Diagon Alley (part 2): Wand Selection at Ollivander's
Among the most exciting and personalized parts of Pottermore is the wand selection process in Ollivander's Wand Shop in Diagon Alley. This is the last thing the user can do in Diagon Alley (there's no skipping ahead to this point, just like Harry couldn't either). The wand is determined by a short quiz, at the end of which the user will have their very own magical wand, something many Potter fans have wanted for years.
The quiz is composed of 7 questions written by Jo Rowling herself and they are the same questions for everybody. Through this process, there are over 39,000 possible answer choice combinations, resulting in over 33,000 unique wands.
Although 33,000 unique wands aren’t all that many when you consider the fact that there will likely been tens of millions of people all over the world making Pottermore accounts in the coming months, it still gives the user a feeling of being a part of Harry’s magical wizarding world by having a wand of their own, a wand that chose them.
In just 7 questions, Rowling has determined enough major personality traits that suit her magic wand selections. The wand questions are under the cut (screenshots included) so avoid if you don’t want to be spoiled!
- To ensure we find the perfect wand for you, it’s very important that you answer the following questions honestly. First of all, would you describe yourself as…
Short for your age
Average height for your age
Tall for your age
- And your eyes…
Dark brown/black
Brown
Hazel
Blue
Blue/Grey
Blue/Green
Green
Grey
Other
- Was the day on which you were born…
An odd number
An even number
- Do you most pride yourself on your…
Determination
Imagination
Resilience
Intelligence
Originality
Optimism
Kindness
- Travelling along down a deserted road, you reach a crossroads. Do you continue…
Left towards the sea
Ahead towards the forest
Right towards the castle
- Do you most fear…
Darkness
Fire
Heights
Small Spaces
Isolation
- In a chest of magical artifacts, which would you choose…
The dusty bottle
The old black glove
The golden key
The bound-up scroll
The glittering jewel
The silver dagger
The ornate mirror
After answering these questions, you’re given a confirmation screen summarizing all your answers. This is your last chance to go back and make any changes - after pressing the “get your wand” button, you cannot go back to redo answers or retest. You can only do the quiz once, so choose your answers carefully and honestly. You will not be allowed to re-enter Ollivander’s to get a different wand.
After submitting the quiz, a picture of your wand (there are only a few different pictures, so they don’t all look entirely unique) will appear on the screen, describing which wood it is, which core it contains, how long it is, and how flexible it is.
Jo has included some of Ollivander's notes, giving each of all 38 types of wood and the 3 possible wand cores a paragraph of description about their distinctive traits, with extra detail about the lengths and flexibility of the wands as well. It's certainly not random - Jo did her research in many types of lore and mythology to be able to give all the different wood types the qualities that are detected through the quiz for each individual Pottermore user. These exclusive documents are very much worth the time to read fully and remain some of my favorite new information provided by Jo so far.
Amazingly, this quiz, however short, is described by many Pottermore users as being very accurate in recognizing and detailing certain personality traits and quirks in assigning them a wand, something that adds yet another level of personal immersion into the Pottermore experience.
My wand:
Ash wood with phoenix feather core, eleven inches, hard