Zandru
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The Donas of the Comyn Families
Note: these gifts may not be the same as MZB referred to in her work. For this game, this is what goes.
Hastur
Their gifts is hard to define and they are often referred to as the 'living matrix'. The effects of this gift vary but the most common result is that Hasturs make extremely powerful Keepers; both men and women. A fully trained Hastur functions like a huge matrix stone, they can amplify the powers of others who they are in rapport with (and can enter rapport with multiple people at once), in rapport with another, they can use that person's special gift as if it were their own. Finally, miraculously, the Hasturs can evoke the gods themselves. The gift gives them the ability to harmonize their mental energies with the vastly powerful entities that exist outside time; giving them the ability to manifest in the physical world. Just as some large matrixes can host a spirit, or retain the imprint of a person's thoughts and emotions, the Hasturs can do the same, on vastly more powerful level. Using this last aspect of the Hastur donas is dangerous, according to legend, calling the gods costs a life. In addition, the Hastur attempting this feat must have some sort of link to the entity they are calling; usually a smaller matrix stone that has been keyed over time to a particular entity.
Thankfully, or unfortunately, Darkover is a smaller place today and the gods no longer need to appear in the world.
The Hastur gift does not manifest spontaneously, only another Hastur who's gift is active, can awaken the Hastur donas (or the work of an Ardais gift). Since there are no known active Hastur gifts (or Ardais), this laran is assumed to be lost.
For the Game: What this means is, no player will have the fullest aspect of the Hastur gift in the game. At it's lower level, the Hastur laran allows the player character to amplify other people's gifts and - if both players have matrix stones and have been Tower trained - for the Hastur to use another person's donas as if it were their own. They must be in rapport in order to use their gift. In order to use another's gift, the players strong laran must be the Hastur one. Another minor affect is that Hasturs, active or not, can sense spirits/thoughts/emotions trapped in matrix stones (or other objects). Active Hasturs can communicate with them.
Elhalyn
They Elhalyn gifts is a subtle one, the ability to draw love and loyalty. The Elhalyn laran is that of Charisma. It's a modification of either the Ridenow or the Alton gift but rather than affecting thoughts, the Elhalyn manipulate emotions - often subconsciously. The Elhalyns are famous for being charming, engaging, appealing and worthy of loyalty - part of this is their gift, rather than any intrinsic actions on their part. Elhalyns with the full aspect of their gift can emotionally bind people's love and loyalty. It's a form of subconscious rapport, one who's affected by the Elhalyn gift will want to stay with the Elhalyn, will neglect their own responsibilities and duties and - because it's an emotion, not a force of will - turn their efforts and thoughts to giving the Elhalyns what they want. True or not, the rumor is that the cost of the fixing the Elhalyn gift in the blood-line was the increased likelihood of mild mental disability. Most Elhalyns are rather naïve and slow-witted in the modern day.
For the Game: This is a difficult gift to role-play. For the most part, what happens is dependent on others. When dealing with an Elhalyn with their gift; others should emphasize that their character is drawn to the Elhalyn, is eager to help them, to do what they want and to give them what they ask for - even if it's not very wise. This gift doesn't destroy free will, so people don't turn into zombies or become stupid; people aren't going to try to do impossible things, or kill themselves. People around the Elhalyns are just … easier to influence to Elhalyn goals.
Alton
There are a lot of Altons on Darkover and most of them have a touch of the Alton gift. The Alton laran is that of forced rapport, the ability to breach the privacy of someone's mind and read their thoughts or pull them into a matrix circle. Altons are traditionally among the most powerful telepaths of Darkover and can even read or transmit thoughts to those who have no telepathy at all. The problem with all that power is that the Alton gift can be destructive, forceing someone's mind can damage them - impair their memory of the event, give them headaches, even seizures or death. There is a belief that the Alton's can activate other special laran - if the victim can survive the attempt.
For the Game: Altons have the power to force telepathic contact on anyone - Terranens, shielded minds, minds that have been blocked by trauma, training or otherwise. The only types of minds they cannot force are those tragic figures who've had their telepathic centers physically destroyed or burned out by energon backflow or psychic surgery by a skilled laran technician. Altons can try and force open the minds of youngsters who's laran has not manifested and activate their special gifts. The forcing of a mind by an Alton is frightening and usually painful. Altons, even untrained, can kill someone with a psychic blow; the Alton gift must be the character's primary gift to attempt this.
Ridenow
Like the Altons, there are a lot of Ridenows out there - most of them, though, don't have the Ridenow gift. This gift is the one of empathy - Ridenow share the feelings of others and can push their own feelings on other people. The Ridenow laran crosses species lines; they can read the feelings of any sentient creature and project their own onto any sentient creature with laran of its own. Ridenow are sought after as monitors and, when more powerful, as sensitive and graceful Keepers. Unlike Altons, they cannot affect the minds of those without any laran whatsoever (Terranens).
For the Game: Ridenows can sense the emotions of others, including Terranens and more alien minds. If a character has the Ridenow gift as their primary laran, only technicians and Keepers can keep their emotions shielded from a Ridenow mind.
Ardais
The Ardais are the most sensitive and delicate of the Darkovan telepaths. Their laran is the one of catalyst, exposure to the Ardais gift activates any and all laran - special aspects and otherwise - of other people. Ardais are particularly responsive to rapport, the enter it easily and deeply. They also usually have a touch of empathy. The Ardais gift has been lost for some generations. Trained Ardais can use their gift consciously, reaching into the minds of others to awaken their laran at will. Untrained, the Ardais gift works slowly and uncertainly. The gift is too delicate to be easily discovered and many who have dormant Ardais laran go though life undiscovered. Though no one knows for sure, it is believed that the Ardais can also turn off laran gifts, without burning away the centers to any future use, unlike the modern method used to cripple criminal telepaths.
For the Game: No one currently is trained in the Ardais gift, though there are some who use it unconsciously. Trained users can activate dormant gifts in others and, if they have reached the rank of technician, suppress others laran.
Aillard
The Aillard laran is a matrilineal gift, which is why the Aillard Domain is headed by women. Their gift, again weak in the modern day, is that of teleportation. Those who posses the Aillard laran, and a matrix, can teleport themselves via the Overworld across Darkover and, possibly, beyond. The Aillard have a very hard history from the Hundred Kingdoms era and when they realized that the particulars of their gift had been lost, they made sure it was never 're-discovered'. To this day, outsiders do not know what the Aillard gift is and assume that it has been lost.
For the Game: If you have the Aillard gift, you're a woman. And, don't tell anyone! Most Aillard do not have the strength to teleport themselves; instead they can teleport small objects - ones that they have handled in the past day or ones they are looking at (even though glass, bars etc). The largest object an Aillard can teleport is what you can hold in two hands (about the size of a loaf of bread). Only Aillards who have the Aillard laran as their only ability can teleport themselves (if you have a matrix).
Aldaran
The bandit Domain. In exile from the domains since the formation of the Compact, the Aldarans have been ruling their own little kingdom. The Aldaran laran is that of precognition, perhaps that's why they welcomed the Terranens so quickly. Unlike the defunct multiple future ability of the Hasturs, the Aldarans see relatively brief flashes, or occasional prophetic dreams, of the most likely future.
For the Game: Watch the first year of the USA show 'The Dead Zone' to get an idea of what it would be like to have the Aldaran gift at a high level. Otherwise, it's the responsibility of Aldaran players to consult with others about future visions - don't try to force someone to act in accordance with a 'vision' your character has had without their permission. Otherwise, Aldaran gifted characters can get flashes, sometimes clear visions of events that happen days in advance (up to a week) - flashes of things farther also occasionally happen.
Last edited by Zandru, 10/25/2005, 10:09 am
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10/23/2005, 5:08 pm
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Piedro Aillard
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Re: The Donas of the Comyn Families
First, please correct the spellings of two of the family names: it is Aillard, not Alliard, and Aldaran, not Alderan!
In canon works, the teleportation is rather an aspect of the Alton Gift than a separate Gift in its own right, although never is it explicitely said to be part of the the Alton donas. On several occasions, though, it is shown how those of the Alton blood, and no others (except for Andrew Carr, who was a Terranan and in close contact with the Altons), teleport from one location to another.
The Aillard Gift was actually revealed in The Darkover Newsletter #35 in 1986 or 1987 in MZB's answer to one reader's letter in the "Relays" section, and it was also incorporated into a logical deduction puzzle "Logic Purr Se" in that issue.
The Aillard Gift is the Gift of Circle, the Gift that allows a person to obtain a matrix working circle more easily, without the help of a matrix. It also includes the ability to route matrixes and matrix energies through other matrixes. The ultimate Gift for the ultimate Keeper, that is.
Of course, it could be speculated that MZB said it only to get rid of all the annoying questions about the nature of the Aillard Gift and that the real Aillard Gift is something else entirely.
During the Ages of Chaos, the Elhalyn Gift was the Major Precognition, the ability to see all possible futures. Granted, it is never mentioned after THE STORMQUEEN! and it can be dead by the time of the Rediscovery, but on the other hand, if the Rockraven Gift is still alive, then the Elhalyn Gift can also be.
The Rockraven Gift wasn't mentioned in the later novels either, except in REDISCOVERY, where it was hinted that Leonie Hastur has some weather sense and that she might have some form of some ancient, wild donas in her genes. That leads us to think that Leonie might've had a weak form of the Rockraven Gift.
Similarly, we may also surmise, that the fact that most of the Elhalyns of the later days were more or less instable if not insane, might be the result of them having the Gift of Major Precognition, which certainly was apt to drive any bearer insane.
An aspect of the Aldaran donas might be especially strong mental stamina, as listed in THE DARKOVER CONCORDANCE.
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10/25/2005, 12:06 am
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Zandru
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Re: The Donas of the Comyn Families
I'll fix the spelling - MZBs general choices for names etc always seem to be *just* the thing that goes against my intuitive spelling choices. So feel free to keep poking!
As to the Altons and their assortment of gifts; I belive that the Alton family was MZBs 'favorite child'. They seem to have just the right ability, at the right time, to do the right (or most plot interesting) thing in any situation. Great in a novel, not so great for play balance. So, no teleportation - the Altons are powerful enough.
Since it dosen't make sense to me for the Aillards to have kept 'circle work' as a secret but teleporation does, combined with my desire for better spread of fun gifts, I'll probably leave that as it is - and these conversatons as well, so folks can see the resons why and what MZB orginally discussed the issue.
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10/25/2005, 7:29 am
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