A possible moment from the Ministry Battle...

[DaemeonX]

 Activate interlocks! Dyna-therms connected. Infra-cells up; mega-thrusters are go!
This show, formed my childhood

[Skyfire2020]

Some of the "spells" from Visionaries http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visionarie ... ical_Light seem useful.

I could see Hermione using the Knowledge Spell - "A whim, a thought, and more is sought. Awake my mind; thy will be wrought" (from memory the Knowledge spirit would tell you specific facts whilst Wisdom would tell you an idea or strategy).
Invulnerability is always useful - "The arrows turn, the swords rebel; let nothing pierce this mortal shell!" and I'm sure the rest of the chants could be used in some form. Even the darkest ones don't seem to be in the unforgivable category.

I'm not sure whether there is enough of a chant to use them but the bravestarr powers (Eyes of the hawk, Ears of the Wolf, Strength of the Bear, Speed of the Puma) could come in handy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BraveStarr.

The rest of my childhood is either super-tech or superhero and I doubt the various Power Ranger transformation phrases count.

[classicdrogn]

"The warrior and the weapon are one! Speak the words and it shall be done! ULTRAMAN!" That's from a fanfic, though, as far as I can tell the various versions of Ultraman just use a kiai if any vocalizaton when they transform. I've always loved that one, though, even if I don't recall being to hot on the fic (and hence not remembering in more detail.)

Also, I kind of hate that lightsaber/death star thing. Particularly for Potterverse, since all you have to do to power up nearly anyone is scour off some of the stupid and/or incompetence. Even Hermione succumbs to being a Potterverse mage at times.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

[Jorlem]

Also not a fan of the lightsaber/Death Star thing. (I believe it was the guy who wrote HP and the Methods of Rationality who said it, but I could be wrong.) I much prefer "If you give Frodo a lightsaber, you have to have Sauron react appropriately". Makes for a much better story, I think.
-----
Stand between the Silver Crystal and the Golden Sea.
"Youngsters these days just have no appreciation for the magnificence of the legendary cucumber."  --Krityan Elder, Tales of Vesperia.

[Labster]

I'm not so much a fan of the lightsaber/Death Star thing, other than the fact that's it's essential for good storytelling. See Boring Invincible Hero and God Mode Sue for why.

Particularly for Potterverse, since all you have to do to power up nearly anyone is scour off some of the stupid and/or incompetence. Even Hermione succumbs to being a Potterverse mage at times.

This, more than anything, is why I'm looking forward to Drunkard's Walk S.
-- ∇×V

[Bluemage]

The problem people fall into with the lightsaber/Death Star concept is best seen in crossovers.  Consider, if you will, a hypothetical Potter/Naruto fic.  The good guys learn ninjutsu, so how does Bad Author balance this?  Why, by having Orochimaru show up, of course!  Now both sides have ninjutsu, so everybody's back where it started... and you basically have an HP fic alongside a Naruto fic.  Blech.
Good Author would simply up Voldy's game; have him invent/rediscover some new spells, summon some demons, power up his minions with dark rituals... basically have him do all the things that fic-HP magic supposedly can do that canon-HP magic doesn't.  This way, the conflict stays asymmetrical, which adds more flavor to it, without becoming unbalanced.

---

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.

I've been writing a bit.

[classicdrogn]

And you complain about me being a mind reader, Bluemage...
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

[Bob Schroeck]

vorticity wrote:

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This, more than anything, is why I'm looking forward to Drunkard's Walk S.

Heh. The very thing that convinced me to actually do DW-S something like ten years ago was the realization that I didn't need to change any enemy's power levels to balance out well-trained Senshi -- I just had to give the Senshi a reason to be proactive and invade the Dark Kingdom...
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

[Ebony]

Bluemage wrote:

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Good Author would simply up Voldy's game; have him invent/rediscover some new spells, summon some demons, power up his minions with dark rituals... basically have him do all the things that fic-HP magic supposedly can do that canon-HP magic doesn't.  This way, the conflict stays asymmetrical, which adds more flavor to it, without becoming unbalanced.

"I say, Malfoy," Voldemort said, looking up from the well-thumbed paperback he'd acquired from the bookstore they'd ransacked, "have you read this Lovecraft fellow? Interesting stuff, this." He turned back to the page, smiling to himself. "Verrrry interesting, indeed...."  
Ebony the Black Dragon
http://ebony14.livejournal.com

"Good night, and may the Good Lord take a Viking to you."

[classicdrogn]

Fund it!
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

[Bluemage]

Ebony wrote:

---

"I say, Malfoy," Voldemort said, looking up from the well-thumbed paperback he'd acquired from the bookstore they'd ransacked, "have you read this Lovecraft fellow? Interesting stuff, this." He turned back to the page, smiling to himself. "Verrrry interesting, indeed...." 

...did anybody notice that "Cthulhu ftaghn" has the same syllabic structure as "avada kedavra", and therefore the same potential for being spat hatefully from behind a wand?
It's like it was meant to be. :3

---

My Unitarian Jihad Name is: Brother Atom Bomb of Courteous Debate. Get yours.

I've been writing a bit.

[robkelk]

...did anybody notice that "Cthulhu ftaghn" has the same syllabic structure as "avada kedavra", and therefore the same potential for being spat hatefully from behind a wand?

It's like it was meant to be. :3

Wasn't one of those the name of a song from The Lion King? Better check for power songs for Doug...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

[Foxboy]

''We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat
them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.''

-- James Nicoll

[Disruptor]

Jorlem wrote:

---

Also not a fan of the lightsaber/Death Star thing. (I believe it was the guy who wrote HP and the Methods of Rationality who said it, but I could be wrong.) I much prefer "If you give Frodo a lightsaber, you have to have Sauron react appropriately". Makes for a much better story, I think.

   Actually, the supidity has a canon source and has been ignored by EVERYONE so far.  Pewter Cauldrons.  Pewter is an alloy metal.  The secondary metal in pewter is tin or zinc, but the primary element in pewter is LEAD.  All the Potterverse mages are suffering from lead poisoning.  Lead poisioning causes stupidty and dementia.
--------------------
Tom Mathews aka Disruptor

[classicdrogn]

... dude. That's as much an obvious "d'oh" in hindsight as Quidditch effectively being ritual magic to entertain and occupy idle thoughts. Heck, their plumbing may actually be plumbium (modern name: lead) given the general lag in social and technological development.
--
"Anko, what you do in your free time is your own choice. Use it wisely. And if you do not use it wisely, make sure you thoroughly enjoy whatever unwise thing you are doing." - HymnOfRagnorok as Orochimaru at SpaceBattles
woot Med. Eng., verb, 1st & 3rd pers. prsnt. sg. know, knows

[Proginoskes]

ShinDangaioh
wrote:

---

Jorlem wrote:

---

Also not a fan of the lightsaber/Death Star thing. (I believe it was the
guy who wrote HP and the Methods of Rationality who said it, but I
could be wrong.) I much prefer "If you give Frodo a lightsaber, you have
to have Sauron react appropriately". Makes for a much better story, I
think.

  
Actually, the stupidity has a canon source and has been ignored by
EVERYONE so far.  Pewter Cauldrons.  Pewter is an
alloy metal.  The secondary metal in pewter is tin or zinc, but
the primary element in pewter is LEAD.  All the Potterverse
mages are suffering from lead poisoning.  Lead poisoning causes
stupidity and dementia.

I know that it's
really late and petty to be correcting you after so long, but I went and
looked it up.
Turns out that pewter's primary constituent is always tin,
never lead. Assuming the Wizarding World's state of
metallurgy is comparable to that of 15th-century Muggles, the pewter of
the cauldrons should be at most 4% lead (trifling metal), more likely no
lead at all (fine metal). Even if wizards took complete leave of their
senses and used ley metal, that's 15% lead. Granted, cooking something you intend to eat or drink in a vessel made of ley metal is a good way to get lead
poisoning, but the idea that pewter has a lead content of 50% or more
is bogus.
Metallurgical facts aside, "all the Potterverse mages are suffering from X, and X causes stupidity and dementia" is simply a better-justified version of "all the Potterverse mages are stupid", which Bob has already said he's going to avoid using.

[Black Aeronaut]

Proginoskes wrote:

---

ShinDangaioh
wrote:

---

Jorlem wrote:

---

Also not a fan of the lightsaber/Death Star thing. (I believe it was the
guy who wrote HP and the Methods of Rationality who said it, but I
could be wrong.) I much prefer "If you give Frodo a lightsaber, you have
to have Sauron react appropriately". Makes for a much better story, I
think.

Actually, the stupidity has a canon source and has been ignored by
EVERYONE so far.  Pewter Cauldrons.  Pewter is an
alloy metal.  The secondary metal in pewter is tin or zinc, but
the primary element in pewter is LEAD.  All the Potterverse
mages are suffering from lead poisoning.  Lead poisoning causes
stupidity and dementia.

I know that it's
really late and petty to be correcting you after so long, but I went and
looked it up.
Turns out that pewter's primary constituent is always tin,
never lead. Assuming the Wizarding World's state of
metallurgy is comparable to that of 15th-century Muggles, the pewter of
the cauldrons should be at most 4% lead (trifling metal), more likely no
lead at all (fine metal). Even if wizards took complete leave of their
senses and used ley metal, that's 15% lead. Granted, cooking something you intend to eat or drink in a vessel made of ley metal is a good way to get lead
poisoning, but the idea that pewter has a lead content of 50% or more
is bogus.
Metallurgical facts aside, "all the Potterverse mages are suffering from X, and X causes stupidity and dementia" is simply a better-justified version of "all the Potterverse mages are stupid", which Bob has already said he's going to avoid using.

If anything, I like to look at the Potter-verse as taking the Dilbert Principle to its logical conclusion, where the Ministry's middle management has become so saturated with incompetents that they have inevitably made it into actual positions of power.
...Of course, it could always be Negative Selection.

[Rod.H]

A female voice momentarily rose over the din of the battle:
"...kingly hauntings I confer! Hastur! Hastur! Hastur!"

Fixed that for you.

"... fuzzy mammal I do call! Hamster! Hamster! Hamster!"

Just now I'm picturing Richard Hammond powersliding something exotic through the MoM or

[Ebony]

Rod H wrote:

---

robkelk wrote:

---

vorticity wrote:

---

Fixed that for you.

"... fuzzy mammal I do call! Hamster! Hamster! Hamster!"

Just now I'm picturing Richard Hammond powersliding something exotic through the MoM or

"'S a lot of space in this Ministry."
"New wands are out early this year."
Ebony the Black Dragon
http://ebony14.livejournal.com

"Good night, and may the Good Lord take a Viking to you."

[Logan Darklighter]

Ebony wrote:

---

Rod H wrote:

---

robkelk wrote:

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"... fuzzy mammal I do call! Hamster! Hamster! Hamster!"

Just now I'm picturing Richard Hammond powersliding something exotic through the MoM or

"'S a lot of space in this Ministry."
"New wands are out early this year."

Oh well-played sir!  *golf-clap*