Changes: Dragon

Revision as of 21:59, 23 April 2019

“Dragons are not monsters. They are creatures of wonder and magic.”
— Gaius to Merlin^[src]

Dragons were creatures of magic that lived in the land of Albion. They were noble and powerful creatures, known to be near-invincible and humbled only by the Dragonlords.

The dragons were among those targeting during the Great Purge. They were near-extinct by its end.

History

Dragon attacking Merlin — Kilgharrah attacking Merlin.

According to Arthur, the dragons were responsible for bringing down the kingdom of Daobeth. This occurred hundreds of years before Uther's reign (The Darkest Hour).

Dragons had a special bond with the Dragonlords, men who possessed the ability to talk to, tame, and control them. According to Balinor, Dragonlords and dragons were spiritual brothers and shared a connection of the soul (The Last Dragonlord).

According to Gaius, dragons were once close allies with Trolls (Beauty and the Beast).

The dragons were hunted nearly to extinction during the Great Purge. When only Kilgharrah remained, Uther Pendragon convinced the Dragonlord Balinor to call him to Camelot so that he could make peace with him. The King betrayed them, however, and imprisoned Kilgharrah in a cavern beneath the castle. He then proceeded to round up and slaughter the Dragonlords, as he believed their abilities to be too close to magic (The Last Dragonlord).

Kilgharrah was imprisoned for at least twenty years before Balinor's son Merlin set him free. Seeking vengeance for what was done to himself and his kind, the dragon launched an attack on Camelot that lasted several days. He was eventually stopped by Merlin, who had inherited his father's Dragonlord abilities and used them to order Kilgharrah away from Camelot (The Last Dragonlord).

Aithus-0 — Aithusa, newly hatched from its egg.

Around three years later, Merlin recovered the last remaining dragon egg from the Tomb of Ashkanar, where it had been hidden for four hundred years. He used his Dragonlord abilities to summon the dragon from its egg and named the hatchling Aithusa (Aithusa).

Though Kilgharrah and Aithusa are the only remaining dragons in Albion, Wyverns (distant relatives of dragons) are still in existence. They differ from dragons in that they have red eyes and are only slightly larger than humans, and also appear to be more animalistic in nature. They are known to live in the Perilous Lands and on the Isle of the Blessed (The Eye of the Phoenix, The Darkest Hour).

Appearance

Merlin213 1635 — Dragons were known to be significantly larger than humans.

The Dragons in Merlin have many similarities to dragons in western mythology. They are reptilian in appearance with scales, four legs, long tails, and large wings.

Dragons could apparently be many different colors. Kilgharrah, for example, had golden scales while Aithusa had white. White dragons were considered to be especially rare (Aithusa). Their eye colors could also differ, as Kilgharrah was shown to have golden eyes while Aithusa's were blue.

Newborn dragons appear to have thin bone structures, and their wing sails are near transparent membrane (Aithusa).

Abilities

“Dragons are magical creatures, they belong to no man. They are for the benefit of all.”
— Merlin to Julius Borden^[src]

Dragons had great knowledge and power in Magic. They were impervious to almost any weapon, an enchanted spear hurled at a Dragon would just bounce off it's scales despite being filled with Magic (The Last Dragonlord).

As with all Dragons in Myth, they had the ability to breathe fire and fly. Despite their massive size Dragons are far more graceful and much faster than they appeared, able to easily avoid numerous projectiles such as arrows even when they were fired at the same time. A Dragon could easily defeat a whole group of human knights (though not without the possibility of being injured) and they seemed to be undefeatable to anyone except the Dragonlords. Dragons are a powerful and almost indestructible enemy in combat, a single Dragon being able to ravage a city within weeks.

Nothing, not even magic, can penetrate a dragon, but a strike to the heart can hurt and kill it. This is seen when Arthur thrusts a spear into Kilgharrah's heart, but only wounds him.

Uther was able to have all the Dragons except for him killed, meaning they all had to have been slayed through the heart, which he likely learned from the dragonlords, though how he convinced (or forced) them in do such thing is unknown (The Last Dragonlord). Judging by the way how Kilgharrah easily slaughtered an entire army of armed mercenaries, it's seems to be very unlikely that Uther managed to kill a single dragon without the help of powerful magic (The Sword in the Stone).

In addition to being virtually unbeatable, Dragons had the power to transmit spells from their thoughts into another persons mind (The Curse of Cornelius Sigan) and they could use their fire to fill weapons with magic giving it great power (Excalibur). Dragons also had healing and unlocking powers as Kilgharrah healed Merlin when he was stung by a Serket and broke open the chains which bound him (The Tears of Uther Pendragon). Due to Kilgharrah's prodigious knowledge of the future it's likely that Dragons could foresee the future, though he may have learned the future from another source.

Furthermore, a dragon's breath has the ability to bring back to life a fallen person or someone who is in a near-death situation. Kilgharrah unwillingly used this power once in order to give Merlin the power to bring Morgana back to life (The Crystal Cave). Aithusa did the same thing for her to the series 4 finale, after she was injured by a knight and Merlin's magic, although the reasons for doing that remain unclear (The Sword in the Stone).

Dragons procreate by laying eggs which can remain viable for more than thousand years, but their special bond with Dragonlords is such that dragon eggs cannot hatch without a Dragonlord. Dragonlords do this by calling the unborn dragons into existence by naming the egg's occupant to bring them into the world. Thus, even if there were plenty of dragon eggs in existence, if there were no more Dragonlords none of them would ever hatch (Aithusa).

Appearances

Series 1: The Dragon's Call; Valiant; The Mark of Nimueh; A Remedy to Cure All Ills; The Beginning of the End; Excalibur; To Kill the King; Le Morte d'Arthur
Series 2: The Curse of Cornelius Sigan; The Nightmare Begins; Beauty and the Beast: Part Two; Sweet Dreams; The Witch's Quickening; The Fires of Idirsholas; The Last Dragonlord
Series 3: The Tears of Uther Pendragon: Part One; The Tears of Uther Pendragon: Part Two; The Crystal Cave; The Eye of the Phoenix (Mentioned only); Love in the Time of Dragons (Mentioned only); The Sorcerer's Shadow; The Coming of Arthur: Part Two
Series 4: The Darkest Hour: Part One (Mentioned only) (Deleted scene only); The Darkest Hour: Part Two; Aithusa; The Sword in the Stone: Part Two
Series 5: Arthur's Bane part 1 and 2; The Kindness of Strangers; The Diamond of The Day

Legend

The Dragons in Merlin are very similar to those in the myth.

They are usually referred to as massive flying fire-breathing reptiles. Like in Merlin dragons can live for hundreds or even thousands of years, and come in a variety of different colours. They have a bad reputation for being greedy and fiercely protecting its treasure in caves.

Dragon is derived from the greek word Drakon meaning huge serpent.

Chinese dragons, as opposed to the western dragons, are revered as creatures of zen and goodness.

Trivia

According to Kilgharrah, the birth of a white dragon was considered a rare occurrence (Aithusa).

Gallery

Click "show" to view gallery.

@@ Line 35: / Line 35: @@
 The Dragons in ''[[Merlin (TV Series)|Merlin]]'' have many similarities to dragons in western mythology. They are reptilian in appearance with scales, four legs, long tails, and large wings.
-Dragons could be many different colors. [[Kilgharrah]], for example had golden scales while [[Aithusa]] had white. White dragons were considered to be especially rare (''[[Aithusa (episode)|Aithusa]]''). Their eye colors could also differ, as Kilgharrah was shown to have golden eyes while Aithusa's were blue.
+Dragons could apparently be many different colors. [[Kilgharrah]], for example, had golden scales while [[Aithusa]] had white. White dragons were considered to be especially rare (''[[Aithusa (episode)|Aithusa]]''). Their eye colors could also differ, as Kilgharrah was shown to have golden eyes while Aithusa's were blue.
 Newborn dragons appear to have thin bone structures, and their wing sails are near transparent membrane (''[[Aithusa (episode)|Aithusa]]'').