As far as I remember, they’re never actually spelled out other than not being able to cast magic.
They’re apparently in high demand for conscription though
Are they able to disrupt the magic of others? Resist effects? Can mages use them to cast through their flesh safely in place of a conduit? What do you think?
From the books, it appears that potions don’t work well on them, and other magical effects, such as wards, don’t work particularly well either - my guess is that they don’t register a magical being. They seem generally resistant to magic, although Oliver - who is a presumed Null - has been affected by a calming spell and an explosion of air from the battle at Knave Knoll. He may or may not be susceptible to compulsion, but we don’t know for sure. I’ve had a hunch that the Architects who met with him cast some sort of befuddlement hex or compulsion spell, because his actions after that weren’t exactly the most intelligent.
I have more questions than I do answers about whether or not Nulls can be used as a conduit. On the surface, it sounds like that could be true, because celerium is not inherently magical (?) and it’s used to cast through. Same with diamonds, sapphires, and other materials. However, witches also use familiars (magical beings) to cast through, and in the past, members of the People were bound as unwilling conduits/familiars.
I think that Nulls are valued for their magical resistance as conscripts in armies and as palace or staff to nobility. Having someone who couldn’t be compelled to hurt you, poison you, lie to you, or betray you would be quite valuable. Having someone who doesn’t drop to the floor in the case of an Aberrant, or who couldn’t be affected by an Aberrant, would be extremely valuable. I wonder if we can think of some more possible benefits to having a Null around when you could have a cadre of Masters and Grandmasters?
I am not quite sure of my memory, but I seem to recall the Naughts/Nulls being the only ones able to cast through their flesh/survive casting through their flesh. I might have gotten that from the chapter with Siobhan’s nightmare or memory of her mother and how she became weird?
Yeah once the whole Naughts being Nulls I laughed and rolled my eyes. Its kinda obvious if you think about it for like 2 seconds haha, but still fun and I didn’t stop and dwell heavily on everything because I was too busy listening or reading as fast as possible.
I am not quite sure of my memory, but I seem to recall the Naughts/Nulls being the only ones able to cast through their flesh/survive casting through their flesh. I might have gotten that from the chapter with Siobhan’s nightmare or memory of her mother and how she became weird?
That would be magical people with some traits of Nulls. It lends credence to the hypothesis that Nulls are useful as conduits and do not have negative reactions. Or, at least, not madness…
I mean, sort of, but they also couldn’t be directly compelled towards loyalty or have their memories tampered with towards the same, which might leave them more vulnerable to nonmagical subversion than just a random person on the street.
If they are resistant to compulsion then things like the blood print vow or vows of secrecy like the one S had to swear to the red guard also would be less effective. Would that really be worth it to powerful people who weren’t used to painstakingly engendering loyalty the normal way?
Potions not working properly on them mostly just seems like a disadvantage considering how useful potions seem to be in combat as demonstrated by S and the Stags. Unless they can just see straight through philtres of darkness and the like?
And since skin seems to be a barrier to magic for everyone, most combat magic seems to rely upon creating physical effects outside of the body, and it seems unlikely that nulls would be more resistant to air that has been superheated via magic or stones that have been launched by magic.
Maybe a main benefit for conscription is that they’re harder to scry for, place a tracker on, etc? That would make them excellent scouts and spies and would fit well with the role Oliver has taken up for himself: parading around in two separate identities directly in front of the crowns and expecting them to have no possible magical means to ever connect the two.
