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What you need to know of the game

Below the cut is a list of various aspects of Hogsmeade that might come up within threads or for plotting etc. Please take a moment to read over it so everyone is on the same page. If you have any questions, please ask

Money/Economy

The upper levels of Gringott's, offices, lobby, etc, were destroyed in the Diagon Alley Battle. The lower levels, where the vaults are kept, were protected by the Goblins' magic. However, the Goblins disappeared from England shortly after the battle, so the vaults cannot be accessed, even by their owners. The foreign branches of Gringott's are up and running, but the Goblins are so far refusing access to any vaults in England. Their punishment for attacking their bank.

The main economy in Hogsmeade is, at the moment, a balance between trade and use of money. Trade of labour, goods, even sexual favours excists side by side of the normal economy, and Galleons only have the value of it's own weight in gold. Knuts and Sickles are completely useless and prices (if you pay in money) have gone up enourmously. Muggle money still holds value in the Muggle world, however, there is nearly no value of Muggle pounds in Hogsmeade. It's just pretty paper.

An important part of the economy at the moment is the black market. Trade of anything from illegal potions, artefacts, cast off wands, etc, is running rampant, and there aren't enough Aurors to deal with this as well as the Death Eaters.

At the moment plans are being processed to build a new - wizard run - bank. So far it's only in the planning stages however, and it may be many months before this happens.

Housing, Food, Etc.

General:

Hogsmeade is still a village - if a growing one. This means that there will few houses would be taller than two or three stories and most would have some kind of small garden. As the village grow larger new buildings - of various sizes - are being built, but the village structure is at least for now being kept. This may change later but will then start to happen in the outskirts of the village.

For Death Eaters the place of residence is Upper Slaughter - also a small village, and also the place where Bellatrix and Rodolphus have their manor. The general conditions for Hogsmeade are true for Upper Slaughter as well. There is one difference however. Upper Slaughter used to be a Muggle village once, so some Muggle reminants might still be there (even if they don't work).


For those who does no want to live in either Upper Slaughter or Hogsmeade, there is the choice to live elsewhere. That should however alsways be cleared with a mod first.

Housing:

As Hogsmeade is expanding there are both newer and older houses to move into. Most of these would be rented by the owner of the house (usually a NPC landlord though you may contact us if your character wants to own a building). Since a war is going on some landlords have been killed and the houses would be possible to live in without paying rent. However, these would probably be rundown and/or damaged and would require repairs/heavy cleaning and the likes to be made habitable.

If there are repairs to do, materials would need to be bought or obtained via barter/trade or on the black market. Same goes for any new items or furniture you would need inside the house. Refugees might have things with them as they arrive and people may inherit things from relatives who die in the war.

In Upper Slaughter the situation is slightly different. Since it used to be a Muggle village any DE could move into the now empty houses (having killed or driven off those who lived there) and would not need to pay rent. In doing so, (rather than to move into a wizarding house in the area which would cost them money), they would have to deal with non working Muggle appliances they don't understand (things like fridges and stoves).

Businesses:

In regards to businesses, the mods would like to know what you're planning before you decide on starting or taking over something. We will most likely say yes, so don't be afraid to ask.

Food:

The Three Broomsticks and the Hogs Head are all still running, though what the latter serves most accurately can not be described as food. Another place that serves food is the Bite n' Blether, an inn/restaurant owned by Pansy Parkinson. Prices will vary upon supply of ingredients, and the method of payment is negotiable with the proprietor of the establishment. Extravagant meals are not available, but most basic dishes are possible to purchase. Madame Puddifoots was destroyed and the small shop is no longer inhabitable.

It is also possible to purchase meat (beef, pork, chicken), herbs and vegetables directly from farmers selling at the small market, and a shop for food is being built. Generally things that would have to have been brought in from other places (such as fish and some fruits) will be very expensive and not in great supply. It is possible for your character to venture into the Muggle world to purchase their food, but keep in mind that Hogsmeade is far from Muggle settlements and it will not be a great deal cheaper for them to do so.

The black market of course offers a greater variety of high quality goods though the prices are steep.

Honeydukes is still making lollies and sweets for the population. Chocolate is hard to come by, and almost only available on the black market. Hence it is very expensive. Honeydukes only carry chocolates on occasion.

In Upper Slaughter there is one pub/inn open, The Silver Serpent, run by Tom the previous owner of The Leaky Cauldron. Tom was a Death Eater already in the first war, using The Leaky Cauldron as a (very successful) means to spy on people. He never hesitated to support Bellatrix and Rodolphus, but was injured in the attack on Diagon Alley, as he kept the Leaky open so that people wouldn't suspect something was going on. He didn't have time to escape as a too eager young Death Eater hit the Leaky Cauldron before getting permission to do so. As a reward for his efforts, he was allowed to move to Upper Slaughter and open up the pub there. (Marked R on the map for now).

Utilities:

There is no electricity in Hogsmeade or Upper Slaughter! This means no computers, no electric lighting, no televisions or anything else that is run by electricity. We know from canon, however, that some battery operated objects (wireless, cameras...) can be run on magic.

For lighting fireplaces, torches, lanterns and candles would be used, although fairies could be used on festive occasions (in trees for example). In town the streets are lined street lamps supporting a magical flame. Most fires would - as in canon - be magical and hence not prone to start fires. Food would also most likely be cooked on fires or old fire lit stoves, if not magically heated. Water works like it does for Muggles but the piping is of course completely magically created. The water in Hogsmeade comes from the great lake. (In Upper Slaughter from muggle plumbing charmed to work).

Clothing:

Robes are the standard form of dress in Hogsmeade (and definitely in Upper Slaughter) and although Gladrags is open, it is not the thriving shop it once was. New styles of robes have been replaced by what is most practical to produce, and while the owner has contacts that can bring in robes from other settlements, they are rarely much better quality than what can be found in Hogsmeade already. Again the black market can supply greater quality and style of goods, and those with contacts abroad is always able to purchase what they need.

It's sometimes hard to know what robes look like. With the many different interpretations of canon, with adaptations in the films and in fandom, it can be very confusing. If we look closely, however, there are clues to what robes should be like - and that is, more or less, a dress-like form of clothing and not - as it is sometimes depicted or described - some form of coat-like garment which require clothes underneath.

There are several canon indications of this:

• In PS - we have Snape having his leg patched up by Filch after his run in with Fluffy. In the book (unlike the film) there is no indication that Snape is wearing trousers beneath his robes, which must mean that they are not needed.


• In GoF - Draco's dressrobes makes Harry think of a priest - priests wear dress-like robes.


• In GoF - Archie thinks a Muggle dress is alright for a man to wear and almost refuses to put on a pair of trousers.


• In OotP - again we see that Snape does not wear anything but underpants underneath his robes. At least he did not as a teenager (more on student robes below).

With that said, we do know that some wizards wear trousers beneath (Harry for one wears his jeans, Fudge at one time wore green trousers beneath his), but that would probably be like some women wearing a shorter dress over pants today. Do not(please we beg you) wear dress robes on top of an evening gown or something similar. After all - when would you wear two dresses on top of each other?

As for Muggle style clothing, we all know that they exist in canon. Just think hard about your character before having them put them on (Snape does not wear leather trousers! Bill or the twins possibly would.) Hence it is possible to wear Muggle clothes, it is definitely not the norm and even Muggleborns are only likely to have them on under a set of robes.

Wands:

During various attacks/battles, some wands were damaged. It is an option to have your character without a wand, because we know from canon that they’re not completely durable and can break during fighting. Ollivander is no where to be found (publically though he can be contacted and choose to reveal himself) and wands are hard to come by. Some may even have to settle for using other people's wands (such wands could taken from dead people in or after battles. The black market might sell wands found in these situations).

Wand-lore from Deathly Hallows is generally used throughout the game.

Potions/Medicines:

After an unsuccessful attack on St. Mungos patients have been moved to a renovated and magically enlarged shrieking Shack.

If someone is seriously sick or injured, they can receive care without payment at the Shrieking Shack. For lesser injuries people are expected to trade something for the care or pay with galleons and they can't expect to get any potions that are hard to get or manufacture - if any at all. Outside of the hospital, Luna makes and sells some basic potions which can be manufactured from herbs and plants that grow in the area, as does Draco in his potions shop (he also produces a fair deal of illegal potions made from those not so available ingredients.)

In Upper Slaughter there is a "field hospital" of sorts for the injured Death Eaters, but no real hospital to deal with illness or minor injuries. For those a Death Eater would have to try and sneak past the Aurors and into Hogsmeade for treament.

Magic:

Hogsmeade is a magical town and magic could and should be used. However, please take into consideration that there are boundaries to magic and what it can do. A lot of things in canon are vague, so ask if you're unsure. Always ask a mod if your character wants to invent a new spell or magical item or if you have some suggestions on how these boundaries can work.

Wards:

Wards is the same as protection spells and they work very differently depending on the spells cast and the base of them. Around Hogwarts the protective spells are all charms, created to detect danger, animagus and people who don't belong. These are extensive but fairly basic. On some of the Slytherin houses the wards are different - ranging from strong but harmless (Malfoy and Nott Manor) to down right lethal (Pucey Manor).

The strenght and dangerousness of the wards are dependent on what wards you choose, but they can be a combination of charms, blood-magic and dark magic, and will vary dependant on age, way of casting, intent and so on and so forth.

However, no matter what type of wards they do have a few things in common:

1 - They take energy to cast and uphold, energy that needs to be taken from either the caster or someplace else (didn't you always wonder how they could eat like they do at Hogwarts and still be slim..?) This means that the more wards your house have, the less engergy you have (no wonder those Slytherins sleep until noon).
2 - They can be broken through. No wards are inpenetrable, they're only more or less hard to break. In some cases breaking the wards might lead to unwanted side-effects - like the house tumbling down on you (Nott's Forter Castle would as the wards are a part of what is holding it up), leaving you without magic, killing you...that does not mean they can't be broken. They can, you might just not want to break them.
3 - As wards are very different in nature they protect against different things. Some work as we lock the door, some make the house invisible. This also means they protect against different things - vampires for instance can walk right through some wards, but will be kept out by others.

Quidditch:

The official league was disbanded during the war when there was no longer a Ministry office to control it. Many are still playing however and once two unofficial teams, made up mostly of former professional players, played in Hogsmeade. The game provided a welcome diversion to the serious business of war that is still raging around them, but the festive feelings were put down when the train was attacked. Many still want to play and there is talk of putting up teams - these however will not be paid so it is at the time not a profession.

Transportation

Floo:

The Floo network was destroyed with the Ministry and doesn't exist anymore. This goes for communication and transportation both.

Apparating:

You cannot Apparate or Disapparate within Hogwarts - and since 2002 the same goes for Hogsmeade and its surroundings.

After the attack on Hogwarts the added charms and wards put up by Terry Boot made Apparating impossible. To make it possible for people to come and leave town, a few heavily guarded ‘Apparition windows' has been set up a short distance away from the town itself. Aurors are stationed here to monitor 'traffic' and make sure no Death Eaters slips through the cracks (but of course many still do, especially those not known to be Death Eaters). People travelling in this manner should always carry papers. (Apparition within Upper Slaughter is just fine.)

Cars:

We see in canon that both the Weasleys and the Ministry have and drive cars so the transport is both known and used among wizards. However, with the war going on and the village still being relatively small, cars are very rare and wouldn't be used by everyone. Even those who might have a car wouldn't use it within either village(as many streets are rather narrow), but only for greater distances.

Bicycles:

Bicycles are quite ok but not very common.

Brooms:

People still have brooms, and Miles Bletchley has a broom-shop in Hogsmeade, so flying is also popular to reach different destinations.

Portkeys:

Portkeys can be gotten from the Ministry (ie Ogden's office) and with a lot of forms to fill about where you want to go and why. This is the only truly legal way to use a portkey. However for those few that know the spell to turn something into a Portkey, there is really nothing to stop them. The spell however is complex and not known by many, ie most witches and wizards would not know this spell so think hard before deciding that your character does.

Knight Bus:

The Knight Bus is now used as an ambulance to move wounded and sick to the Shrieking Shack – a more careful driver makes sure the patients don't die during the ride.

Train:

The Hogwarts Express doesn't look like it always did – it has been damaged and repaired more times than is probably advisable, but it does still run – much more often than before even. With a surge of refugees coming to town the train started running a couple times a week to help refugees arrive in town. To prevent Death Eater attacks, the train has heavy charms that have been placed on it to prevent them using the train to get to town. Aurors and soldiers are patrolling the train and the train stations so again, don't have your character forget his or her identification papers if you don't want to land them in trouble.

The train arrives in town every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

Communication

Owls:

Owls are fairly easy to come by still and many live wildly in the forbidden forest while waiting to find new homes to replace old and destroyed ones. The post office still exists, and even has a surplus of owls so using them to send letters are still the most common method of communicating with other wizards and witches. With the number of owls around the post office also sells owls when asked.

Muggle Post:

Muggle post cannot reach Hogsmeade as Muggles cannot find it. The same would go for almost any wizarding home or area in Britain. Those who are Muggleborn and live or move in Muggle areas would possibly use this method.

Newspaper & Magazines:

The offices of the Daily Prophet, Witch Weekly and The Quibbler were destroyed in the attack on Diagon. No newspapers or magazines exist at this time. (If your character wishes to start one it may be possible but you should contact a mod and get approval first)

Radio (the wireless):

Wireless radios work but there are few if any programs to listen to at the moment. A pirate radio station have started up with music and some random news.

Pamphlets, Notices:

Any character may put up a notice in town to attract attention. Pamphlet for mass distributing may also be written and handed out. (If used mark the post with NOTICE: or PAMPHLET:)

Schooling

General:

Hogwarts has remained open during the war - Minerva McGonagall made absolutely sure of that. Many parents did pull their children out during the war - that was their choice. The numbers at the school have fallen due to the war, but it has not stopped offering education to all wizards of the age of eleven. A new course has been started - a comparison course between wizarding and muggle traditions taught by Aberforth Dumbledore. To ensure mutual understanding according to some - to preserve and keep wizarding traditions and show them as supperiour according to others. A few parts of the school have been closed due to the war - simply to ensure the safety of the students. With the death of Hagrid and the destruction of his hut, the forbidden forest is definitely out of bounds, and protected by strong wards.

With the attacks on the Ministry, the Ministry was no longer scheduling O.W.L.s or N.E.W.T.s. In the absence of these crucial examinations, the headmistress took it upon herself to continue scheduling school based examinations. They basically had the same content, only without the official piece of paper from the Ministry. These 'OWL and NEWT Equivalency Tests' are what most of the younger generation will have instead. (These would be NPCs that are younger than the canon cast).

Primary Schooling:

Schooling for those under the age of 11 is no longer an 'ad hoc' combination of Muggle or home schooling. There is now a Primary School for those under the age of 11 (whose parents knows of the school). Students start (if they're parents choose so) in the year they turn 5, and they learn basics such as reading, writing and socialisation. The school is run by Fleur Weasley and is situated in Rowena Road, in the North Eastern part of town.

Muggleborn children are still being educated in Muggle schools across the country. One of the Headmistress' desires is to try and bring these children into the magical world long before they are 11, a desire that is now possibly coming to frution if the school board so chooses and a tie is made between the Primary school and Hogwarts.

Hogwarts castle:

The actual school was the target of an attack, but it remains largely intact. The Divination Tower was destroyed, and several teachers and students were killed in the attack. This is the only part of the castle that is out of bounds. However, with so few students, large parts of the castle were closed off to the student body and were taken over by The Order for a variety of wartime purposes. The Astronomy Tower is used as a logistical fortress for The Order.

Tunnels from Hogwarts to Hogsmeade:

The tunnels under the school are known to the Order. The tunnel to Honeydukes is still open and it is used often as a way to get in and out of the castle. Colin Creevey protects this tunnel as a duty to The Order. The tunnel to the Shrieking Shack is also intact.

Magical Creatures

General

The magical creature population has been severely lessened due to the war. Most of the remaining creatures have flocked to the Forbidden Forest, which is becoming more and more dangerous. Mandy has with the help of Terry put up charms to keep the creatures inside and protect the surrounding neighbourhood from the potentially dangerous animals. Some of the more intelligent - like Centaurs can move beyond these charms, but rarely if ever does so.

House Elves:

The situation for House elves have not changed much and if anything it is worse than it was. Most house elves belong to people who are firm in traditions and quite a lot of them are Death Eaters or at least supporters of the old ways. The Hogwarts Elves are still within the castle, and elves may wish to go there to seek 'ownership' or employment as well.

For a more detailed account on house elves and how to accquire one see this post here

Goblins:

The Goblins made it clear to both the "Light" and the Death Eaters that they would not declare loyalty to either, and as long as the bank remained untouched, there would be no retaliation. However, in the attack on Diagon, Gringotts' was hit hard and fast. The Goblins did only enough to protect the vaults, and themselves before disappearing from the Wizarding World. Most people suspect they've gone "underground" or to other branches of Gringott's and will only resurface once the war is over. Several Wizards have expressed interest in starting a human-controlled bank, however, and negotiations to such effect has started.

Werewolves:

The werewolves are still supporting the Death Eaters. Gathered under Greyback they make the country unsafe for all wizards and witches during the full moon and a lot more Werewolves have been created (if you want to make your character a Werewolf contact a mod). Some have left Greyback's "pack" and come to join the fight against the Death Eaters, and those werewolves have come to Hogsmeade for protection against Greyback. Since wolfesbane is not in supply, they all transform when the moon is full. To keep the population safe from them, they are escorted out to the forbidden forest every full moon where they can run freely but not leave its perimiter. For their protection before and after transformation a small area is warded off where the rest of the creatures of the forest cannot touch them. There is a clinic run by Hestia Jones for those werewolves that want and need help, they also take care of wizards and witches who's recently been bitten to help them cope.

For those wanting werewolves as characters there are a few useful things to think of:

*) The werewolves when transformed are not easily injured by spells but has a natural protection for this. Should other protection spells be casted on the werewolf it will react with his own protection and make him/her itchy and uncomfortable. The easiest way to injure a werewolf is through the use of silver.
*) A werewolf can retain his or her sanity when transforming if he or she completely embraces the change and lets the wolf in. It's the fight in the transformation that causes the wolf to take over - otherswise the wolf and human coinsists (though the wolf is stronger). They're still bloodthristy beasts so this does not work for those wanting to control themselves into not harming people, but it works when wanting control of the hunt. Greyback's werewolves are like this and are therefore much more dangerous than other werewolves.
*) Those who do fight the transformation grow older faster than other wizards. Their lifespan is shorter and without the help of wolfsbane they run the risk of eventually losing their minds.
*) Children younger than 8-9 would probably not survive a bite that was deep enough to infect it. There are exceptions, but very few.
*) A male werewolf have a harder time of having children than non-werewolves. The problems increases with age and there might be need for fertility potions.
*) A female werewolf can get pregnant, but cannot carry a child to term. The transformation is bound to kill the baby, so female werewolves are therefore incapable of bearing children.
*) Most wizards are still highly prejudice against Werewolves - even those living in town - and might treat them accordingly.

Vampires:

Are rare and also mainly supporters of the Death Eaters. Some are staying out of the war and others have chosen to help the light.

More info about vampires and how to protect yourself against them can be found here.

Dementors:

Are on the side of evil and keep causing depression and fear around the country.

Others:

As for other domesticated animals, there are fewer of everything. Cats, rats, toads, or any sort of ‘pet’ would be less frequently seen. There is no pet shop in town so getting them would require leaving town.

The war/battles

The war is still very much going on. Ogden and McGonagall have joined forces to defeat the Death Eaters and are using Hogsmeade as a base. With protection high around Hogsmeade it's probably the safest place to be at the moment and shielded from all major attacks even as battles rage in other parts of the country. This is where your character is safe from battle, where soldiers come to regain their strength and where plans are being made for future strategies.

The battles that occur are mod controlled and completely voluntary for the players. Before a battle, a notice goes up in the writer com saying when and where a battle will occur. Players are then free to sign up and - if they wish - request any injury for their player, including permanent ones such as Werewolf bites and death (although the latter will only be allowed if the player gives good reason for the plotline). If two character wants one to injure one another - that too should be told in advance to make planning the battle easier for the mods.

For those not requesting an injury, injuries might still occur in battle - since participating in battles is not without risk for anyone (where is the fun in that?) Prior to the battle, the mods will create a list of those players who have not requested injuries and randomly assign lighter injuries to the characters. This will be completely random so just as in life a character can manage several fights without a scratch and then be hurt in the fourth. Another character might be hurt in almost every battle by the same randomness.

These injuries won't be permanent in any way, but might take some time to heal. It may include things such as broken bones, concussions or wounds that might need Healer attention. It's up to you to decide if your character is left with a scar or not. To keep suspense, these injuries will not be told in advance - even to the player - but happen during the battle, allowing the player to react accordingly and adjust to the new situation.

The outcome of the fight is also mod controlled and determined by a number of things. Just remember that the battles are completely voluntary and those players who do not want their character injured have the choice to keep their character out of the battle. We do, however, hope sincerely that a lot of players will decide to jump into the action as it is more fun if they do.

Relationships

General:

The plot/premise of this game is fighting a war and then rebuilding the wizarding world. This is a plot-focused game, obviously, but relationships will develop as they do in RL. These relationships are encouraged. Wars are often accompanied by a lot of temporary sexual connections as well as quickly formed relationships and marriages and pregnancies - sometimes not too well chosen such. We would, however, like for the game to keep the general focus on all types of relationships, so don't forget about friendships, enemies, co-workers...

Bi- and homosexuality:

...are not rampant. Meaning, not all characters are gay or bi. Some are, and some who are not still experiment, but do try to keep it realistic. Also pregnancies are for women - men cannot get pregnant. As mods we're open to suggestions on almost anything, but mpreg is not one of those things.

Children and pregnancies:

A wizarding pregnancy in game last only 6 months. It's the magic of the mother that speeds the process along and makes it shorter. This means that the mother will be having all the same symptoms but they'll appear faster.

Likewise a child of wizarding parents grow faster in their younger year. The first year this is with the speed of the pregnancy (ie a 6 month old wizarding baby would be at the same stage of development as a 9 month old muggle baby). After the first year this slows down as the mother's magic leave the child. At three the baby develops like a muggle child.

Note that it's the mother's magic that makes the child grow and deveolp faster - not the child's. This means that a muggleborn would develop like any normal child, while a squib would develop like a wizarding child. The process therefore slows down as the mother's magic gradually leaves the child.

Any pregnancy must be cleared with the mods before hand. No exceptions to this rule.

Ministry and Remaining Departments

General:

The Ministry of Magic Headquarters was located in the heart of London, but after an attack in the Spring of 2004, the underground structure was completely destroyed. Most everyone managed to get out, but there were several casualties. Very little by way of artefacts and paperwork survived the attack. What this means, mostly, is that the Ministry has to re-build itself from the ground up, department by department, in the midst of a Great War and with great losses of both Wizarding history and lives.

Ministers:

There have been 4 Ministers over the past 8 years, 3 have been killed and one thrown out of office. At the time the game begins, there is no Minister, and the 2 factions are fighting to get their choice elected.

Rufus Scrimgeour: 1996-1998 remained Minister until he was killed by Troy Bletchley (notorious Death Eater) in the Summer of 1998, shortly after Harry did away with Voldemort.

Amos Diggory: 1998-2000 Because he was widely respected by the Ministry and the general public, Diggory was appointed minister in the fall of 1998, a few weeks after Scrimgeour's death. Diggory made the decision to cover-up the Azkaban Incident, to prevent widespread panic. He was killed in a Death Eater raid on the Ministry near Christmas of 2000.

Cornelius Fudge: 2000-2001 After the murder of Minister Diggory, there was a dearth of applicants for the position, so the remaining members of the Wizengamot re-appointed Fudge to the position almost directly after Diggory was killed. After the breach of the Statue of Secrecy, and the leak of magic, Fudge is again declared incompetent and thrown out of office. The position of Minister of Magic remains unfilled for several months, the Wizengamot members taking on the added responsibilities of Minister until a replacement could be settled on.

Mafalda Hopkirk: 2002-2004 Two factions arose during the time when the Office of the Minister is empty, each fighting to place their own choice in the position. Finally, they agree on Mafalda Hopkirk, as she’s inexperienced and could possibly be persuaded by either faction for their benefit. She lays low and does little during her term as Minister. She was killed in the attack that completely destroyed the Ministry of Magic.

2004-Present: The Wizarding Community, mostly based in Hogsmeade since the final attack on the Ministry and Diagon Alley, is without a leader as the two factions, headed on opposite sides by Tiberius Ogden and Minerva McGonagall, fight amongst themselves. The general public is looking for a leader, and unless one emerges soon, there is bound to be insurrection among the civilians. The factions may have to declare 'Martial Law' if this happens.

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Departments & Employees:

Basically, most of the Ministry departments are in shambles after the attack, many employees among the dead or missing. The chaotic move to Hogsmeade didn’t help, and very little in the way of records and paperwork survived the attack, or made it in a nice, neat way to Hogsmeade. A few of the most important documents and artefacts were saved, but most of this now lies in the hands of those who rescued it since there is no Ministry left to gather it. Some of these documents or artefacts have fallen into the hands of people who shouldn't have them, and some have reached the black market.

With no Minister or official Ministry Departments, the faction leaders, Tiberius Ogden and Minerva McGonagall, have become informal leaders for the town and hence for the largest gathering of wizards and witches in Britain. A temporary Ministry headquarters has been set up, but it doesn't work and is mostly used as a storage place for things no one knows where to put. A few employees have stayed on and are fighting to keep things afloat but aren't doing too well.

In the mean time McGonagall and Ogden are forced to co-operate to keep the peace and have joined military and political forces in order to defeat the Death Eaters. They do this even as their factions fight for political control - a fight only kept in check by the presence of the common enemy they have in the Death Eaters.

The Auror office (including Unspeakables & Obliviators) did alright,mostly because by the time of the attack, Gawain Robards had made the decision for the Auror department to act independently of the Ministry, with the full support of the Wizengamot and the Order (for reasons neither faction shared with the other at that time.) For that reason the Auror office is one of the few that is still up and running. Led by Robards (at the moment NPC), Aurors work as protection for the city and as soldiers in the war (joined by many non-Aurors as well of course - your character does not have to be an Auror to be fighting in the war).

With the Ministry gone, however, there is no more Auror training (and in truth there hasn't been any training to speak of for a few years now as the trainees were put out into the war far too soon and hence quite often died before being fully trained). When the war is over this will be addressed, but for now all Aurors are working overtime to keep the village safe from attack and can't be bothered to do anything else. This also means that a lot of illegal activities go uninvestigated and undiscovered as the shrinking number of Aurors don't have time to focus their attention on that as well.

In the Death Eater camp, Bellatrix and Rodolphus share the power, although most view Bellatrix as the real leader.

Departments:

The following departments were known to exist in the old Ministry. They are here for your reference.

Level 1 – Unknown (possibly the same as Level 2)

Level 2 – Department of Magical Law Enforcement

• Auror Headquarters (broke away after Fudge was made Minister)


• Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office


• Wizengamot Administration Services

Level 3 – Department of Magical Accidents & Catastrophes

• Accidental Magic Reversal Squad


• Obliviator Headquarters


• Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee

Level 4 – Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures

• Beast, Being, and Spirit Divisions


• Goblin Liaison Office


• Pest Advisory Board


• Werewolf Registry and Protection (created by need when Werewolves defected from the Death Eaters and came to Hogsmeade for protection.)

Level 5 – Department of International Magical Cooperation

• International Confederation of Wizards, British Seats


• International Magical Office of Law


• International Magical Trading Standards Body


• International Travel Advisory Board (created after Foreign Ministries were attacked, controls the use of international Portkeys and Apparition. Has an office set up in Hogsmeade, but is not operating at full usefulness)

Level 6 – Department of Magical Transportation

• Apparition Test Centre (Not run by the Ministry at this time, as with the NEWT and OWL equivalency tests, Minerva has made Apparition a mandatory class at Hogwarts, so students entering Life after School were prepared.


• Broom Regulatory Control


• Floo Network Authorities


• Portkey Office

Level 7 – Department of Magical Games and Sports

• British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters (although there is a “pick-up” league in Hogsmeade at the moment.)


• Official Gobstones Club


• Ludicrous Patents Office

Level 8 – The Atrium

• Was destroyed in the attack, is only rubble

Level 9 – Department of Mysteries

• Much like the Gringott’s Vaults, the Department of Mysteries had its own protection and was sealed off during the attack. This means that everything that’s in the DOM is intact, however, with the rest of the Ministry rubble and the magic there unstable, it’s unlikely that anyone would gain access to the DOM. It would be life-threatening to try, as the Wards protecting Level 9 are stronger even than those on Hogwarts, and are ancient. No one knows what exactly protected the DOM. During the attack, anybody working there suddenly found themselves in the Atrium, and unable to get back to Level 9.