With the capture of Verandi Farley and several high-ranking Trossach members, the British wizarding world has finally caught a break. The rate of rogue werewolf attacks have started dropping at a steady rate and, hopefully, things will stay that way. The Ministry is starting to loosen some restrictions, like not arresting werewolves standing on the street for loitering, however there’s still an obvious power imbalance between wizardfolk and werewolves.
The Cotswolds pack are continuing to advocate for the rights of werewolves and petitioning to change the legislation that has been set in motion by the current Minister for Magic, whilst the remaining Trossachs members are trying to stay out of the spotlight and keep a low profile… for now.
Whilst the British wizarding world seems to have calmed down, the same cannot be said for over in Northern Europe where a rebellion of magical creatures has risen. The state of things has gotten so bad that the European Ministry has enacted protocols to protect those under eighteen whilst their adult witches and wizards fight to keep control of their countries.
Students from Durmstrang have been sent to Hogwarts to keep them safe and those not old enough to attend school have been sent to live with relatives or designated British Ministry officials outside of Europe for the time being.
Will the low rates of werewolf attacks in Britain continue? How long will Durmstrang students stay at Hogwarts? Will the creatures usurp the wizardfolk in Northern Europe? Only time will tell.
SEPTEMBER 2019 It's been a very long, eventful summer in the wizarding world. A baby was stolen, several high ranking Trossach members were imprisoned, and werewolf attacks have drastically dropped as a result. What will happen now school has returned?
MAY 2019 An attempt to capture the beta of the Trossachs has been launched. Were the Aurors successful in their mission? Go read more here!
Wandless magic Wandless magic is magic performed without the use of a wand or other magical aid instrument. Wandless magic is hard to perform correctly and can be dangerous when done incorrectly and uncontrolled. This ability can only be accomplished by witches and wizards of great skill. Aurors and hitwizards are often practicers of this form of magic.
*Non-verbal magic Non-verbal magic is the use of spells without having to use the verbal incarnation. This takes a lot of concentration. Upon learning this first, people have shown to still mouth the words without noise. More practiced users can perform spells with the mind alone. Some spells are easier to perform non verbal than others.
Some wands are more suited for non verbal magic than others. Dogwood users are unable to perform non-verbal magic due to the loud nature of the wand. The woods best suited for wandless are pine, willow and alder.
**Patronus + form(restricted***) The patronus charm is very advanced magic and it summons a user’s spirit animal to call for protection. This spell is mostly known for its use to defend oneself against dementors and lethifolds. It is a general defense charm but harder to use than normal defense charms. The patronus is tied to a happy memory and thus can alter shape over time however this isn’t a common happening. People who do not have a warm and positive memory cannot perform the charm, even if they have known it before.
Animagus + form (restricted***) An animagus is a witch or wizard that can morph themselves into an animal at will. Learning this ability takes skill, practice, and patience. People who are proficient in transformation both practical and in theory will be able to succeed but still not without risk.
Animagi will have to register themselves at the Ministry of Magic. Illegal use of this ability risks punishment.
Little note: this is a fun ability to play out the learning process of. Click the hyperlink for more information.
Vampires aren’t able to become animagi and an animagus will lose their ability when turned.
Legilimency Legilimency is the art of entering someone’s mind.
Born Legilimens (heavily restricted****): Some people are born with legilimency. And albeit the two types having the same name it works entirely different. People born with legilimency are able to hear the thoughts of people around them. They are not able to control this until they are taught occlumency (to close off their mind from their own ability).
Taught Legilimens (restricted***): Advanced legilimens can perform legilimency non-verbally and wandlessly. They are taught to enter another person's mind to see their memories. An advanced legilimens will be able to dig through memories quickly sorting them and finding what they’re looking for. Legilimens are also able manipulate their victims dreams, mood and thoughts.
Legilimency is a legally restricted magical practice, just as the use of veritaserum is strictly regulated by the Ministry of Magic.
Fun fact: the Hogwarts founders enchanted the Sorting Hat to have this skill.
Occlumency (restricted***) Occlumency is used as protection against legilimency. People who are proficient in occlumency also have a stronger resistance against the imperius curse and veritaserum but aren't completely immune. It is said that users of this practice can withstand dementors slightly longer than non practitioners however this has never been proven.
Metamorphmagus (restricted***) Metamorphmagi are able to alter their appearance at will. It is an ability that someone has to be born with. Usually someone in their family (can be a long distant relative they have never met) also has this genetic ability. Someone with this ability can change their appearance into animal like features (get fangs or whiskers) but cannot morph fully into an animal like animagi can. Metamorphmagi can take a wide variety of forms, changing sex and age, potentially looking like anyone at all, or even just changing a part of their appearance, such as the colour of their hair or shape of their noses
This ability will need concentration and training to fully master it. Children who have this ability often seem to shift between hair colours etc without meaning to. Metamorphmagus' abilities are affected by their emotional state. The person's appearance at any moment will often reflect the emotion the person is feeling at the time. Strong emotions, such as shock or sadness, can affect their abilities to the point of having trouble using them at all. looking like anyone at all, or even just changing a part of their appearance, such as the colour of their hair or shape of their noses.
Note: if a human becomes a vampire they’ll lose their Metamorphmagus ability as they cannot change their dead frozen in time cells.
Parseltongue (heavily restricted****) Parseltongue is the language spoken by snakes. An individual who can speak Parseltongue is known as a Parselmouth. The skill is rare and can only be acquired through birth heritage. People with this ability had a bad reputation, especially in the UK where the ability is linked to Salazar Slytherin and Voldemort.
We don’t allow any European Parselmouths. However we will accept other continental ones if you write a little family backstory.
Seer (heavily restricted****) A Seer is a gifted wizard or witch who has the ability to see into the future with their Inner Eye. Seers predict prophecies, some of which are recorded and stored in the Hall of Prophecy in the Ministry of Magic's Department of Mysteries.
They can have vague visions about the future of other people. For this ability, players still need to follow the same rules as others: no godmodding. Talk with the roleplayer of the character you want to predict for and let them decide what you can predict.
*Non-verbal spells are taught in the sixth year during Charms. However, these will be simple spells. To fully master non-verbal magic, training will be needed.
**Patronus charms are taught in the seventh year in Defense Against the Dark Arts. However, very few seventh years will be able to perform this charm due to the high level of the charm and the need of a positive memory.
***Restricted: only 1/3rd of your characters can have any of these magical abilities
****Heavily restricted: see above + at least 1 active character in play for 3 months before making one with this ability. We also only allow 2 characters on the site with these abilities per ability (for the sake of keeping the ratio realistic).
Characters need to be above 18 to possess these abilities, except abilities that are genetic and for rare occasions that are only approved by all three admins.
Characters below 18 can be in training.
For all in training: it is not an obligation to have a teacher that is in play. It can create some interesting threads however so we highly recommend it.
