Merlin, you're just a terrible chess player

Some changeling & troll!Jim headcannons

Morgana had been considering making changelings for years, it wasn't a sudden idea; it was something she'd been planning for a long time

She even discussed it with Merlin at one point (under the guise of wanting to better 'unite' humans and trolls), and he proposed the idea of humans turning into trolls instead of vice-versa.

This is where the concept for the half-troll potion came from. What Jim became was essentially a modified version of a failed recipe for changelings that Merlin kept around in case it ever became useful.

Jim wasn't the first half-troll, he was just the first successful one. There was a chance it could've gone horribly wrong (as it has in past attempts) but Merlin took the risk anyway since he saw it working in his vision.

The reason Morgana's version always ended with better results was due to dark magic and Merlin's outright refusal to go there.

Because they were on a time crunch, Merlin substituted some of the rarer ingredients common in transfiguration potions with material from a preexisting changeling.

All they know about the bone used in the potion was that it came from a changeling. They never learned who, or what kind of troll they were, And subsequently have no clue as to what species of troll Jim was partially turned into. And Merlin didn't ever feel like helping them figure it out even though he probably could've with relative ease.

If they had more time for him to work on the potion, and if Merlin actually measured his ingredients instead of throwing them all in a blender, Jim probably would've come out less wonky (an even amount of fingers, among other things).

ToA Wizards + @screenshotsofdespair I've had for a while

Merlin: Listen, I'm gonna need you

to swear—

Douxie: FUZZBUCKETS

Merlin:

Merlin: [ sharp inhale ]

Merlin: Not only is that not what I meant, that is also not even a swear.

colored an old narlin doodle i found :3 feat: young merlin

Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore!"

A little last minute spooky extra drawing! Wanted to try some fun firelight with this one :D which I think turned out well!

commission info!

Re-watching Trollhunters to refresh my memory of Merlin's personality for the next chapter of Lost Soul. Man, he's a snarky fellow!

Also I desperately wish we had a bonus episode of the parents doing their TrollFighters play. (Actually that would have been a hilarious way to do a recap for one of the follow up series.)

Merlin: I don't play favorites. I have disdain for all Hisirdoux and non-Hisirdouxes equally.

tales of arcadia x wolfpupy tweets, inspired by this post

Toby: Hey Merlin, you practically raised King Arthur, Morgana, and Douxie right?

Merlin: You could accurately say that, yes.

Toby: Weeeell, who’s your favorite?

Claire: Really Toby?

Toby: Come on, I’m curious! He’s gotta have a favorite.

Claire: Parents aren’t supposed to have favorites-

Merlin, without hesitation: Hisirdoux.

Jim: Woah, no hesitation.

Toby: Why Douxie?

Merlin: He never turned on me and walked the path of darkness for one.

Claire: Yeah, that’s fair.

Arthur:….

Morgana: Fuck you too Old Man. 🖕

Douxie: 😎🤟

Merlin:"Hisirdoux, you had ONE JOB!To prevent the Arcane Order from getting the Genesis Seals, and to keep the world safe!" >:O

Douxie: "But that's two things!" D:>

This is just my opinion, you may disagree with it. I don't like what the Wizards did to Morgana at all, namely, they tried to make an ambiguous character out of her, thereby creating a bunch of plot holes. For example, in Wizards, Morgana says she wants to help all magical creatures, and in Hunters, when Angor asked her for help, she subdued his will and forced him to kill Merlin's champions (let's also remember the story about kidnapping troll children and changing them with the help of creepy experiments and turning into changelings)

I curse @thosetrollkids for making my think about the Grandpa Douxie au, have a silly comic from the first time Merlin sees Ralph

I still have mixed feelings about troll Jim.

I mean, i love troll Jim because he's powerful and badass. He has a great design (probably the best of the series) and i just love the tragedy behind it. The grief and sacrifice. That episode was well written and directed.

I just don't like the message behind it.

-The entire series was Jim is special because he's human. Being human is what made Jim a good Trollhunter. That having friends and family made him stronger. And then literally in the last minute Merlin shows up and says "lol no".

-Merlin made a big deal about how he was a hybrid; Not human, not troll but both and that combination was needed for him to win. Except for all they show that's not actually what happened, he is just another troll for how they depict him, just more powerful than the others. It  would have made more sense if he didn't have the vulnerability to sunlight or something.

-The worst thing: Jim made this choice after Merlin manipulated him into making him think it was the only way to save the world. It feels...wrong.

Again, i LOVE troll jim. But it's like the show just abandoned its central premise.

Merlin: Okay, everyone. Simple question. What did we learn today?

Douxie: Do not deviate from plans.

Claire: Teamwork is the key to success.

Jim: Operational procedures are important.

Steve, in a wheelchair and covered in bandages: Pianos... are heavy.

Merlin: Oh, close enough.

Hi! What do you think would happen if Jim was born as Gwen and Arthur's kid, but somehow still meet Claire and Toby?

Oh, that's what I call 'let's give Jim an even messier biological dad'. So, in this AU, Jim is a baby when Gwen dies, so technically he doesn't remember her well enough. Much like in the canon, Arthur starts a crusade against the supernatural and pretty much neglects his son, visiting him only occasionally. Morgana, on the other hand, spends way more time with her nephew (partially because of guilt, but she also genuinely loves Jim). Jim grows a bit, and much to his own horror, Arthur realizes that his only son takes after his mother too much when it comes to curiosity about magical creatures. Jim keeps sneaking out of the castle into the forest and befriending all kinds of magical beings there (including Nari). He also sets free inhuman prisoners rather regularly. And Arthur, instead of reconsidering his stance, is now bound by fear that he will lose the last memento of Gwen. He goes to Merlin looking for the best working solution to keep Jim away from 'dangerous beasts', and this is where those two commit something unforgivable. They put Jim in a time stasis until Arthur obliterates all non-humans.

Unfortunately, nothing goes like planned as Arthur dies and Merlin goes to sleep without giving any instructions how to release Jim.

Barbara in this AU is also from Camelot times. She's Jim's nanny and secretly a witch. She is furious when she learns what Arthur has done to his son and swears to find a way to free Jim. She isn't a powerful or knowledgeable magic user, so it takes her centuries until she manages to do it several years before the beginning of the events in Trollhunters.

As Jim is still a kid, he has less trouble adjusting to the modern world. He is still sad because most of the people he knew are not around anymore (though it's easier with Barbara, who is a true mother figure to him, around). Besides, Jim dreams to become a noble knight which is impossible in the modern world.

On the other hand, Jim still befriends Toby like in the canon, though he doesn't tell him about his origin right away (that happens only after Toby learns about trolls).

As for Jim and Douxie in this AU, those two never met in Camelot times, because technically Jim should be older than Douxie (he would have been an adult by the time Douxie became Merlin's apprentice if Merlin had never trapped him). However, as Jim is physically and mentally the younger one now, Douxie takes over the elder brother role for him when those two meet. It happens soon after Barbara breaks the time stasis as she is friends with Douxie. Initially, Jim is a bit afraid of Douxie as he is Merlin's apprentice and Jim fears that he might be back to that time trap. He opens up once he realizes that Douxie helped Barbara with finding the way to free him.

I think that most of the canon event will still happen. The differences will be:

Jim knowing about the supernatural. He's also not a big fan of fighting for 'the glory of Merlin'. That is his main reason why he wants to refuse the mantle at first. However, later Jim realises that no matter what kind of words are used, the amulet is still meant to protect.

Jim still have some chivalrous mannerisms from his Camelot times and Claire finds it cute. She also teases him about being a prince (as he's is one) and Jim wants to die of embarrassment.

Douxie is obviously involved earlier and Barbara knows about Jim's trollhunting from the very beginning. Barbara still starts to date Strickler and Jim is reluctant to tell her that Walter is a changelling once he learns that. So Barbara still gets bond to Strickler by Angor and only learns the truth later.

When it comes to awaking Merlin, both Jim and Barbara (especially Barbara) are against it. Jim gives in after realizing that they have no other choice.

Morgana doesn't want to harm her nephew, but she thinks about trapping him somewhere so he isn't involved.

Merlin doesn't expect his last Trollhunter to be King Arthur's son. After all, he knows that his champion should become a half-troll, but doing it to his friend's son can be quite a betrayal. Not that it stops Merlin though (or make him think for an alternative).

the reunion between Jim and Arthur in the past is a royal mess. Jim don't even want to confess to his father he is his son (and honestly, both Blinky and Strickler are better in that role).

Jim also can't succeed Excalibur at first because he connects that one to his father too much. He also doesn't want to be a king as he doesn't want to become like his father. Though Aja's example makes him reconsider.