#seijin

Image © Fuji Mai, accessed at his ArtStation here

[If you haven't seen Shin Ultraman, you should. It's an excellent introduction to the Ultraman franchise for people with no experience with it; it does a good job of incorporating the original series' Monster of the Week format into a coherent narrative; and it's got one of my favorite interpretations of the tempter devil in media. That would be Mefilas here, who dates back to the original Ultraman, where he appears trying to convince a child to trade him the Earth for another planet. Needless to say, his plan in Shin Ultraman is more involved, and I didn't want to spoil it in the entry itself. This version is primarily the Shin Ultraman version, where he is an individual, as opposed to being a whole species in most continuities. And I figured I'd just go out and make him a devil instead of trying to beat around the bush.

Also, if Ultraman was more popular in the West, Shin Mefilas would *totally* be a tumblr sexyman. He has the skinny build, the smarmy attitude, the air of confidence. And his human form is pretty hot]

Malebranche, Mefilas CR 23 LE Outsider (extraplanar) This humanoid figure is tall and thin, with a black carapace reminiscent of both a beetle’s shell and a suit of armor. Its head is an abstract wedge, with a trilobed eye surrounded by ridges that give the faint impression of pointed ears and a beard. Its hands are ten fingered, with two palms facing inward that open and close like mouths.

Mefilas The Merchant, The Open-Handed Concerns commerce, slavery, technology Domains Artifice, Evil, Law, Trickery Subdomains Devil, Greed, Slavery, Trade* Worshipers arms dealers, baltans, slavers, technologists Minions devils (especially horned and belier devils), hellfire engines, robots Unholy Symbol two hands facing inwards, joined at the wrist Favored Weapon whip Obedience buy or trade for something of greater value than what you offer. Gain a +4 profane bonus against electricity effects Boons 1—undetectable alignment 2/day; 2—minor creation 2/day; 3—chain lightning 2/day *clerics of Mefilas can use the Trade subdomain to modify the Artifice domain

Mefilas the Merchant is one of the more mysterious malebranches. Rather than focus his attentions on straightforward conquest, Mefilas seeks to buy entire civilizations and planets, offering strange and powerful technological items in exchange for growing influence, eventually leading to the enslavement of whole species. Although he can charm and dominate creatures with magic, his deals to obtain souls are always exacted under free will (although using his mind-controlled pawns as collateral is always a possibility). Mefilas studies his quarry before making his presence known, and is adept at offering people exactly what they want to hear and convincing them to ignore the fine print. Against those he cannot tempt, he instead hones in on their fears, hoping to drive them to despair and inaction against his unimpeachable scheming.

Although Mefilas would much rather use words than violence, he excels at both. Mefilas often attempts to trick or intimidate foes to stand down, but if pressed, assumes the form of a towering giant. Regardless of Mefilas’ size, he can shape battlefields with bolts of telekinetic force, and fire arcs of deadly lightning from his hands. Mefilas uses his spell-like abilities more to disrupt enemy tactics than deal damage, but he can work miracles if he so chooses, calling upon a seemingly infinite array of magical tricks to exactly suit his needs. Mefilas knows the value of cutting his losses, and willingly flees from a losing battle. After all, there are always easier marks.

When not engaged in business deals, Mefilas is often ensconced in his workshop in Hell. There, he builds his miraculous technology, using the quintessence of Hell and damned souls as his raw materials. Mefilas has played an active hand in the creation of numerous infernal monsters, and is always eager to try new tools to fight Hell’s battles. This is the ultimate fate of Mefilas’ slaves; transformed into horrors to wage war or bait to win over new customers. This laboratory is guarded by fiendish robots, hellfire engines and prototypes of his stranger creations. Mefilas has few active cults, but evil slavers and merchants may whisper a prayer to him before an especially important deal. Perhaps his most powerful worshipers are a sect of renegade baltans, who see Mefilas’ aid as the key to winning back their interplanetary empire. Mefilas’ name is an intentional homage to Mephistopheles, but the archfiend Mefilas works most closely with is Belial.

On the Material Plane, Mephilas typically appears as a male member of the most common humanoid species where he is working, stylishly dressed but otherwise unremarkable. He frequently peppers his speech with local aphorisms.