Detect Evil Thin sheet of lead

[DontEatRawHagis]

Has this been in te fluff since it's inception or is this a nod to Order of the Stick?

Because if it is te latter, I am laughing my butt off.

[hawklost]

It has always been in for a long time. Order of the Stick took the joke because people always made fun of Detect magic acting like Radiations.

[Totema]

Not only that, but I appreciate the nod to sexually-ambiguous elves. I think Wizards even confirmed the connection to OotS in their Twitter.

[da_chicken]

Has this been in te fluff since it's inception or is this a nod to Order of the Stick?

Because if it is te latter, I am laughing my butt off.

Not really new at all. Many low level divinations carry similar limitations in AD&D going back to 1e. Editions prior to that didn't have any restriction that I recall, but those systems didn't have rules as in depth. It's not clear if those spells penetrate any barriers whatsoever. The descriptions don't say, so probably not.

The 3.x version of detect evil states, "The spell can penetrate barriers, but 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt blocks it." 1e Detect Evil doesn't appear to be limited (again, it doesn't necessarily penetrate barriers) but Detect Magic carries the "3' of wood, 1' of stone, or [1 inch] of metal" limitation.