_ _.,----, __ _.-._ / '-. - ,._ \) | `-)_ '-. \ / < _ )/" } /___ '-. \ '-, ___(c-(6)=(6) '. -._ '. _,' >\ " ) '-._ '---' ( ( "/`. -='/ (/( \._ .`-.)Y'- '--' L ( _ /'._| |// _/' \ ^ ( F | _/ _.'._ `\ L \ \/ '._ \ .-,-,_ | `. `'---, \_ _| // '| / \, ("--',=`)7 | `._ : _, \ /'`-._\,_'-._ '--' '-.\__/ _L .`' '.// [ ( / ) `{ \__) H A R R Y P O T T E R Q U I D D I T C H W O R L D C U P -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Platform: PC Version: 1.00 Copyright 2005 J.K. Lee or SchnugsAllAround Contact: SchnugsAllAroundf@aol.com -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- NOTES - Welcome to the first PC walkthrough for Harry Potter Quidditch World Cup. Also my own first walkthrough. It will guide you throughout the whole game from start to finish. I have also included a guide to the teams, stadiums, brooms, and special moves. :) If you have any questions or comments, please E-Mail me at the above address. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ========== Contents - ========== A. QUIDDITCH: THE GAME 1. Introduction 2. Players and Balls B. LEGAL INFO C. UPDATES 1. Progress 2. Coming Soon D. CONTROLS 1. General 2. Gameplay E. WALKTHROUGH 1. Main Menu/Overview 2. At Hogwarts 3. World Cup F. TEAMS AND SPECIALS 1. Hogwarts 2. International G. BROOMSTICKS H. HELP -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ====================== A. QUIDDITCH: THE GAME ====================== ---------- 1. INTRODUCTION Quidditch, renowned sport of wizards and witches, dates back to the eleventh century where it had its crude beginnings in the ancient Queerditch Marsh. Since then, it has evolved into one of the most famous of all wizarding games. Armed with their racing brooms and guards, the players hurry up and down the field, swooping, scoring, and using teamwork. Quidditch is a bit of basketball [or netball], ice hockey, and soccer [football] all together. ---------- 2. PLAYERS AND BALLS Quaffle: This seamless, scarlet, leather ball is the main ball. Chasers [see below] of both teams pass the Quaffle rapidly to other Chasers on their team. The objective is to score a goal by simply passing the Quaffle through one of three golden hoops on each side of the pitch. The hoops are guarded by the opposing team's Keeper, a bit like a goaltender. Bludgers: These two jet black, iron-clad balls are meant to be a hazard to all players. They rocket around the pitch, attempting to knock players off their brooms. The only ways to prevent this: 1. Dodge it. 2. Easier, there are two Beaters on your team armed with bats that either hit the Bludgers away or at the other team. Snitch: It may not be the main ball, but it's the most important. The tiny Golden Snitch has wings designed specially to fly rapidly and change direction in an instant. That's why each team's Seeker must also be small, quick, and nimble. His or her sole job is to 'seek' the Snitch, and chase it down. Once caught, the game ends and the Seeker that caught the Snitch earns his or her team an extra hundred and fifty points, often guaranteeing a win. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ============= B. LEGAL INFO ============= NOTICE: This walkthrough/guide may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may NOT be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as part of ANY public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ========== C. UPDATES ========== ---------- 1. PROGRESS 01.29.05 -- v. 1.00 -- Completed 04.30.05 -- v. 1.25 -- Added International teams descriptions ---------- 2. COMING SOON --Quidditch Cards List --Match lineups --Special Moves List -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- =========== D. CONTROLS =========== --------- 1. GENERAL (from game manual) ACTION CONTROL ___________________________________________________________________ Select/Accept RETURN (Advance to next screen) Go Back BACKSPACE Highlight an Option UP AND DOWN ARROW KEYS Change Settings/Options LEFT AND RIGHT ARROW KEYS Open Inventory TAB Quit or Pause ESC ---------- 2. GAMEPLAY (from game manual) NOTE: For # controls, only use the # pad on the right of your keyboard. Also, I've only included the Player 1 controls and my recommended controls. I might add the Player 2 controls later. ACTION CONTROL ___________________________________________________________________ GENERAL Action button (hold down to # pad 5 increase power of action) Broomstick directional control Arrow keys Shoot (only in scoring area) # pad 6 Bludger attack # pad 4 Pause Game (during play) ESC WITH THE QUAFFLE Pass (hold down to increase # pad 5 pass power) Shoot (in scoring area) # pad 6 Dodge # pad 8 Special Move Dodge Left # pad 8 + # pad 7 Special Move Dodge Right # pad 8 + # pad 9 Special Move Dodge 360 Loop # pad 8 + # pad 7 + # pad 9 Special Move Shot # pad 4 + # pad 6 Combo Pass 1 # pad 5 + # pad 9 Combo Pass 2 # pad 5 + # pad 7 Combo Pass 3 # pad 5 + # pad 7 + # pad 9 Combo Shot # pad 6 + # pad 7 Throw off nearby opponents # pad 4 WITHOUT THE QUAFFLE Tackle (when in range of # pad 5 opposition Chaser) Launch Bludger attack # pad 4 Guide bludger Arrow keys (you will momentarilly lose control of your player) Special Move Tackle # pad 6 SEEKER Broomstick direction control LEFT AND RIGHT ARROW KEYS Lean forward UP ARROW KEY Broomstick boost # pad 5 Barge other player # pad 4 Roll [purpose unknown] # pad 8 Grab Snitch # pad 6 -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ============== E. WALKTHROUGH ============== ---------- 1. MAIN MENU/OVERVIEW All right, here we go. Once you insert the CD into your drive, you get the 'EA Games - Challenge Everything' whisper person, the WB trademark thing, and then a fun little movie. Watch that to get in the mood and when it's finished, a 'Select Game' screen will show up. Select 'New Game.' After you press ENTER to start, the main menu will appear. There will be four options for you to choose. The first is Hogwarts. If you select that - we'll get to that later. Next is the 'World Cup' option. You notice that it's locked - you can only access it once you have won the Hogwarts Cup and Dumbledore has given you the tickets. The third option says Exhibition. This is for when you just want to play a quick, custom game of Quidditch. Of course, you have to unlock quite a few cards to enjoy the full control of custom games. You can't really play an Exhibition game right now, as you don't even know how to play. The last option is Inventory. From this, you can access how many Quidditch cards you've earned, the Special Moves you've unlocked, load a previous or new game, and change options. But not now. Using the UP AND DOWN ARROW KEYS, select Hogwarts. ---------- 2. AT HOGWARTS Harry will fly up and he and Oliver Wood will give you a run-through of the basics of Quidditch. Listen carefully to clear up any misunderstandings now. Then, Harry will lead you to an area where all the House Seekers are gathered. You can choose Harry Potter for Gryffindor, Draco Malfoy for Slytherin (he's doing this weird thing, clapping his hands together and looking malicious), Cedric Diggory for Hufflepuff, and Cho Chang for Ravenclaw. Pick one (if you need help deciding, see my guide in HELP). Let's go with Gryffindor for an example. After telling you how much of a good choice it was to pick Gryffindor and stuff, the boy brings you to the House Challenges area. All the team members are lined up to teach you the skills you need to know to play a good game of Quidditch. You need to select the first person, who teaches you how to pass. After a brief introduction, the Challenge loads and you have a red screen with directions about what to do. Read them (they're important!) and press ENTER when you're through. The Chasers are in an open area in Hogwarts and like your Chaser says, two others will be flying on either side of you, just ahead. They have rings around them, alternating from yellow to green. Your goal is to fly around with the ARROW KEYS and use the # pad 5 to pass to a Chaser when his or her ring is green. This is one of the harder Challenges, so just keep your cool. Once you have passed successfully, the screen will transfer to the person with the Quaffle. If you pass correctly, one of the circles at the bottom will fill with green. If you pass while a ring is yellow, one of the circles will fill with yellow. If you totally miss and a Chaser has to fly out to fetch the Quaffle, the circle turns red. Note that you have two minutes to make ten passes, which is more than enough time. Once you finish, another menu shows up with your stats, such as time, time penalties, if you've beaten any records (team, house, and school records are beatable), and gives you the option to save and continue, replay the Challenge, or just continue without saving. Let's do 'save and continue.' You're brought to another red screen, 'Choose a Save.' Select an empty slot of your choice. There's a nice magic *snazz* and your first card shows up, showing you the Hufflepuff Chasers! Then, you're given the option to go to your Inventory, and Harry gives you the lowdown on how to use that. Look at your card collection if you'd like (which only has three cards at the most so far), and then continue. The next Challenge is Tackle and Shoot with another Chaser. Select it (notice again that you have two minutes to complete the Challenge, a piece of cake since you only have to tackle and shoot three times). Read the directions and press ENTER. You'll be matched up against the either 'resident Quidditch expert' or 'that annoying ghost' Edgar Cloggs. The first thing to do is to tackle him, using the # pad 5 (I will refer to this key now on as the action key). He'll just be flying willy-nilly in circles, so that may be slightly difficult. Anyway, to tackle effectively, you can either swoop into the opposing Chaser and press the action key midway or get directly behind the opposing Chaser and press the action key while flying towards him or her. I prefer the nice swoop. While playing, realize that when playing in an actual match, your flyer will always have a yellow star under him or her and the opposing Chaser will have a blue star. Once the Quaffle is yours, head towards the goalposts. Edgar will be flying ahead of you to prepare to defend them. A good strategy that almost always works is to head towards one side, misleading the Keeper. Then swerve once you reach the goalposts to the other side and shoot. After you've tackled and shot three times, the stats screen. We'll continue. The next and final Challenge before your first match is catching the Snitch. This is the second easiest Challenge. Your Seeker will tell you that a Golden Snidget has escaped from a Snidget Reservation and that since he or she is a Seeker, he or she has been asked to catch it. Madam Hooch will help a bit. You start out behind her and she asks you to follow her trail to get boost. Notice the boost meter on the left of the screen that shows you how much boost you have. Follow her trail as close as you can using the LEFT AND RIGHT ARROW KEYS and when you have enough boost, she'll fly off, leaving you to catch the Snidget. Here comes the fun part. Press the UP ARROW KEY and the action key simultaneously to shoot forward. The UP ARROW KEY is to lean forward and the action key is to use your boost. Along with the LEFT AND RIGHT ARROW KEYS and following the Snidget as best as you can, you'll catch up to it in no time. Once you're close enough, your Seeker's hand will stretch out, giving you the oppurtunity to press # pad 6 to catch it. Yay! This is a good place to save your progress, as you have a match coming up. When something about over- writing comes up, just select yes. Now, once you're at the screen with options to go the Challenges, play a match against Ravenclaw (Chang), have a practice match (Hooch), play against Hufflepuff (Diggory), or Slytherin (Malfoy), it's also a good idea to check out what you need to do to get your Team Special Move. A Team Special Move allows your team to beat back the opposing team's Snitch bar (I'll explain later) with a really cool move during the match. To do so, press TAB to go to your Inventory. Select View Cards, Gryffindor, and scroll along the cards until you get to a blank one entitled 'Team Special Move.' It'll tell you what you need to accomplish during a match (you don't have to do everything in one match) to enable your Team Special Move. Read what it says, keep it in mind, and press BACKSPACE until you get to the former screen with options for playing against all the houses. You'll only be able to access Challenges, a match against Ravenclaw, and a Practice Match. A Practice Match isn't required, but it is good for - well, practice. Let's just have a match against Ravenclaw. You get to another red screen, like in the Challenges, when you were told the directions while it was loading. But this time, it'll just show the default controls and it WON'T give you the opportunity to press ENTER when you're ready. So, when it starts, you can press ESC to pause it. Here's a chance to show you the Pause menu. The first option says 'Continue,' and that will continue the game from where you paused it. The second says 'Force Feedback,' OFF or ON. I can only assume from experience that this means, for example, when you slug a Bludger at an opposing Chaser and hit him or her, they'll respond with a Bludger themselves. If you want challenge, you can turn it on. The last option says 'Quit Game.' Don't pick that one. Even though it'll ask you if you're sure, your progress in the current game won't be saved. It won't exit you out of the whole game completely, but just to the main menu. All right. Ready? Continue. A nice pre-game clip, showing the teams flying out of the locker rooms and showing off before facing off. Then all of the players will gather in a circle around Madam Hooch, who has the Quaffle. Once she throws it up, the game begins, a method you're familiar with from the books. Here's where we get down and dirty. If you're aiming to making a quick first goal, press the RIGHT ARROW KEY once the Quaffle starts falling a little to gain possession. If you do it too fast, your player will go shooting away. Then, quick turn and pass. You'll get used to passing. Pass as many times as possible before entering the shooting area. It's hard to pass there because all of the players are swarming around you now and there's a larger chance of interception. Anyway, shoot! If you're more concerned about having more boost when you're catching the Snitch, let the other team catch the Quaffle at the toss-up (there will be only one toss-up in every game). Let them fly towards your goal until they're uncomfortably close, and then tackle their Chaser. It should be easy. Then, pass frantically and shoot once you're in the area. After you make the shot, there will probably be a little clip with your Chaser celebrating his or her shot. Then, back to business. After the clip, when the other team's Keeper is preparing to pass, take the time to notice the top of the screen. On the left top corner is your team's score, which should be '010' granted you did everything correctly. And the right top corner should be '000.' Hee hee. And now look at the general top. See the halves of what appear to be a Snitch? Yep, that's the Snitch bar. The whole point of the game is to fill up YOUR Snitch bar as much as possible and to make the two halves meet. Once they do, that means it's Snitch-catching time. Another thing is to try and have your bar longer than the other team's because it becomes your boost bar. The only way to fill up your Snitch bar is to pass, pass, pass. In future matches, you'll have to use Combos to fill up your Snitch bar, but not now. Keep in mind throughout the whole game which tack you're going to take. It's either passing lots, scoring little, or passing little, scoring lots. They're both successful. If you pass a lot, you'll have a longer Snitch bar and don't have to worry about the other team getting the Snitch. If you score a lot, you don't have to worry about losing because the other team got the Snitch. I personally go with passing little, scoring lots. Why? Simply because in the end, points are the only things that matter. And if you're skilled enough at catching the Snitch, you can get that, too. Passing a lot has its downsides because if you're not skilled enough at passing, the other team intercepts your passes often, giving them a gain in their Snitch bar. After five minutes of play, the Snitch bar should be all full. Once it's full, the screen freezes where it's at, you lose control of your players, and the now whole Snitch breaks free and flits around the screen. Get ready to catch the Snitch! It's just like the Snitch challenge, except you're dealing with a real Snitch (which isn't different at all from the Snidget except it lacks feathers) and an opponent. Take another look at the Seeker controls. # pad 4 to barge is a good tool for slowing down the other team's Seeker. Sometimes it gets ugly. ^.^ You can also roll using # pad 8, but it doesn't really seem to have any purpose. You've just completed your first match! Another movie clip, showing your heroic capture of the Snitch (much to the chagrin of the other Seeker) and the celebration of your team. A weird thing, though, is that the Keepers shake hands at the end of the game, not the Captains. Anyway, even you lost, you can still replay the game. If you won, congratulations! No more innocent little newbie. Time to crack down on the training. Now that you've saved the game (that's a hint that you should), you go straight back to the Challenges. The hardest Challenge of all is up - Beaters and Bludgers. In an actual match, it's really the easiest thing to do to deal with the Bludger, but it's really hard in the Challenge. You have your Chaser with your Beaters on each side. It's your job to fly around the area looking for targets. That's the easy part, I'm afraid. Then, once the word "Bludger" flashes on your screen and you're fairly close to the *moving* target, hit # pad 4. A Bludger will be released and you need to guide it with your ARROW KEYS to hit the target. Once you have, you need to evade the returning Bludger and have your Beaters hit it away, which is the hardest part. Do this five times. For strategies, see HELP. Okie doke, on with the show. Next up - Dodging and Special Move Tackles. Here, we rejoin our 'ghostly friend,' Edgar Cloggs. You need to use a Special Move Tackle to relieve Edgar of his red leather burden, use Dodge to avoid him while heading towards the goalposts, and shoot. Once again, he flies willy-nilly and in circles. Notice that while flying, the words 'Special Move' will flash on your screen and an image of a goalpost will appear under your score. That means that you are able to use a Special Move (not a Team Special). When 'Dodge' flashes, an image of a spiffy broom tail appears. These images will always be in the same places for your convenience. You get them by doing Combos (again, that's later in the game). The specific amount of Combos for each needed is unknown (to me), but I know that at least three Combos earns a Dodge. Okay, back to the Special Move Tackle. You need to be really close to the opponent to set a Special Move. Press # pad 6 to activate and a grey swirlie appears. If you need to, guide it with your ARROW KEYS. If the opposing Chaser was too far away, the swirlie will turn pinkish red and you've lost the Special Move. Yep, it's a bit tricky. Well, if you did manage one, you'll gain possession with a fancy move. Then, use your often-occurring Dodge to avoid your opponent from tackling you. Now you can shoot. Note that in this Challenge, if you just use tackle to get the Quaffle, Edgar is more likely to use a Special Move tackle on you and, even though your circle is green (for the goal is accomplished), you get twenty penalty seconds added to your time. Huzzah! You've unlocked your second match. You get taken back to the screen entitled 'Quidditch Cup' with all those options. It tells you that you can now make Special Move Shots as well by pressing BEATER + SHOOT, or # pad 4 + # pad 6. It's a little hard because you have to press them both exactly at the same time, so you might have to jab your keyboard and suffer the embarrassment of people staring at you. Time for the second match. Be aware that the Team Special Move is activated by the ENTER button, that is, if you've unlocked it. If you have, then when your Snitch bar is halfway filled, an image with three goalposts will appear under your score allowing you to use it. Now, this match is against Hufflepuff. It gets a little tougher because the opponent actually passes the Quaffle. But it shouldn't be much of a problem. In this game, you have the oppurtunity to take the Quaffle with a Special Move Tackle, shoot with a Special Move Shot, send a Bludger in vengeance (since it's quite different sending a Bludger in a match, see HELP.), and Dodge. You will also be able to use your Team Special Move if you previously unlocked it. Like I said before, the Team Special is extremely useful because it beats the opposing team's Snitch bar down quite a bit (for tips to make it even more useful, see HELP.) After winning, you only have one Challenge left, and it's the funnest and easiest - Combos. You're Keeper claims that it's hard, but honestly, don't believe him. You start at the middle of the pitch and have three shots to fill up the Snitch bar completely. Use the action key and one or both of the Combo buttons (# pad 7 and 9) to pass. Hold both the action and Combo key down for power and let go after aiming it. Simple. Just continuously pass. The Keeper'll be tough on you, so shape up your scoring skills or look at my methods in the HELP section. To score a Combo shot, carry it out as you normally would, except just add the # pad 7 button. It's also a good idea, when passing, to correspond the Combo button you're using with the direction you're passing it to (# pad 7 for left, # pad 9 for right). Finally, you've unlocked the final Hogwarts Quidditch Cup match. On the Quidditch Cup screen, it tells you that you can use the Combo buttons while dodging (see CONTROLS), shooting, and passing for a big advantage. Couldn't have said it better myself. Select Draco Malfoy to play the final match. This match will definitely be the most difficult of all the matches at Hogwarts, but only because they pass the ball and tackle the player more, so you need to tackle effectively and pass often. Because it's a rough world out there in the World Cup and you need to be prepared. You really don't need a walkthrough for this match, do you, because you already know how to play. But a tip: Rely on passing and Combos, not scoring, because if they get a chance to use their Team Special, it'll really hurt your chances of winning. If you lose the match, as long as you have the most points, you'll still be able to go to the World Cup, but you should do a re-match just for the cards. After the win, your team flies down the ground and Professor Dumbledore and all the other professors present you with the Cup. And, as a surprise to your Seeker and his/her Captain/Keeper, he awards you two shiny tickets to this year's Quidditch World Cup. ---------- 3. WORLD CUP Good job, you've made it to the international level! You'll advance to a screen labeled 'World Cup.' This is where you can choose from eight teams (Bulgaria is available only if you have 65 Quidditch cards). England, USA, Japan, Germany, France, Australia, the Nordic Team, and Spain are represented by their Seekers. Choose England (to win all of the Quidditch cards, you must have played with all the teams and won, so we're doing this in order). Once you've selected England, the Seeker will tell you what a great choice you've made and all, and you'll get to the next screen where you pick one out of four broomsticks. The Comet 260, Nimbus 2000 (15 cards), Nimbus 2001 (35 cards), and Firebolt (50 cards) are choices. Pick the Comet 260 (you also have to have played with all the brooms and won, so we're starting here as well). You advance to the next screen, labeled 'Fixture List.' This is just a lineup of the matches in whatever game you're playing next. Your team will have a little red shield next to it. Continue. Okay, you're all on your own. After you've won (hint, hint), there is a screen with results from all the matches; scores. Take a look at that, then continue to the League Standings screen! From here you see who is at the top of the league (you should be at least first or second), exit the World Cup, continue, or look at your cards. You might want to look at your cards to see what you need to do to earn your Team Special Move. Just select the "World Cup" card, your team, and the TSM card is the third on the right. Scroll up and down to see the requirements. Next game, and then so on. -Time lapse in which reader wins all games up to final match, which is almost always Bulgaria (there are 18 matches in all)- Note: You will be required to skip two matches, 6 and 13, I believe, so every team plays the same number of matches. By now, you should have your Team Special Move and be comfortable with your team. If you've got 65 cards and unlocked Bulgaria, it's possible to have a practice match against them using the 'Exhibition Match' option on the main menu. But you probably don't (in fact, it's impossible to have that many, I think). But anyway, Bulgaria's not that hard, but their stadium is, like, pitch-dark so it'll be hard to play. But their uniforms are bright red so you'll be able to tell the difference between their and your players. Yay, you've won the Quidditch World Cup! Once you win, it tells you that you've unlocked Queerditch Marsh. Any Quidditch fan knows that Queerditch Marsh was where Quidditch was first invented. It's a marsh with quaint music playing the whole time. You can only play with Hogwarts House teams there, but the matches are really hard. You'll be surprised. For your next team, choose the USA and the Nimbus 2000. Once you win that, choose Japan and the Nimbus 2001. Then Germany and the Firebolt. After that, the only teams left to guide through the Cup are France, Australia, Spain, the Nordic Team, and Bulgaria. Once you've played with all those teams, if you don't have all the cards, go back and see what you're missing. 104 cards in all. You don't get anything special for getting all the cards, so that's a little disappointing. But you've finished the game! Hurrah! -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ===================== F. TEAMS AND SPECIALS ===================== ---------- 1. HOGWARTS --Gryffindor -A good choice because their Chasers are great for quick passing. Good Seeker, I'd say. -Their Team Special, the Weasley Wangler, might be impressive, but it's not very useful owing to the fact that only one goal is scored. --Slytherin -Not one of my favorites. Passing is so hard to do. Once you have the Quaffle, the other two Chasers fly behind you just long enough for you to lose your string of Combos and you have you start all over again. See section J. if you need help. But really, every other aspect of the team is perfect. -Their Team Special Move is satisfyingly brutal. Scores two goals. --Hufflepuff -This team is great because the Chasers are so accurate. The reason is because they're always evenly spaced from each other. -The Team Special isn't bad. Two goals and some nice show of strength. --Ravenclaw -The best choice for someone looking for nothing but success. Their Chaser formation isn't very good, but they're super dependable. This team passes the quickest and is good at intercepting passes. -The Team Special Move is unstoppable. It has everything a Quidditch fan loves: thrill, violence, and cool tricks. Plus, it scores THREE goals! That's the most out of all the teams, Hogwarts and International. ---------- 2. INTERNATIONAL --England -Not very special since it's a "beginner's team." The Team Special is rather average; after a whole lot of grandiose passing and flying, they draw out the shot dramatically. Yes, *the* shot; there's only one. --United States -Another beginner's team. The Team Special Move employs sharp basketball moves and some flying around before scoring two goals. The first goal has a player doing an interesting upside down move, but it could be more impressive. The second shot is pretty simple. --Japan -An above average team. Easy to pass. But the Team Special Move is the real killer, with two amazing goals. It's the most impressive TSM; Spain's is a close second. There is a lot of twirling and a great show of dexterity. --Germany -My personal favorite, for some reason. They're just really easy and fun to play, especially on the higher level brooms. Germany must be a soccer nation because they show off quite a few skills in the Team Special (which has two goals). A big kick, super-fast flying, goalie-like lunge, and a headbutt. Nice... --France -The majority of this team are women, but don't let that stop you (if you're playing as them) or get you cocky (if you're playing against them). They're an excellent team, point-blank. Against them, they'll pass a lot, and as them... they're just easy to play. The TSM has even more twirling and spinning than Japan's and it's awesome. Too bad it only gets you one goal. --Australia -Their talent may be hidden behind their rough outlandish garb, but it's still quite a good team that fares well with quick, solid passing. Water is the main theme in the TSM. They fly in a laid-back, wavy, and criss-crossy style with water trailing behind the brooms. Two goals are made volleyball style. --The Nordic Team -This team possesses great tackling skills, almost nothing in scoring, and a surprisingly strong defense. But it's still as easy as pie to win over them. If you're playing as them, use good strong passes and shots. They have a lot of potential strength. Like Australia, the Nordic Team has a main theme for their TSM: ice. They fly in loops to surprise and confuse their opponents and then, while everyone's busy, score two goals (nothing fancy). --Spain -As Spain, you'll enjoy playing them. It's my second favorite team because they're very strong, clear, clean, and they possess a sort of elegance that the beginner teams lack, though the play is similar. Their TSM shows those characteristics off very well; however, it only scores a single goal. As an opponent, Spain's actions are very confident, yet sneaky. They leave you a bit dizzy from following them around so much. They pass frequently, but not too much. Intermediate players could probably crack them. --Bulgaria -If you're playing as Bulgaria, you'd better be experienced. Their Chaser formation is odd; the Chasers move around a lot to encourage passes that confuse the opponent, so one moment Dimitrov's there, the next, he's on the other side of you! Their Team Special is supposedly the Wronski Feint, except Krum actually shoves the other Seeker out of the way into her fellow Chasers, leaving Chaser Levski to score an extremely quick goal. If you're playing against Bulgaria, prepare to grind your arrow keys down; those Chasers move around a lot and their teamwork is unmatched. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ========================================================== G. BROOMSTICKS (or skill levels, descriptions from manual) ========================================================== --Comet 260 -The Comet Trading Company's finest racing broom. Although starting to show its age, the Comet 260 is an extremely versatile model and a great first broom for the club Quidditch player. --Nimbus 2000* - requires fifteen Quidditch cards -One of the Nimbus Racing Broom Company's most successful models. A highly reliable broom with a great turn of speed and exceptional handling. This broom is not for beginners! --Nimbus 2001 - requires thirty-five Quidditch cards -The top of the Nimbus Racing Broom Company's range. Capable of previously unseen speed and control, the Nimbus 2001 is a world-class broom. Only experienced players need apply! --Firebolt - requires fifty Quidditch cards -A state-of-the-art racing broom. Each component has been honed to aerodynamic perfection, giving the Firebolt unsurpassable balance, pinpoint percision, and an awesome turn-of-speed. *Recommended -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ======= H. HELP ======= --No matter what I do, I can't get the school record for catching the Snitch. Help me? A frequent problem. Just make sure you're using the controls correctly. Maybe you're forgetting to press the UP ARROW KEY to lean forward. --Why can't I launch a Bludger in the Challenge? Again, another control problem, no doubt. You should be using the number pad, not the numbers on the top. The # pad and ARROW KEYS are the best choice for playing this game. Control the ARROW KEYS with your left hand and the # pad with your right. Works for both left and right handers. --Strategies for the Beaters and Bludgers Challenge Let's do this step by step. First, map out which targets you're going to get first. Start with the one on the right when you start. Then, turn left to the one by the lake. Then, go back to the one by the clump of trees. Next, do the one a little northwest of that, and then the last one. The next step is to have a good strategy for hitting the target. Don't forget your little DOWN ARROW KEY, it's just as important as the others. If your Bludger is making too wide turns, slim them down by pressing DOWN. That should fix it. Now for evading it. Sometimes, you can fly straight towards it and your Beaters will get rid of it. Or, you can fly towards it, and then double back and use the DOWN ARROW KEYS and the LEFT AND RIGHT ARROW KEYS like a madman... That works a lot. --Tips for Bludgers in a match It's really quite easy to handle Bludgers in an actual match. When you're sending one, simply press the DOWN ARROW KEY and the Bludger will go straight towards the target. Don't do anything fancy. Evading it is more fun. Keep flying, but once the Bludger starts going for you, turn left and then quickly go forward toward the right. Or vice versa for left-handers. --Methods for Shooting -My favorite way - fly to one side of the scoring area and use Dodge to quickly get to the other side and shoot while flying past. Stylish and quick. -Fly to one side of the scoring area, slowly fly towards other side, and shoot in the middle hoop. -Fly straight in the middle of the scoring area and shoot in one of the side hoops, preferably the shorter of the two. Most easily attempted at Hogwarts and on a Comet 260, since the opposing team doesn't tackle you very quickly. --Ways to use a Team Special Move (kind of a CHEAT) -The most common way is to activate it while in possession of the Quaffle. However, although the opponent's Snitch bar drops down, you get no advance. You can get an advance by passing a lot and getting a high Combo #, and then shooting. Then, just as it shows the Quaffle entering the hoop in the clip, you can activate the Team Special and the shots you make in the Team Special will add to your Snitch bar like a regular shot. --Can you give me some advice on how to pass without breaking a string of Combos with the Slytherin team? -Yep, the 'flying behind' thing can get annoying. But here's a little trick. After having caught a freshly passed Quaffle, veer to the right while building up power with the action key. Then, pass to the left by letting go and hitting the LEFT ARROW KEY at the same time. There should be no UP ARROW KEY involved; your players will still advance up the field. Vice versa for you left-handers.