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Wolfsbane Potion

From Harry Potter Wiki

Wolfsbane Potion
Potion information
Effect

Helps werewolves to retain control of their actions during transformation

Characteristics
  • Faint blue smoke when completed
  • Unpleasant taste
  • Smokes faintly
Difficulty level

Advanced

Known ingredients

Wolfsbane

Inventor(s)

Damocles

Behind the scenes
First appearance

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Last appearance

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Mentioned only)

The Wolfsbane Potion is an innovative and complex potion that relieves, but does not cure, the symptoms of lycanthropy. The main ingredient is wolfsbane (also referred to as aconite or monkshood). It was invented by Damocles in the recent past, most likely after the mid-1970s, as it was not available to Remus Lupin in his youth.[1]

Contents

[edit] History

Severus Snape brewed this potion for Remus Lupin during Lupin's year as Defence Against the Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.[2] In 1996, Lupin told Harry that even though the two professors were not on friendly terms, he was grateful to Snape for following the recipe; he admitted Snape could have wrought havoc on the school by tampering with the potion.

[edit] Effects

If the affected individual drinks the potion prior to the full moon, they will transform only into a normal wolf and retain control over their actions, rather than making the full transformation into a werewolf. It is a complicated recipe and must be imbibed once per day in the week leading up to the full moon.

[edit] Description

The completed potion smokes faintly. According to Remus Lupin, it has a "disgusting" taste, but adding sugar will render it ineffective.[3]

[edit] Appearances

[edit] Notes and references

  1. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Chapter 18 (Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs)
  2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - Chapter 16 (A Very Frosty Christmas)
  3. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Chapter 8 (Flight of the Fat Lady)