Hello kind people of the Pathfinder forum,
I have a question regarding the comprehend languages spell. In my group I have a Sorcerer with the first level spell. She started using the spell recently. Here is the description of the spell from the Paizo page:
You can understand the spoken words of creatures or read otherwise incomprehensible written messages. The ability to read does not necessarily impart insight into the material, merely its literal meaning. The spell enables you to understand or read an unknown language, not speak or write it.
Written material can be read at the rate of one page (250 words) per minute. Magical writing cannot be read, though the spell reveals that it is magical. This spell can be foiled by certain warding magic (such as the secret page and illusory script spells). It does not decipher codes or reveal messages concealed in otherwise normal text.
My question is, can she use this spell to read dead languages?
In my world there are a number of races that died thousands of years ago. Drow are one of them (although few survived and have been in hiding, so no one knows about them). The group found notes in an old wizard's notebook, the whole point of it is that they wont understand it (there is one drow in their group, the information was intended to go to her, she read it and knows what it says but obviously didn't say anything, they think she is a tiefling. Is it wrong to restrict the spell to only languages that are still alive and in use? Or should the sorcerer have been able to understand it?
And what about languages that literally not a single person in the whole world can understand today, would she be able to understand those?
Thank you in advance :)