Merlin's Beard

Merlin's Beard is a wizard-themed video slot from Yggdrasil that sets its action inside an enchanted tower filled with ancient scrolls, glowing potions, and mystical artefacts. Released in November 2024, it's built on a compact 5-reel, 3-row grid with 10 fixed paylines, and its standout feature is a genuine choice of free spins modes rather than a single fixed bonus round.

Theme and presentation

The visuals lean into a warm, whimsical take on wizardry, with vibrant colour work, spell-effect animations, and expanding symbol visuals used to sell each magical moment. Wizard icons and arcane items fill out the symbol set, and the overall presentation is polished enough to give the game a strong sense of fantasy identity despite its relatively small grid.

How the reels work

Wins on Merlin's Beard form when matching symbols land across adjacent reels on the 10 active paylines, running left to right from the first reel. Landing the required number of scatter symbols unlocks the Free Spins round, and this is where the game's signature mechanic comes in: rather than a single fixed bonus, players get to choose between multiple modes, each carrying its own volatility profile and power-ups. Mega symbols and multipliers within these modes are used to boost win potential once the round is underway.

RTP and volatility — worth knowing

Merlin's Beard carries a base RTP of 94.0%, which sits below the roughly 95-96% range many players treat as a fair standard for modern online slots, so it's worth being aware of that before committing a large bankroll. Volatility on the base configuration is rated medium, giving a relatively balanced pace of play outside of whichever free spins mode you choose to enter.

Max win and stakes

The game's ceiling sits at 10,000 times the stake, a strong figure that gives the mode-selection free spins genuine purpose for players chasing the bigger multipliers. Stakes run from 0.20 up to 20 per spin, keeping the betting range compact and manageable.

Balancing the trade-off

The mode-selection free spins are a genuinely interesting hook, letting players lean toward either a steadier bonus round or a higher-risk, higher-reward one depending on mood and bankroll. That flexibility is worth weighing against the below-average base RTP — players who value control over how their bonus round behaves may still find the trade-off worthwhile, even if the headline return figure isn't the game's strongest asset.

Verdict

Merlin's Beard's real selling point is the ability to pick your own free spins mode rather than being locked into a single bonus structure, even though the base RTP runs a little below average and is worth factoring into your bankroll planning. Players intrigued by that mode-selection mechanic should try the free demo at johnessyslots before deciding whether to play Merlin's Beard for real money.