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Pathways
May 8, 2026 at 09:01 AM
Applied Title Case to body headings
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. All six Pathways are now publicly confirmed.
The six Pathways available to player characters in the Crimson Test, with role classification confirmed from beta-tester reports:
Seer Pathway (Sequence 9 Seer / 占卜家): ranged DPS. Card-throwing, divination, control. The protagonist's Pathway in the source material.
Apprentice Pathway (Sequence 9 Apprentice / 学徒): magic-damage assassin. Mobility-and-evasion specialist. The Door Pathway entry.
Spectator Pathway (Sequence 9 Spectator / 观众): healer. Mind-pressure and party support.
Warrior Pathway (Sequence 9 Warrior / 战士): melee DPS. Master of all weapons and combat styles. The Twilight Giant Pathway entry.
Bard Pathway (Sequence 9 Bard / 吟游诗人): tank with melee sub-DPS. Holy Song buffs and party support. The Sun Pathway entry.
Hermit Pathway (Sequence 9 Mystery Pryer / 窥秘人): DPS. Mystery prying, occult knowledge, eyes that see through illusions.
SPARK NEXA has explicitly excluded the Assassin Pathway and Hunter Pathway from the Crimson Test.
The full 22-Pathway list. Each Pathway is named in source material by its Sequence 0 deity (the title most Beyonder histories index by) and by its Sequence 9 entry name (the role a brand-new Beyonder takes after their first potion). Future live-game patches will surface additional Pathways from this roster.
Tarot-aligned Pathways: the Fool (Seer Pathway), the Door (Apprentice Pathway), the Visionary (Spectator Pathway), the Sun (Bard Pathway), the Hermit (Hermit Pathway), the Twilight Giant (Warrior Pathway), the Hanged Man (Sailor Pathway), Justice, the Magician, the Black Emperor, the White Emperor, the Red Priest, the Mother, the Demoness, the Tyrant, Death, and several less-prominent arcana correspondents.
Other named Pathways from the source material include the Sleepless Pathway (Sequence 9 Sleepless, the Dunn Smith type), the Reader Pathway, the Wheel of Fortune Pathway, the Civil Servant Pathway, the Hunter Pathway (excluded from Crimson Test), and the Assassin Pathway (excluded from Crimson Test).
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.
Sequence 9 player characters in the Crimson Test have access to higher-Sequence abilities through the Mr. Fool grafting mechanic: at the introductory tutorial, Mr. Fool grafts borrowed copies of higher-Sequence abilities onto the player's character so the role plays meaningfully even at the lowest rank. Strength is reduced compared to a true higher-Sequence Beyonder, but the kit is broad enough that combat is varied from the first hour.
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 in the source material cluster Tyrant + Black Emperor + White Emperor; Sun + Justice + Red Priest; Demoness + Mother + Hermit; Death + Civil Servant; Hunter + Assassin; 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.
The Crimson Test caps progression at Sequence 7 across all six playable Pathways. Reach varies slightly by Pathway based on which advancement ceremonies have been built into the test build. Sequence 6 Faceless and beyond are reserved for future beta and live patches.
