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Pathways
April 25, 2026 at 04:45 PM
Initial Pathways reference covering the 22-Pathway roster, Crimson Test scope, and pathway groups
Pathways are the 22 standard advancement tracks for Beyonders in Lord of Mysteries. Each Pathway represents a divine archetype and has 10 Sequences of progression from Sequence 9 (entry) to Sequence 0 (god-tier). The 22-Pathway count borrows from the 22 paths of the Tree of Life and the 22 major arcana of the Tarot.
In the Crimson Test (February 2026), 6 of the 22 Pathways are playable and progression is capped at the lower three Sequences for testing purposes. Three of the six are publicly confirmed: Seer, Apprentice, and Spectator. The Assassin and Hunter Pathways are not in this test.
The full 22-Pathway list, with the canonical name of each Pathway's Sequence 0 god (the title most Beyonder histories index by). Each Pathway also has a canonical Sequence 9 entry name, which is the role a brand-new Beyonder takes after their first potion.
Many Pathways correspond to a major arcana card. The most prominent in the source material's narrative are the Seer Pathway (The Fool at Sequence 0), the Spectator Pathway (The Visionary at Sequence 0), the Sun Pathway (The Sun), the Justice Pathway (The Justice), the Hanged Man Pathway (The Hanged Man), the Hermit Pathway (The Hermit), the Door Pathway (The Door, accessed by the Apprentice entry), the Mother Pathway (The Mother), the Tyrant Pathway (The Tyrant), the Death Pathway (The Death), the Black Emperor Pathway (The Black Emperor), the White Emperor Pathway (The White Emperor), and the Red Priest Pathway (The Red Priest).
Additional standard Pathways named in the source material include Demoness, Hunter, Assassin, Civil Servant, Reader, Wheel of Fortune, and several less-frequently-named Pathways tied to specific Outer Gods. The exact in-game roster of which 22 will appear at full launch (and in what order they unlock during live patches) has not been confirmed by SPARK NEXA.
At character creation, the player picks an opening Pathway from the six available in the current beta. The Pathway choice determines the starting Sequence 9 Archetype, the Acting Method checklist, the starting potion type, and the character's first weapon and ritual prop set. Pathway choice is not permanent; high-Sequence Beyonders can switch between neighbouring Pathways under specific quest conditions, but the system is gated behind late-game progression and not surfaced in the Crimson Test.
The 22 Pathways are grouped by canonical adjacency. Each group typically holds two to three neighbouring Pathways, and a high-Sequence Beyonder can perform a 'pathway switch' ritual to consolidate them. The known groups (from the source material) cluster Tyrant + Black Emperor + White Emperor; Sun + Justice + Red Priest; Demoness + Mother + Hermit; Death + Civil Servant; Hunter + Assassin; and the Fool / Door / Visionary triad that Klein Moretti famously consolidates as the 'Outer Gods of Sefirot' in late novel chapters.
In the game, switching is rare and reserved for specific story-locked encounters; most players will pick one Pathway and grow within it for the duration of normal play.
Three Pathways are publicly confirmed as playable in the Crimson Test:
Seer Pathway: Sequence 9 Seer to Sequence 7 Magician. The protagonist's Pathway in the source material. New-player friendly with strong divination, control, and ritual emphasis.
Apprentice Pathway: Sequence 9 Apprentice to Sequence 8 Trickmaster. The Door Pathway entry. Sleight-of-hand, mobility, and shortcut-finding emphasis.
Spectator Pathway: Sequence 9 Spectator to Sequence 7 Psychiatrist. Mind-pressure caster with telepathy, hypnosis, and dream control.
Three additional Pathways are also playable in the Crimson Test but their identities have not been publicly confirmed at the time the test launched. Players selected for the Crimson Test see all six on the character creator. Public confirmation of the remaining three is expected in subsequent reveal posts from SPARK NEXA.
SPARK NEXA has explicitly stated that two Pathways are not available in the Crimson Test:
Assassin Pathway: combat-focused stealth-and-burst Pathway. Excluded from the Crimson Test for combat-balance reasons.
Hunter Pathway: tracking-and-monster-hunting Pathway. Excluded from the Crimson Test pending mechanic-system completion.
Both Pathways are expected to land in subsequent beta phases.
