Can Guardians age?
Some Guardians have existed for hundreds of years, if not more, and yet they still walk among humanity to protect them, but can they not age? Looking at Zavala, Osiris, or Lord Saladin, one might think that they cannot age, and indeed that is somewhat true, though only partly.
The light, it seems, halts the aging process of cells. Organic Guardians (Humans and Awoken) cannot age. Exos cannot either – they are instead reset when they have trouble accepting their body.
What speaks for another form of aging, however, is their mental state. The light can heal any wound, but when you wage an endless conflict against the Darkness for centuries, everyone eventually gets tired.
Thus, if you were to stand against Lord Saladin and Shaw Han, you would know that Lord Saladin has been through a lot and has been around longer.
What exactly are Darkness Zones?
You wander into a Dusk and suddenly the warning “Darkness Zone” pops up, but what is that actually? Guardians are only powerful when they can tap into the light of the Traveler. In a Darkness Zone, however, they are cut off from the Traveler, even if only partially.
They can still use their talents, ults, and throw grenades, but if they die, they cannot be revived.
The lore entry of the bow “Imperial Needle” demonstrates this clearly: “Normally, this would just be a small inconvenience, except that the Darkness consumed large areas of Mars so much during the Collapse that the light cannot burn there, like fire in space. So here I am in a Darkness Zone bleeding out while my Ghost panics because it can do nothing to save me, and five angry Cabal are ready to finish me off.”
This means that if you actually find yourself in a Darkness Zone, you’re in trouble, and it could very well mean your final death.
Continue on page 3.
