Harry Potter: Diagon Alley Board Game

Harry Potter: Diagon Alley Board Game

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The game

"A Magical Game of Spending, Scheming, and Spellcasting!"

— Tagline

Harry Potter: Diagon Alley Board Game is a board game based off the Harry Potter series, specifically taking elements from Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets. It was released in 2001 by Mattel. The game's goal is to be the first player to purchase all of the required school supplies and return to the Leaky Cauldron.

Gameplay

Play starts by choosing a token (represented by coloured wizard hats) and placing tokens representing items into each shop. The number of wands placed into Ollivanders Wand Shop is the same as the number of players, but one less of each other item is placed into the other shops. Every player also gets two of each type of coin (Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts) and two Spell cards to begin the game with. Play starts by each player rolling one of the dice, with the highest rolling getting the first turn.

The main objective of the game is to purchase all of the items in the various shops and returning to the Leaky Cauldron, where the game starts. This is accomplished by moving around the board by rolling both dice. When the entrance of a shop is landed on or passed over, the player may choose to enter it and purchase an item, assuming they have the money to cover the cost listed on the item's token. More money is gained by passing Gringotts Wizard Bank, which gives the player one more of each denomination of coin upon each pass.

Cards provide changes to the gameplay. A card is drawn every time a player rolls a single cauldron symbol (which replaces where the number one traditionally is) or lands on one of the blue swirls on the game board. Cards come in two varieties: Havoc, which must be played immediately, and Spell, which can be held and used at the player's leisure. Cards can cause effects such as forcing other players to lose items or coins, transporting the player directly to Gringotts, and locking shops to prevent access by all players.

Other game mechanics include the presence of Knockturn Alley, which players may be banished to and punished while inside by not being able to draw cards, get money from Gringotts, or enter shops except by exact count, and Floo Powder, which allows players to instantly transport themselves to another shop or the Leaky Cauldron.

Locations and items

• The Leaky Cauldron
• The Apothecary Potion Shop - Potion bottles
• Flourish and Blotts Book Shop - Books
• Madam Malkin's Robe Shop - Robes
• Gringotts Wizard Bank
• Eeylop's Owl Emporium Shop - Owls
• The Cauldron Shop - Cauldrons
• Ollivander's Wand Shop - Wands