Playing an Astronomer
If playing an astronomer in your game interests you but you don’t know what class to use, I’ve gathered a few options you could pick, from simple subclasses to separate classes. Pick what works for you!
Artificer- Astronomer (5e homebrew subclass, GM Binder)- This is another subclass option for the artificer, like artillerist or alchemist, and it has an interesting and unique set of feats that come with it. It doesn’t add a whole lot of spells to the artificer’s already existing list, but it does add some things not previously open to artificers. Astronomer (5e homebrew class, DM’s Guild)- A fully separate caster class, with two different archetypes to choose from; Diviner, and Star Tamer. Diviner works off using your knowledge of the stars and celestials to predict the future for yourself and your enemies with feats that further allow you to manipulate what you see and change fate, to some extent. You can completely redo your turn and make it like you never took your turn thanks to the Written in the Stars feat. You can redo attack and damage rolls, attempt difficult tasks, and even make skill checks to gain information, which you don’t lose when you reset your turn.
Star Tamer, by contrast, is a bit more damage focused. You get a familiar and wings with this archetype, and at 18th level you become totally immune to both radiant and fire damage thanks to the Supernova feat. This class has feats that fit both archetypes well. And, the creator of the class has a note in the bottom of the PDF that allows for adding/removing things (such as spells, which I personally did for my eventual iconic because the ‘official’ spell list lacks the Crown of Stars spell and that’s just a shame.) so you can really be versatile in how you play your astronomer.
Stargazer (Pathfinder prestige class, Paizo)- This one’s a bit different, it’s a prestige class for PF which means you couldn’t make one outright, you have to hit some specific requirements in a base class first. The stargazer class grants a few things from the Wizard and Witch classes, such as familiars and the ability to cast hexes from the Witch’s hex list, and mixes in with things like Oracle revelations. It’s a good add on for an already existing character, with several options to enhance their abilities every couple of levels.
Astronomer (3.5e homebrew base class, Minmax Forum)- This class, as it’s laid out, is very complicated and complex. I’m not sure even I understand it fully. The astronomer has ‘phenomena’ they can “observe” (when you’re really creating them), they’re essentially your spells. They’re limited by your surroundings, called ‘conjunctions’, which essentially means the phenomena you can observe are limited by if it’s day, night, or if you’re somewhere you aren’t able to tell what time of day it is. The author has included a few tables that explain the various phenomena and conjunctions, both superior and inferior. It’s got roots in actual astronomy such as using various astronomer’s tools like an astrolabe or a spyglass to gain new skills and spells, which I appreciate personally, but again, this is a very complicated class layout.
Astronomer’s note: This is by no means an exhaustive list, and I haven’t play tested any of these except for the 5e Astronomer. Be sure to ask your DM before you use any of these, if you use them in a TTRPG.
I’ve found another option for playing an astronomer. Again, same warning as above applies, I haven’t play tested this, and if you do want to use it in a game, make sure you consult your DM first.
College of Astronomy Bard (5e Homebrew subclass, Wordpress)- This is another subclass option for the Bard, and a powerful one at that. You gain proficiency with Navigator’s Tools at just 3rd level, along with Nature and Survival skill checks, so if you don’t already pick any of these during the character creation process, it adds more to your utility belt and lets you potentially act as a guide for your party while traversing unknown lands or traipsing through forests. Couple that with the upped damage capabilities for both yourself and your party you get from the Movement of the Heavens feat, and this is a subclass well worth consideration.
https://thegiddylimit.github.io/classes.html#druid_phb,state:isviewactivesccomp=b1~ishideoutline=b1~sub-stars-tce=b1
I can’t remember if you’ve mentioned this here option as well, but TCE gave us an official druid subclass
True enough, we do have the Circle of Stars druid, and that is another option if you wanna make an astronomer, fits right into the niche. I mostly didn’t include it to not step on Druid’s toes, but I’m sure talking about one specific druid subclass is fine if talking about one specific bard subclass isn’t stepping on Bard’s toes too much.
So with that...
Circle of Stars Druid (official content, Pg. 38 of Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)- This one’s pretty straight forward. It’s a druid subclass with some very unique and fun features. I particularly am fond of the Starry Form feat since it lends itself to both interesting visuals and versatility depending on what form you choose when you use it. And the Twinkling Constellations feat lets you change up what constellation you’ve got every turn, which makes it even more versatile and lets you account for any changes that might happen mid battle.
