I have a question about the archetype - from the following passage:
"A star watcher’s horoscope is always keyed to a specific creature that must be willing and present when the star watcher prepares the horoscope. Only the creature to which a horoscope is keyed can activate it and be affected by it. A horoscope is “cast” by reading it as a standard action, though a star watcher can draw and read a horoscope as a single standard action."
So, does that mean that I don't write up my horoscopes at the start of the day, can write it for someone in the middle of combat if it's something in my formulae book, and then hand it to them and they read it, which makes the formula take effect?
Follow up question: What happens when I hand it to them and they hold onto it for a couple of hours and then cast it on themselves? Is that possible?
1. Let's look at the entire relevant passage:
A star watcher studies a symbolic language of the heavens known as astrology. Equal parts art form and science, astrology can be used to read the future and affect it in subtle ways. Much like an alchemist or investigator, a star watcher collects formulae in a formula book. However, the formulae resemble star charts, and unlike alchemists or normal investigators, he uses these formulae along with personal details and astronomical measurements to make horoscopes—magical calculations stored much like scrolls—in which he can store spells. In many ways, the star watcher’s horoscopes function like extracts, with the following exceptions.
A star watcher’s horoscope is always keyed to a specific creature that must be willing and present when the star watcher prepares the horoscope. Only the creature to which a horoscope is keyed can activate it and be affected by it. A horoscope is “cast” by reading it as a standard action, though a star watcher can draw and read a horoscope as a single standard action.
Based on this, you prepare horoscopes the same way as an investigator or alchemist prepares extracts, only the result is a horoscope instead of an extract. Then (presumably) you give the horoscope to the keyed creature so that they can activate it when needed. You can choose to leave slots open and prepare on the fly, like an alchemist, but it still takes 1 minute to prepare a horoscope, just like it takes 1 minute to prepare an extract.
2. Yep, that appears to be how they're meant to work--only the subject can activate the horoscope, so you might as well just let them have it. (I assume it becomes inert after 1 day just as extracts/infusions do.)
I agree that that is what it should be. I'm just confused by the "draw and read" a horoscope as a standard action portion. Particularly the "draw".
but I guess that's the same as the final mixing / act of casting.
Honestly, the archetype is amazingly underwhelming. Definitely a pass.
I'd say "draw" means what it does in most contexts: The action of pulling the object out of storage and readying it for use
*sigh* it must be late. I'm a cartoonist, part time. The other definition of draw never occurred to me. I was thinking solely in the "making star charts". (Also, I've been working on fixing Golarion's night sky - literally drawing star charts.)
Thank you for pointing that out :P
