* HalfHumanHybrid: Merlin is traditionally depicted as the son of a woman (sometimes a witch, occasionally a nun) and an incubus. Or, sometimes, [[DistaffCounterpart a man and a succubus]]. This is often given as an explanation for his magical and prophetic abilities. Modern interpretations of the legends vary significantly on Merlin's parentage.
** This was the result of the Christianization of the legend, to explain how Merlin could wield magic powers (which are [[AlwaysChaoticEvil always Satanic]]), but still be a good guy. The woman incidentally is nearly always a raped nun who dunks her newborn into holy water to wash evil away from him as soon as he is born, but he still grows up a horny bastard with a taste for young virgins—the modern tellings tend to forget that aspect of his character.
** Pretty sure in both the Christian and non-Christianized versions of the Arthurian Tradition Merlin was depicted as something of a fey spirit. So, half fairy was more like it. See works like the Elfin Knight, which predates most of the Malory as we know today. In the ''Literature/History of the Kings of Britain'', Merlin was depicted as born from a rather consensual experience. Try not to think about that too much.
** ... And if you want to go back to the source material with the myth of Myrddin and his sister, it's implied that they both have 'magical' heritage. However, the emphasis is more on Myrddin's far-reaching Sight than anything else.

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