Malcolm Merlyn

## Background

### 1858 - 1859: History

Jasper King was a wealthy collector with an obsession with collecting unique artifacts, leading to him crossing paths with Amina Raatko. She was in possession of an ancient Ashkiri book that Jasper had spent many years looking for. He seduced Amina, gaining access to the book & when he got what he wanted, he left. When Amina awoke the next morning, she realized something was amiss. After spending the next two weeks looking for him, she found him in a hotel with another woman, most likely seducing her like he did with Amina. She ordered the woman to leave then killed Jasper as he laid on the bed. Amina not only walked out of that room with her book, but with Jasper's baby inside of her.

Amina didn't discover she was pregnant for weeks after killing Jasper. When she gave birth to the boy, she felt it was fitting to name him Arthur King. She chose Arthur after King Arthur of Camelot & used his father's last name as it was fitting for the role he would take in life.

### 1970 - 1990: Malcolm Merlyn

At the request of Ra's al Ghul, he was to invent himself as a businessman in order to give themselves a better footing into the business world. Taking on the name Malcolm Merlyn, he used funds from the shadows to create a company called Merlyn Global Group. He settled down in Star City, choosing the city to be the center of his new mission. To the public, Malcolm Merlyn was the son of a couple named Jasper & Amina Merlyn that left him lots of money in their will.

Malcolm quickly settled into the civilian lifestyle. In time, he fell in love with a philanthropist named Rebecca & they soon got married. That same year, the welcomed their only child, Tommy Merlyn. Using the money from his business, he supported Rebecca's charitable efforts in helping the less fortunate of the city, particularly those living in The Glades. Through Rebecca, Malcolm befriended Robert & Moira Queen of Queen Industries. Unknown to his family, Malcolm took many business trips that were actually trips back to Infinity Island or missions specifically tasked to him by Ra's.

After nearly ten years of marriage, Rebecca filed for divorce as she began questioning his many disappearances & lost her trust in him. Tommy began splitting his time between their two households, though he was mostly raised by Malcolm's servants when he was with him. Malcolm's trips became more frequent & longer in time, while his wife became busy her new marriage & children. Due to both parents' questionable parenting skills, the Queens offered to have Tommy move in with them so that he could be around Oliver more. Both parents agreed, leading Malcolm to have much more time on his hand for both his legal & illegal activities.

## Romantic Relationships

* Lourdes Lucero: *Unknown*
* Rebecca Merlyn: Girlfriend (1970 - 1972); Wife (1972 - 1982)
* Moira Queen: Fling (1987)

## Powers & Abilities

* **Peak of Human Condition:** Malcolm is in excellent physical condition for a man of his age due to his training with the League of Shadows & use of the Lazarus Pit. He had demonstrated enough strength to break Oliver's bow with a single strike, dent a steel beam with a single kick & topple the highly durable Danny Brickwell with only a few strikes. Malcolm's reflexes were fast enough to catch or deflect an incoming arrow shot at him by Oliver.
	+ ***Hand to Hand Combat/Martial Arts*:** Malcolm is a highly skilled hand to hand combatant with decades of combat experience. He has gone through the same training that all League members do & was considered one of its finest members, enough that he became one of Ra's al Ghul's  inner circle. His fighting style seems to comprise Boxing, Muay Thai, Wing Chun, Kali, Karate, Taekwondo, Judo, Jujitsu & Krav Maga. His skills allowed him to defeat Oliver repeatedly in combat during their initial encounters, handed Nyssa al Ghul & hold his own reasonably well against nemesis Damien Darhk. He also proved capable of easily dispatching multiple League members & when handcuffed, as it took over three League members to overpower him. Despite his combat skills, he was certain that the one man he could never defeat was his mentor, Ra's al Ghul.
	+ ***Pain Tolerance*:** Malcolm has an extremely high tolerance for pain like most members of the League of Shadows. He was able to handle having boiling water poured on his hand & even resist the temptation to douse it in ice without any strain.
	+ ***Stealth*:** Even among the trained assassins of the League, Malcolm was a master in the art of stealth. His ability to break into buildings & disappear without a trace being such that it was another reason why he is called "The Magician" by the Shadows.
* **Weaponry**
	+ ***Archery*:** Malcolm is a highly skilled archer due to his time in the League, with a bow & arrows being his weapon of choice. He's regarded as a master archer & is surpassed by no one.
	+ ***Firearms*:** Malcolm is highly skilled in the use of firearms.
	+ ***Marksmanship*:** Malcolm rarely misses. He used a laser gun to take down several security guards with great precision & dexterity.
	+ ***Stick Fighting*:** He is a highly proficient stick-fighter, able to briefly fight off many assassins in a sword fight using a baton. He uses this skill to masterfully wield his bow as a makeshift quarterstaff, able to overpower the likes of Oliver using his bow.
	+ ***Swordsmanship*:** Despite his preference for archery, Malcolm was a highly skilled swordsman, often practicing saber-style fencing in his spare time to maintain his skills. He owned & used several different types of swords. His great abilities as a swordsman have allowed him to swiftly kill many police officers with a single scimitar, easily outmatch both Thea & Oliver, quickly defeat many members of the League of Assassins in a sword fight & repeatedly defeat Nyssa al Ghul in their sparring sessions.
	+ ***Throwing*:** he is highly proficient at knife throwing, as he was able to successfully injure John Diggle with a knife throw while retreating. He is also very deadly wielding a knife in close combat.
* **High Level Intellect:** Malcolm is an incredibly cunning & intelligent man. Prior to his fake death, he held the status of a well-respected businessman.
	+ ***Business Management*:** Malcolm founded & managed to run Merlyn Global Group as its CEO very successfully for many years, effectively overseeing the company's daily activities & ensuring its success as a multibillion-dollar corporation
	+ ***Deception*:** He is highly talented in the art of deception, able to fool & convince others of his agenda even experts of seeing through deception. He was successful in faking his death & staying hidden from the outside world for an extended period of time. However, his actions & nature as a liar make it difficult for people to ever believe him
	+ ***Hypnotism*:** Malcolm's skills as hypnotist also allow him to retrieve lost memories via hypnotic-regression therapy
	+ ***Interrogation/Torture*:** He is a highly skilled torturer due to his time in the Shadows, however he oddly prefers diplomatic solutions before resorting to torture.
	+ ***Occultism*:** Malcolm is aware of the existence of magic & mysticism.
	+ ***Prestidigitation*:** Highly trained in the art of stage magic, including sleight of hand, escape artistry, & hypnotism, Malcolm's skills in these areas were one of the reasons he was called "The Magician" by the League of Assassins.
	+ ***Toxicology*:**  Due to his League training, Malcolm was very familiar with poisons, whose presence he could detect even when disguised. He mastered this skill enough to teach Thea. He also drugged her with Vitura to influence her into staying with the League without remembering.
* **Arrows:** Malcolm creates & designs his arrows himself. The arrows he used have arrowheads with three Teflon-coated titanium blades on each arrow, with the blades serrated for splitting bones & the shaft itself is made of specialized polymer stronger than typical carbon fiber. He uses trick arrows as well.
* **Dark Archer Suit:** Malcolm wore a protective suit, as his villain alter-ego of the Dark Archer, to hide his identity from his victims. It was similar to the suits used by members of the League of Assassins, aside from some minor differences. It is unknown what materials the suit was comprised of, with the exception of kevlar.

### Ratings

* **Intelligence:** 6 - Expert / Advanced
* **Strength:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Speed:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Occult:** 4 - Trained / Learned
* **Weapons:** 7 - Master / Elite
* **Range:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Strategy:** 5 - High / Exceptional
* **Combat:** 7 - Master / Elite
* **TOTAL:** 200 - Threat Level 5 / Elevated Threat

## Trivia

* He has very different personalities as Malcolm Merlyn & as the Magician. As Malcolm Merlyn, he showcased himself to be a kind, caring & devoted father. As the Magician, he is calculating, apathetic, ruthless & charismatic.
* While at a high society party, some of his items & other people's were stolen by Wink. He was aware of what she was doing but allowed her to continue to see how thing would play out. He later followed her to her hideout & offered her a place with the Shadows.
* His brother Jeffrey is the son of the woman that Amina caught Jasper with.
* He has mentored Paula Nguyen, Mei Gulong, Oliver Queen, Simon Lacroix, Brant al Ghul, Artemis Crock, Thea Queen, Red Talon, Miko Jensen, Rosalina Basaro & Taylor Narie.

## Notes

* He is mostly based on Malcolm Merlyn of the *Arrowverse.*
* In the *Arrowverse*, Amina Raatko is a composite with Lourdes Lucero. With Malcolm, they have a child named Saracon Lucero. On Earth-44, Amina & Lourdes are two different characters. Amina is Malcolm's mother & Lourdes remains the mother of Malcolm's child.