Judgement Arcana

The Judgement Arcana (審判, Shinpan) is a recurring arcana in the Persona series.

Overview
The Judgment Arcana, in tarot, is associated with realizing one's calling, gaining a deep understanding of life, and a feeling of acceptance and absolution.

In gameplay, the Judgement Arcana is commonly associated with a balance of Light and Darkness. Figures of the Judgment Arcana are usually related to Judgment Day myths, or are gods tied directly to the judgment of humankind.

Although the traditional British spelling of "judgement" is considered less common than the American spelling of "judgment" today, "Judgement" (capitalized as a proper name) is exclusively applied while referencing to the tarot arcana.

Appearances

 * Megami Ibunroku Persona
 * Persona 2: Innocent Sin
 * Persona 2: Eternal Punishment
 * Persona 3 / FES / Portable
 * Persona 4 / Golden

Megami Ibunroku Persona
The player can guarantee a fusion accident resulting in a Judgement Arcana persona by starting from a "hard reset" (as in, not already mid-game and loading a save or selecting "Return to Title") and performing a White Fusion after taking exactly 656 steps in an area where no enemies will attack, such as the Mikage Sun Mall.

The Judgement Arcana is represented by Eriko Kirishima.

Persona 3
Starting from Persona 3 to Persona 4, Judgement Arcana acts as a higher-tier arcana. Protagonists are also given the Judgement Arcana at near end of the game and can only access this arcana by making the "right" decision in the story which will unlock the good ending. The Judgement Arcana also symbolizes the protagonists' actions and decisions late-in the game, symbolizing a person's awareness of himself, and others. Persona of the Judgement Arcana are demons that are associated with the Law alignment, a trend broken by Lucifer in Persona 3 FES

In Persona 3, the Judgement Arcana Social Link can only be forged should the protagonist decide not to kill Ryoji Mochizuki. Doing so allows SEES to be able to confront Nyx head on, and the members of SEES swear to reach the Promised Place before January 31st, the day when Nyx ascends to destroy humanity.

The Judgement Arcana powers up every time the protagonist ventures and defeats the Guardians of the final block of Tartarus, Adamah. Upon reaching to its highest plane, the promised place, the Judgement Arcana automatically maxes out itself, bestowing the Ultimate Persona of the Judgement Arcana, Messiah. Messiah can be fused by using Orpheus and Thanatos in normal fusion in the Velvet Room or it can be obtained from Shuffle Time in the top level of Tartarus.

FES / Portable
The Judgement Arcana remains relatively the same as Persona 3, however, an exclusive Persona, the fallen angel Lucifer was added in the Judgement Arcana repertoire. The original angelic Lucifer of the Star Arcana in Persona 3 was instead, renamed Helel.

Persona 4
The Judgement Arcana Social Link is represented by the Seekers of Truth, in which the Social Link can only be forged should the protagonist make the correct decisions in Dec 3rd, unlocking the Normal Ending instead of triggering the Bad Ending. The Judgement Arcana powers up as the Seekers slowly find out the true culprit of the murder cases within the Midnight Channel, and at one point, the protagonist is supposed to deduce the true culprit. Taking the wrong deduction three times triggers the Bad Ending.

Should the protagonist be able to point out the real culprit, the Judgement Arcana will continue to power up. The Judgement Arcana automatically maxes out once the Alliance defeats the true culprit, and upon learning the truth, the Judgement Arcana bestows its ultimate form, Lucifer the Rebel King of Hell.