If pure-blooded Garleans can't use magic...

[Anonymoose]

Here is a little fun fact Nael Van Darnus is most likely NOT Pure Blood Garlean because he himself could manipulate Aether and according to what little lore we have on the White Raven he has Allagan blood meaning that somewhere in his family line was some great almighty Allagan sorcerer of sorts.

This assumption follows a logical path, but draws a (probably) incorrect conclusion.

All of the "pure-blood" Garleans we've seen so far have been Hyur, whereas all of Nael van Darnus' gear and animations were built on an Elezen frame - so that's something - and House Darnus did indeed descend from Allagan blood. But Nael van Darnus could not use magick before Bahamut got involved (at least according to the clarification liner notes I was provided in 2012). When Darnus uses magick for the first time, even his own men are shocked, and his achievements made them zealously loyal to him as if he truly were connected to the divine. The Battle of Cartenau happened because his men were so fanatical that they refused to believe he was truly dead, entrenching themselves where Dalamud was to fall so that they could (unsuccessfully) prevent Louisoix from interfering. The fact that Darnus uses magick is one of the first hints foreshadowing that his power is not entirely his own. If I'm not mistaken, Darnus was magickless and had a third eye and all that jazz; after all, you don't get much more Garlean than "my father was a founding member of the Empire."

Gaius van Baelsar vs. Nael van Darnus would be an interesting "Who would win!?" concept, though, provided you did a little field leveling. Pre-Bahamut Nael vs. Pre-Silvertear Gaius. Guy kinda lost his mojo when he lost Agrius, and being ordered to be Darnus' lapdog sure didn't do any favors for his confidence (until Lahabrea propped him up, anyway).