D&D 5E How would you best represent astronomy skills in D&D?

[krunchyfrogg]

I’m talking about using a telescope, knowledge of stars and other celestial bodies, ect.

My character has Arcana and history skills, but I’m wondering if I should see if I should petition my DM to trade one of the languages from my sage background in for some skill with a telescope or something.

 

[Warmaster Horus]

A tool proficiency? Nature skill?

 

[Satyrn]

I’m talking about using a telescope, knowledge of stars and other celestial bodies, ect.

My character has Arcana and history skills, but I’m wondering if I should see if I should petition my DM to trade one of the languages from my sage background in for some skill with a telescope or something.

Tool proficiency: telescope would do it for me if I was your DM. I'd call it akin to the navigator's tools.

I'd also tell you you dot have to petition me for any change in your background you want to make, since the rules already let you customize your background. The only thing you'd need to pass by me would be a new background feature.

 

[Satyrn]

Or hey, like navigator's tools, I'd probably go with astronomer's tools so it obviously includes star charts along with the telescope.

That's my final answer.

 

[ad_hoc]

The Planes fall under Arcana. I'm not sure if there is much need to split them up.

 

[Tersival]

ONE tool doesn't seem sufficient to me, since medieval astronomy involved use of multiple tools, including astrolabes and sundials, as well as telescopes. Plus who knows what was used in construction of the astronomically aligned ancient sites like stonehenge.

For simplicity sake though, I'd treat Astronomy the same as a language you could learn through the PHB downtime training rules. Unlike goblin or elvish however, Astronomy is a language of patterns and symbols that represent the lore revealed by that type of study.

Someone proficient in Astronomy might not understand the language of an ancient observatory's builders, but they could gain some understanding of its meaning by deciphering of the astronimical charts and equations left behind. Understanding the language or not could then provide dis/advantage on checks.

 

[Hriston]

My feeling is that navigator's tools covers this pretty well. Rename the toolkit astronomer's tools if it isn't actually being used for navigation.

 

[Parmandur]

I'd say just use Navigation Tools and ad lib as you go: it's not like a Medieval Astronomer turned Adventurer wouldn't be able to figure the other parts of that toolset out pretty quickly.

Sent from my [device_name] using EN World mobile app

 

[Iry]

Astronomer's Tools should do the job. It would include a telescope, sundial, astrolabe, etc. You can just restrict the Proficiency Bonus to astronomy activities so the character stays on theme.

As for skills? Probably a mix of Survival for star based navigation, and Nature for knowing things about space depending on how much you want your characters to know about celestial bodies.

 

[Demetrios1453]

I'd say just use Navigation Tools and ad lib as you go: it's not like a Medieval Astronomer turned Adventurer wouldn't be able to figure the other parts of that toolset out pretty quickly.

Sent from my [device_name] using EN World mobile app

I would say Navigation Tools as well, since up until modern times, anyone sailing a ship would have to have been an astronomer by default, given that location readings at sea were based upon the locations and movements of the sun, moon, planets, and stars. The tools would also be pretty much the same - astrolabes, sextants (well, actually its ancestor the quadrant), almanacs, star charts, and, for later periods, telescopes (which weren't invented until 1608 in real life). Anything having to do with coastal charts would be a bit of a side bonus, or you can just ignore those in this case if you or the player wants to limit the proficiency in such a way.