Characters / Shin Megami Tensei Forces of Law

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In General

The alignment associated with the embodiment of the belief in one true God, order, equality and peace. The Law alignment promotes order, safety and The Needs of the Many, but at its worst, leads to dictatorship, elitism, and/or Totalitarian Utilitarianism. The main goal of the Law alignment is to rid the Earth of all demons and establish a eternal paradise that worships and is ruled over by God. However, the truth is that only a select few who are judged worthy would be allowed to live in these paradises, with the rest being cast out or killed, including the loyal followers that did said killing to build the system. Law is rather unique amoung the alignments as it is often at odds with its own leaders, due to holding everyone to their high standards, no matter what their postion is.

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• Adaptational Heroism: Law has it's fair share of more heroic variations in of itself across the series. The most notable of these are Amane and Remiel from Devil Survivor, who seeks to redeem humanity in God's eyes than destroy them outright for the perfect world, and a redeemed Zelenin in the New Law Ending of Strange Journey Redux, who seeks to use her song to purify human distortions and create a world where humanity's first instinct is to resolve conflicts through peaceable solutions.
• Adaptational Villainy: In the world of Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse, Law - alongside Chaos - was explicitly a villainous faction than the Blue-and-Orange Morality deal they usually were. They were far more rude and ruthless than in other depictions throughout the series, and choosing to side with them simply repeats the cycle YHVH has in store to keep humanity at the bottom no matter what.
• All-Loving Hero: While most of Law is generally too distant to really exhibit these qualities, many of the Light-aligned scions of Law on the wholesale tend to have a very high sense of empathy for others. Zelenin (pre-Face–Heel Turn and post-Heel–Face Turn), Jonathan, Amane and Remiel all are tendencied by their bleeding-heart empathy and acceptance of everyone around them.
• At Least I Admit It: While Law is very well-aware of what they often have to do for their utopia, they are quick to acknowledge what they are than hold any pretenses otherwise; Law characters just as much hold themselves to account as they do their perceived enemies, and tend to abhor any lack of responsibility.
• Blue-and-Orange Morality: Much like Chaos itself. Law fundamentally subscribes to ideals of peace, equality, and above all else, fairness - but this often wraps in on itself and makes Law more than willing to commit horrific atrocities in the name of said perfect world, ranging from brainwashing, to totalitarianism, to even outright genocide. Lawful demons see no dissonance in their actions versus their ideals, because it's all in the name of a better world. A better way perhaps to describe Law as an alignment is less the alignment of order so much as fairness - it's very much willing to hold itself to the greater sum of things, even if that sum tends to the horrific.
• Blue Is Heroic: Averted, despite being associated with the color blue. While they aren't necessarily completely evil, calling them heroic is a stretch.
• Brainwashing for the Greater Good: A very regular user of this tactic; if anyone has ideals deemed problematic to Lawful society, they simply "revise" those traits into something more productive to society. Oftentimes, the brainwashing strips the individuals of their humanity outright, leading them to becoming thoughtless husks altogether doing nothing but praise God.
• The Chosen Many: Those who are chosen by God are permitted to live in the Millennium Kingdom; everyone else, regardless, of race, status or faith, is killed. Said chosen are given paradise within the Millennium Kingdom, but are otherwise subject to the Kingdom's strict laws.
• Equal-Opportunity Evil: You can say many bad things about Law, most of them fair, but they are most decidedly not discriminatory; they welcome all into their folds of their Millennium Kingdom, regardless of sex, race, nationality, disability or sexuality, and are just as likely to hold those not chosen by them cremated equal.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Despite being Moral Sociopathy: The Faction and often one of the reasons why each of the Shin Megami Tensei game locales suck so much, there are lines even they would refuse to cross:
  • Doing harm to prevent further harm is perfectly fine in their school of thought, but unnecessary cruelty is where they often draw the line. The Lawfully-minded demons of Tokyo regard Tayama's human-trafficking and organ-harvesting operation with only slightly less outright contempt than Lilith does, and things like Captain Jack's wanton cruelty to demons and humans makes for one of the few times where letting your partner kill them doesn't bring you farther from the Lawful alignment.
  • It's never commented outright, but while they are known to be extremely racist towards Chaotic-aligned demons, they find prejudice among or against humans in very low opinion. It certainly explains why they don't care about your ethnicity, gender or features, only that you're one of God's chosen.
  • Dark-Law societies that have a clear social hierarchy (such as Tokyo Millennium in II and Mikado in IV) are regarded as failed states by Law for a very good reason; their first acts upon seizing control is abolishing the social caste systems and institutionalizing total equity among the populace.
  • YHVH may be their figurehead, but the moment he steps out of line or causes an atrocity bad enough that the angels themselves are horrified with it, such as the Megiddo Ark obliterating the Earth in Shin Megami Tensei II, they immediately step down from whatever they're doing and work to take him down. "All are equal of sin" indeed.
• The Evils of Free Will: While Law inherently values social equity and justice above all else, they see zero qualms with using totalitarian methods to ensure their word is met. It's to the point Amane and Remiel are outright exceptions to this rule, with most angels not exactly getting why they would support keeping humanity's identity on a wholesale.
• The Extremist Was Right: While it is highly debatable to say that Law's actions are at all right on an emotional level, it's hard not to deny their results on a logical level: worlds where Law wins the Alignment War always tend to be the most happy as a wholesale on an institutional level, always having enough for everyone and giving everyone what they need - even at the cost of what came to human civilization beforehand. However, it's worth noting that while Law's ends tend to be the most "perfected," it is very subjective as a wholesale whether it is right.
• Final Solution: Chillingly, the darkest part of Law is whenever it agrees to hit the Reset Button on human civilization to foster a new Millennium Kingdom, it involves obliterating the old civilization right down to its very bedrock and killing everyone involved. This isn't incidental; it's to ensure that no memory of the old humanity ever existed so it stifles any chances of their Millennium Kingdom derailing.
• The Heavy: Out of all the games that focus on the Order Versus Chaos conflict, Law very regularly ends up instigating much of said conflict through either orders on high from YHVH to obliterate human civilization or just generally destroying the world to birth something new. Frankly, it'd be easier to list the games where Law wasn't the source of the apocalypse.
• High-Tech Heaven: For some reason, Law alignment is generally depicted as this. Various games depict the Millenium Kingdom as possessing highly advanced technology which can maintain virtual simulators and facilitate creation of Artificial Humans, among other things. The Law faction is also known to use a divine Kill Sat to cleanse the Earth on at least three different continuities.
• Hypocrite: They believe in stopping violence wherever possible. Their answer? More violence to stop said violence. However...
• Hypocrisy Nod: ...while they are very much not above very aggressive means to ensure a stable world, they always hold themselves to their own word: they will say exactly what they say they believe, and if they aren't consistent, they will subject themselves to their own standards to correct on that.
• I Gave My Word: Arguably one of their most positive traits is that they always do exactly as they state themselves as; if they gave their word that they would let somebody go, they damn well uphold their word. Them not doing this is a sign something is very wrong as a wholesale.
• Irony: Despite being the faction of "law and order," they stand out by having some very odd quirks as a wholesale:
  • They are actually the more inherently egalitarian between itself and Chaos. Chaos, despite being the "free" faction, merely means in extremes "freedom from accountability and the strong ruling as tyrants forever over the weak" - to the point that fascism is confirmed as a Dark-Chaos ideal as a wholesale from the first game. Law, meanwhile, only devolves to authoritarianism in Dark-aligned equivalents, while Light-Law seeks to abolish the structure between authority and subjects in an even socialist commune.
  • Amusingly, despite being with the most trappings akin to Catholicism, Law is actually the most advocating for socialist thought as a wholesale - they believe in total equality and no discrimination, and any use of said socialist tenets from Chaos are incidental at best and merely a means to an end to sow discord. Anyone at all familiar with how much real-life Catholics and socialists hated each other would likely find this fact hilarious.
  • Again, in spite of being the faction of order, they are the most prone to outright rebelling against their faction head if they go a step too far for even them; after all, if they aren't going by their own standards, then they too need to fall. This reaches its logical conclusion with Ronaldo in Devil Survivor 2, a Lawfully-minded protagonist who outright leads La Résistance of that game. Meanwhile, Chaos never had anyone necessarily disobey Lucifer's way, though certainly most likely not without trying.
• Knight Templar: Lawful characters off the deep end or demons have a tendency to be this; to them, their ideals of peace are entirely non-negotiable, and you either stand with them, or against them.
• Lack of Empathy. As covered in Moral Sociopathy, they genuinely care about helping people and see empathy as a strength, but if you're not part of their chosen few, then your life is worth virtually nil to them. Kiyoharu learns this the hard way in Shin Megami Tensei IV when the Ancient of Days confirms to him that he and the rest of the humans in Blasted Tokyo were never meant to survive God's Plan, sending Kiyoharu past the Despair Event Horizon as he realized in terms of Tokyo's survival, Kenji was right all along.
• Light Is Good: The Light-aligned members of their alignment exhibit the most positive qualities of the alignment while also having a bleeding-heart empathy for everyone else. That said, however...
• Light Is Not Good: ...the alignment is wholeheartedly associated with the colors white and the "Hama/Kouha" line of spells, but are oftentimes completely unfettered in their pursuit for utopia.
• Moral Sociopathy: Their big hat. Law paradoxically is both highly empathetic to the weak and helpless and seek to give aid to those in need... but is more than willing to commit horrible atrocities in the name of said utopia. They both advocate for the most moral option as a wholesale, but have no qualms with discarding those they see have no further use to their plans. This is frequently called out even in a Law-aligned route, and generally speaking, many of the more sympathetic portrayals of the alignment play up the 'moral' part than the 'sociopath' part.
• The Needs of the Many: Everything Law does is in the name of a better world for the many - even at the cost of those they choose to discard outright in their worlds.
• Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: While Law for the most part has good intentions, YHVH and by extension Dark-Law does not. This reaches its head in Apocalypse, where the entire faction takes back-stage to being little more than a pawn alongside Chaos in a Forever War designed to keep humans at the bottom, no matter what.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Law as a faction always tendencies towards ideals of peace, equity and fairness. Them violating their principles and doing something dishonestly or uncalled for of them is generally a tell-tale sign something very bad is happening. Nowhere is this best shown where Merkabah in Apocalypse lies to the naive humans who helped Merkabah win Armaggeddon in the Law End, which is one of your first hints that Law is ultimately a puppet of YHVH in this universe than merely anything quantifiable to a legit ideology.
• Order Versus Chaos: On the lawful side, natch.
• Pet the Dog: Despite having a distressing tendency to instigate the plots of the game on a regular basis, Law has several moments to remind us they aren't all bad:
  • They do something none of the other alignments do: hold themselves to their own standards in the event of something going wrong. While Chaos pretty regularly has outright Moral Myopia relative to Lucifer's defeat in the past to YHVH and outright hypocrisy regarding its definitions of freedom, and Neutral never tends to being a permanent solution (most of the time), YHVH on no less than three separate occassions (Shin Megami Tensei II, Shin Megami Tensei NINE, and Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey) is gutted by Lawful forces for going a branch even they would consider monstrous and unnecessary on the wholesale. One of the best endings in Law's history happens because an agent of God, Zelenin, is persuaded to turn back on His vision once she learns of the ruin it would cause, and follow a path closer to that of a Light-Law vision as a wholesale. Even in instances where God's vision is fulfilled, those who set their own rules are expected to follow it to the letter: Merkabah and Flynn let themselves be consumed by the Tokyo Perpetual Reactor in IV because of being tainted by the "Unclean Ones".
  • Amane and Remiel genuinely do love humanity as a wholesale, and want nothing but the best of it - their emphasis on empathy is something even the other angels don't quite get, but siding with them builds a world where all humans are truly cared for as a wholesale and redeemed than outright purged.
• The Spock: Tends towards ideals of stoicism, logic and overcoming instinctual desires of the three alignments. Lawfully-aligned protagonists are often noted as nice and polite, but tend to become increasingly more emotionless the further they get into the alignment. Contrast this with Neutral as The Kirk and Chaos as The McCoy.
• Start X to Stop X: They are a pretty Egregious offender of this trope, and ultimately their idea of stopping any perceived sins is often committing them all the same: wanting to ensure an equal commune that has everyone in peace and harmony? Brainwash everyone to remove their conflicting personalities. Humanity is proving unable to manage itself? Directly intervene and apply the aforementioned methods. Demons broke out and/or it's not working? Kill everyone, possibly through liberal usage of nuclear bombardment.
• Totalitarian Utilitarian: Their whole ideology is rooted in the values of social equity and peace, and they are willing to do whatever they need to ensure that... no matter the cost.
• Unfeeling Heavens: In most games angels are usually depicted as not quite capable of understanding human feelings, and wilfully ignore them in favor of their own rhetoric and faith in what they believe to be God's will. YHVH and his direct enforcers are usually even worse.
• Utopia Justifies the Means: They are willing to do anything for their ideal Millennium Kingdom, no matter how many atrocities they have to commit.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist: They firmly believe in equality, helping the weak and a society where suffering is given meaning, but are willing to go to any lengths needed to achieve such a world. Any lengths needed, ranging from brainwashing, to totalitarianism, to outright genocide. Ironically, this helps to make Chaos look like the more appealing option to those who don't pay attention to their ethics, as Law so forcibly delivers its message with the force of a sledgehammer that it almost makes Lucifer look more tempting by comparison. Which only makes sense, given the Bible's depiction of Satan as a Bitch in Sheep's Clothing Divinely Appearing Demon who would lead humanity astray with his temptations of false salvation.
• World of Silence: A recurring result should the Law faction get their way, such as the Shijima Reason in Nocturne and the Three Wise Men's plan in Strange Journey, and applies to a lesser or greater extent to many other games as well bar their most heroic or sympathetic ones. The world which Law wishes to create is often devoid of passion and instinct, all being one with "God" or the "Great Will" in a harmonious unity lacking a true ego or ambition.

YHVH

YHVH

"Not even a thousand deaths would be fitting punishment for thy sins! I shall smite thee, and in Hell I shall torture thee over and over! After an aeon, I shall reincarnate thee, and thy lives shall be those of endless torment, thy bodies tortured in life and thy souls in death! The same shall come to thy children, and thy children's children, throughout all eternity until the end of time! Feel the wrath of my divine lightning, and plummet into the bowels of hell, burning in its unending flames!"

— Shin Megami Tensei II

Warning: As a major recurring figure throughout the series, there will be spoilers for multiple games. You have been warned.

The most recurring entity among agents of the Great Will, YHVH is the Abrahamic God. However, he is far from the kindly god you'd expect; instead, most incarnations of this being tend to be selfish, totalitarian tyrant obsessed with forcing warped standards upon the world; often by brutally slaughtering those who oppose him or those he deems unclean and unworthy of his salvation, and/or forcibly converting all mortal life into worshiping him. In extreme cases, the lives of his followers - even his angels - are no more than means to keep himself in power; caring for nothing but himself.

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See His page.

Satan

Satan

"His name means 'opposer'.
The prince of darkness in Judeo-Christian lore, known for his role as the snake that tempted Adam and Eve at Eden. It is also said he is sent by God to test man's piety."

— Devil Survivor 2 Compendium

Not to be confused with his archenemy Lucifer, Satan is the ultimate weapon of YHVH and the Law faction, and usually deals God's wrath upon the world.

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• Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: Satan is usually rendered as larger than many other demons in the same game, notably in Shin Megami Tensei II and in Digital Devil Saga. In Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE, he is absolutely colossal in 3D. After defeating this body he does transport you to a new dimension where he is much smaller.
• Barrier Change Boss: Appears as this trope a few times across the games. As the Superboss of Digital Devil Saga 2, Satan changes his resistances based on both turn numbers and his current HP, as a Nintendo Hard Puzzle Boss. In Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse, Satan's second phase also changes his resistances back and forth.
• Big Bad: In the first Majin Tensei and also the Final Boss. He's also the final boss of Majin Tensei II: Spiral Nemesis on the Light-Law route. He technically gets the role in II due to his boss taking a back seat until the very end and to being present throughout the entire game as Zayin. In Apocalypse, it's revealed that he was the true villain of IV through his two halves Merkabah and Lucifer, and he continues leading the Monotheists fighting against Krishna until all of the demons, angels, and gods are dead, at which point you can finally confront Satan, though by this point, your main target is now YHVH.
• Boss Battle: Satan often ends up becoming one of the most difficult boss battles in any game he appears in. He generally appears as a Climax Boss, fought just before or during the final arc of a game's storyline.
  • He is the Climax Boss of Megami Tensei II in most routes and becomes the Final Boss in the bad ending.
  • He is the Final Boss of Majin Tensei in all routes.
  • He is the Climax Boss of Majin Tensei II: Spiral Nemesis in most paths and the Final Boss in the Light-Law path.
  • In Shin Megami Tensei II, he is the Climax Boss of Chaos and Neutral endings, fought just before YHVH.
  • In Digital Devil Saga 2, he is a optinal boss which can only be fought in the final dungeon if the game is played in Hard mode. Widely considered one of the hardest bosses ever in a JRPG.
  • In Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse, he appears as one of two Climax Bosses of Bonds and Massacre routes, barring your path to reach YHVH, asking you questions to test you forward.
• Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu: Each time Satan turns on YHVH in the franchise, he never survives the aftermath.
• Co-Dragons: With Metatron and the Four Archangels. Satan has a special status in that, while the Archangels and Metatron have appeared without YHVH in the main series, Satan has appeared as the penultimate boss in all of YHVH's direct appearances.
• The Dragon: To YHVH in Megami Tensei II and Majin Tensei. Subverted in Shin Megami Tensei II, where YHVH does so little and Satan does so much that Satan is much more of a Big Bad than his boss. The same holds true in IV and Apocalypse until the latter's final dungeon.
• Early-Installment Weirdness: His Megami Tensei II and Majin Tensei incarnations are far different from his iconic counterparts in Shin Megami Tensei II and Apocalypse, being a full blown villain and complete sycophant to YHVH instead of the Noble Demon later games portray him as.
• Eldritch Abomination: The artwork of his true form, introduced in Shin Megami II, is a hideous mix-match of insectoid, serpentine and draconic features with female breasts added in.
• Even Evil Has Standards: Post his Early-Installment Weirdness, Satan is usually depicted as a Noble Demon with very firm standards, obeying YHVH only to an extent he perceives reasonable. In a few games, he goes as far as turning against YHVH.
• Evil Overlord: Satan has appeared in Fallen and Tyrant races in multiple games, yet he appears to retain his role as a dutiful servant of YHVH while being part of those races. Special mention goes to his appearance in Devil Survivor 2 where he calls himself the King of Demons and the Opposer when summoned.
• Fallen Angel: Occasionally appears as part of the Fallen race, such as in Devil Survivor 2.
• Fusion Dance: Apart from tbe standard demon fusion in his playable appearances, Satan often appears as multiple separate entities to be beneath notice. Notably, between Zayin and Seth in Shin Megami Tensei II. Also between Merkabah and Lucifer in Apocalypse.
• Hate Sink: In his earliest appearances, notably Megami Tensei II, Satan is a despicable power-hungry backstabber and looks on Lucifer with smug disdain. He basically acts like a sycophant to YHVH.
• The Heavy: In many games Satan appears in, he is often played as Lucifer's counterpart. Most notably in Shin Megami Tensei II, where both are Level 99, act as their respective alignment's representatives, and both will join you on their paths. In Apocalypse, while YHVH makes a return, Satan is still leading the Monotheists and, as Merkabah and Lucifer, stands alongside Krishna as the main antagonist until the final dungeon, where YHVH becomes the target.
• Irony: Satan has been Tyrant and Fallen in several games, yet even with those races he often acts like he's a dutiful servant of YHVH.
• Judge, Jury, and Executioner: His main purpose for YHVH and the Law faction in most of his appearances.
• Knight Templar: As The Dragon to YHVH should be. In some games he does snap out of it, and in a few games it's downplayed, such as Apocalypse, where he only exists to serve the Top God. While he helped perpetuate the Forever War, he's fine with turning on YHVH when the chance arises.

• Multiarmed And Dangerous: His demon form in Shin Megami Tensei II has 6 arms and 6 wings.
• Multi Boobage: From Shin Megami Tensei II onward, he has three sets of breasts. Despite this, he is still mostly perceived as male.
• Number of the Beast:
  • In Shin Megami Tensei II, Satan has 6 arms, 6 wings and 6 breasts. All of them contain 6, the number of the beast, and this design is the one generally used for Satan's artwork across the games.
  • In Persona 3 specifically, Black Viper costs 60 MP, its power is a multiple of 6 (900) and it's learned at level 86, which all contain 6, the number of the beast.
• Omnicidal Maniac: Fitting his status as The Dragon to a deity who is himself a massive case of this trope, Satan often acts as YHVH's instrument of world destruction.
  • Satan activates the Kill Sat Helios on the Light-Law route of Majin Tensei II: Spiral Nemesis. Naoki and his friends defeat him by traveling back to just before he does it. He's defeated on all other routes before he can do it.
  • Satan in Shin Megami Tensei II is also ordered to use another Kill Sat named Megiddo Ark to judge all of humanity and the demon world and cleanse the planet. He is defeated before he can do so in all routes bar the Law route, though he snaps out of his Knight Templar attitude after the deed and chooses to help you afterwards.
  • Satan has destroyed one Alternate Timeline of Shin Megami Tensei IMAGINE before arriving in the current one, with the aid of his Co-Dragons Hallel Flauros and Ose.
• Otherworldly and Sexually Ambiguous: Satan in his most recurring artwork has clearly visible breasts, despite otherwise being masculine.
• Our Angels Are Different: A masculine angel with six breasts, a snake's body, and insectoid features, for starters.
• Pre-Final Boss: He is always fought right before YHVH in the latter's direct appearances, except for the bad ending of Megami Tensei II (where he's the Final Boss) and the Law ending of Shin Megami Tensei II (where he's a party member).
• Put on a Bus: After Shin Megami Tensei II, he stops appearing in the main series. Until Apocalypse, when The Bus Came Back.
• Satan: Subverted. The traditional role of Satan as "the Devil" (the more Christian view) goes to Lucifer, while this Satan is based on the Jewish biblical Ha-Satan who tempts humans but is otherwise on God's side. IV: Apocalypse reveals that part of him does make a good Lucifer though, even if he looks grotesque.
• Seven Deadly Sins: One of several demons said to represent Wrath, and sure enough in many of his appearances he often acts as an instrument of YHVH's wrath upon the world.
• Snakes Are Sinister: Appropriately enough Satan has a bit of a serpentine motif, as a reference to Biblical connotations of snakes (most notably the Serpent of Eden, who is occasionally interpreted as being Satan himself).
• Walking Spoiler: Whenever he appears as The Heavy or the Big Bad, he usually doesn't show up as himself until the end game, appearing either in disguise or as Literal Split Personality. Even still, mentioning how Zayin is one half of him in II or Apocalypse revealing that he was split into Merkabah and Lucifer all along is key to the plot of both games.
• Xenomorph Xerox: Satan's most recurring artwork depicts him as a xenomorph-like being with six wings, a dragon's tail and various spikes and home-like tentacles.

Metatron

Metatron

"The greatest and most mysterious of the angels.
He has many names, such as the Voice of God and Angel of Contracts. In contrast to his duty to maintain the world, he is said to have a merciless side toward humanity."

— Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Compendium

A mechanical angel that serves as the Voice of God. Once the human Enoch.

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• Boss Battle:
  • Should the Demi-Fiend choose to ignore Metatron's warnings in Nocturne, Metatron will stand in the Demi-Fiend's path in the final Kalpa, forbidding him to meet up with Lucifer. Enraged, Metatron chastises the Demi-Fiend for disregarding his warnings, then proceeds to attack the Demi-Fiend, hoping to kill him before he loses the last vestiges of his humanity. After Metatron is defeated, the Demi-Fiend can summon him in the Heretic Mansion. Metatron can only be summoned by fusing Michael, any other Divine or Seraph demon, and a Tyrant demon sacrifice.
  • Digital Devil Saga: He can only be fought after his predecessor optional bosses, the Four Guardian Beast Suzaku, Seiryuu, Baihu, and Gui Xian have been defeated and the Red Ring has been collected in Ajna. If you beat him, Metatron will grant the item "Seraph Quill", which unlocks the Gyokuza Mantra, granting the access towards Metatron's several skill-set. Players will also receive the Karma Ring which protects the wearer from Expel-based attacks, which can be equipped in the sequel.
  • Becomes the True Final Boss of Naoya's route in Devil Survivor: Overclocked.
  • He appears as a Trick Boss to himself in Apocalypse. You beat him in YHVH Space, then a whole army of Metatrons show up. Even then, he's not the last boss before YHVH - that honor goes to Satan.
  • In Persona 5 Strikers, he appears as the last obstacle (barring a hacking battle) between the Phantom Thieves and the Demiurge/EMMA, with the endgame boss theme Rivers in the Desert playing during the battle. Notably, outside of the DLC challenge battles in Royal, this is his first appearance as an opponent in the Persona series. Beating him again in a rematch is required to unlock him for fusion.
• Co-Dragons: With Satan and the Four Archangels. He is special in a different way than Satan in the sense other than YHVH, he also claims to serve the Great Will, at least in Nocturne.
• Demoted to Extra: While he can be fused, he sadly plays absolutely no role at all in the plot of Shin Megami Tensei IV, and is reduced to a random demon encounter in Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse.
• Eye Beams: Metatron's Signature Move, Fire of Sinai, fires up to five severe beams of Almighty energy from his eyes.
• Knight Templar: He is the Voice of God, and has it about as bad as YHVH himself.
• Light Is Not Good: Metatron rarely ever appears in a non-villainous capacity, except in arguably Nocturne where he claims to serve the Great Will this time around and warn the Demi-Fiend against meeting Lucifer and shedding his humanity, and in most of Devil Survivor where Metatron is the lone high ranking Herald that isn't in it for Law's goals and just serves his master no matter what he does at the time though even then, he leaves you with a warning not to deliberately cross the heavens or they will kill you for your betrayal. Naoya's 8th Day from Devil Surivor: Overclocked has him snap back to his normal actions, ordering humanity to hunt you down and kill you. Those that don't agree to do this are killed by the Angels. Depending on your choices, this could backfire on him.
• Mouth of Sauron: For YHVH in most games; in Nocturne he claims to be one to Great Will as well.
• Our Angels Are Different: He's typically portrayed as highly robotic for some reason, either to emphasize the lack of free will associated with the Law alignment or because of how hilariously unintentionally Mecha the name "Metatron" is.
• Robo Speak: Apocalypse gives him a robotic sounding voice whenever he's encountered in random battles. The HD remaster of Nocturne also autotunes his voice.
• Side Quest: In the mainline Shin Megami Tensei games, he often appears in these to add more lore depth to his identity:
  • In a New Game+ of Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey, Metatron (originally appearing as a Strike Team member) appears in Sector Grus blocking a special door and enticing the Protagonist by telling him of a powerful demon lying in the depths of Grus, holding a rare treasure. Zelenin, however, will not allow you to take him up on his offer until Jack's Squad has been dealt with. After completing the Jack's Squad Pacification mission, you can accept and explore what lies beyond. Upon crossing Grus’s entire new side, you eventually find and battle Alilat. This frees a piece of power, which the Strike Team member absorbs; he becomes Metatron. His powers slightly replenished by Alilat's death, he hands her skull, her rare forma, to the Protagonist, and urges him to kill the Great Father of the Schwartzwelt - Demiurge - next, so his power is fully free. Demiurge is not particularly interested in cooperating.
  • In IV, if you talk to Mido post-alignment lock, he will issue a Challenge Quest to find Enoch, the man who was fused with an Angel, and show the demon to him. Enoch was Metatron's human name.
• Stone Wall: In the Persona saga, Metatron has access to enough abilities to resist, null or reflect nearly anything in the game. His Devil Survivor incarnation takes it even further, in that he is one of a rare class of demons who can be enhanced to No-Sell everything except Almighty with proper passive abilities.
• Was Once a Man: According to Mido in Shin Megami Tensei IV, Metatron was the man Enoch who fused with an Angel. It's unclear if this applies to his other depictions, however.
• Winged Humanoid: His Shin Megami Tensei design and Enoch in Devil Children and the first Devil Summoner.

The Four Archangels

Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael (The Four Archangels)

Clockwise, from the top left corner: Archangel Uriel, Archangel Raphael, Archangel Michael, and Archangel Gabriel

"One of the four major angels. His name means, "Who is like god?". He stands at the top of the angel hierarchy. He carries an unusually long sword that can cut through anything."

— Michael's Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Compendium entry

"One of the four major angels. She is also the only female angel at this rank. Her name comes from the Sumerian word for "governor"."

— Gabriel's Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Compendium entry

"One of the four major archangels. His name means "healer". He explains the history of the fallen angels and the creation of Adam and Eve."

— Raphael's Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Compendium entry

"One of the four major archangels. His name means "flame of god". He knows all of the celestial phenomena. He is also the first angel Satan met on earth."

— Uriel's Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne Compendium entry

They are the four Seraphim archangels in the service of YHVH: Michael, Gabriel, Uriel, and Raphael. Usually seen with each other.

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• Amazing Technicolor Population: As with many other angel artworks in the series, their skin colors are exotic and inhuman; being blue, purple, green and red respectively
• Anime Hair: Raphael's most recurring artwork has a hair so spiky it rivals anime protagonists.
• Archangel Gabriel: As the most prominent angel in the Bible (unless you count Satan), Gabriel often has a prominent role whenever plot-relevant, and accordingly has a fairly fluctuative characterization. Gabriel is initially depicted as a masculine angel in the earlier games (notably as late as Shin Megami Tensei I) but from Shin Megami Tensei II onward Gabriel is depicted as a woman instead, referencing some of Gabriel's real life art works.
• Archangel Michael: The leader of the four. Michael has slightly more prominence than Uriel and Raphael in the games (he even serves as YHVH's Number Two in Shin Megami Tensei I), but much less than Gabriel. He also never uses a sword, despite being known for doing so, instead carrying a spear.
• Archangel Raphael: Arguably the least prominent of the four, having almost no plot relevance in any game other than in the Devil Children spinoff.
• Archangel Uriel: Although Uriel usually has minimal plot relevance like Raphael, in a few games he does serve distinct roles such as in Majin Tensei where he is an ally to humanity.
• Big Bad:
  • In I, Michael is the supreme commander of the forces of Law.
  • Until YHVH and Lucifer get directly involved, the four (sans Gabriel) act as this in II, being directly responsible for most of the problems in Millenium, though they get killed off in time for YHVH and Lucifer to get involved.
  • Devil Children Red/Black Book has Michael as the main antagonist once again, seeking to incite Armageddon and destroy the world.
• Co-Dragons: With Metatron and Satan for YHVH. The Shadow versions of the Four also serve as this to Yaldabaoth in Persona 5. Additionally, Raphael and Uriel serve as this to Michael in Devil Children Red/Black Book.
• Combat Medic: Raphael, especially in Devil Children games where his design is even that of a doctor. Makes sense, since he's an Angel of Healing.

• Dual Boss: They are fought in pairs just as often as they are fought individually throughout their appearances. For example, Shin Megami Tensei II has you fight Uriel and Raphael at the same time. In Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne, Gabriel joins the two to make it a trio boss.
• Elemental Powers: Changes from game to game, but some remain constant. Light 'em Up for all four, Shock and Awe for Gabriel in the older games and An Ice Person in the later games, Playing with Fire for Uriel and Michael in Devil Children games, and finally Blow You Away for Raphael in mainline.
• Eldritch Abomination: Their designs in Shin Megami Tensei IV are VERY much this. Having warped faces attached to robotic bodies only vaguely look human. Michael in particular is a sight to behold.
• Elite Four: They are often fought in sequence and are the highest-level Archangels, so valuable they are not cheapened through mass production.
• Final Boss: Michael in the Chaos route in Shin Megami Tensei I, and he shares it with Ashura-Oh in the Neutral route of Shin Megami Tensei I.
• Gender Flip: Gabriel used to be a man like her Biblical counterpart but from Shin Megami Tensei II onwards she has been represented as a woman.
• God Was My Co-Pilot: They appear in the guise of the senate elders in Shin Megami Tensei II, and Gabriel appears under the guise of Sister Gabby in IV.

• Knight Templar: Just like every other Law representatives. In a few games, they are implied to be even worse than YHVH himself, like in Shin Megami Tensei II and IV.
• The Leader: Michael is generally the frontman and the last you have to fight if you're going through all of them in a Boss Rush.
• Light Is Not Good: Figures of light who are nonetheless Knight Templars to the core. They always wield the Light element in all of their appearances as well.

• Not as You Know Them: Apocalypse reveals their IV incarnations are actually part of Satan via Merkabah, much like the IV incarnation of Lucifer.
• Magic Knight: The Four Archangels are powerful warriors, with each of them being skilled in one of the elements, while also having the typical Light, healing and Almighty skills you'd expect from a Herald.
• Only Sane Man: Depending on the circumstances, Gabriel fills the role to a degree. For example, in Shin Megami Tensei II she's possibly the only one who thinks of improving the living conditions for the humans under their control, and in Digital Devil Saga, she's the only one who actually realizes they are in the wrong Earth, even if she is devoted enough to her teammates that she will not abandon them.
• Our Angels Are Different: Usually appearing as Amazing Technicolor Population humanoids, but their designs for Shin Megami Tensei IV are very different from their older designs, due to the artist change from Kazuma Kaneko to several different artists. Specifically, the SMT IV designs are way more like the Talmudic descriptions of angels, with their "bodies" built around their heads and whatnot and also being made out of lacquer, though they can make themselves look human (as Sister Gabby shows).
• Out of Focus: Raphael and Uriel have been much less important in the franchise than Michael and Gabriel.
• Palette Swap: Their sprites were usually swaps of each other in some of the older games such as Shin Megami Tensei I, Majin Tensei, and Megami Tensei II.

• Red Oni, Blue Oni: In their appearances, Uriel tends the most emotional out of the four, while Raphael is the most calm. Michael and Gabriel are somewhere in-between the two of them in terms of temperament.

• Superboss:
  • In Digital Devil Saga 2, after the events of Sera's awakening, a Karma Facility scientist released four Seraph based Atma demons, hoping to stop the turmoil and chaos. Should Gale be able to successfully interrogate the scientist, he will reveal the presence of the Seraphs, unlocking the option to challenge Uriel, Raphael, and Gabriel at different locations. Once the party have defeated all three, Michael joins them and they will await the party in the ground area of the Occupied Sector, where the Sun shines down. The player must then defeat the first three Seraphs again (in a row this time). Upon their defeat, Michael fights the party.
  • In Shin Megami Tensei IV, the four are fought in two separate DLC packs, as Flynn is sent to the past to ensure the stability of the timeline by taking Mastema's mission to save Tokyo from them. First you take out Raphael and Uriel, and later you attack Gabriel and Michael. Gabriel, defeated, manages to escape to Mikado and assume the form of Sister Gabby. The three others are imprisoned by Mastema in the past's Kagome Tower, and you rescue them during the game. Oops.
• Token Good Teammate:
  • Gabriel in certain games. In others, she's just as much of a Knight Templar and racist as them.
  • Uriel in his human disguise in Majin Tensei. Having him in the party even makes it possible to recruit the other three.
• Water Is Womanly: Gabriel appears in a female form in the more modern games and is the only female archangel Seraphim shown, and she is associated with water/ice powers.
• Wolfpack Boss: Uriel, Gabriel, and Raphael are all fought together in Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne (unless you've sided with Chiaki) and again in a sidequest in Shin Megami Tensei V.

Angelic Orders

Angelic Orders

The Orders which make up the heavenly host. Demons that usually make up the entire Divine clan. The main demons that are included in this group are Angel, Archangel, Principality, Power, Virtue, Dominion, and Throne. Cherubim, Ophanim, and Seraphim are usually the exceptions, being part of the Seraph clan (renamed into Herald in the more recent games) instead. There are also lesser members of the race which have appeared in other games, including Galgalim, Kuriotes, Holy Spirit, and Snappy.

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• Angelic Beauty: A lot of the early Angel designs were more beautiful besides the higher ranked ones like Cherub or Ophanim. Later games started to diverge with the lower Angels having more different and bizarre appearances, matching up more with the Talmudic descriptions of angels being "wheels of fire with ten eyes" and stuff.
• Blow You Away: Angels tend to use wind skills in the Raidou Kuzunoha games.
• Bondage Is Bad: The lowest ranked Angel is usually dressed in bondage gear from Devil Summoner onwards. Only Devil Survivor, Raidou Kuzunoha, and Shin Megami Tensei V use the earlier, more Renaissance-inspired "happy girl in a robe" design, with V also having her wear an eerie golden mask.
• Color-Coded Elements: Seraph's Light Wing skill in Shin Megami Tensei IV creates a barrier colored to a certain element. Only that element destroys the barrier and harms Seraph, except for Almighty skills, which bypass the barrier.
• Dark Is Evil: Quite a few of the Angels in Devil Children were dark element in the first three games.
• The Dragon: Seraph to Merkabah in Shin Megami Tensei IV, when faced in Purgatorium. It's the only angel with a mind of its own and speaks with differently from the rest, all of who parrot the same words over and over. It is also one of the main Heralds that empowers the final barrier.
• Elite Mook: Cherub appear as a boss in Sector Delphinus of Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey, guarding the Cosmic Egg of that sector, only to become a random encounter in Sector Horologorium.
• The Evils of Free Will: Comments made by angels disguised as humans in Devil Survivor make it very clear they don't quite get Remiel's (and occasionally Gabriel's) interest in human life and the value of free will itself. They are particularly baffled by the idea of "salvation for all".
• Gender Bender: In the earlier games some of the angels were the opposite gender, such as Thrones and Virtue.
• Guardian Angel: The lowest ranked Angel also act as these, watching over individuals.
• Holier Than Thou: The angels commonly think that they are superior to humanity, like in Strange Journey where they criticize humanity for its faults or SMTIV: A where they call humans filth.
• Holy Halo: Noticeable in that most Angels lack these in the games. Several such as Archangel have haloes in the Devil Children series. Shin Megami Tensei V is the first game outside of the Devil Children series where the standard Angel has a halo, here represented as a golden disc floating above her head.
• Human Sacrifice: In Strange Journey two EX missions involve the summoning of a Seraph, which is done by having a Angel, Archangel, Principality, Power, Virtue, Dominion, and Throne, and Cherub sacrifice themselves to summon him.

• Light Is Good: If you are on their side, the Angelic Orders will be your main allies, unlocking stuff for you or outright joining your party. They will also protect humans before whatever plan they are a part of reaches its endgame. However, if you aren't on their side by then...
• Light Is Not Good: You can expect the Angelic Orders to be one of your main enemy types and regardless if you are on thier side, you'll likely face them in random encounters defending YHVH if he shows up as a boss.
• Light 'em Up: Hama is one of the very core skills of the entire family.
• Living Statue: Virtues tend to appear as statues with beating hearts.
• Magic Knight: Some angels excell in both physical and magic skills. Others are more magic or physical oriented.
• Mechanical Life Forms: Some of them are this like Cherub in Soul Hackers. Plenty are mechanical in Devil Children. Being obsessive creatures of Law, this isn't surprising.
• Mooks: They are the foot soldiers that make up the Heavenly Host. Only the higher ranked ones are treated above such roles.
• Mook Medic: Some of the Angel Orders may act as healers.
• Non-Elemental: Some of the higher ranked Angels know Almighty skills.
• No-Sell: Angels usually null or resist Light elemental attacks.
• Our Angels Are Different: The Devil Children Angels tend to look humanoid to mechanical in nature and usually the higher ranked ones in the main series tend to be different from the lower ranked ones. Cherubim for example has appeared as an animal, statue, machine, Centaur, and a humanoid sitting on a throne that's atop a cloud.
• Our Centaurs Are Different: Cherub appears as one in Persona.
• Palette Swap: Earlier games had some of the Angels be palette swaps of other angels. One example is the Throne being a palette swap of Angel.
• Playing with Fire: Throne is known to use fire spells.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: In Devil Survivor, the forces of Law abandon humanity to prepare for war in Naoya's 8th day routes where Kazuya decides to go Chaos and one of Yuzu's routes, when she screws over Earth by accidently releasing the demons out of the quarantine in her attempt to escape.
• Shock and Awe: Though rare, some do use electric skills in certain games.
• Social Darwinist: The Angels are part of the Reason of Yosuga, a group that believes that he strong should thrive and be on the top and the weak must die in Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne. This is especially odd considering this is complete opposite of what the angels believe in most games and is one of Chaos' main viewpoints.
• Superboss: Seraphim appears as a bonus boss in Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey in the EX Mission Mara's Desire.
• Summoning Ritual:
  • In the same quest that has them sacrificing themselves in Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey. Unfortunately it's impossible to stop them from performing it. Though if Law, Seraph will join you.
  • Done again in Shin Megami Tensei IV with Aniel requesting that Flynn hunt down each of Seraph's four heads. These are found on Chimera (lion), Gryphon (eagle), Morax (bull), and Tokisada (human), and you're asked to kill each, with a Principality showing up to rip the head off the demon's body for the sacrifice.
• Tank Goodness: Galgalim appears as a demonic tank in the Devil Children series.
• Took a Level in Badass: There are two Angels of the Divine race in Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse: one being the weakest, the other being the most powerful of them all.
• Voice of the Legion: Seraph has a male and female voice speaking simultaneously in Shin Megami Tensei IV.
• Winged Humanoid: Most of them have wings. Though there are a few exceptions.

Mastema (Unmarked Spoilers)

Mastema

"The angel who persecutes evil in Hebrew folklore. He carries out punishments for God.
He tempts humans and tests their faith. He asked God to permit him to have demons as his subordinates. In the Zadokite Fragments and the Dead Sea Scrolls, he is the angel of disaster, the father of all evil, and a flatterer of God."

— Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Compendium

An Angel who persecutes evil and delivers punishment from God. He is mysterious and his goals and agenda vary, only revealing his intentions when forced or to those he trusts enough. Despite his shiftiness, he is still a loyal follower of God.

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• Ambition Is Evil: In Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey his goal is for the Lord to bless him with a form superior to Angels.
• Big Good: For the Mikado part of the backstory of IV, helping Aquila set up Mikado and later getting Flynn to stop the Archangels in the Clipped Wings DLC.
• Dark Is Evil: In Strange Journey, where his appearance is darker than most Angels and even has black wings, while he is still a Herald and is Light-aligned.
• Defector from Decadence: In Shin Megami Tensei IV he has separated himself from the Archangels and the lesser Angels who seek to kill everyone in Tokyo after establishing Mikado.
• Demoted to Extra: In IV. Ultimately subverted; DLC reveals that, along with Masakado, he's one of the Big Goods of the game's backstory.
• The Dragon: To the Wise Men in Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey. The Chaos route reveals he hopes to be rewarded by apotheosis into a being higher than the angels for his work in ushering in a world of Law.
• Enigmatic Minion: In Shin Megami Tensei IV, where his motives are far more vague than his outright evil showing in Strange Journey. Further questions about his loyalties are raised in the Clipped Wings DLC, where he turned out to be responsible for sealing away three of the Four Archangels.
• Expy: Of Satan. Unsurprisingly, given that the two names seem to refer to the same being (or at least two very similar beings) in Hebrew folklore. In Shin Megami Tensei IV, he takes after Satan's more sympathetic incarnation from Shin Megami Tensei II; he goes against the Knight Templar angels in order to protect the humans of Tokyo and enforce God's true will.
• Fantastic Racism: Calls the people of Tokyo "Unclean Ones" like the Angels and people of Mikado do. However, in the Clipped Wing DLC he calls them human, suggesting that his attitude before is just an act to blend in with other angels.
• Hate Sink: In Strange Journey. While he may be a typical Law representative at first, once you get to his Villainous Breakdown, it's clear that he's supposed to be hated.
• It Amused Me: The reason why he started a fake fight in Shin Megami Tensei IV against the Samurai in Midtown, while talking about cooking them.
• It's All About Me: Strange Journey has the Chaos route reveal that he only cares about advancing his own personal power/status, and doesn't give a damn about humanity or the Wise Men's desire for a "Kingdom of Heaven".
• Karma Houdini:
  • In the Strange Journey Law and Neutral Paths, where he gets away scot free to plot another day.
  • In Shin Megami Tensei IV's Neutral and Chaos path, but he's not even close to being the evil jackass he was in SJ.
• Knight Templar: He is on the side of Law, after all. Though his incarnation in IV is one of the most reasonable Law representatives in the entire franchise, subverting the trope.
• Manipulative Bastard: Considering his nature as the angel of hostility, consider this a non-surprise for people who looked up the name on That Other Wiki.
• Motive Rant: Gives a particularly hate-filled one during his Villainous Breakdown in Strange Journey's Chaos path.
• Necessarily Evil: In Shin Megami Tensei IV he helped make deals with Demons on the behalf of the Lawful Ashura-Kai for Red Pills and protects Midtown from those who seek the pills. Unlike Tayama, who wants his Utopia to go on forever, he is simply trying to keep order in Tokyo long enough for humanity to rise up and free themselves of the current situation of being trapped beneath the ceiling.
• Nice Guy: Surprisingly enough, given his behavior in Strange Journey and his pedigree as the Angel of Hostility, he becomes this in IV. For a Herald, he has very little problem in accepting you taking the Chaos Path, saying that straying from his path is one way to learn about the Lord as well. In the Neutral Path, he is overjoyed Humanity will survive without interference, as he believes the religious doubts awakened by the whole ordeal will lead the people to God on their own, which is what he thinks God's true plan is. He also resents the Knight Templar Four Archangels and has three of them imprisoned in Mikado's early days before they can repeat the Millennium Kingdom fiasco.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: In Strange Journey Neutral route he decides to cut his losses and make a break for it, instead of fighting you.
• Superboss: In Shin Megami Tensei IV Law Route, where the Archangels have Flynn track him down and slay him.
• Took a Level in Kindness: He's a much, much nicer fellow in IV than he is in Strange Journey. Assuming that this is the same Mastema and not a different instance of the same type of demon, of course.
• The Unfought: In Strange Journey on the Neutral path and in IV on the Chaos and Neutral paths.
• Villainous Breakdown: In Strange Journey Chaos route he completely loses it and tries to kill the protagonist himself, ranting about how humans live only to be pawns and cursing the protagonist for his actions.
• Walking Spoiler: In both games he appears in, but especially IV. His conversion from an insufferable Hate Sink to a genuine Nice Guy who factors into the game's backstory probably helps.
• What Happened to the Mouse?: The Mastema from IV doesn't make an appearance at all in Apocalypse. There are mass produced versions of him in the final dungeon, suggesting he's actually one of many angels.
• You Will Be Spared: Spares Gabriel in the Clipped Wing DLC since a "rat can do nothing by itself". He was right until Lilith began spreading books, making it possible for her to send Samurai to rescue the other three.

Demiurge

Demiurge / Yaldabaoth

An imperfect god of Gnosticism who created the material world. According to Gnostics of the Roman Empire, the Demiurge proclaims himself as God; when Adam and Eve gain "knowledge", he cast them out in anger. The Demiurge wishes for the souls of humans to be trapped in the material world forever.

— Demiurge compendium info from Shin Megami Tensei Strange Journey

A false god that convinced itself that it is the original creator deity in Gnostic teachings.

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• Amazing Technicolor Population: Has pitch black skin. In Shin Megami Tensei NINE he first appears with golden skin which then flakes off to reveal black skin underneath.
• Dying Curse: If he is defeated in his boss battle in SMT IV, he will curse Flynn for slaying him.
  Demiurge: As long as you are children of man, you will remain prisoner. Both in body and spirit. Give up, be silent, and... be cursed.
• Early-Installment Weirdness: His original appearance in Devil Summoner is the only time he's associated with Chaos.
• Extra Eyes: Almost always shown with four eyes. His Persona 5 appearance on the other hand has none.
• Final Boss: He is the final boss of Shin Megami Tensei NINE and Persona 5, both times appearing under his other name Yaldabaoth.
• Flying Face: In the final phase in the battle against him Shin Megami Tensei NINE, his head detaches from his body and continues the fight after his body becomes severely damaged.
• A God Am I: While he is already technically a god, he firmly believes himself to be the original supreme creator. In most cases he is one of YHVH's strongest avatars.
• God in Human Form: He was one of YHVH's Godly Spirits in Shin Megami Tensei IV.
• Irony: His Shin Megami Tensei IV incarnation believed himself to be YHVH and not one of his avatars, acting as he thought he would. In Shin Megami Tensei IV Apocalypse his words and actions were exactly like the original.
• Seven Deadly Sins: His Persona 5 incarnation wields them in his attacks, with each arm holding a object that references a certain sin but unlike the other Palaces and his counterpart Satanael, he uses them to show how humans will overindulge and destroy themselves with them.
• Superboss: Appears as as this in both Strange Journey and the Chaos route of Shin Megami Tensei IV.
• Winged Humanoid: His most common form as Demiurge is a giant humanoid with 10 wings, two of which wrap around his crotch.

The Great Will

The Great Will

Voice: God is everything. Everything is God. You too can become a face of God.

— Fragment of Petrification Prison, Shin Megami Tensei II

First mentioned in Megami Tensei II, when the True Final Boss YHVH claims he is only one part of an incorporeal entity who controls infinite universes. Though not named in that game, Last Bible has an entity named うちゅういしき (lit. cosmic or universal consciousness; there is no official translation), describing itself as being the whole of, and paradoxically also one aspect of, 宇宙の意志 (lit. cosmic or universal will). Future games would refer to this entity in similarly abstract terms; 大いなる意志 (in Shin Megami Tensei II and Shin Megami Tensei V) and 大いなる意思 (in Shin Megami Tensei III: Nocturne and Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux), which is officially localized as "Great Will" in Nocturne, Strange Journey Redux and V.

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• Above the Gods: Seen as the head honcho of the Megami Tensei metaverse, above even YHVH.
• Fighting a Shadow: The Great Will is described as an omnipresent force — as in, it is present at every possible level of existence, from the physical to metaphysical.
  • Incarnations of YHVH usually describes himself as being an aspect or a part of the Great Will, claiming to carry out its intentions in any particular world.
  • Last Bible has the cosmic consciousness describe itself as being both the whole of it, and yet also a single part of it. It's ambiguous what this means, but it can be interpreted this is the closest the Great Will has to a physical appearance; acting on the behalf of the whole, but manifesting only a single part of itself.
  • The Updated Re Release of SMT II has a mysterious voice speak to Zayin to explain the nature of God, in a way which seems to conflict with how YHVH describes himself (who is It's All About Me embodied).
  Zayin: Why...me...To save the people...to save as many as possible...isn't this what God wanted...? Where...is God? Is he nowhere to be found...? Or is this...his will...? The center abandoned those that believed in God and worked for his sake...the Elders...Did God choose them...and abandon me...? God...
  Voice: There is no God!
  Zayin: !? Who's there!?
  Voice: If God will not interfere no matter what happens to you, then God will not interfere no matter what you do, either.
  Zayin: !?
  Voice: Don't force yourself to obey. Were you not born in the name of God?
  Zayin: ...Well...
  Voice: By definition, is not whatever you do God's will?
  Zayin: ...Whatever I do...
  Voice: Do not try to obey something. Do not try to obey someone. Do not think of God as having just one face. God is not good. God is everything. Everything is God. You too can become a face of God.
  Zayin: Become...a face of God...
  Voice: You are not one to be judged and punished. You are the ultimate Temple Knight. As the one closest to God, obey his commands and become the one to mete out the judgment and punishment.
  Zayin: The judge...and punisher...
  Voice: Fulfill your role, as the one closer to God, closer than the Center and closer than the Elders.
  Zayin: My...role...Punisher in God's stead...
  • In SMT V, Tao in her death encounters a mysterious light, who transforms her into Panagia Tao, a goddess of creation who acts on behalf of the Great Will to help a Nahobino claim the Throne of Creation. This affirms how the Great Will is present and can interfere at every level of existence, and that everyone and everything can become "its face", in the right circumstances or conditions.
• Genius Loci: Last Bible and SMT II Updated Re Release describe the Great Will as the conscious will of reality itself in which SMT franchise takes place in. As such, the form and the manner its aspects can manifest across all of reality can vary. Tellingly, its most recurring agent YHVH is almost always stated to be a manifestation of order, the forces and laws which govern the world(s) he is operating in.
• The Ghost: A core being in SMT as a whole, yet it never makes direct appearances and is instead generally described through second-hand information from various sources with various levels of bias. The closest it has been to making an appearance is the few lines spoken in the True Demon ending of Nocturne which might be from the Great Will. Whether it even has a physical form is dubious; much like the Abrahamic God it's based on, it's more of an incomprehensible omnipresent force imperceptible by mortals and thus only appears through comparatively lesser aspects who act as its agents (of which, YHVH is the most prominent one).
• God: More so than YHVH.
• Gods Need Prayer Badly: In Shin Megami Tensei II, YHVH claims as long as humanity continues to believe in the salvation of God, the Great Will shall continue to bring him back.
• Greater-Scope Villain: The Great Will is never encountered in person, akin to a disembodied will of reality itself. That said, it can be seen as ultimately responsible for the suffering ongoing in story after story, because it set in place the elements which govern and perpetuate the laws of reality in any given world. Most prominently, humans being capable of shaping reality with their thoughts results in the birth of gods and demons, who then seek to oppress or compete with them. Shin Megami Tensei V reveals there are even worlds with "thrones" which not only allows, but encourages imperfect beings to shape and rule over reality in almost any way they see fit (as Panagia is born to guide Nahobinos into the Throne).
• I Have Many Names: Broadly speaking, all names belonging to its aspects appearing across universes also refer to itself, meaning all names of YHVH (and a few others such as Last Bible's) are also names by which the Great Will is referred to. Nocturne in particular has various characters directly referring to it as God, the Lord, and the Absolute One.
• Powers That Be: It is repeatedly described as such, across different games and continuities. To subvert the Great Will's designs over a world is to change how reality itself operates, and even then, the new reality is still part of the Great Will — as shown in Last Bible, Nocturne, and V.
  • In Megami Tensei II, YHVH describes how the entity rules over countless universes, acting in response to aggregates of consciousness across realities.
  • In Last Bible the cosmic conscious elaborates countless worlds are being born and destroyed as if it is the natural way of things.
  • In Nocturne, Kagutsuchi destroys and recreates universes as part of the Great Will's cosmic design.
  • In Raidou Kuzunoha games, the Great Will isn't mentioned by name. However, characters such as Lucifer mention how God is setting everything across all timelines in the Akarana Corridor on predetermined paths, and that his interest is to find someone who can create a world free from God's machinations.
  • In the Updated Re-release of SMT II a mysterious voice claims literally everything is part of God, even individual life and their will. It also tells Zayin to become a face by which God expresses judgment.
  • In Strange Journey Redux, Shekinah is trying to protect the Earth and exterminate humanity on behalf of the Great Will.
  • In SMT V, the Mandala system is set in place by the Great Will to ensure each universe will be destroyed and reborn as its Throne of Creation is claimed by a god who will reshape it in their image. The system also decrees that each god will also inevitably fall and get replaced by another in an eternal cycle.
• Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse introduces an entity named "大いなる理" (lit. Great Reason/Truth; localized as "The Axiom"), who governs over IV and Apocalypse universes, using YHVH as its avatar, and bestowed humanity with the ability to shape reality (and give rise to demons and gods) via Observation. The artbook of the game further explains Stephen became a transcendent entity capable of moving between different continuities because of comprehending a small part of it. This makes it unclear if the Axiom is supposed to be another name for the Great Will or a distinct entity with similar influence over the many different continuities within the Shin Megami Tensei franchise.
• Unreliable Expositor: Inverted, being a constant subject of this rather than the expositor themselves. As it is an abstract entity whose influence over reality are incomprehensibly vast and metaphysical, numerous characters over the franchise have wildly differing views on what the Great Will even is, let alone its intentions; given the personal philosophies and varying levels of trustworthiness of the expositors, their interpretations are questionable at best.

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