Charming

Hey guys!

So I know that I've mentioned this a couple of times in CBox, but I just wanted to really get it down somewhere so other people can reference, and I wanted to broaden my question.

I know recently I've asked if patronuses (patroni?) could be things like, say, a dinosaur or any such creature. And, since animagus forms are typically linked to the patronus, what that means for a potential animagus.

Broadening that question, what are the actual limitations (at least, on site) for what a patronus could be? I know a really big and weird animagi probably wouldn't want to change forms too much, but this could effect them as well.

Can a patronus be a magical creature, or does it have to be mundane (having a dragon for a patronus certainly would be amusing, but probably not a practical animagi form if you live in London or Hogsmeade, or Irvingly for that matter)?

Can a patronus be an extinct species? While dinosaurs are really weird, they were an animal. I get why I'm pretty sure a staff member told me no for dino, cause it would be a bit out there.

That leads to my last question, does someone have to know what the animal is in order for it to be their animagus form? Or could someone who doesn't know what a hippopotamus is be totally freaked out by one appearing in front of them?

Thank you for coming to my meeting of 'Kelly Overthinks Everything'.

I'd limit both to existing non-magical creatures, personally! That's what I do in DADA at least.

Regardless of patronus, your animagus form cannot be a magical creature!

In canon you can have a magical creature as a patronus (Dumbledore had a dragon I believe) but it's very rare. I don't think animagi can be magical creatures there's certainly no canon precedent for it.

As to dinosaurs my gut instinct feels like it'd be silly but logically they are animals... When I was looking into animagus stuff for Tig it seemed that your animagus form was like your inner animal and would be a creature native to the country of your background but I would have to think that's a spiritual thing since countries are changeable and artificial. So I'd say if you have a character who was born in Australia but raised in the UK and considers the UK home they probably wouldn't get a platypus animagus form but some European animal.

I don't think a character would have to know what their animal is to become it since you don't choose the animal and if you don't know many and none fit your personality then it'd be silly.

I'm going to hijack Kelly's thread with an unrelated patronus question if that's cool. There's been speculation over whether patroni are always the same size as they are in RL or if they might be larger (like think a hummingbird or something). Do we have any site canon around that?

Related, can you patronus be more than one animal, like a flock of small birds? Or just one thing?

(April 6, 2020 – 3:50 PM)Ophelia Devine Wrote: [ -> ]Related, can you patronus be more than one animal, like a flock of small birds? Or just one thing?

Didn't Mcgonagall have three cats as a patronus during the battle of Hogwarts?

Given that your patronus (and to an extent your animagus form) are manifestations of your personality it would make sense that both forms could only be things you know exist.

Patronus can change so could feasibly turn into a dinosaur if you read a book on them or something if you learn about them, but I'd doubt someone who doesn't know what a dinosaur is would have a dino as a patronus. Espeically since a lot of what Victorians knew about dinos has turned out to be wrong
eg....

this is a victorian image of the elasmosaurus with the head on the wrong end....

What Victorians thoughts Megalosaurus looked like

What we now think it looked like


The same with foreign animals - if you've never heard of a kangaroo, goblin shark, or some other exotic animal your subconsious probably won't manifest as it. You'd need an image for your brain to copy.

(April 6, 2020 – 3:56 PM)Ginevra Blackwood Wrote: [ -> ]Given that your patronus (and to an extent your animagus form) are manifestations of your personality it would make sense that both forms could only be things you know exist. 

Patronus can change so could feasibly turn into a dinosaur if you read a book on them or something if you learn about them, but I'd doubt someone who doesn't know what a dinosaur is would have a dino as a patronus.  Espeically since a lot of what Victorians knew about dinos has turned out to be wrong
eg....

this is a victorian image of the elasmosaurus with the head on the wrong end....

What Victorians thoughts Megalosaurus looked like

What we now think it looked like


The same with foreign animals - if you've never heard of a kangaroo, goblin shark, or some other exotic animal your subconsious probably won't manifest as it.  You'd need an image for your brain to copy.

I’ve not followed this when assigning patroni in threads!

It's not a choice though, at least I've never seen it as something that stems from a person's knowledge (subconscious or otherwise) but the magic "reading" them as a person and producing the appropriate result.

I'd suggest, on magical patroni, that a person can use an against the odds card if they want their character to have, say, a phoenix as a patronus form? (I believe Dumbledore's patronus was a phoenix) Or idk, trust that people won't give their average 16-year-old character a pegasus patronus. The earth has many interesting animals, you guys! xD

As for animagus forms, I now have a philosophical question and it is, if they can turn into extinct animals, does that mean that they can turn into animals that don't exist now, but will in 200 years because of evolution? xD Because magic doesn't follow the rules of linear time?

Idk, I'd personally say that the earth has many weird animals, why do we have to go with a dinosaur? Australia alone probably has a bunch of weird animals to pick from. You can be a special snowflake as a hummingbird bat or a thorny devil

(April 6, 2020 – 5:42 PM)Ruby Urquart Wrote: [ -> ]why do we have to go with a dinosaur?

Mainly because I'm obsessed with Jurassic Park, but I was really just using dinos as an example of extinct species.

(April 6, 2020 – 5:42 PM)Ruby Urquart Wrote: [ -> ]I'd suggest, on magical patroni, that a person can use an against the odds card if they want their character to have, say, a phoenix as a patronus form? (I believe Dumbledore's patronus was a phoenix) Or idk, trust that people won't give their average 16-year-old character a pegasus patronus. The earth has many interesting animals, you guys! xD

I dig this.

(April 6, 2020 – 5:42 PM)Ruby Urquart Wrote: [ -> ]As for animagus forms, I now have a philosophical question and it is, if they can turn into extinct animals, does that mean that they can turn into animals that don't exist now, but will in 200 years because of evolution? xD Because magic doesn't follow the rules of linear time?

That is a question I would love to have answered! (just out of noseiness)

No to not-yet-existing animals, thank you!