Delvians were a humanoid species of sentient plants from Delvia. In appearance they were often hairless, and featured blue skin mottled with light green patterns. Anatomically, Delvians did not have bones but, instead, had strong plant fibers that made up their structure. Delvians were also incredibly long-lived, even in undesirable circumstances. Zotoh Zhaan lived for 812 cycles before escaping Peacekeeper imprisonment.
Because of their origin as plants, Delvians received a very pleasurable experience -- called a photogasm -- from exposure to solar radiation. While traveling through space, Delvians would frequently bask in the light from stars and nebulas. Despite being plants, Delvians did require oxygen to breathe. When ill or injured, Delvians could be planted in soil to revitalize and heal, with their limbs temporarily transforming into roots.
While Delvians were typically vegetarian, they were able to derive energy from meat. As a result, when faced with starvation, Delvians would not only resort to eating meat but would also display predatory mannerisms. This defense mechanism behaved like an unconscious switch, and only through ingesting meat could the switch be turned off again. In this predatory mode, Delvians would also release spores that aggravated the allergies of virtually all other species -- though Sebaceans had shown more resistance to these spores than most other races. Even Leviathan biomechanoids were vulnerable to the effects of these spores, which can cause them to go blind. Unfortunately, this defensive mode also caused the starving Delvian to lose their sanity and become intensely paranoid.
Delvians possessed several latent abilities. Their ability to camouflage themselves from predators frequently proved useful throughout their history. Delvians also had powerful psionic capabilities, however only the Pa'u -- the priests of the Delvian Seek -- were allowed to wield these powers. Because of this, outside forces -- such as the Peacekeepers -- were known to exile followers of the Seek in order to enforce their control over the Delvian people.
Outside of the restrictions Delvian Seek, Delvian society was quite open and exceedingly liberal. They were not ashamed of their sexuality, and frequently meditated in the nude. Delvians were very social creatures and isolation could wreak havoc on their mental stability. Without meditation or the company of others, Delvians were vulnerable to their darker, primal side -- prone to anger and violence.
The Delvian Seek[]
The Delvian Seek was the religion of the deeply spiritual Delvian people. They worshipped a deity known only as the Goddess, who was believed to grant access to the psionic powers of the Delvians. At each level of the Seek -- of which there were at least ten, a Pa'u gained new abilities. These abilities included Unity, similar to the Vulcan mind meld. Pa'u could also create illusions, block out the senses of other individuals, drain the life force of others, shield others from psionic attacks, and even impart their own life force into others to resurrect the recently deceased.
However, a Delvian could use too much of their psionic energy. This resulted in a slow death, with horrible symptoms -- such as the crown of the Pa'u's head slowly turning into a sticky pulp.
Notable Delvians[]
Source[]
Delvians are seen in Farscape. For canon information, please visit the Farscape Encyclopedia Project.