Merlin [Approved, Magus; 0-5. ]

Name: Merlin
Alias: Keeper of Secrets
True Age: ~4000
Gender: Male... most of the time
Origin: Magic
Personality: Merlin is a secretive, old and wise man. He likes to keep all of his cards to himself and rarely even shows his face to strangers - his enchanted cloak keeping it hidden from view. That's his appearance to the outside world - an elderly sage with knowledge far beyond the wildest imaginations. And for the most part, this holds true deep down as well. Since he's actually quite old by now, he enjoys spinning his own plans and tales for many years to come. With his manipulations, he always attempts to reach the best results for both the common people and for the western Sugiura kingdom, even if they seem counter-intuitive or even treacherous at first. After all, a country isn't only protected by spells and swords, but by quick wit and noble intentions as well.

As a druidic Magus, Merlin is very close to nature, and loves it dearly. The destruction of nature without good reason will quickly raise his ire, and he is especially protective of forests and natural lakes - he'll always be the first in Arthur's court to speak against the destruction of any of them, unless no other option remains. He understands nature like nearly no other living being, and is sort of an emisary of the wonders of nature, in a way - he understands the need for destruction and death for life and creation, for example.

As an old Magus, Merlin has never lost his curiosity regarding magic. Some might call him a bit reckless, others even insane, but he's always within his own rules and limitations - which he, admittedly, often stretches out quite far. Still, he refuses to use dark magics the likes of Le Fay use, and prefers to stick to the basics and 'light' magic, especially that of the elements. Thanks to his bloodline, he has a bit of trouble understanding the magic of the wind, but manages fairly well thanks to loads of experience.
He's even a good teacher of magic arts and more - as a former knight, he knows the ways of chivalry, and how to fight with a bladed weapon. Some might say his teaching methods are a bit odd and even counter-intuitive, but they always work out in the end - his students he's most proud of are Arturia and, in secret, Alicia. He's always worried about his students, though - learning how to fight is not something to be taken lightly, and he is always making sure that everyone knows what they get themselves into. He's quite willing to throw himself into the way of a sword aimed at his students, since he considers their lives way more important than his own.

Lastly, Merlin is... a giant pervert and trickster. Nobody would believe you if you told them that one of the greatest wizards of all time liked using lightning magic to give people slight zaps during handshakes, now would they? But that is exactly the case. Especially with his ability to change his own shape, he plays pranks on people the same way he does secret tests of character - hushed legends within the innermost circle, that know the true identity of Arturia, whisper he once transmorphed her with a penis against her will for an entire day. Furthermore, he quite easily fulfills the role of a dirty old man, in some ways. His chivalry keeps him from being a complete panty-chaser, but he does like looking at women in more embarassing situations, if we put it like that. He'd never desecrate the honor of a woman, though.




Appearance:

Spoiler:

In his youth, Merlin had raven black hair and sky blue eyes - with age, his hair turned silver-white and the eyes changed from blue into yellow-brown, a color often associated with fallen leaves and the season of fall in general, but he lacks other signs of aging.
Animalistic Traits: None
Appearance Age: ~20
Height: 5'5"



Basic Magic: While Merlin can in theory use the Basic Magic, it is 'too simple' for his taste, and he prefers not to use it actively.

Spellsword: This ability is Merlin's own creation. It combines the ability of swordfighting and magic in a special way - if an offensive spell is either 'touch', 'beam' or 'targeted area' in it's makeup, he can instead channel it into a blade wielded by him to utilize them in different ways. 'Touch' spells enhance a single slash until it hits a target, 'beam' spells allow for a ranged sword attack that has both the spell and cutting properties at once, and 'targeted area' become eruptions of the spell around the impact point of the next sword attack. This is a learned natural ability, and can be taught to others who share Merlin's affinity for both sword and magic.

Guardian of Holy Swords: Since he was appointed the guardian of the Holy Swords, Merlin has been able to 'feel' when someone is ready and able to carry a Holy Sword. With his approval, the bond between a Holy Sword and it's wielder is strengthened, making them more powerful with it. In the same vein, if someone unfit to carry a Holy Sword attempts to use one, they will be unable to even raise the blade as long as Merlin is alive.

Other Weapons: Merlin carries the Levin Sword on him. It is a special, zagged blade, as seen on one of the pictures. Enchanted with earth magic, it allows for easy use of the Spellsword ability, and stays sharp for as long as it is used as a magic conduit. Nowadays, Merlin rarely engages in any sort of combat, so the sword is mostly collecting dust in the inside of his robes, or in a locked chest in his study tower. The various books that Merlin carries around are always spellbooks or books on magic theory, but can hardly be considered weapons - hitting someone over the head with a book is rarely effective.



Magecraft: Merlin uses ancient Magecraft, one that has been lost to other Magi of this day and age. He is considered a 'true sorcerer', although he has no inherit ability to cast a specific Magic not able to be used by others - his title was granted thanks to his thorough understanding of Magecraft and true magic.

The ability to transfigure living beings into other living beings, or into objects. This Magecraft causes no pain in targets, only an odd sensation - all spells of it are 'touch' class, Merlin needs to touch the body of his unfortunate victim. Each transfigure spell only lasts for short times normally, and is practicially useless in combat. However, when properly prepared, they can last for longer periods of time. When carefully applied, they can even only partially apply, and have quite a bit of perversion potential - someone on the recieving side of a prank by Merlin may suddenly sprout a penis where a vagina should be, for just one example of Merlin's slightly twisted sense of humor.
Of course, he can use this on himself to disguise his true form, or to change his own gender over completely into a female. Of course, he always says he had never done so before, but the people that know Merlin also know that he wouldn't pass up such a chance to trick and prank people.
Merlin has also been known for carrying his sword transfigured into a walking stick.

What Merlin's secret for this Magecraft is, only he knows. Where other Magi may create single familiars with singular objectives, Merlin can use every natural creature as a familiar - seeing through their eyes, hearing with their ears, feeling with their paws. When Merlin walks through a forest, the animals of it flock to him, and share their memories with his mind. Where he treads, no man has to fear the attack of a wild beast. As long as a place is near nature, Merlin can usually spy on that place without ever being discovered.
Furthermore, Merlin can create a familiar out of nothing - by whispering in a forgotten, magical language, he creates a small animal that serves as his helper. After they complete their assignment, they are on their merry way out into the world, so one has to wonder if Merlin really creates life, or just summons it from somewhere else.

This Magecraft is the main reason why Merlin is seen more as a druid, especially when compared to modern Magi. Whispering in the language of the elements, Merlin controls the world around him with gestures of his hands. The strongest control he has is over the earth, while wind is the weakest - water and fire are even in the middle.
In practice, a use of this Magecraft would for example be: Merlin raises both hands upwards in a fast swiping motion, and a wall of dirt and stone raises from the ground infront of him to protect him. Or he stands next to a natural source of water, does a sideways swiping motion, and throws a stream of water onto his opponent. He needs an element to occur naturally to manipulate it - so to throw a fireball, he'd need a source of fire nearby. Only earth and air can thus be used at any time. Earth manipulation includes metal and glass, since both are made from parts of the earth. In advanced motion, Merlin can use earth and water simultaneously to manipulate plants. He can't manipulate animals, or the elements within intelligent beings, in any way, shape or form. Magic of this kind is the only one he can't directly imbue in spell-form into his sword. Instead, if he were to use Spellsword with this Magecraft, he'd give the manipulation ability from his hand over to the blade - so a swipe of his blade could cause multiple small boulders to spring from the ground and hail onto someone, for example.

This Magecraft is ancestral in origin, but not exclusive to Merlin's bloodline. Unlime elemental control, which requires little energy as it uses elements of the nature, this Magecraft produces artificial elements as a means of attack - it is a Magecraft that combines multiple elements into single, strong offensive spells with little defensive capabilities. Appliances are quite wide-spread - for example, Merlin could supercharge the air and fire a lightning bolt from his fingertips, or collect energy in his hands and send out a burning cone of flame. When one talks about elemental magic, one usually thinks of spells like these - direct attacks with all elements, costing energy of the caster in direct proportion to their power.
Example Spells:

• Thunderbolt: Merlin snaps his fingers, and a single bolt of lightning strikes from his fingers onto the target. Quick spell, moderate power, but can't be used in quick succession.
  
• Burning Hands: Merlin lets out a stream of fire from his hands, burning all infront of him.
  
• Cold Bolt: Merlin fires a deathly cold bolt of energy from his fingertips, which freeze whatever it may hit.
  
• Magic Missile: Merlin charges energy of all types into his fingertips as raw magic, and releases bolts that damage the enemy with the property of 'magic' itself. May shoot out multiple missiles at once that home in on the target.
  
• Stone Spear: Merlin summons a spear made out of hardened rocks and throws it at the opposition.
  

There will be a day on which everyone that holds a Holy Sword will be forced with the greatest of trials. Should all Holy Swords be united against a common foe, as they should be, then Merlin's final and strongest secret Magic will be revealed. This blessing of his imbues all Holy Swords with the strength of the world, so that the wielders may defend it against death itself if need be. Furthermore, should all Holy Sword wielders give up their blades to save the world, the swords shall join together to form the true sword of the king - a sword able to literally cut everything. This blade is known in legend as the King Calibur.



Character Background: Merlin, the Keeper of Secrets. His tale is an old one, and it began with two very different people - his mother, a Sugiura servant that got lost in the lands of the Guardian Beasts, and his father - a 'god of the earth'. A Guardian Beast of earth, he fell in love with Merlin's mother, who also loved him nearly at first sight. Together, they retreated to a tower at the coast, not far from the noble family that Merlin's mother had once served. Nobody trusted Merlin's father, since he was a Guardian Beast, and a Wizard on top of it - the people feared him, but with fear also came a bit of respect.
It didn't take long for the former servant to become pregnant with the child of the earth spirit. The pregnancy didn't have any particular complications... but still, Merlin's father was highly worried. He had slight ability in future sight, and he foresaw a great storm coming... One greater than any before. What he did not know, though, that this storm also meant the end of an era for himself.

On the night of Merlin's birth, the storm hit from the coast. The giant stone tower of the earth spirit shook in it's roots, but with his magic, he kept it standing against all odds. However, Merlin's mother did not survive giving birth to the young halfblood, and died in the arms of her husband.
From that day onward, the wizard sought out the help of the noble family that lived nearby, in exchange for his magic abilities. He had changed greatly - broken by the loss of his wife, in more than one way. He raised Merlin alone, with only the help of a few Servants when he was still very young, and from the earliest age on, the wisdom of many ages shone out of the eyes of his young son. The development of the half-blood was incredibly fast - he was able to cast his first magic spell long before he could walk without falling over, so to speak. Seeing his son be so strong, so blessed with power, pleased his father, who was growing weaker and weaker with the years. When Merlin was barely older than ten years, he finally passed away at night, leaving Merlin alone in the world.

Taking only his father's spellbook, Merlin set out into the world the very next day. In a faraway land, he became the squire of a knight, and was trained in the ways of the sword - in a harsh world, he learned how to fight, and how to kill. When he was barely fourteen years old, Merlin had earned his title as knight to a king he didn't believe in, serving a lord he felt nothing for. But he was not here to serve a lord in the first place - he only sought the knowledge of the outside world, to fulfill his father's final request. To become the greatest wizard to have ever lived!
Many a battle and war followed in the darker times of the realm. In one of these wars, Merlin observed his former mentor pillaging and attempting to rape a peaceful family of farmers that wanted nothing to do with the war - and he enchanted his blade with flame, striking down his former mentor, and began hiding his face behind a helmet blackened by the burn of flames. Nobody linked together the appearance of this black knight with the disappearance of two knights, as these were dark times, and disappearances often meant death by the hands of highwaymen.

As a black knight, Merlin struck down those driven by greed - but in the end, it did not help broaden his horizon as he hoped it would. Doing good was a nice feeling on his soul, but it only gave him strength of the sword, not of the mind or of magic - a great wizard would need those two as well as a strong swordarm to defend his knowledge. To obtain magical knowledge, he traveled far south, into the ancestral lands of his father, and met with the spirits of earth, air, water and fire. He rode with unicorns, fought cyclopses, philosiphied with dragons and unlocked secrets forgotten by the world - with these newfound secrets, Merlin expanded his magic ability, and became a sorcerer unlike any other.
His return to the lands owned by the Sugiura followed soon after. It was there that he met the Knights of the Round Table, an order dedicated to the honor and protection of the common people. With his ability of the Spellsword, he was welcomed into their ranks, as the Knight of the Wand. From Avalon, their flying fortress, the Knights of the Round fought corruption whereever they could find it, and Merlin felt as though he had finally done his father's legacy justice - as if he was no longer simply a half-blood born with power, but a wizard that had earned his might and wisdom with his own two hands.

But the life of a knight is not an easy one, as Merlin knew all too well. During his time with the Round Table, he finally unlocked his last ancestral power - within the crystal ball, he saw glimpses of the future, and what would become if nobody interfered. Seeing as he would not be able to influence the world in the way that it needed him as a Knight any longer, he retired from his position amongst the Knights of the Round Table.
After leaving the Knights behind, Merlin was lead by a mysterious power, and met the queen of the west - Elizabeth. She had a mission for him, a request of great importance - he was to protect the Holy Swords from the shadows, to make sure that their wielders were worthy of the great power associated with each of the blades. Swearing to follow this new destiny, Merlin set out to make sure that each blade would only fall into the hands of those that were worthy... the hands of true knights and heroes.

The first blade to be assigned was an ancient weapon called Caliburn, from a time before the Sugiura. Upon finding it, he lead the Sugiura Takuri to it, a member of the royal family of the east, who would from then on carry the blade that 'choses the king'. On that day, Merlin noted how Takuri was the example of a knight, since she had been a part of the Round Table during his time - her hands were the ones that could wield all of the Holy Swords, yet destiny had chosen to give her the one blade able to eradicate evil.
After this event, he followed his premonition ability once more and met the noble family of the name Leonhardt. Offering his services as a magical advisor and court wizard, he was soon known as the mysterious, hooded figure in the family - rarely showing his face, many tales were spun about him. Some say he resembles an old man, with a long, white beard. Others think him a druid, with leaves in his hair and brown eyes. But no matter which story you follow, Merlin is always described as more of a title, and less of a name - the title of a wizard that guides the wielders of holy swords, and who protects his 'students' with fierce power.

When Arturia chose to pull Excalibur from the stone, he was the one to warn her - that once the sword is pulled, she would never be able to return to her life beforehand. She was proven worthy of the blade by virtue of being able to draw it from the stone, and she chose the life of a king - Merlin is known as the court wizard of 'him' now, as well. His influence is wide-spread - some say the reason that Alicia became a magician in her own right is because of studying under Merlin himself. Now, watching over the wielders of the holy swords and his students, Merlin awaits a new age... One that hopefully won't take the dark course that he once foretold within the crystal ball, which now stays cloudy and silent, no matter how deeply the wizard gazes into it.

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Comments/Notes:Arturia: MERLLLLLLLLLLLLLLIN.
Tier: Approved, 0-5.

Re-approved due to new guidelines

Age changed to ~4000 to fit with changed rules.