Astrological Chart (occult practice)

Not to be confused with the sage study, Astronomy and Astrology, the study of celestial bodies and the sky.

The making of the astrological chart is a means of divining the fate of an individual by noting the position of the zodiac, the planets, the sun and the moon at the precise moment of an intelligent creature’s birth. Astrology has no power over the lives of brute creatures, including humanoids with an average intelligence less than seven.

Tracing its roots 3,500 years into ancient Mesopotamia, the act of charting an individual’s astrological chart irrevocably sets the fate of that individual, so that events over a period of months, years or even decades will slowly compound to bring about the visitation of that fate. The fate reckoned relates to what heavenly bodies are placed in which houses, balanced by the motions of those bodies at that time, such as the phase of the moon or whether a planet is in retrograde motion. The charts of individuals may indicate they are destined to be rich or poor, popular, cursed, healthy, lucky, to find greatness or possibly die in obscurity.

Obviously, player characters may not wish to know their fate and may resist the occultist investigating these things. However, as the game world is the Earth, as astronomical charts exist to describe the placement of every planet and its movement, as the birthplace is known for each individual and as the time of birth can be determined randomly, it is possible to create an exact astrological chart for any existing character, player or non-player alike.

The exact interpretation of the astrological chart can be left for later when this becomes relevant to game play, which won’t be until a player either chooses this interest as an occultist, or a player pays money to an NPC to have their chart read (which will cost a pretty penny). Until the time when the player and DM can discuss the actual personal time the player needs to make the chart, it is enough that plenty of content already exists surrounding astrology to make a reading practical.

See Occultism