Hey everyone,
Welcome to another installment of Harry Potter Theory. In today’s video, we’re going to be
taking a look at some of the creatures of the magical world. However- we’re not just going
to be looking at any old creatures-we’re going to be honing in on the darkest,
foulest creatures to inhabit the wizarding world. Fortunately, for every dark creature
there seems to be a healthy number of friendly counterparts-but that certainly doesn’t mean
that the magical world is devoid of evil. You guys seem to really enjoy these ranking videos
but just remember that this is PURELY my opinion and I implore you all to comment your own lists
down below. Without further ado, please enjoy the 10 DARKEST creatures in the wizarding world.
10. Basilisks
If you’ve seen/read The Chamber of Secrets then you’ll know what Basilisks are- enormous
serpentine creatures that were originally created by a dark wizard by the name of Herpo the Foul.
"Of the many fearsome beasts and monsters that roam our land, there is none more curious
or more deadly than the Basilisk, known also as the King of Serpents. This snake,
which may reach gigantic size, and live many hundreds of years, is born from a chicken's egg,
hatched beneath a toad. Its methods of killing are most wondrous, for aside from its deadly and
venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of
its eye shall suffer instant death. Spiders flee before the Basilisk, for it is their mortal enemy,
and the Basilisk flees only from the crowing of the rooster, which is fatal to it."
Basilisks are gigantic, powerful and immune to a lot of magic. Not only that,
but they possess giant fangs, protective scales, and a gaze that can kill you instantly.
9. Hags
Hags are essentially warty, evil looking witches- and witches are often confused
with hags in muggle literature. The appearance of a hag is what one might imagine when trying
to consider the appearance of a witch- but for those who know of the magical world- they know
that witches can actually be very beautiful. It’s also worth mentioning that the level of
magic that hags possess is less than that of a normal witch. We first hear of the term ‘hag’
in the Philosopher’s Stone when Hagrid mentions that Quirinus Quirrell had a run-in with one.
"They say [Quirrell] met vampires in the black forest,
and there was a nasty bit o' trouble with a hag."
According to Quentin Trimble, author of ‘The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection’,
hags can be defined as follows:
"The hag is a child-eating creature of human appearance,
though likely to have more warts than the average witch."
In addition to being strikingly ugly and possessing only four toes on each foot,
the hag is doubly scary because it just so happens to have a taste for human flesh-
specifically the flesh of children. Hags made it on to this list not because they are particularly
powerful, but because there really isn’t anything ‘pure’ about them. Their entire life is devoted to
eating children- and they purportedly even advertise themselves as ‘babysitters’- creepy.
8. Bashees
I know that when I see or hear ‘Banshee’ I think of Gilderoy Lockhart- the catalyst for this of
course being his made up stories surrounding his besting of various powerful magical creatures.
Lockhart’s book ‘Break with a Banshee’ outlines his defeat of the ‘Bandon Banshee’
a powerful Banshee that terrorized the wizarding world.
"I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her." - Lockhart famously stated.
We know now that Lockhart’s tale was fabricated- taking credit for the accomplishment of another
witch. But in truth- Banshee’s do exist- and they are very dangerous dark creatures.
Banshees are dark, malevolent spirits native to Scotland and Ireland that assume the form
of skeletal-looking women with green skin and black hair. Banshees are particularly dangerous
as they are able to produce a high-pitched scream that can prove fatal to the ears.
Like hags- their existence is entirely wicked- and there isn’t a good bone that exists in
their bodies. The best defence against a banshee is a simple laughing potion.
7. Gorgons
The best way to have people clue in to what exactly a Gorgon is, is to mention the most famous
Gorgon from Mythology - Medusa. Medusa was a woman in Greek Mythology whose beauty was often compared
to the beautiful goddess Athena. This outraged Athena- and so she decided to curse Medusa- making
her ugly and turning her hair in to snakes. From this point onward, whenever anyone looked directly
at medusa- they would be turned to stone. Medusa and her two sisters were the original ‘Gorgons’.
Off topic for a second, if you want to learn MORE about mythology check out the link for my
mythology channel in the pinned comment. Moving on- it just so happens that Gorgons also exist in
the Harry Potter universe, and they are mentioned in Miranda Goshawks ‘The Rhyme of Gormless Morgan”
"The Gorgon was fearsome and clever (Two things that poor Morgan was never).
By staring alone She could turn men to stone
So they'd have to be statues forever."
6. Zombies
That’s right, the Harry Potter universe doesn’t exclude Zombies- and I’m not talking about Inferi-
I’m talking about exactly the type of Zombies that you’re thinking of.
Zombies first pop up in a 1913 Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson in which a student’s
boggart turns in to a zombie. They were also mentioned in the Philosopher’s Stone- as Quirrell
mentions that his turban was a gift from an African prince for getting rid of a Zombie.
They are also mentioned in Quentin Trimbles:
‘The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection”- he had this to say:
"The Zombie dwells only in the Southern part of America. It is an example, like the Vampire,
of the Living Dead and may be recognised by its greyish colour and its rotten smell."
Zombies are of course creatures that originated in Haitian
folklore. They are basically resurrected and reanimated human corpses that feed on flesh.
5. Boggarts
Boggart’s are essentially manifestations of our deepest darkest fears. They are
amortal shape-shifting non-beings that transform in to whatever you fear most.
Noone knows what a boggart looks like by itself, because it will transform as soon you encounter
it. When boggarts aren’t scaring people, they can usually be found rustling around in confined
spaces or lurking around dark corners. Similar to poltergeists which have an affinity for mischief
(think peeves), and dementors which thrive on darkness and depression, boggarts are paired
with fear. One of the most interesting things about Boggarts is that when they transform in
to something, they can replicate its abilities. I.e, when a boggart transforms in to a dementor,
it’s able to do all of the horrible things that a dementor can. It’s worth mentioning, however, that
the boggarts abilities will be very suppressed compared to the original creature or being.
4. Obscurus
An obscurial is someone who carries an obscurus- a dark manifestation of repressed energy. They
are parasitic in nature, in that they are deeply attached to the host. An Obscurus is most commonly
created when a troubled child consciously attempts to repress their magical abilities
or were forced to do so through physical or psychological abuse.
Newt Scamander puts it perfectly:
"Before wizards went underground, when we were still being hunted by muggles, young
wizards and witches sometimes tried to suppress their magic to avoid persecution. So instead of
learning to harness or to control their powers, they developed what was called an Obscurus."
The Obscurus is easily one of the darkest creatures or ‘parasites’ in the wizarding world,
as it is created entirely out of negative energy.
3. Lethifolds
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them describes Lethifolds perfectly:
“The Lethifold resembles a black cloak roughly half an inch thick,
and appears slightly thicker if the creature has recently digested a victim. It glides
along surfaces in an unknown form of locomotion in search of its prey,
humans. It attacks at night, when the target is asleep, by suffocating and then digesting it.”
Lethifolds are quite similar to Dementors and can even be warded off with expecto patronum.
The etymology behind the name ‘Lethifold’ is quite sinister as "Lethifold" comes from two roots:
lethum, variation of letum, which is Latin for "death", "annihilation" and "ruin",
as well as ‘fold’, which likely alludes to the creature's cloaked appearance.
The lethifold is a TRULY dangerous magical beast that’s extremely aggressive,
violent and even carnivorous.
2. Inferi
The Inferi are dark corpses that have been brought back to life / reanimated via a dark
wizard’s curse. Harry and Dumbledore first encounter Inferi in ‘the cave’-
where they inhabit a lake separating the entrance of the cave from the horcrux inside.
According to Pottermore, after the Inferi have been reanimated they:
“Become a grisly puppet, and may be used as an expendable servant by the Dark wizard in question.
The most obvious sign that one is facing an Inferius rather than a living human
are the white and cloudy eyes.”
Nothing screams dark creature like a corpse that has been magically brought back to life.
Voldemort amassed an army of Inferi- most likely from the corpses of witches/wizards that he killed
himself. They are the undead and they exist solely to commit atrocities- truly dark dark creatures.
1. Dementors I’m sure you saw this one coming,
but to be honest I’d be hard pressed to put any of the others above Dementors
because Dementors just ARE the darkest. Dementors are cloaked creatures that are 3 metres tall
with dark grey scabby skin. Dementors are foul creatures that represent unhappiness
and despair. They were created by Rowling as a way of personifying all of the negative
aspects of depression- and there basically isn’t even an inch of purity in a Dementor.
“Dementors are among the foulest creatures that walk this earth. They infest the darkest,
filthiest places, they glory in decay and despair, they drain peace, hope, and happiness
out of the air around them. Even Muggles feel their presence, though they can’t see them.
Get too near a Dementor and every good feeling, every happy memory will be sucked out of you.”
And there you have it! That concludes MY list of the top 10
darkest creatures. Honourable mentions go out to Acromantulas, Grindylows, Rougarous,
Vampires and Werewolves. What are YOUR top 10? Let me know in the comment section below.
Until next time
It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more.