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Observatory
Housing an impressively large telescope, Mount Holly's observatory is a window to the world above and beyond the clouds and sky. Through its mirrored lens, even a novice stargazer will be able to distinctly appreciate the wonder, signs and constellations that punctuate the tapestry of night.
The Observatory is a room in Blue Prince. Listed as Room 042 in the Room Directory, the Observatory provides exclusive access to constellations, which begin with minor effects that are rarely worth the gem cost, but gradually increase in utility each time the Observatory is drafted.
Points of interest
Items
The Observatory rarely contains an item, either on or by one of the two side tables. The possibilities include:
Documents
The Observatory contains a copy of the The Fixed Stars on the left side table, a book which provides information on the constellations that can be seen in the night sky.
- This book is identical to the book that can be borrowed from the Library aside from the borrower log.
- The Fixed Stars
Page 1
Pages 2-3
Pages 4-5
Pages 6-7
Pages 8-9
Pages 10-11
Pages 12-13
Pages 14-15
Effect
When the Observatory is drafted, one star is immediately added to the player's star count. Stars are permanent and can be seen in the lower right corner of the inventory as long as the player has at least one. The star count is also always visible in the Observatory, in the top left of the screen below the number of steps.
The Observatory contains a large telescope supported on an altazimuth mount in the center of the room. There are two control wheels for the telescope:
- A wheel on the mount can be interacted with to rotate the horizontal angle of the telescope (i.e. the azimuth) either clockwise or counterclockwise. Each rotation is fixed at 45°, resulting in eight possible horizontal angles.
- A wheel on the second floor of the Observatory, up the stairs at the end of the walkway, rotates the altitude of the telescope either up or down. There are five height levels the telescope may be positioned at; it is initially found at the second highest angle.
The telescope is a physical object and can be blocked from moving by the stairs and upper floor decking. It also cannot be lowered too close to the stairs using the upper wheel, as it blocks the stairway and prevents the player from returning from the upper level.
The lower wheel, which controls the azimuth
The higher wheel, which controls the altitude
Using the telescope
Click to view
Main article: Constellations
In order to use the telescope, it must first be angled so that it points at the sky through the open window in the roof dome. From the starting position, it can be moved into position by first rotating up vertically once, to the maximum altitude, and then rotating it clockwise twice.
Once aligned, the eyepiece can be interacted with to view the night sky. The sky consists of a number of constellations, the number and nature of which depend on the player's star count. Interacting with a constellation triggers its effect, which is shown by the constellation along with its name. Doing this is optional for each constellation; attempting to exit a night sky of between 1-5
without viewing a constellation brings up a prompt, clarifying that constellations' effects only trigger when they are clicked on.
The constellations are determined based on the star count at the time of the initial viewing through the telescope, and do not change if the telescope is used again after a change in star counts. However, separate telescopes result in separate night skies, which allow for multiple activations and may have different constellations if the star count changes.
Once any night sky has been seen for the first time, all future Observatory telescopes automatically orient themselves in the correct position immediately after the Observatory is drafted. This is a permanent effect and happens even if no constellations have been viewed by interacting with them yet, and even if the telescope is moved out of position again.
The telescope, ready to view the sky
A night sky consisting of a single star, the North Star
Spoilers Within
This section contains spoilers for an Observatory secret.
Click to view
By changing the angle of the telescope to align with the wooden platform, players can search a hidden compartment containing the floorplan to the Planetarium. From the viewing position, the telescope must be rotated clockwise three times, and then down twice. The compartment can then be reached and opened from the end of the walkway on the upper floor.
The compartment resets at the end of the day, as does the position of the telescope like usual.
Positioning the telescope so that the lens compartment is accessible
Within the lens compartment
Interactions
Spoilers Within
This section contains spoilers for viewing many constellations in one day.
Click to view
There are several methods to increase the number of night skies that can be seen in one day:
- While holding the Telescope in the Observatory, a prompt appears allowing players to see the night sky, just as though they had used the large telescope in the room. This generates an additional night sky for each Observatory it is used in.
- The Chamber of Mirrors can temporarily allow an additional copy of the Observatory to be drafted.
- [Chamber of Mirrors Spoiler] The Chamber of Mirrors may also contain a physical copy of the Observatory's floorplan in one of its cabinets which can be permanently added to the draft pool. Up to two additional copies can be added this way, allowing a maximum of four Observatories to be drafted in one day.
With a combination of the above effects, it is possible to view up to eight different night skies in one day. Each different night sky is separate from previous skies and allows all seen constellations to be activated again, even if they have been already activated that day. All night skies determine their constellations based on the star count at the time that particular night sky is first viewed, meaning that the constellations that appear may or may not be different from other night skies depending on whether or not the star count changed in the interim, e.g. due to drafting an Observatory.
Different constellations have different effects when activated multiple times in one day. Constellations with an immediate effect can generally apply their effect multiple times, such as The Twins or Clavis, the Key, whereas passive constellations that last until the end of the day like The Sail generally do not have any additional effect. However, Farmer's Apple does stack and can increase the quality of apples to very high levels.
Regardless of how many night skies are available, only the first seven night skies generated per day can actually consist of constellations. For unknown reasons, if an eighth night sky is viewed, it is always empty.
Entering any particular Observatory for the first time each day causes The Stars Unseen to play from the start, even if it is already playing.
Additional information
- Entering the Observatory for the first time each day causes the introduction of The Stars Unseen to begin playing. The rest of the track plays upon viewing the night sky.
- The Observatory is one of many places in the game where a globe can be seen and interacted with: one small colored globe on the right table, and one larger, wooden globe on the floor nearby.
- [Mail Room Experiment Spoiler] The Observatory is mentioned in Randolph's sixth letter as the location of a hidden floorplan which Randolph had removed from the Drafting Studio; see #Hidden floorplan.
If you've found a new clue, you know what to do.
Are the globes part of a puzzle?