In this strategy guide let’s walk through a Wizarding Challenge in the mid-Forest levels, about Forest 3-5, with a combination of three Aurors, one Professor, and one Magizoologist. We’re going to treat this like a bank robbery, in that we want to get the job done and use as few Potions as possible. We’re not in the dark levels here; this shouldn’t be too hard.
We’re going to do this in four stages: the setup, a little hit and run, the midgame getaway, then cruise away for the win.
In this configuration, we’ll have the most initial Focus to pass around as possible, and we want to use it all effectively, ideally without needing to drink many, if any, Invigoration Draughts. Some of the skills discussed below may or may not be available yet by the people in your team, so confirm which of the following applies for each teammate.
The Setup: Preparing for a Successful Wizarding Challenge
As the healer of the group, the Magizoologist is going to come first, and will typically need two things. First is a start of 5 Focus, to activate both Become the Beast and A Bird in Hand for a Power and Defence boost. It’s possible the Magizoolgist already has the 5 initial Focus for this, but if not, an Auror needs to pass a Focus first thing to get this activated.
The second thing a Magizoologist should get is the Protection Charm by the Professor. This will have a high cost of 3 Focus, and the most initial Focus a Professor can have is 4, so the Aurors should figure out who will help pass the Focus to get this active.
Now, while it might be nice to Protection Charm everyone, it simply isn’t viable without a high cost in Potions. With a 5-member team and a 3 Focus cost per charm, 15 focus is too much to charm everyone. The Professor should charm the Magizoologist because if your healer gets knocked out, then shortly the rest of the team will follow suit and the mission is at an end.
The only other person the Professor should use Protection Charm is herself, if she has passive abilities like Confidence and Strength in Numbers that boost her Defence and Power.
Proficiency Charm is also nice to have, but it’s highly expensive at 7 Focus. If your Professor has this developed to a high stage it may be worth it, but this is now a total of 13 Focus needed right at the beginning of the challenge. This is possible if everyone has maxed their initial Focus. The Professor and each Auror will have 4 Focus at the beginning, so 16 focus to use on charms and hexes. The Aurors can pass plenty of Focus to get these charms running and between them have three left over for their hexes, which is admittedly not a lot.
If lucky, the first foes your group faces may be all Common or Formidable, and fairly easy to beat, regaining precious Focus to get through the challenge. But it may go the other way, in which case the Proficiency Charm may need to be abandoned or delayed. Remember that charms last the entire challenge. For both Protection and Proficiency, you want them running as soon as possible.
So decide as a team how to spend the initial 16 Focus.
Do you want Proficiency Setup: 13 focus for charms, 3 for hexes? Or do you want more of a stronger Hex Setup: 6 focus for charms, 10 for hexes (every first foe can get both Weakness and Confusion Hex if necessary)?
Either the Professor or any Auror can drink a Strong Invigoration Draught to make an overall stronger setup, and if your team has taken on a more difficult level, this may be a wise decision.
Two spells generally not recommended to cast in the setup are the Professor’s Deterioration Hex, which is nice, but also 3 Focus, and in this early stage this is simply too expensive when the focus should be on the charms. The Professor’s hex will come into play later after a few initial foes are dealt with and extra Focus earned.
The other thing to avoid early is the Magizoologist’s Bravery Charm, as it drains too much Focus from the healer and removes Become the Beast. It is better not to engage Elite foes at first, leaving them for near the end of the challenge when more Focus has been earned. Then Bravery Charm can be case when only Elites are left and there is less chance of losing the Power buff of Become the Beast.
However, if the challenge starts you with multiple Elite foes straight off, the plan may have to be changed quickly. Even the best plan doesn’t… well, go according to plan. Be flexible to deal with what you’re given.
A Little Hit and Run: Strategy for Aurors
A neat ability many Aurors have is the combination of Dancing with Dummies and First Strike, where when facing a foe with 100% stamina, can get +35 precision and +50% Critical Power, making a devastating first blow. After passing Focus, each Auror with these skills should take one hit on foes meant for the Magizoologist and Professor, then immediately run (and not take damage), then engage a new foe they are proficient against for a normal battle. Whenever a battle is finished, an Auror should decide who needs to get hexed and who needs a hit and run.
The Midgame Getaway: Optimal Battle Strategies
In this mid-stage of battle, there’s a few important points to remember and a few decisions to make to make a clean getaway, that is, finish taking out your foes. Imagine this is the part of the robbery when the police are right after you. One wrong move and it’s game over.
Call out when you are one or two hits away from getting knocked out so the Magizoologist is ready to revive you. In some case you might choose not to use Protego to take more damage to get knocked out a little earlier, if it allows the healer to pick two players up back to back and then return to battle. This can be more efficient than healing, going back to battle for only one hit, leaving and healing again, etc. Efficient use of time is the key.
The Magizoologist should use Stamina Charm only on himself, (using the cheaper Revival Charm for everyone else), to reduce the risk of knockout, plus to maintain other passive bonuses (Ministry Magizoology Orientation) and +6 Defence (Forum Quorum). With a high level Protection Charm in place, the Magizoologist may be taking little to do damage, which allows Focus to be saved for Revival Charms and the potential use of the Bravery Charm.
As a rough estimate, if three or more foes are Elite than Bravery Charm should be cast, and Aurors may need to provide the focus to make this work. In the Forest levels this isn’t common, but it’s not unlikely either.
At this point, the Professor should now be using the Deterioration Hex as much as possible, often on her own foe, but whenever possible on whichever foe would take the most time to defeat. It’s a race against the clock.
Aurors will typically have hexed everything in sight and may have some extra Focus lying around. If your Magizoologist doesn’t need it for Revival or Bravery, send the extra to the Professor. Maybe some Aurors can get a Protection Charm too at this point.
Cruise For the Win
When there is about three minutes on the clock, each teammate needs to confirm how many foes are left and how many of those he or she will be responsible for. At this point if each player has two foes to handle, things are likely fine. Any more than that, and it is time to break out the Potions. A Wit-Sharpening Potion combined with a Strong Exstimulo Potion is a quick way to defeat any Elite foes.
Teammates may have to switch foes to make sure everyone is best deployed to defeat all the foes before the clock runs out.
Finally, take your sweet rewards, and if there were any problems in strategy, figure them out before your next heist.
Looking for more advice on Wizarding Challenges? Check out our other articles.
