each case is 25 + spell level, or 33 for symbol of mirroring.