Trolls are vile creatures who appear as enemies in some installments of the Dragon's Lair series. They feature as a villainous breed in the Dragon's Lair (TV series), native to the Isle of Narg and being led by the evil Lord Narg. In some games, they also serve as Mordroc's minions, setting traps to hinder the progress of Dirk the Daring.
Appearances[]
Dragon's Lair (TV series)[]
Trolls appear as villains in the Ruby-Spears Dragon's Lair animated series. A race of sentient giants, they reside on the Isle of Narg, off the coast of King Ethelred’s kingdom. Led by Lord Narg, the Trolls plot to wage war against the king. In the episode “The Tale of Dirk's New Sword,” Dirk and his allies are aided by the Havenwood Dwellers to defeat them. Most Trolls use large clubs as their primary weapons, although Lord Narg is distinguished by carrying a sheathed sword. Trolls have diverse designs, yet they are all characterized as being larger than humans with brawny muscles. A single troll is strong enough to shatter Dirk’s Sword by striking it with his club. The Trolls of Narg are shown to be adept at sea-faring, being able to build their own ships (with the aid of involuntary labor from captive Havenwood dwellers) and to navigate the sea by rowing oars and a rudder operator stationed by the ship's stern. In spite of their bulk and strength, a single clean blow from Dirk's sword or a Havenwood staff causes a Troll to disappear in a flash of light (as if vaporized), similar to most enemies which appear in the series. All Trolls appearing in the series appear to be males, and it is unknown if female Trolls exist; Princess Daphne (disguised in Troll clothing) manages to lure one Troll into a trap by flirting with him.
Dragon's Lair: Escape from Singe's Castle[]
Trolls do not appear in the game, but some early versions of the physical release were packaged with an illustrated map of "The Realm" portraying obscure locations across Ethelred's kingdom. Located just below Singe's Castle on the map is a section labeled "Caves of the Trolls."
Dragon's Lair (NES)[]
Two trolls appear as bosses of The Gold Mines, the second stage of the NES game. The two trolls alternate attack patterns, rising from two mining cars to throw rocks at Dirk. By dodging their projectiles and counter-attacking, Dirk is able to defeat them and enter the Elevator Shaft which can progress him to the next level.
Both trolls appear to be red-skinned, well-built and bearded, although only their upper bodies are seen in game due to hiding inside the mining carts.
Dragon's Lair: The Legend[]
The "Troll Village" and the "Troll Mine" are areas that appear in the game world. Both areas are located in the screens below Dirk's starting point in the "Outer Forest." Although no trolls appear, the Troll Village has tree trunks and mushrooms that appear to have been converted into small homes, presumably for trolls. Dirk must collect the Life Stones by navigating the terrain and avoiding several spike pits through riding atop ghost, rabbits, and flying insects. The Troll Mine is the expansive area located to the immediate right of the village, which Dirk must ride a mining cart to reach.
Feature Film[]
Shortly after the release of the 1983 arcade game and the ensuing financial collapse of Cinematronics alongside the broader arcade game market, Bluth's Studio attempted to shop Dragon's Lair as an attractive draw for a theatrical film. Bluth prepared a presentation pitch titled Dragon's Lair: The Legend for exhibition to potential investors and studio executives, but the project died due to studios' lack of interest. The proposed storyline would have focused upon young Dirk's efforts to rescue Daphne and his friend Strun from Mordroc, an ancient evil sorcerer resurrected in order to raise his own army of the dead. Aided by some comical dwarves named after the seven “deadly sins,” Dirk would seek out a legendary knight to help him defeat the wizard, only to find himself in a climatic battle against Mordroc's dragon form.[1] The original story pitch failed to generate investor enthusiasm.[2] In a 2015 social media post by Don Bluth, he referred to the dwarf characters as "trolls".[3]
Trivia[]
- Mordroc is thought to have created 50 trolls.[4]
Gallery[]
