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Potionmaking Competition Participants

     The following people have signed up for the Potionmaking Competition so far:

BloodNight15099

Dragonscarlet13536

HexLumos27896

     The following people have signed up as sponsers so far:

Me

BloodCat122

Potionmaking Competition

A potion brews in a Silver Cauldron. Source

     Potter - More or Less will be holding its first Potionmaking Competition soon! Contestants will be challenged to make the most potions over the course of a week. If you would like to participate in the competition, leave a comment on this post with your Pottermore Username. The first hundred people to respond will be allowed to compete.




If you would like to be a sponsor and donate some of the prizes (listed below) for the competition, email me at pottermoreorless@gmail.com. A list of prizes that still need to be donated can be found here. Please note that sponsors are not allowed to take place in the competition.

Rewards for the competition will be as follows:

First Place:

All types of cauldrons not already owned.

Three of each brewable potion

Thirty of each potion ingredient that can be bought

Sixty of each rare potion ingredient that cannot be bought

A set of Silver Scales

A set of Crystal Phials

Some Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Beans

One of each individual flavor Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Beans so far

Some Fire Tongs

A set of 6 Old Cups

Some Pruning Shears

5 Rock Cakes

Salt and Pepper Pots

A Scullery Key

A Sea Shell

Slimy Sea Weed

An Albus Dumbledore Wizard's Card

A Bertie Bott Wizard's Card

A Cliodna Wizard's Card

A Helga Hufflepuff Wizard's Card

A Hengist of Woodcroft Wizard's Card

An Ignatia Wildsmith Wizard's Card

A Newt Scamander Wizard's Card

A Paracelsus Wizard's Card

A copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

A copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi

A copy of Charm Your Own Cheese

A copy of Enchantment in Baking

A copy of Encyclopedia of Toadstools

A copy of Holidays with Hags

A copy of One Minute Feasts - It's Magic!

A copy of Voyages with Vampires

Second Place:

All types of cauldrons not already owned.

Two of each brewable potion

Twenty of each potion ingredient that can be bought

Forty five of each rare potion ingredient that cannot be bought

A set of Silver Scales

A set of Crystal Phials

Some Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Beans

A Rock Cake

Salt and Pepper Pots

A Sea Shell

Slimy Sea Weed

An Albus Dumbledore Wizard's Card

A Cliodna Wizard's Card

A Paracelsus Wizard's Card

A copy of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

A copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi

A copy of Enchantment in Baking

A copy of Encyclopedia of Toadstools

Third Place:

All types of cauldrons not already owned.

One of each brewable potion

Ten of each potion ingredient that can be bought

Thirty of each rare potion ingredient that cannot be bought

A set of Silver Scales

A set of Crystal Phials

Salt and Pepper Pots

A Sea Shell

Slimy Sea Weed

An Albus Dumbledore Wizard's Card

A Cliodna Wizard's Card

A Paracelsus Wizard's Card

A copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi

A copy of Encyclopedia of Toadstools

In addition, ALL participants will receive an extra flower head and a jar of honey

Things that still need to be offered to be donated
6 Forgetfulness Potions
6 Herbicides
6 Sleeping Draughts
6 Wideye or Awakening Potions
3 Silver Scales
3 Crystal Phials

Things that have already been offered to be donated
Participation Prizes - Brown Owl
Cauldrons -Brown Owl
6 Antidotes to Common Poisons - MoonlitFox
6 Cures for Boils - MoonlitFox
6 Forgetfulness Potions - MoonlitFox
60 of each buyable potion ingredient - Brown Owl
135 of each rare potion ingredient that cannot be bought - Brown Owl
1 Sea Shell - MoonlitFox
1 Cliodna Card - MoonlitFox
1 Helga Hufflepuff Card - MoonlitFox
2 copies of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - Brown Owl
3 copies of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi - Brown Owl
1 copy of Holidays with Hags - Brown Owl
1 copy of Voyages with Vampires - Brown Owl 2 Bertie Bott's Every Flavored Beans (The item that looks like a handful of them) - Brown Owl
1 Bertie Bott's Baked Bean-Flavoured Bean - Brown Owl
1 Bertie Bott's Chocolate-Flavoured Bean - Brown Owl
1 Bertie Bott's Pepper-Flavoured Bean - Brown Owl
1 Bertie Bott's Sprout-Flavoured Bean - Brown Owl
1 Bertie Bott's Sugared Violet-Flavoured Bean - Brown Owl
1 Bertie Bott's Toast-Flavoured Bean - Brown Owl
1 Fire Tongs - Brown Owl
6 Old Cups - Brown Owl
1 Pruning Shears - Brown Owl
6 Rock Cakes - Brown Owl
3 Salt and Pepper Pots - Brown Owl
1 Scullery Key - Brown Owl
2 Sea Shells - Brown Owl
3 Slimy Sea Weeds - Brown Owl
3 Albus Dumbledore Cards - Brown Owl
2 Cliodna Cards - Brown Owl
1 Hengist of Woodcroft Card - Brown Owl
1 Ignatia Wildsmith - Brown Owl
1 Newt Scamander Card - Brown Owl
3 Paracelsus Cards - Brown Owl
1 copy of Charm Your Own Cheese - Brown Owl
2 copies of Enchantment in Baking - Brown Owl
3 copies of Encyclopedia of Toadstools - Brown Owl
1 copy of One Minute Feasts - It's Magic! - Brown Owl

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Perfecting Potions in Pottermore

     Potionmaking is one of the best ways to get points in Pottermore. It may have a reputation for being hard, but if you know the right tricks it's the one truly fail-safe way to gain points for your house. In order to brew a potion, one must obtain the necessary ingredients and follow the instructions as written in the potions book. Mastering these techniques will set you well on your way to becoming a potions master.

The instruction book as seen in
Pottermore. Source

     The instruction book: You will always have a book that tells you how to correctly prepare the potion you wish to brew. If instructions are not followed correctly you may ruin your potion and sometimes even destroy your cauldron; if your cauldron begins to smoke or leak or you know you messed something up,  you should refresh the page or press the back button as quickly as possible.
     However, some instructions can be rearranged to your advantage without consequence. Here is a list of useful alternate instructions:
 - In the first part of the Forgetfulness Potion and the second part of the Sleeping Draught, you may add the Valerian Sprigs and stir the cauldron while it is still heating to save time.
 - In the second part of the Herbicide, while the cauldron is still heating, you may not only add the flobberworm mucus, but you can also begin stirring the potion as well to save time.
     You can do any trick like the ones stated above as long as the mortar and pestle is not involved; any change of instructions involving the mortar and pestle will cause your potion to fail and will usually explode your cauldron, regardless of if you add the mixture to the cauldron at the correct time (I blew two copper cauldrons trying to see if you could mix a mixture while heating a cauldron instead of before heating it).

An example of all three types of ingredients
on Pottermore. Source

     Ingredients: There are three kinds of ingredients, small ingredients, large ingredients, and "bottled" ingredients.

     Small ingredients include those found in bags and also the mixtures from the mortar (the clay bowl to the left of the cauldron), as well as any other small objects that are bunched together. They can be pulled from the bag with a single click and should be dropped into the mortar or cauldron directly over the center of the opening. The ingredients should be pressed as close to it as possible to the top of the mortar or the cauldron before they are dropped so they won't spill over the sides.

     Large ingredients will lie by themselves on the table without any container. They should be grabbed on one of the sides so they will swing into a vertical position. This is important as some of these ingredients will come apart into several pieces when released. They should held as close as possible to the center of the cauldron or mortar's opening without touching it. Do not drop ingredients into the mortar unless they are vertically aligned, or some of the pieces may spill out over the edges and the ingredient will not count!

     "Bottled" ingredients can be found in jars, vials, and bottles. To get such an ingredient into the cauldron, carefully lift the jar by the neck and press the section between the top and the middle against the right side of the cauldron. Continue to press the jar against the cauldron and lower it cautiously, but not too slowly, until ingredients begin to come out. Once you almost have the desired amount of ingredients poured in, raise the jar slowly as to let the last few necessary ingredients get in the potion but prevent any additional ingredients from falling into the cauldron. To pour bottled ingredients into the mortar, lift the jar by the neck and rest it on the left side of the cauldron about half a jar's length from the edge, then tip it towards the mortar in a similar way to how you would tip ingredients into a cauldron. Once you are done, move the jar back to the table without letting it tip over. It is safe to drop a jar from twice its height to save time as long as it is mostly perpendicular to the table.

The Mortar and
Pestle. Source

     The mortar and pestle: The mortar is the bowl on the left of the cauldron and the pestle is the crusher inside of it. To get small or large ingredients quickly to the mortar, grab them and just barely skim over the the top of the cauldron on the way to the mortar, then move  then make sure that they are aligned as stated above and drop them in. To crush ingredients quickly, click the mortar (the bowl), not the pestle!

A Pewter Cauldron. Source

     The cauldron: The cauldron is what the actual potion is brewed in, and all instructions will somehow relate to it. If you mess up a potion, your cauldron may explode, so be careful!
     To cause the cauldron's temperature to rise, press the orange button in the middle at the bottom of the cauldron. To cause the cauldron's temperature to rise really fast, press the red button on the right with the big fire on it. To turn off the heat and ultimately cause the cauldron's temperature to drop, press the blue button of the left. Keep the temperature in between the lines while the timer is going. You should use the red button to get the heat up to the right temperature to save time.
     If the instructions say to add ingredients and/or stir the cauldron after you heat the cauldron, you can actually do these steps (in order) while the cauldron is still being heated (see the instructions section for a list of times that you can use this trick). Do not add mixtures from the mortar to the cauldron while it is being heated, as I stated before, or you will ruin your potion.

A brewing Sleeping Draught. Source

     Brewing time: In the middle of the instructions there is a period of time in which you must wait for about a half an hour to a little over hour for the potion to brew. This is the longest but also the easiest part of the potion. During this time you can collect and buy more ingredients, duel other houses, or even leave for a while and eat lunch. You can continue the potion once the brewing time is up, and you have double the time it takes to brew the potion to return to it. Pewter cauldrons will brew slowly, brass cauldrons will brew 15% faster (rounded up by the minute), and copper cauldrons will brew 25% faster than pewter cauldrons (also rounded up by the minute).
     Maximizing your potion: Potions will gain your house points and can be given as gifts to friends. If you want to make a lot of potions as quickly as possible, the Antidote to Common Poisons has the fastest brewing time. If you want to make the most points in the fastest time possible, also brew the Antidote to Common Poisons. The Cure for Boils is the cheapest potion, and if you want to make points and save money, the Sleeping Draught should be your potion of choice.
     Another way to save money is to get potion ingredients in the various moments of the books instead of buying them from the Apothecary. Here is a list of useful ingredients as they appear in each moment:
 - Bezoar - Book 1, Chapter 17, Moment 2, Zoom 3
 - Dried Billywig Stings - Book 1, Chapter 8, Moment 3, Zoom 1
 - Horklump Juice - Book 2, Chapter 3, Moment 2, Zoom 3
 - Horned Slugs - Book 1, Chapter 10, Moment 3, Zoom 2
 - Mistletoe Berries - Book 1, Chapter 12, Moment 2, Zoom 3
 - Wolfsbane - Book 1, Chapter 8, Moment 3, Zoom 1 and Chapter 15, Moment 2, Zoom 2

The Hand of Glory

A Hand of Glory displayed in Whitby Museum. Source

     The hand of glory is said to be a shriveled, disembodied, hand of a man who has been hanged. Several legends, folk tales, and even so-called books of sorcery tell of its supposed dark powers.
     In folklore, these hands are usually created and used by criminals and thieves. To make a hand of glory, it is said that during the hottest days of the summer one must sever the hand of a criminal (sometimes specifically a murderer) who has just been hanged. Some accounts say it must be the left hand, some say it must be the hand that committed the crime (this is often the case in accounts that claim that the criminal must be a murderer), and others say it doesn't matter which hand it is. Then it is said that the remaining blood must be squeezed out with a shroud or winding sheet. After that, it supposedly must be pickled and dried.
     Some legends claim that the fingers of the hand must be oiled and then lit to make its dark powers take effect, others claim that the hand should be used to hold a candle (often this candle must be made from the fat of a criminal, and often this criminal must be the same man from whom the hand is severed) for its enchantments to work.
     Legends from England claim that the hand holds a wide range of powers, from keeping people who have fallen asleep from waking up while the hand is lit to unlocking any door. Other supposed powers from English legend include shattering stones, both revealing and hiding treasure. In France, Germany, and Spain, it was believed that the hand would make whomever it was presented to enter into a magical sleep, even if they were awake when it was presented to them. Similar legends include Raven's Stones, the remains of an executed criminals eyes, and Thieves' Lights, the fingers or toes of unborn children, both of which, when lit, are said to give light only to their owner. Some legends from Germany also claim that Thieves' Lights, like the Hand of Glory, will cause anyone asleep in a building to remain asleep while they are lit. Legends of the finger of a thief (The Finger of Sin) from Poland and a Thief's Foot, Hand or Finger from the Netherlands are similar.
     In England, it is believed that to end the enchantments of a Hand of Glory, one must douse its flame(s) with milk (or sometimes it must be blood, or either one) - no other liquid(s) will work. In France, Germany, and Spain it was believed that the only way to keep the hand from working was to compose a mixture of the bile of a black cat, the fat of a white hen, and the blood of a screech owl in the hottest days of the summer; then put the mixture on the threshold of a door or window where a thief with such a hand in his possession may enter. If such a thief crossed over a threshold anointed in this way, it was believed that their Hand of Glory would become powerless.
     In the Harry Potter series, the Hand of Glory gives light only to its holder when lit, and possibly possesses additional powers as well.
     In Pottermore, a Hand of Glory can be seen at Borgin and Burkes in a glass display case in the third zoom of Chapter 4, Moment 3.

Secrets of The Chamber of Secrets - Chapters 1-4

Chapter 2, Moment 2: A simple yet ridiculously fun game.
Source

     The chapters released for The Chamber of Secrets in Pottermore already have a plethora of fun surprises and new experiences (as well as, you guessed it - secrets), and they've only released the first four chapters! Here is a little guide that should help you through your journey as you continue your exploration of the world of Harry Potter.

Items For Your Trunk

Chapter 4, Moment 2, a moment rich in items you can
collect and put in your trunk. Source

     As you explore the first four chapters of The Chamber of Secrets, you will find a variety of new objects for your trunk - many of which, oddly enough, are individual Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans. While you journey through these chapters, stay on the lookout for at least 6 of these delicious jelly beans, as well as some fire tongs, floo powder, a hairpin, a mask, some pruning shears, a key to the Burrow's scullery, and of course, your second year shopping list, which is required. Keep in mind that some of these objects may unlock previously inaccessible areas in moments you have already explored, so once you've gone through every moment once, I would suggest going through them all again.

     And keep an eye out for the chocolate frog cards detailing Bertie Bott, Cornelius Agrippa, Ignatia Wildsmith, Miranda Goshawk, and Newt Scamander.

     Don't forget to look for the following books: Charm your own Cheese, Enchantment in Baking, Encyclopedia of Toadstools, Gilderoy Lockhart's Guide to Household Pests, Magical Me, and One Minute Feasts - It's Magic! Don't waste your time looking for the comic book The Adventures of Martin Miggs, the Mad Muggle, like I did; unfortunately, it's not collectible. Don't forget, more books are available to buy at Flourish and Blotts in Diagon Alley once you have collected your shopping list; these books are all required.

     Also, you may find a few more Galleons then you are used to...

Potion Ingredients

There's more to this garden then meets the eye... Source

     There is no scarcity of potion ingredients in these chapters, and throughout them the following ingredients are scattered: flower heads, a jar of honey, dried nettles, rose thorns, horklump juice, a dragon liver, and a sprig of peppermint. Keep a close lookout and remember to hover over any suspicious-looking plant, shelf, or cupboard, and the non-suspicious looking ones too, if your not very good at reading the facial expressions and body language of plants, shelves, and cupboards. 

Games/Puzzles

De-Gnoming the Garden, my favorite game so far. Source

     The newly released chapters also include several more fun games, the most sophisticated of which is De-gnoming the Garden, in which you must throw four gnomes over the hedge bordering the Weasley's Garden in 98 seconds. You get a bonus if you manage to throw a gnome past the stump outside the garden, and your farthest throw is recorded until you beat it.
     Another strange but wonderful game is Aunt Petunia's Pudding (see first picture), in which one must keep Aunt Petunia's "masterpiece of a pudding" afloat in the air for 14 seconds before watching it fall to the ground with a satisfying splat.
     In Chapter 4 one must play a memory game to obtain the second-year shopping list. It can be solved in three ways; through logic, through quick thinking and memory (using the hint), or by reading part of The Chamber of Secrets. You could cheat, too, of course, but what would be the fun in that?

Recap

     All in all, I would say The Chamber of Secrets has been even better than The Philosopher's Stone was, so far. It was more interactable, and the exclusive content was much more detailed and, to put it simply, much more exclusive. There were more games and puzzles, and the art was fantastic, including even more detailed images of the main characters than the first book this far in, although we still haven't seen Gilderoy Lockart yet. So, if you haven't done so already, go and explore the first chapters of The Chamber of Secrets, and if you have, explore them more!

Rowan/Wiggentree

A Rowan, (a.k.a. Wiggen Tree), growing on a
mountainside.  Source

     The Rowan, also known as the Mountain Ash or the Wiggen Tree, is a tree in the Rose family that does well in the cold and in high altitudes. The Rowan is occasionally found growing on larger trees; such specimens are known as "flying rowans". It has a light grayish bark that becomes rough as it matures and its leaves have a feather-like formation and are sometimes fuzzy. The fruit is red, soft, and juicy, and is an important source of food for many birds, who help spread its seeds through their droppings.
     The name "Rowan" comes from the Common Germanic word raudnian, which means "becoming red". The name "Mountain Ash" comes from the trees resemblance to Ash Trees and the fact that it grows well in high altitudes. The word "wiggen" probably derived from the word wicken, (another name for the tree) which shares roots with the word "wicked" and derives from the Old English word wicca, which means "sorcerer". This word was applied to the tree because of the belief that it protected from witches and witchcraft.
     In ancient times the Rowan was believed by many to have possess supernatural powers and it appears often in folklore and mythology, for example, in Greek mythology the tree is believed to have from the blood and feathers of an eagle.
     The tree's wood is very strong and dense and thus is very useful for making wooden objects such as tools and walking sticks. Because of this, the wood was used by the ancient Norse to make rune staves and was also used by druids and later so-called sorcerers for staffs, wands, divining rods, and other such objects.
     In addition to using the Rowan's sturdy wood, druids used the bark and berries to dye robes black for lunar ceremonies. In some traditions the leaves and fruit were also made into incense that was used for divination, and in parts of Scandinavia the condition of the tree was used to predict various things such as the weather and the harvest, and .
     In the British Isles it was often called the Wiggen Tree, especially in the northern part of Great Britain, and there it was believed by many to ward off danger. Many beliefs held that it protected from specific creatures or things, ranging from lightning storms to witches. Flying Rowans (mentioned in the first paragraph) were thought to be especially protective against witchcraft and sorcery.
     In the Harry Potter series the wood of the Rowan is used for making wands and it is said that they are especially good at defensive spells, and that no dark wizard has ever owned a wand made from Rowan wood. It is often said in the wizarding world that Rowan wand holders are prone to gossip.
     Alternatively, in the Harry Potter series a "Wiggentree" is a seperate tree very closely related to the Rowan and often mistaken for it. It will "protect anyone touching its trunk from the attack of Dark creatures", and its bark is used as a potion ingredient.
     Users on Pottermore may receive a Rowan wand from Ollivanders in Chapter 5, Moment 4. The "Wiggentree" is also mentioned in Pottermore, in the exclusive content of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi.