Post by The Magical Adminstration on Apr 1, 2007 8:03:20 GMT -5
Quidditch Pitch
The Quidditch pitch is 500 ft. long and 180 ft. wide. It’s grassy, and has a small circle in the center where the balls are released. Three 50 ft tall poles stand at both ends of the field with hoops on them as goals. Professional Quidditch pitches are located on deserted moors, and sometimes they are protected by charms to hide them from Muggles.
Quidditch Balls
Quaffle
The quaffle is a leather ball about the size of a Muggle football (12 inches in diameter). It is the ball is used by the Chasers to score goals, and must be caught and thrown one-handed, because the chasers must control his/her broom at the same time. In 1875, after Gripping Charms were discovered they were applied to the standard Quaffle, making it possible for a Chaser to keep a one-handed grip on it. They are red color to make it easier to see when drooped to the ground. Quaffles originally were not enchanted, but were ordinary leather balls, sometimes they had straps or finger holes. Daisy Pennifold had the idea of bewitching the Quaffle to slow its fall, to about the speed of falling through water. This gives the Chasers a better chance of catching the ball in mid-air, rather than retrieving it from the ground.
Bludger
The Bludger is a iron, jet-black ball, 10 inches in diameter. Bludgers always attempt to hit the nearest player, which is why beaters try to knock it towards opposing players. At first the Bludger was just a rock that was enchanted to attack players. However, the use of a rock was abandoned because a Beater’s bat could smash them into gravel. A lead ball was experimented with but after taking a beating indentations would be left on it, which affected its ability to fly properly.
Golden Snitch
The snitch is a golden ball with silver wings, and it’s about the size of a walnut. The Snitch is bewitched to avoid being caught for as long as possible, and also to remain within the boundaries of the pitch. When the snitch it caught by one of the seekers, the game ends and the team whose seeker caught the snitch gets 150 points. Bowman Wright invited the Golden snitch in replacement of the Golden snidget (small round-bodied bird that nearly became extinct) in the 1300’s.
Brooms:
~ 1879 Oakshaft 79
~ 1901 Moontrimmer
~ unknown year Silver Arrow
~ 1926 Cleansweep one
~ 1929 Comet 140
~ 1934 Cleansweep Two
~ 1937 Cleansweep Three
~ 1938 Comet 180
~ 1940 Tinderblast
~ 1952 Swiftstick
~ 1955 Shooting Star
~ 1967 Nimbus 1000
~ 1990 Twigger 90
~ August 1992 Nimbus 2001
~ August 1993 Firebolt
~ summer 1995 Cleansweep 11
Fouls
Blagging:
- applies to all players, it is when a player seizes opponent’s broom tail to slow or hinder.
Blatching:
- applies to all players, it is when a person flying with the intent to collide.
Bumphing:
- applies to beaters only, it is when a beater is hitting a bludger towards the crowd, necessitating a halt of the game as the officials rush to protect bystanders.
Blurting:
- locking broom handles with another player to pull him/her off course.
Cobbing:
- excessive use of elbows.
Flacking:
- Keeper foul, putting any part of his/her body through a goal hoop to prevent a score.
Haversacking:
- Chaser foul, when the Quaffle goes through the hoop before released from the Chaser’s hand.
Quafflepocking:
- Chaser foul, tampering with the quaffle to make it fly differently
Skinning:
- flying to deliberately collide with another player
Snitchnip:
- any other player than the seeker touching the snitch
Stooging:
- two chasers ram opposing keeper aside so the third chaser could score a goal.
Quidditch Moves
Seeker
Wronski Defensive Feint:
In this move the Seeker has to dive toward the ground acting like he has spotted the as if Snitch, this will confuse the opposing Seeker making him or her believe that he/she has spotted the snitch; causing the opposing seeker to follow you into the dive. This maneuver was invented by famous Seeker Josef Wronski and was and used by the Bulgarian Seeker Viktor Krum in the World Cup match (Bulgaria vs. Ireland) of 1994.
Plumpton Pass:
This move is named for the fastest Snitch catch in British history, where Roderick Plumpton's caught the Snitch up his sleeve in 1921.
Keeper
Double Eight Loop:
This is a maneuver used by Keepers which allows him/her to defend all three goals. The move consists in flying in a figure eight formation around the goal posts at a high rate of speed; making hard for the chaser to score.
Starfish and Stick:
This move is used by Keepers so he/she can protect as large an area as possible. The Keeper has to hang by one hand and one foot from his or her broom, extending the other hand and foot as far out as possible and therefore covering the hoops.
Beater
Bludger Backbeat:
This move is when a beater hits the Bludger backwards, this is used to confuse the opponents because they expect the Bludger to have different trajectory. This move is hard to pull off.
Dopplebeater Defence:
This is a maneuver that involves two Beaters. They both have to hit the same Bludger at the same moment; causing the Bludger to be sent in at a very fast rate.
Chaser
Hawkshead Attacking Formation:
In this formation the three Chasers fly together, one in the center and slightly ahead of the other two.
Long goal:
Shot from well outside the scoring area (Areas of the field marked off by curved lines around the goals). The Vrasta Vultures are known for this move.
Parkin's Pincer:
This maneuver, invented by the original Parkin family (founders of the Wigtown Wanderers), it engages the three Chasers who flies from three different directions at an opposing Chaser.
Porskoff Ploy:
In this move the Chaser makes as if to dart upward with the Quaffle, similar to the Wronski Defensive Feint it will drawing an opposing Chaser upwards, but then he/she will drop the Quaffle to another Chaser.
Reverse pass:
In this move the Chaser throws the Quaffle over his/her shoulder. The Tchamba Charmers are particularly well known for this move.
Other Moves:
Sloth Grip Roll:
Maneuver where a player rolls upside down to avoid a Bludger.
Transylvanian Tackle:
Considered a legal move because no contact is made, it involves a fake punch to the nose to confuse the opposing player.
Woollongong Shimmy:
A high-speed zigzagging maneuver performed to throw off Chasers. The Woollongong Warriors are known for this move.