S9: Yesod (The Foundation)
- Concept: The Subconscious, Illusion, Astral Forms, The Hidden, The Foundation of Reality.
- Description: Yesod is the Sefirah that underpins the physical world of Malkuth. It is the astral plane and collective subconscious, the foundation of tangible reality. While Hod creates splendid forms and Chokmah reveals objective truth, Yesod shapes perception and generates convincing phantasms. Its practitioners are the spies and therapists of the magical world, who understand that what we perceive is as important as what is real.
Common applications & abilities
- Phantasm: The creation of complex, convincing illusions that affect all five senses. Unlike Hod's illusions, which are intellectually perfect constructs, Yesod's are psychologically resonant, tapping into the target's own subconscious to be more believable.
- Dream-Walking: To enter the dreams of a sleeping target, allowing for communication, interrogation, or therapy. This is a key skill for the Hidden Dagger's "Ghosts."
- Astral Projection: To separate one's consciousness from the physical body, creating an astral form that can travel unseen and pass through solid matter. This dangerous art risks severing the soul's connection to the body, a rapid path to Hollowing.
- Aura Masking: To alter one's own aura, hiding one's true pathway attunements or masquerading as a different type of mage.
- Scrying: Using a reflective surface (like a mirror or bowl of water) as a window to view distant people or places.
- Psychic Resonance: The ability to perceive and subtly manipulate the subconscious landscape of a target, making phantasms more effective by tailoring them to the victim's specific fears and desires. This is the art that makes Yesod's illusions feel more "real" than the logical constructs of Hod, and is the source of the disorienting effect of a Spore-Bat's
Glimmer-Spores.
Milestones for Yesod
| Tier | Name | Requirement | Physical Change | Metaphysical Change | New Abilities Unlocked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T0 | Awakening | Experience a moment where one's perception of reality is fundamentally shattered, forcing a reliance on instinct and subconscious truth. | Eyes develop a faint, silvery, moon-like luminescence in darkness. | Aura seems to shift and shimmer, making it difficult to get a clear read. | Sporadic, intense bouts of deja vu. Dreams are unusually vivid and sometimes prophetic. |
| T1 | Attunement | Create a simple phantasm (e.g., an image with sound) and have it be believed by a target. | Moon-like luminescence in the eyes becomes permanent. The mage casts a slightly distorted or delayed shadow. | Can sense the subconscious emotional state (fears, desires) of others. | Phantasm (Simple): Can create static, single-sense illusions. Cross-Path Facilitation: Can prime S6, S7, S8, or S10. |
| T2 | Integration | Successfully navigate another person's dreamscape to retrieve a specific piece of information. | The mage's reflection in mirrors seems to move with a slight delay. Their footfalls make little to no sound. | Aura becomes a hypnotic, swirling pattern of violet and silver. Can perform minor acts of self-hypnosis. | Dream-Walking: Can enter the dreams of willing or sleeping targets. Aura Masking: Can hide the signature of one pathway. |
| T3 | Dominance | Trap a powerful opponent within a personalized illusionary world drawn from their own psyche until they surrender. | Does not appear to have a reflection at all unless they will it. Can become partially incorporeal for short periods. | Can access the 'collective unconscious' for archetypal imagery. Can peer into the Yesod-realm, the "Lunar Sea," to draw upon its psychic tides. | Astral Projection: Can safely project their consciousness from their body. Phantasm (Complex): Can create entire illusory environments. |
| T4 | Ascension | Find the 'True Foundation' of the self by stripping away all illusions and ego, and then rebuild one's identity from this core truth. (Legendary) | Body becomes a being of shifting moonlight and shadow, their form changing to match the perceptions of the viewer. | Becomes a 'master of perception'. Can enter the Yesod-realm to establish a Domain. | Reality Weaving: Can create semi-permanent, tangible illusions. Can become a Progenitor of the Phantasmal Flotilla. |
Sefirotic realm
The archetypal plane of Yesod is The Lunar Sea, an ocean of liquid twilight where islands are formed from solidified dreams. For a full description and details on its Progenitor faction, see the main guide on The Lunar Sea. An allegorical take can be found in "The Wanderer's Path."
Cultural Notes
Yesod mages are the spymasters, therapists, and secret-keepers of the magical world. They are central to the Way of the Middle Pillar's focus on the inner self.
- Archetypes & Military: They are the "Ghosts" of Hidden Dagger cells. Their ability to navigate the subconscious makes them powerful healers of the mind—like the Alchemical Soul-Binder—but also terrifying manipulators, such as the Oneirocritic Inquisitor. The Nexus Lamplighters are trained specifically to resist their influence.
- Exemplars: The most famous (and anonymous) Yesod practitioner is the master infiltrator known as The Chameleon.
- Mundane Counters: As the pathway of the subconscious, Yesod's manifestations are non-physical and thus highly vulnerable to "Mundane Anchors"—tools and materials that assert the primacy of physical reality. This is the principle behind the Nexus Lamplighters' use of cold-iron weapons and oiled mirrors. Its subtle illusions are also vulnerable to the "conceptual static" generated by complex, mundane systems.
- The Shadow: The danger of Yesod is Hollowing Corruption. A mage can become lost in illusions, their identity dissolving until they are nothing but a hollow reflection. The black-market dream-dealer Somnus weaponizes this, selling addictive phantasms that accelerate this process in his clients. This mirrors its Qliphothic shadow, Gamaliel, the realm of perverse fantasies, embodied by the monstrous Gamaliel Phantasmist.