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tom-at-the-farm · 2 years

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Okay regarding Merlin I know no one was ever expecting nuance from BBC Merlin but how do you like the fact that they wrote themselves into a corner where Morgana would sort of have a point so had to make her unreasonably evil so Merlin could carry on being a cuck, and how much worse does Merlin being a cuck get once Arthur actually has the power but homosexuality I mean magic is still punishable by death

Clara this show made me so insane, you don't even know! The reason I started it in the first place was that I needed some light-hearted fantasy to distract me from the horrors of being alive in the year 2022 or whatever. And I get it, shows can change tonally, I mean one moment in Breaking Bad we're throwing pizzas on roofs, then before you know it it's a full-blown Shakespearean tragedy.

But this wasn't Breaking Bad, and I never thought they would drag out the "Merlin must keep his magic a secret from Arthur" thing past the first season, let alone until the bitter end. It was an incomprehensibly dull narrative choice. Surely you realize that by like season 3 the "will Arthur find out or not" thing is tedious and way past any kind of suspense. Also it prevents their relationship from developing in any meaningful way. Like your source is literally Arthurian legend, it's not like you have a dearth of material to work with, but you chose to focus on Merlin's 5-season character arc as he goes from beta cuck to even worse beta cuck. They could have been magical detectives solving Camelot mysteries together, brawn and brains, I mean anything would have been better

And yes like every time Morgana or some other character shows up to make a really excellent point about how Uther, an oppressive tyrant who literally kills children, deserves to die, Gaius and Merlin would give some speech about how licking boots rules and it was so frustrating. "If we kill him now using Dark Magicks it will harden Arthur's heart" yeah how did THAT strategy work out for you.

And don't get me started on the ending! Did this show think it was GoT or something? Like it's fine if Arthur has to die eventually, but the meaninglessness of it all! Like basically the overarching theme was that you should dedicate your life to slavish obeisance only to tell Arthur on his deathbed "Dad, I'm gay" and for him to be like "Hmm well love is love I guess" and fucking croak and you spend the next eternity wandering the earth, immortal and alone. What was the point of any of it, what did these characters learn, how did they grow. If he didn't rise for Brexit it's safe to say Arthur-Jesus will never rise again, Albion is fucked (as it should be, but still)

PS. I love how Merlin's "I'm an indecisive cuck who doesn't want to make waves" shtick would stop applying every time he killed Morgana (what was it, like three times he did it)? "I Hate Women and I Love the Divine Right of Kings, Alexa Play 'God Save the Queen'", the BBC show. How did the people watching it episodically over a span of years not go completely insane

PPS. They also killed Merlin's boyfriends Lancelot and Gwaine in the stupidest, most unnecessary ways. Why do you hate every single character in the show you created so much. I canNOT

#succdale #merlin #wow i sure had a lot of feelings I guess #i DO still want colin morgan to cut me with his cheekbones; that hasn't changed

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ao3feed-merlinarthur · 3 years

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by TheCourtSorcerer

"What are you going to do about it, Uther?” he asked, eyes wide and wild. “Kill me?"

He let out a harsh laugh, looking around the room, before his eyes fell back on Uther and his voice grew dull and joyless, almost daring the King. "You can certainly try."

"Merlin!"

"What? It's not like it'll work," Merlin muttered at the horrified look Arthur was giving him. His horror seemed to shift to concern at his words. Merlin would have laughed in any other situation.

Uther has discovered Merlin's magic after being tipped off anonymously.

Merlin has just discovered his immortality and is feeling a little very reckless and has even less self-preservation than usual.

Arthur is going to have a heart attack.

Words: 3058, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Series: Part 20 of Titles From My Mutuals, Part 112 of Merthur Drabbles & One Shots

Fandoms: Merlin (TV)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Characters: Merlin (Merlin), Arthur Pendragon (Merlin), Morgana (Merlin), Uther Pendragon (Merlin)

Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Era, Arthur Knows About Merlin's Magic (Merlin), Arthur Knows About Morgana's Magic (Merlin), Good Morgana (Merlin), Established Relationship, Uther Finds Out About Merlin's Magic (Merlin), Immortal Merlin (Merlin), Merlin Just Found Out He's Immortal And Is Feeling Reckless, get in loser we're overthrowing the king, BAMF Merlin (Merlin), But kind of subtlely, Deals, no beta we die like arthur, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Angst, Light Angst, unplanned overthrowings :)

#AO3 works tagged 'Merlin/Arthur Pendragon'#ao3feed #merthur #ao3feed merthur #ao3feed merlinarthur

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gwenpendrcgon · 3 years

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New Mergwenthur Fic !!

Title : "He's seeing a girl"

Chapters: 1/3

Rating: General Audiences

Archive Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Pairings: Merlin x Arthur x Gwen

Characters: Arthur, Merlin, Gwen and Daegal

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Episode: s05e08 The Hollow Queen, Hurt/Comfort, Polyamory, Fluff and Angst, Episode: s05e09 With All My Heart, Not Beta Read, Post-Episode: s05e09 With All My Heart, No Beta we Die like Uther, Established Relationship

Summary: "He’s not in danger. He’s seeing a girl."

Arthur's mind went blank momentarily, he must have misheard Guinevere. Surely she didn't mean it the way he think she did. He did not have to fake his disbelief, "Merlin?"

Guinevere nodded slowly as if explaining to a child, "I should’ve told you, but I don’t think he wanted anyone to know."

Arthur stares at Guinevere trying to make sense of things, this was not his wife, this person was not his Gwen; because Guinevere- Gwen would know that Merlin doesn't prefer the company of any girl that's not her, that their husband has all people he loves in Camelot and does not have to go to outlying villages.

Written for: @merlin-pride-celebration & @merlinbingo (A4 Polyamory) !

#bbc merlin #merlin #arthur #arthur pendragon #merthur #gwen #Guinevere #guinevere pendragon #merwen #mergwen #mergwenthur #merwenthur #arwen #merlin fics #merthur fics #mcp2021 #polyamory

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merlin-fic-server · 3 years

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ToC: So The Story Goes by TheCourtSorcerer

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33122896

Author: TheCourtSorcerer

Title: So The Story Goes

Word Count: 10,045

Rating: T

Archive Warning: None

Category: M/M

Relationships: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon

Characters: Merlin, Arthur Pendragon, Hunith, Balinor, Uther Pendragon, Ygraine de Bois, Morgana, Gwen, Aithusa

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Royal Merlin, Arranged Marriage, Marriage of Convenience, Getting Together, canon AU, Fluff, idiots to lovers, Minor Gwen/Morgana, Ygraine Lives, Arthur Knows About Merlin's Magic, No Magic Ban, Queen Hunith, King Balinor, Canon Era, Love Confessions, minor miscommunication, Oblivious Arthur Pendragon, Oblivious Merlin, no beta we die like arthur, POV Alternating

Summary: “Who am I to wed?”

Balinor and Hunith shared a nervous glance. Balinor knew this would be the hardest part—he wasn’t the most pleased about it either, but it was the best idea he had and, well, at least he knew his son would be marrying into a good family.

Even if he held his own biases against the patriarch.

Merlin stared on, expectant—arms now crossed over his chest in perhaps the least princely manner Balinor could picture. Hunith pulled her hand from his knee, and he braced himself, head high and shoulders back.“

Arthur Pendragon,”

Balinor & Uther have a deep mistrust of each other due to a petty feud in their past friendship, and therefore the only way to bring their kingdoms together is through marriage--the only way they'll trust one another to not destroy their kingdom is if they are united.

#bbc merlin #merlin fic #merlin fic rec #tournament of champions

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botanicallyinclinednerd · 3 years

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Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Merlin (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Gwen & Morgana (Merlin), Gwen & Leon (Merlin), Leon & Morgana (Merlin) Characters: Gwen (Merlin), Morgana (Merlin), Leon (Merlin), Lancelot (Merlin), Arthur Pendragon (mentioned) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Friendship, Flower Language, Everyone Hates Uther Pendragon, Uther Pendragon's A+ Parenting (Merlin), Swearing, no beta we die like uther pendragon, Platonic Relationships, Leon/Morgana if you want you don't even really need to squint, but it was written as platonic so you can read it which ever way you prefer, is this crack? I don't know Summary:

Flower Shop AU. Gwen owns With All My Heart Flower Shop where she employs her friends Leon, Lancelot, and Percival. One day, her sister-in-law, Morgana, comes in asking for a flower arrangement with a message to give to her asshole of a father: Fuck You. Her friends are all too happy to oblige.

#liv writes #merlin #bbc merlin #merlin fanfic #morgana pendragon #guinevere pendragon #sir leon #flower shop au #light hearted #guys.... I wrote something other than angst for once holy shit #one shot

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lover-of-midnight · 3 years

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Is there a way out - chapter 34

Rating:

Explicit

Archive Warnings

Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Rape/Non-Con

Major Character Death

Categories:

F/M

M/M

Fandom:

Merlin (TV)

Relationships:

Arthur/Original Male Character

Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)

Merlin & Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)

Leon & Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)

Leon & Morgana (Merlin)

Leon/Morgana (Merlin)

Side Morgana/Leon

Characters:

Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)

Merlin (Merlin)

Leon (Merlin)

Morgana (Merlin)

Gaius (Merlin)

Balinor

Additional Tags:

Alternate Universe - Dark

Dark fic

Dead Dove: Do Not Eat

Rape/Non-con Elements

Rape Recovery

domestic abuse

Suicide Attempt

Depression

Arranged Marriage

soul mates

Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics

Non-Consensual Touching

Omega Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)

Alpha Merlin (Merlin)

Alpha Uther

Beta Morgana

Beta Leon

Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics

forced bondage

Prince Merlin (Merlin)

Queen Hunith

King Balinor

Suicide

Kidnapped

toture

Smut in chapter 34

Wedding

Language: English

Arthur paced slightly as servants bought in the bathing water, Merlin would return soon and Arthur truly hoped that it would go better today.

He wants to be with Merlin fully if he would have him, that means he needs to get used to the touched without wanting to faint.

He had already eaten a small bowl of gruel and at least it didn’t felt like he was going to puke it up. He scratched slightly at his arms. He was still nervous, he never had seen Merlin without clothing on or just in small clothes.

Arthur almost jumped when the door closed behind him, showing that the last servant was out. He took a deep breath, he was safe here. Merlin won’t hurt him, he had shown it time and again.

When Merlin arrived was the water at the right temperature, it would stay warm with the fire going next to it.

Merlin easily walked over to Arthur, just looking him deep in the eyes. “How would you like to do this darling?” Merlin pressed a kiss onto Arthur’s head. It was a busy day for both, with the wedding around the corner.

“Can we try with just our small clothes on please?” Arthur was red in the face again.

“Of course.” Merlin gave him a small smile, he would do anything to help Arthur. He gently squeezes Arthur’s shoulder.

“Remember if you want to stop, just say it.” Merlin gave Arthur a stern look when they had talked the previous night Arthur had to admit that he would have forced himself past his comfort zone.

With a nod from Arthur, both turned around taking off their clothes. Merlin was the first one to get into the bath, just waiting for Arthur.

Merlin could see a slight trembling in Arthur’s hands, but there was a look of determination coming from him, that kept Merlin quiet.

Arthur forced himself to breath, he is safe. The water was warm against his skin and the extra heat coming from Merlin made him blush. This was nicer than he would have expected. Merlin touched was soft and kept to his arms for the moment.

After a few minutes, Merlin gently pulled Arthur closer to him. He allowed Arthur the time to get used to the contact when he felt him relax against him, he placed a kiss on Arthur’s head.

Arthur felt save and loved. Merlin kept to places that wouldn’t trigger Arthur, even though at one point or another the boundaries would have to be pushed again.

Merlin kept his hand on Arthur’s back, as Arthur was curled into his shoulder. “May I kiss you?” Merlin’s voice was soft.

For a moment it was silent before Arthur nodded. “Yes.” He remembered that Merlin wanted him to be verbal on answers. There were no hesitations in his voice.

His eyes were bright and for a moment Merlin couldn’t help but think that he had found an angel as an omega.

Merlin moved forward slightly, his face centimetres away from Arthur’s. Giving him the change to move away if he would want it.

Arthur closed the space between them. Merlin’s lips were slightly chapped but warm and soft against his.

There was no used of tongue, or teeth clacking together. The kiss was chasted but long and filled with a longing Arthur wished he had the answer too.

The days passed in such a whirlwind that Arthur didn’t have the time to worry about the upcoming marriage.

In the evenings they would bath together slowly processing from just small clothes to completely nude. The kisses between them would get more, and for the most part, Arthur could ignore the fact that his father is coming.

The day of the wedding was a big affair, even if it was just the kingdom celebration. Arthur had quickly learned that Merlin was loved by the whole kingdom. That almost ever one that was close to the castle knows Merlin personally.

He could admit to himself that he was slightly scared, he was scared of what would come, but for the moment he just wants to enjoy the time they would have together.

Arthur was deep in thought as the seamstress made a small adjustment to the clothes he would wear in the afternoon.

Merlin stood in his room, just as deep in thought, something was screaming at him. Soon something was going to happen, and it involved Arthur. He took a breath, with a conscious thought he made his way to the knights quarters.

When he stood in front of Gwain, he knew he would make the right choice.

“Gwain, I have a bad feeling that something is going to happen soon. I want you and Borne guarding Arthur in shifts please.” Something was pleading in Merlin’s voice, that made Gwain bow. No teasing or jokes.

He could feel how worried Merlin was.

“Of course Sire. I will go and talk to Borne now. One of us will be with Arthur full time.” Gwaine gave Merlin a worried look before he hurried off.

Merlin pressed the bridge of his nose, he hoped that the feeling would go away soon. It was his wedding day after all. He wants to make sure Arthur has the day he deserves.

Merlin was silent as he made his way back to his chambers to get dressed. There was finally some sense of calm in his heart.

When the wedding started Merlin couldn’t keep his eyes off Arthur, the shimmering rose pink he was dressed in, complemented his eyes.

The druid was an old man, giving ceremonies at many weddings, he knew what ritual they wanted. He chanted quietly as he tied the twine around there hands. For a moment it was just the two of them.

With a loud voice, the man asked Arthur:

“Do you promise to submit to your alpha? Do you promise to love and cherish the bond between you two? “

Arthur’s voice was slightly shaky as he said yes.

The man then turned to Merlin. Arthur didn’t know that Merlin had added something to the promise.

“Do you promise to protect, cherish and love your omega with your whole soul? Do you promise to try and make sure that no harm would ever befall him?”

Merlin’s voice was firm as he answered. “Yes.”

“Now take a sip of this wine.” The druid handed the chalet to Arthur.

The wine was warm and overly sweet on Arthur’s tongue, he managed to drink it without making a face before he handed it to Merlin.

Merlin didn’t even taste the wine, his eyes were trained on Arthur.

“Omega Arthur, you may now bite your mate.”

Arthur leaned forward as the druid chanted. He bitted down as hard as he could over Merlin’s scent gland, for a moment Arthur was sure that he would die, as the blood flowed his mouth, almost making him spit it out.

Merlin’s hand was warm against his back, and it grounded Arthur slightly as he gave a soft whimper.

“Alpha Merlin, you may bite your mate.” The druids' voice went louder.

Merlin’s teeth grazed Arthur’s scent gland he could feel him tensing up slightly. With a soft huss, Arthur relaxed again.

The bite made Arthur groan, his hand tightened around Merlin’s shirt.

“Merls.” There was a slight panic in Arthur’s voice as he suddenly felt dizzy, he could feel a cramp and then slick starting.

Merlin easily picked Arthur up. “Shh.” Merlin’s voice was low. The twinge disappeared into their skin.

Arthur forced himself to breath, to work through the panic. A natural heat happens every three to four months. It was normally painful and lonely. Now he was just scared of the pain.

He could smell Merlin’s pheromones around him, and it felt like he was drinking from a river after not having water for a few days.

His hands tightened against Merlin’s shoulder. He could hear people screaming with joy in the background.

When he came to his scenes again, where they in Merlin’s chambers. Well, he guesses it was their chambers now.

The clothes he had on felt too tight and hot, the desperation to be against Merlin frightened him. Another huss and he could feel Merlin’s hand running through his hair.

“Merlin…” Arthur trailed off. His face was hot and he could feel the slick spreading between his legs, making him feel ashamed.

“I have you, darling.” Merlin’s voice was soft, he knows that there is no real rhyme with heats and he could feel his own rut coming on.

But at the moment, he just wanted Arthur to calm down slightly. “Breath for me darling, you are safe.” Merlin just kept on running his hand through Arthur’s hair. With felt even smoother than normal.

Arthur pulled Merlin closer to him. Merlin gently kisses his neck, making Arthur moan and twitch slightly. When Merlin suddenly licked over the bonding mark, it felt like a jolt moved through Arthur and he jumped.

Merlin did it for a second time, he could smell the slick getting more. Arthur squirmed slightly under him and he immediately pulled away.

“You alright darling?” Merlin stayed still, waiting for an answer.

Arthur’s breathing was coming slightly faster, and his face and ears were red. “W-want you.” His voice sounded weak in his own ears.

“I’m here, you have my darling. I will take care of you.” Merlin pressed a chaste kiss to Arthur’s lips. When he pulled away, he started to help Arthur undress. Pressing kiss everywhere he could.

Arthur felt unsure about everything, but at the same time, was this so different from what he ever experienced. Merlin made him feel grounded and his scent was intoxicating.

Woods and water, the warmth were what Merlin smelt like. Arthur pressed his face near Merlin’s scent gland just taking in everything.

He squirmed slightly when Merlin’s hand touched his lower back, for a moment he froze up. Merlin pulled back.

“Are you okay?” Merlin was slightly breathless from kissing Arthur’s body.

“Ye-yeah, just fe-felt strange for a moment.” Arthur’s voice came out slightly broken. He reached up to Merlin again, pulling him back down onto him.

Merlin gave him another kiss, then one more on his nose and the other on the tip of his eyebrow. He just held Arthur for a few seconds, kissing his face.

His hand down Arthur’s back, stopping at his tailbone, for a moment, giving him a chance to get used to the feeling.

When he felt Arthur was completely lax, still squirming slightly, Merlin gently pushed his tights a little bit wider. Settling down between his legs.

Merlin kept a firm eye on Arthur’s reaction, even while his mind was screaming at him to claim his omega, that he needs to breed him.

Arthur’s eyes were wide as he watches Merlin, his breathing came out in little puffs. He jumped slightly when there was a finger against his hole.

Merlin didn’t push in, just traced the rim with the pad of his finger. After a while, Arthur started to pressed back onto the digit.

He let out a puff of air when Merlin curled his finger into him. He could feel another rush of slick soaking everything.

Merlin playing him like a fiddle, by the time a third finger was inside him, he could understand why Merlin told him it would be pleasurable. There was a spot inside him that Merlin kept on hitting with his fingers, making him moan.

When Merlin pulled his fingers out, giving him another kiss, he whined at the empty feeling.

Merlin gently took his legs, allowing him to fold them around his waist. He was gentle as he pushed into Arthur, it didn’t feel like he had stretched him at all. So he worked his way with pushing too much.

When he was finally inside Arthur, Merlin had to force himself to think of the nastiest shit he had seen, Arthur was warm and tight around him. He paused for a few moments giving Arthur time to get used to the feeling.

When Arthur finally nodded that he could move, he did just that.

Arthur clung to him, whimpering everyone once in a while, his voice low as he repeatedly said Merlin’s name.

When Merlin felt like he wouldn’t last much longer, he gently jerks Arthur off with the motions of his trusts.

Arthur spilled over his stomach and Merlin’s hand, he could feel Merlin’s knot growing inside him, making him groan and gave a last weak spurt.

Merlin came with a groan. He gave a last kiss to Arthur’s temple. Before he sank down behind Arthur, pulling him against his chest.

He closed his eyes as they cuddled together.

The heat lasted for another three days before they were able to leave the room.

#Merlin(bbc)#smut chapter #merthur-fics #Arthur Pendragon #Merlin #alternate universe-dark #dark fic #DEAD DOVE DO NOT EAT #rape/non-con elements #rape recovery #domestic abuse #suicide attempt #depression #arranged marriage #soul mates #Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics #non-consensual touching #omega arthur pendragon #alpha merlin

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wolfandwild · 4 years

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My Shadowlands Wish List

Now that we’re getting closer and closer to pre-patch and the inevitable launch of the expansion, I thought I’d rattle off a wish list of things I hope we get to see in Shadowlands, largely from a lore/story perspective. (Or rather, my stupid foot was hurting so badly I couldn’t concentrate on writing my fic properly, so I decided to ramble off some not-so-hot takes, honestly they’re pretty mild in the grand scheme of things). I was in the first alpha wave, so I’ve had a pretty good opportunity to play the game as it is thus far, and I did want to make it clear up front that I’m fully aboard the hype train. Shadowlands is looking like a great expansion for a number of different reasons, and while I do have a few areas of concern, on the whole I am currently feeling very positive. Please also note these are just my random, late-night personal musings - your mileage may vary, and that’s a-okay. Mild Shadowlands spoilers below the cut.

You Get A Customisation! You Get A Customisation! Everybody Gets A Customisation! This one is pretty much a no-brainer. I don’t necessarily think Blizzard need to have absolutely every possible character customisation ready to go before launch, but I’d like them to continue adding further options over time. I move in a couple of different circles in Warcraft - I’m obviously involved in the writing/lore/character aspect of the game, but I’m also GM of a raiding guild and closely follow the gameplay/competitive side of things too - and customisation is one of those few things that gets everyone excited, regardless of their reason for playing the game. I’m looking forward to seeing a much more vibrant, unique and diverse Azeroth come Shadowlands pre-patch. (Mostly irrelevant side story - when Wrathion returned in the Patch 8.3 cinematics, my Twitter and lore Discords were basically going berserk with excitement, meanwhile there’s a hundred very confused dudes in my raiding guild who don’t read quest text being all, “What the hell is a ‘Wrathion’?”. I live in two different worlds, honestly). Another reason I’m excited about customisation (and I’m probably in a very small minority on this one) is because I actually really dislike allied races, and I think it gives Blizzard an option to add more flavour to character creation in the game without always having to cobble together a new race. I honestly think they should have simply gone for sub-race customisation from the beginning, to avoid having to ass-pull allied races out of nowhere. Using customisation over allied races also makes it far simpler to give something to both factions (e.g. high elves), or to add something for one faction without necessarily having to always add something to the other faction to keep things in balance. Giving an extra hairstyle to humans but not orcs generally isn’t going to cause that much of a fuss, but if one faction were given an allied race and the other wasn’t because there wasn’t a logical racial option, there would be a shitstorm of epic proportions. So you end up in a situation where one faction* gets saddled with a really random, sucky allied race just to be ‘fair’. *The Alliance. It’s the Alliance. Leave Britney Arthas Alone Arthas has never been a personal favourite of mine, but I respect that he has a fantastic story, and that he’s a cornerstone of Warcraft lore. His story is both satisfying and complete, and that’s exactly why they should leave him the hell alone. I don’t mind if he’s visited in flashbacks (like the Bastion cinematic), or if we explore how he affected still living characters (e.g. Jaina, Sylvanas, Bolvar), but I think it would be a mistake to try to make him a central character in the expansion. In contrast, someone like Kael’thas is an excellent choice for an additional arc, because his original story was a bit all over the place and there is still plenty of room for his character development. Arthas doesn’t need it, and I don’t think the minute potential gain is worth the risk of retroactively making the rest of his story worse. On a similar note... Warcraft III Was Released Nearly 20 Years Ago, It’s Time to Move On The Warcraft RTS was a landmark series of games, and was obviously without them we wouldn’t have the World of Warcraft. However, I think the future health of Warcraft’s lore depends on the ability of the writers to grow the story outwards and upwards, not to always default back to the same handful of characters for nostalgia’s sake. While characters like Jaina, and Thrall, and Sylvanas are great, they can’t carry the narrative forever. Shadowlands represents a unique opportunity to build up the next generation of characters and to blow the cosmology of the universe wide open. From what I’ve seen on the alpha/beta, Blizzard are definitely taking a step in this direction, and I’m hoping that’s what we get instead of Patch 9.2 - Oh Look, It’s Thrall Again. On an additionally similar note... Sylvanas Is Crazy, And She Needs To Go Down (I don’t actually think she’s crazy, but one should never miss the opportunity for an Avatar reference). One of my complaints about the recent lore developments in Warcraft its that it’s starting to feel a lot less like the World of Warcraft, and more like the Sylvanas of Warcraft. She’s playing 469D chess; she’s behind everything; she’s the sole driving force of the narrative. I don’t think that works in an MMO that’s meant to tell the story of an entire expanded universe. It makes things feel small. And before I get eaten alive, I want to be clear that I don’t dislike Sylvanas as a character - in fact, I think she’s very compelling and on a night when my foot wasn’t killing me so much I’d be happy to get into an argument as to why she’s actually one of the most consistent and well-written characters in the World of Warcraft. I don’t necessarily think she needs to die, either, but I think it’s time for her narrative to come to a close to make room for other characters in the story, and I don’t think Blizzard are going to get a much better opportunity to give her a satisfying ending than in a death-themed expansion. Justice for Tyrande (Or Vengeance, Whatever Uther Wants to Call It) Tyrande got done dirty in Battle for Azeroth, probably more than any other character. I’m not a massive night elf fangirl by any means, but their entire race was basically used as grist for the mill in Sad Orc Dad’s story, with no next to no narrative follow-up besides a cool cinematic that went absolutely nowhere in game. Outside the game, her character then got subjected to the cacophonous misogynistic crowing of the fanbase that occurs whenever a female character dares to be angry in the World of Warcraft. Much like Jaina, she’s decried for being ‘crazy’ or ‘irrational’ for, you know, being pissed that her people and her homeland were wiped out in an act of wildly disproportional aggression. I don’t know about you guys, but that would tend to make me a wee bit testy, but maybe I’m crazy and irrational too. In any case, I want to see her go off in Shadowlands. Fuck ‘em up, girlfriend. You Get One Villain. If You Drop It, I’m Not Buying You Another One I think most people will agree with me that the two weakest expansions (at least from a narrative perspective) were Warlords of Draenor and Battle for Azeroth. There are a few reasons for this, but for me one of the biggest issues was that they were chop-and-change expansions. Both were advertised and started off with narratives and themes that were wildly different from where they finished up. Warlords was part Iron Horde expansion, part Legion expansion; BFA was part faction war expansion, part Old God expansion... and that’s exactly the problem. Both times, I felt like we got two half-done expansions, instead of one single, cohesive narrative experience. If you look at expansions like Wrath of the Lich King and Legion, both of which were very well received, a lot of their success hinges on their presentation of a consistent narrative with a clear goal for players within the story. The Lich King, for example, was a consistent and very present villain. He menaced you throughout your entire journey, and so his eventual defeat on top of Icecrown Citadel was meaningful and impactful. Defeating N’Zoth, by contrast, felt pretty hollow, as we hadn’t had enough narrative build up to really care about taking him down. Part of the reason I’m excited for Shadowlands is it looks like we’re getting a nice, focused story development that builds up to a logical and satisfying villain in the Jailer. Why Can’t We Be Friends? Look, I bleed blue. I love the Alliance... but the faction war should not continue to be a driving narrative element in the World of Warcraft. I don’t want the factions to be removed, I think they’re a core part of the Warcraft experience and I’d be pretty sad to have to let them go entirely, but the cycle of hating one another then teaming up in an uneasy alliance in order to defeat a bigger bad, only to go back to being at one another’s throats the next day is... tiresome.

Ideally, the war would have ended after Legion - it was the most logical place to do so, and I think it was a big missed opportunity that they ran with Battle for Azeroth immediately afterwards. Unfortunately, I think this means the Alliance is going to just have to forgive and forget, which doesn’t really make a lot sense at this point given everything that happened in BFA, but for the sake of the overall story, it might be a necessary sacrifice. That said... I Am Once Again Asking for Alliance Narrative Agency I know there are a lot of (valid) complaints to be had about the Horde storyline, but the one thing the Horde has always had over the Alliance is that they actually get to drive the narrative forward. The Alliance are pretty much exclusively reactionary, and in a lot of ways are side characters to the main Horde storyline. I’ve made this argument elsewhere, but it honestly wouldn’t be too hard to remove Anduin’s part in Saurfang’s storyline in Battle for Azeroth and have it turn out more or less exactly the same way... which says a lot about the importance of the Alliance in the overall storyline. In short, the Alliance are secondary players at best, and downright irrelevant at worst. One of my biggest hopes for Shadowlands is that we’ll actually get to see some Alliance narrative agency. To be clear, however, this does not mean a simple rehashing of Horde conflicts with a blue coat of paint. Alliance stories are not Horde stories, and nor should they be. Having an Alliance leader turn into a genocidal despot is not the only way to create conflict or agency in the story - there are plenty of opportunities for character growth, development and conflict on the Alliance side without having to have one of our leaders do a heel turn (e.g. Tyrande as the Night Warrior, Anduin dealing with his experience in the Maw, Jaina confronting the fates of people like Kael’thas and Arthas, Taelia meeting her father, etc.), and I really hope we get to see some of those narrative threads come to fruition. I Want to Mount Everything Add a hundred new mounts. Two hundred. A pot plant with googly eyes, the four hundredth Alliance horse, your mum. I’ll ride anything; I don’t even care. (Please note this is the most important opinion I have).

#world of warcraft #shadowlands #shadowlands spoilers #battle for azeroth #lore #turns out i had a few more opinions than i originally realised #anyway shadowlands looks cool guys y'all should check it out #but i would always rather have some warcraft than no warcraft #so take that how you will

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mayonnaisetoffees · 5 years

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What are your favorite Merthur fics? I’m always dying to find new ones because I feel like I’ve read them all!

Hi! Sorry about the delay for this. I know that feeling exactly. I’m going to plug my favourites here, but a lot are probably quite well known so apologies if you’ve read them all! (Also apologies if I’m not particularly up to date, I’ve been on a Les Mis kick for a while)

First of all, the classics, in case anyone new to the fandom is reading this, or in case I get messages saying I missed the obvious ones: The Student Prince by FayJay, Drastically Redefining Protocol by rageprufrock (which played out of my phone for half an hour in a silent library while I had headphones connected to my laptop and so didn’t hear… a piece of me died that day.), Ashes, Embers, Flames by unpossible, and Not in this Land Alone by torakowalski.

Next up is my shameless plug for Loaded March by Footloose which, if anyone knows anything about me, they know I love this series and rec it at every possible opportunity. To read me talk about it longer, go here. Otherwise head to the fic here. It is a mammoth series of sixteen parts totalling 1,261,720 words, and I can’t believe that it finished three and a half years ago, it feels like it was much more recently! There’s also 76k of Loaded March ExtrasWe Are All Diamonds, also by Footloose, is a masterpiece. It is the story of Merlin and Arthur meeting just after Arthur’s parents die because Arthur needs a translator for his big speech. Click on it, and thank me later.It also includes (yes, I’ve said it before and I will say it again) the most beautiful extended metaphor I’ve ever read in my entire life.

Paint the World Orange and Blue by ingberry podfic by fire_juggler is an absolute chicken soup read/listen. Merlin wrote a popular graphic novel, and Arthur is trying to adapt it into a film. It’s written so honestly and it just sucks you right into the world.

I know that we all already know that if in doubt, head to lady_ragnell, but I still need to specifically talk about But It’s A Good Refrain and Every Story is a Love Story. The former has Merlin as a radio host, who Arthur offends, then apologises to, and when Merlin accepts the apology on-air without saying who it’s from, the fans assume it’s a secret boyfriend. The latter has an Arthur who, as head of a romance publishing company, is so desensitised to romance that he doesn’t even notice the romcom he’s living.

The One Where Merlin and Arthur Attempt to Have a Tasteful Wedding and Spartacus and the Open Taxi Door by fuzzytomato are both wonderfully fluffy. The wedding one is 21k of wedding antics, and the latter is 8.6k of chicken soup fic.

Seven Magpies by syllic is the best Merlin-and-Arthur-switch fic I’ve come across. Arthur is transported to a land in which he serves Merlin, and magic is a part of life. Easy There by the same author is a great uni!AU in which the boys are rowers at Cambridge.

Fundamental Imperfection by Starlingthefool: in which Arthur and Merlin are authors who argue over Dickens ~hilarity ensues~

Catch Me a Catch by giselleslash is such a fun fic where Merlin uses his magic to be a matchmaker.

Defenders of the Realm is a modern!AU by lamardeuse and is absolutely amazing. However, it does has non-related Uther/Morgana in it (not my cup of tea, but didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the fic) so be aware of that if it’s something that squicks you out.

A Beacon in the Dark by ZairaA with art by crimsonswirls. I had the privilege of being a beta for ZairaA a while back, and the writing style is so beautiful. In this fic, magic users are persecuted, and when Arthur goes to takes on a murder case, the defendant turns out to be Merlin, his childhood friend who disappeared at sixteen.

I actually don’t remember what happens in In Your Name by Bohemia, but I remember reading it, and as soon as I saw the title, I felt a wave of emotions come over me, so my subconscious not only remembers it, but thoroughly recommends it!

Also: just a lil advert for the podficcer who got me into listening to podfic, lunchee. Her voice is amazingly suited for podfics, and I love them.

Hope at least one of these is one you haven’t read!

#livexlovexlaughxdreamxx #Merlin #Merthur #Merthur fic rec #Merlin fic rec #fic rec

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