The Hunt for the Magical Quill (UPDATED)


To those who still haven’t been able to register for early access to Pottermore, let me consolidate what I know to help you get the magical quill. This is not definitive, or authorized, just based on observations from the past two days.


1) Timing is important. I’m not familiar with time zones, but here in Manila, they’ve been pretty close together. On Day 1 it was around 4 pm, while on Day 2 it was around 5 pm. I am not sure if they’re slowly moving around the clock by the hour, or if they’ll change it altogether for the following days. But being online precisely at the moment the clue is out helps, because there’s a window period of about an hour before the registration hits the limit.

On Day 3 it was 6 pm in Manila, so I’m hazarding a guess it will be 7 pm later for Day 4. 

2) Be sure to have a copy of the designated book in your hand, because it will help you answer the riddle. For instance, in Day 1, the riddle was the number of breeds of owls in the Eeylops signage x 49. Day 2, the chapter McGonagall cancels the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff match x 42. So we have a number-specific question from the book (but something you can probably not draw from memory) times a number in the 40s. Again, we do not know if it’s a pattern or if they’ll totally change the game later. What we do know is the questions will get easier after day 3. But then again, within the first five minutes, someone will have posted the link to the quill online, so if you want to save time, especially when you come in at the tail end when the slots are more than halfway filled, just google the link. The link will always be quill.pottermore/123, where 123 is the number that is the answer to the riddle.

In Day 3, the question was: In the Gryffindor versus Slytherin Quidditch match, in Harry’s third year, how many points is Gryffindor leading by before Harry catches the Golden Snitch? Multiply this number by 35.

3) Search the landing site. When you figure out the link, it will lead you to a landing site, which has not been the same. Day 1, the landing site was directly to the quill. Day 2, it was the Deathly Hallows 7.2  movie site. The quill is on the landing page. In Day 2’s case it was hidden as a thumbnail in the photo gallery. It’s a gold quill with a scarlet background.

On Day 3, landing site  was apparently The Guardian website!

Clicking on the quill (and you’ll see the congratulatory message seen above) will take you to the form that asks for your contact details. Fill it up all the way to the end, where it gives you your chosen username and email address where they’ll send your validation email. Day 1 took about 12 hours for the validation email to arrive. Day 2 it was almost right after “check your email” flashes onscreen.

4) Be very careful with validation. I closed the validation window by accident for my Day 1 validation and it got invalidated. Changing your password apparently also invalidates it. You will have to wait until the quill is back again to get a new username. After successful validation, you’ll get another congratulatory message on the site.



5) After the Magical Quill challenge is over, you will get a Welcome owl (email) to let you know you will be able to access the site.

So good luck with the Magical Quill! I will try to keep this page updated for the next 5 days of the challenge to help out MQ hunters.

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images screencapped from Pottermore. I do not claim to own the images.

16 thoughts on “The Hunt for the Magical Quill (UPDATED)”

  1. I remember it was posted on the Pottermore FAQ site that the questions will be posted from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., UK time. Just tack 7 hours, so expect the questions from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., Manila time.

    1. After I invalidated my first username (Phoenixfire) I waited with bated breath for Day 2.
      Hahaha. I’m PotionMoonstone15 :)

  2. Waited until 4.50 am (eastern timezone in the US) and finally went to bed only to wake up to find out it happened at 5am!! Seriously?? So I’m guessing 6am (50 minutes)? Fingers crossed!!

  3. Just another hint: the numbers that u multiply by r multiples of seven descending: 49 on day 1, 42 on day 2, 35 on day 3, etc.

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