Quest Name TBD

Setting Twist: Jewish/Christian Mythology
Setting Time: Modern
Flavor: Modern, Dystopia, Psychedelic, Reality Bending, Dark, Mysterious

+Key Words+
Sephirot: in traditional Kabbalism these are aspects of God.  They have an anthropomorphic aspect to them and are thematically similar to the Holy Trinity.  They are separate beings, all part of one God.

Kelipot: Sort of like the anti-Sephirot, the Kelipot are kind of similar to demonic lords, also all part of a great opposing evil.

Blurb:
	This is set in some sort of alt-Earth.  There are the ten Sephirot, which in traditional Kabbalism is somewhat equivalent to the Eight-fold Path of Buddhism in a practical sense.  They are revelations of God’s plan that are also bound up with behavior.  However, the Sephirot also seem to have a more concrete aspect to them, sort of like an individual will as part of the whole of God if you will.  Naturally, we’re going to crank this aspect up.  Rather than being anthropomorphic concepts, the Sephirot are concrete objects with a physical presence in this world.  Perhaps a block of sandstone for Hod, a volcanic rock of some sort for Netzach, and a metamorphic rock for Yesod.  I’d like to try and bind the Physical manifestation of the Sephirot in the quest to the theme of the Sephirah they correlate with.

Now, on to the anthropomorphic side of things.  In Kabbalistic practices, the Sephirot have anthropomorphic manifestations.  The best thing I can compare these manifestations to are avatars of different aspects of God.  In the quest the Sephirot themselves aren’t human or human-like at all, but they do arise from humans.  Basically how it works is that periodically a human will attain a previously unattained level of divine enlightenment.  Filled with newfound understanding and God’s will/light, they are transformed into Sephirot, their soul binding unto the whole of God.  There’s actually a debate in this world between whether or not Sephirah-potentials are born and attain Sephirah status, or if they are simply avatars of God that he deposits in the world when it is ready or the enlightenment is needed.  Regardless, Sephirah have always led impactful lives prior to their apocalypse.  Many regal or otherwise important families in this world trace their lineage back to a Sephirah as part of a divine right doctrine.

	The role of the Sephirot in this world would be distinct from that in the real world.  In this world, which I’m going to refer to as Theos from now on, Sephirot are a manifestation of God that not only play a role in divine revelation, but also have a role in maintaining the physical world.  Basically, their presence is kinda like Crystals in like every JRPG.  They play an important role in keeping the world running and Evil at bay.  As a result of this, Evil is pretty focused on destroying the physical manifestations of the Sephirot.  The more Sephirot are destroyed, the more powerful the Kelipot - a term that encompasses fallen angels and other debased beings - become.


1 Keter-"Crown"
2 Chokhmah-"Wisdom"
3 Binah-"Understanding"
(Primary emotions:)
4 Chesed-"Kindness"
5 Gevurah-"Severity"
6 Tiferet-"Beauty"
(Secondary emotions:)
7 Netzach-"Eternity"
8 Hod-"Splendour"
9 Yesod-"Foundation"
(Vessel to bring action:)
10 Malkuth-"Kingship

	At the current year of Theos, let’s just say 2023, technology has progressed along much the same clip as it has for Earth, but there is a parallel branch of theological study that is equal or near equal to scientific study.  At this point, all of the Sephirot save one, Keter, have been revealed and have ascended to sit by God.  This would normally mean pretty good things, but it’s actually something of a problem.  The Kelipot have managed to destroy or corrupt most of the Sephirot, at least their physical manifestations.  As a result, reality is weakening, and Demons and other assorted nasties are running about, causing trouble.  And by causing trouble, I actually mean they’re on the verge of conquering reality.

	Combatting the Kelipot is the Ecumene of Catholic Halakha, which doubles as both a theocratic institution and governmental one.  The organization is a relatively recent formation of several other large religious and secular (insofar as they exist) bodies in response to the worsening situation in regard to the Sephirot.  Pooling their resources together in order to protect the last bastions of humanity and the last few Sephirot, the Ecumene’s diverse wings fight a losing battle.

The Sanctified Chivalric Order in Service of G-d and the Temple- Also known as the Knights Templar or simply the Templars, these holy warriors are less warriors and more a conglomeration of mighty corporate interests bound together in service of greater profits.  Or at least they were until things really started going to shit.  Now they are the wealthiest most technologically advanced of the Ecumene, but also the least spiritual.  Prone to corruption and lacking the inherent Demon slaying skills of the other branches of the Ecumene, they rely on advanced weaponry sanctified by the various priests and religious figures they finance to combat the Kelipot.
	+Paladin: Combat specialists within the Templar Order, they are the ones who kick down doors and storm buildings.  Although skilled in the martial arts and especially gunplay, they lack the finesse of the Chevaliers and are poor hands at clandestine work.
	+Chevalier: Soft power specialists, who focus on plots and subterfuge.  Although they are formidable one on one combatants in their own right, they can’t hold a candle to the potency of the Paladins.  They often work to infiltrate organizations aligned with the Kelipot, and as such have some Kabbalistic skills which allow them to detect or disguise themselves from demonic presences.

The Grand Battei Din- The legal system prior even to the formation of the Ecumene, the Rabbinical Association of the Grand Battei Din administered G-d’s law across national boundaries.  When the situation became truly grim, they were the ones who first proposed and laid the groundwork for the Ecumene.  That’s not all they did though.  In a world where the supernatural is very real, rabbinical studies granted the spiritually just strange powers.  Although the Battei Din aren’t terribly wealthy or its servants physically imposing, they possess considerable divine power and are resistant if not outright immune to most demonic powers.
	+Posek: Rabbinical Scholars who have forsaken total mastery of anti-demonic magic for greater martial skill in the mortal realm.  They help bring the order of God to the people and are more adapt at mundane combat.  However, they still posses anti-demonic skills, they are simply not as potent or refined as the Rebbe’s.
	+Rebbe: Rabbinical Scholars whose skills are more specialized to anti-demonic magic.  For many centuries they operated in the dark, enforcing more esoteric laws of God against the forces of the Kelipot.  They are widely mistrusted by the public since they have only recently made their presence known and their failure in their duties as guardians against the machinations of the Kelipot.  Despite this, they are the most potent force aligned against the Kelipot.

I’m thinking of working in some sort of monastic order, based on the Christian Threefold Path, which is ritualistic purification and improvement to the mind, body, and soul that was part of early christian monasticism.  This is still a work in progress more so than the other groups.
	+Hospitallar
	+Votary

	So anyway, you choose an origin from one of these two, possibly three groups, and from there you can choose one of two career paths that you can follow, and then you’ll unlock a skill tree which I’ll have to work out, and progress from there.  At this point Humanity is as I said earlier, in a bad place with the Kelipot and Demons, all of the Sephirot aside from Keter have revealed themselves and ascended.  Many of them have since been corrupted or lost.