How it works
This zodiac spin the wheel holds two full sets of twelve: the western star signs from Aries to Pisces and the Chinese zodiac animals from Rat to Pig. Pick a set, or narrow the western signs to one element, then press Spin the wheel. Each result shows its dates, element and ruling planet, or the animal's years.
Read the full guide
Turn a star sign into a birthday
A sign pins a birthday to about thirty days. Land on Scorpio and the birthday falls between 23 October and 21 November. Four signs open a season: Aries begins at the March equinox, Cancer at the June solstice, Libra at the September equinox and Capricorn at the December solstice.
Work out a Chinese zodiac animal from an age
The Chinese zodiac gives an animal to a year, not a month, so work from an age. A character who is 12 in a story set in 2026 was born in 2014, a Year of the Horse like 2026 itself. The animal changes at Chinese New Year, not on 1 January: someone born on 20 January 2026 is a Snake, because the Horse year began on 17 February.
- For a cast of twelve, use it as a zodiac wheel spinner in Elimination mode: twelve spins on the western set give every character a different sign.
- Signs that share an element sit four months apart. Filter to Fire signs and only Aries, Leo and Sagittarius stay.
- At a party, spin an animal and ask who was born in its year. The card names two of its years; the rest are 12 apart.
Questions and answers
Why is there no thirteenth sign?
Ophiuchus is left off on purpose. The Sun sits in front of that constellation from about 29 November to 18 December, and a 13th sign made headlines in January 2011. But the signs are twelve equal parts of the Sun's yearly path, fixed to the equinox, and no longer line up with the constellations they are named after.
Does a horoscope wheel say anything true about a person?
No. Astrology has no scientific validity, so the result cards list dates, elements and planets and stop there. For an invented character a sign is still a useful hook: it fixes a birthday, suggests a symbol for a costume, and gives two characters something to argue about.
Why do other tables give my sign different dates?
A sign starts at the moment the Sun reaches a set point on its path, and that moment shifts by up to a day between years. One table starts Leo on 22 July, another on 23 July, and both are rounding. On a boundary date, only the birth year settles it.