Starlit Sentinel
Source Tian Xia Character Guide pg. 94Though the zodiac is known throughout Tian Xia for subtly watching over the continent, sometimes the 12 constellations find more direct action necessary. When a grave threat arises, a zodiac constellation might shine on an everyday student or worker, granting them the power to transform into a powerful alter ego to repel those threats. Though most of these starlit sentinels act covertly when the world is asleep, some become well known either as urban legends or outright celebrities, though usually only as their alter ego. Some might find themselves pulled between the dual pressures of an unassuming civilian identity working in a market by day, and the defender of that same market from rampaging oni or qi-stealing jiang-shi under the light of the stars. Due to a quartet of well-known female sentinels operating out of Goka, many have come to believe that the zodiac chooses only girls as its champions, but the heavens care little for such mortal concerns and are equally likely to grant their power to those of any gender. Starlit sentinels are rare, even in Tian Xia, and individual sentinels are unique; a new sentinel empowered by a given constellation won’t awaken as long as the previous sentinel of that constellation is active.
Rare Archetype Dedication Source Tian Xia Character Guide pg. 94Archetype Starlit Sentinel
You’ve been chosen by one of the constellations of the Tian Xia zodiac. You gain a transformation seal: a mundane-seeming item of light Bulk, such as a ring, brooch, or key, that has the
arcane trait. If your seal is ever lost or destroyed, you can gain a replacement by spending 1 week of downtime in introspection to reconnect with your constellation. You, and only you, can transform into your sentinel form by Activating the seal.
Activate—Starlit Transformation [one-action] (
arcane);
Frequency once per hour;
Effect Light swirls around you, transforming your armor, clothing, and a single weapon in your possession into a specific alternate outfit. While your equipment might look dramatically different, it functions as normal. If someone attempts to discern your identity, they must use a
Seek action to attempt a
Perception check against your
Deception DC, as if you were using the
Impersonate action. Your Deception DC against such attempts is 20 + your proficiency modifier instead of the normal DC. Unlike with Impersonate, you don’t have to attempt a Deception check to interact with someone to conceal your identity—a check happens only if someone else specifically tries to uncover it. You remain in your sentinel form for 10 minutes or until you use Starlit Transformation again to change back to your normal form.
While you're in sentinel form, your transformed weapon shines with starlight and gains a +1 status bonus to damage rolls with the weapon. You can fling bolts of starlight from your weapon with a Strike action, using your melee attack modifier with the weapon. These bolts deal 1d4 force damage, have a range of 60 feet, are affected by your weapon runes, and have the
arcane and
force traits.
Archetype Source Tian Xia Character Guide pg. 94Archetype Starlit Sentinel
You can channel the power of your constellation into a unique technique. You gain either the
luminous stardust healing or
shining starlight attack focus spell, which you can cast only in sentinel form. When you gain this feat, decide a name for your technique, which becomes the spell's incantation.
If you don't already have one, you gain a focus pool of 1 Focus Point, which you can Refocus by spending 10 minutes outside of your sentinel form to reflect on the values of your constellation. Starlit sentinel focus spells are
arcane spells. You become trained in spell attack modifier and spell DC, and your spellcasting ability for these spells is Charisma.
Special You can take this feat a second time, gaining the focus spell that you didn’t gain the first time.
Archetype Source Tian Xia Character Guide pg. 94Archetype Starlit SentinelRequirements You’re in your sentinel form.
You announce your name to your enemies, bringing your constellation to bear in a blinding display. Attempt to
Demoralize all enemies within 30 feet. Demoralize loses the
auditory trait and gains the
visual trait when used this way. In addition to the regular effects of Demoralize, enemies become
dazzled for 1 minute on a successful check (and also blinded for 1 round on a critical success).
You can use Majestic Proclamation as a single action if your previous action was Starlit Transformation.
Archetype Emotion Source Tian Xia Character Guide pg. 94Archetype Starlit Sentinel
The bonds of the heart are stronger than any steel, more powerful than any magic. You plunge your transformed weapon into the heart of a willing adjacent ally, where it phases harmlessly into their body. As you pull the weapon out, your ally’s heart inscribes one of the following weapon property runes on your weapon:
corrosive,
flaming,
frost,
shock,
thundering, or
vitalizing. The first time you use Blade of the Heart with a given ally, the GM should decide which rune best represents your shared relationship (such as elegant frost for a respected mentor or brash thundering for a boisterous sparring partner); thereafter, each time you use Blade of the Heart with that ally, you draw the same rune. This rune lasts for as long as you remain in sentinel form and counts toward your maximum limit of runes as normal.
At 16th level, you draw the greater version of the rune instead.
Archetype Source Tian Xia Character Guide pg. 94Archetype Starlit Sentinel
You call out a desperate wish to the stars to save a friend. You gain
breath of life as an innate
arcane spell, which you can cast once per day only while in sentinel form. Interceding in such a direct way temporarily exhausts your constellation’s magic, causing you to revert from your sentinel form once the spell is cast.
Archetype Source Tian Xia Character Guide pg. 95Archetype Starlit Sentinel
Just as your constellation traverses the sky, so too can you. When in your sentinel form, you gain a
fly Speed equal to your land Speed or 20 feet, whichever is higher.