Outlander is full of time-traveling characters, but this isn’t the only magical ability in the franchise. It’s established early on in the Outlander books and TV shows that the ability to time travel is genetic, so not just anyone can step through the stones and land in a different century. Characters can often possess other powers as well, ranging from psychic to healing abilities and beyond. However, the mysterious world of Outlander also reveals that even characters who can’t time travel can possess other mysterious powers.
Precisely why some people are magical while others are not is still unclear in Outlander. Claire had no idea before she found herself in the 18th century that she had any powerful abilities, and she continues to discover more about herself as she grows older. Then there are those like Roger MacKenzie, who can time travel but don’t seem to possess any other magical abilities. It will be up to future installments of Outlander to fully explain how and why these various abilities are passed on. For now, we can look at which characters have magical powers (aside from just time travel) and analyze the trends.
Claire Fraser
Primary Powers: Healing, Extrasensory Perception, Psychometry
Claire Fraser’s magical abilities are becoming increasingly important in Outlander. Back when she and Jamie were living in France (in Outlander season 2), Master Raymond magically healed Claire and told her that she had the same sort of power as him. Later, in North Carolina, the Native American Shaman Nayawenne told Claire that while she depended on her practical knowledge to heal, she would one day do it with only her hands—just like Master Raymond.
Claire’s magical abilities go beyond just this. She is also deeply intuitive and can often sense the true nature of people. Claire also has the very subtle ability to touch an object and sense things about its previous owners (psychometry). This is especially powerful in relation to skeletons—Claire can often sense a cause of death or significant details about the person when touching their bones.
Jamie Fraser
Primary Powers: Astral Projection, Extrasensory Perception
Jamie Fraser cannot travel in time in Outlander. He cannot hear the buzzing of the stones, and though he has touched these monuments at Craigh na Dun several times, nothing has ever happened. However, he still possesses a mysterious magical power. Like Claire, Jamie is immensely intuitive and can often sense danger. This has been especially useful in battle, since Jamie’s sixth sense has allowed him to walk away alive when he really should have died.
Additionally, Jamie has the magical ability to astral project in Outlander. Though he can’t time travel, he can send his spirit through time and space to visit Claire or Brianna in the 20th century. Through this power, Jamie was able to watch key moments in Brianna’s upbringing, and he also paid some visits to Jemmy and Mandy in Outlander as well. Of course, this only ever happens while Jamie sleeps, and he has no control over the ability.
Brianna MacKenzie
Primary Powers: Extrasensory Perception, Psychometry
Brianna is the child of two magical Outlander characters, so it’s no surprise that she also possesses some supernatural abilities. She has shown no signs of being able to heal, and she lacks Claire’s passion for medicine as well. However, Brianna takes after the Frasers in that she is deeply intuitive. This comes across as traditional intelligence, but it becomes evident in Outlander that Brianna’s abilities go far beyond this.
Like both her parents, Brianna can sense when something dangerous is about to happen. However, she isn’t quite as good as her mother at sensing whether a person’s intentions are good or bad. Interestingly, Brianna seems to be more of a conduit of power. The abilities she inherited from her parents have been passed on to her own children tenfold.
Master Raymond
Primary Powers: Healing, Immortality, Foresight, Extrasensory Perception, More Unknown
Master Raymond is easily the most powerful character in Outlander. He is a prehistoric time traveler born around 500 BC and has completely mastered the art of jumping through time and space. The full extent of his abilities is unknown since Master Raymond continues to be shrouded in mystery. However, it’s evident in Outlander that this character’s healing powers go far beyond anyone else’s.
Master Raymond not only healed Claire of her infection in Outlander season 2 but it’s implied that his abilities make him essentially immortal. Additionally, the sort of magical intuition that Claire possesses is several times stronger for Master Raymond. He can see an individual’s auras and immediately identify time travelers like Claire or warriors like Jamie. It’s even thought that Master Raymond could be the source of all time travelers’ powers since he is believed to be their ancestor in Outlander.
Jenny Murray
Primary Powers: Foresight
Jenny’s powers aren’t talked about nearly
as much in Outlander, but it’s ultimately revealed that she has some supernatural abilities. She is Jamie’s sister, and both inherited some magical strengths from the mysterious Fraser line. Jenny’s intuition goes beyond what even Jamie and Claire are capable of. Though there were never many specifics stated in the Outlander books, it’s noted that Jenny will sometimes dream things before they happen.
Although Jenny never understood her own abilities, she accepted and trusted them, just as she ultimately accepted and trusted Claire.
Jenny’s prophetic dreams were revealed after Claire finally told the Murrays she was from the future. Though Jenny was initially hesitant to accept this, she acknowledged that the world is full of supernatural forces that are difficult to understand. Although Jenny never understood her own abilities, she accepted and trusted them, just as she ultimately accepted and trusted Claire.
Geillis Duncan
Primary Powers: Healing, More Unknown
Geillis Duncan is another Outlander character whose full abilities are never fully fleshed out. She was obviously a time traveler, but it is heavily implied that Geillis had the same blue aura as Claire and Master Raymond. It’s for this reason that she seemed to have a natural understanding of medicinal plants and herbs. Had Geillis explored her abilities further, she might have found that she could magically heal a person with only her hands. However, it seems more likely that Geillis’ specific brand of healing magic revolved around potions and brews.
Geillis is one of the characters in Outlander based on real people from history. The actual Geillis Duncan was a talented healer who was burned as a witch in the 16th century because her medicinal concoctions were considered too extraordinary. Outlander’s version of the character was, in a way, truly a witch who secretly escaped her execution.
Jeremiah MacKenzie
Primary Powers: Telepathy, Extrasensory Perception, Astral Projection, More Unknown
Jeremiah MacKenzie is Roger and Brianna’s first child, and it quickly becomes clear that he possesses some unique powers. As the child of two time travelers, Jemmy seems to intuitively understand how time travel works. Moreover, the powers Claire inherited from Master Raymond seemed to have mixed with the sport of magic carried by the Fraser line.
In Outlander, there are hints that Jemmy could develop a similar astral projection power to Jamie’s. He has already had some significant dreams, many of which were related to Jamie’s presence in the past. Jemmy is also intensely intuitive and possesses some psychic abilities. These are especially powerful in combination with his sister Amanda’s abilities. Jemmy can sense the essence of just about anyone in his family, but his connection with Mandy goes far beyond this.
Amanda MacKenzie
Primary Powers: Telepathy, Astral Projection, Extrasensory Perception, More Unknown
Aside from Master Raymond, Mandy MacKenzie may be the most powerful character in Outlander. She is still a young child and will continue developing her abilities as she grows. However, even now, Mandy’s very soul seems connected to the magic that powers the stones and makes time travel possible in Outlander. She can sense her loved ones across time and space, allowing her more complete control over where she lands while traveling.
It will be interesting to see who Mandy becomes as her power continues to grow in the Outlander series.
Mandy can see auras in Outlander, just like Master Raymond, and has demonstrated her understanding of what these different colors mean from a young age. It’s unclear as of yet whether she will develop a similar healing ability to Claire, but it seems likely. It will be interesting to see who Mandy becomes as her power continues to grow in the Outlander series. Perhaps she will eventually take over Master Raymond’s mysterious role as an immortal guide for wandering time travelers.