Wizards United will never be defeated.

June 20, 2019 9:59 PM

At least in theory. Is anyone else tapping their wand against the AR pensieve and playing this (pokemongo, but pottermore skinned) game by Niantic? It's out now in the US and UK.<

I've been mainlining it since this afternoon, as I thought it may get overwhelmed if/when too many users discover its available. My early level thoughts include: that it's a very fussy version of pokemon go, and there are still many mechanics that I don't understand at all. e.g. why do fortresses get a glow up when someone battles there? are you supposed to running over and... greenhouses, i'm, uh, how can they not suck so much?

posted by Cold Lurkey (78 comments total)

I'm playing - level 7 so far. Friend me: 6347 8569 9070.
posted by gingerbeer at 10:29 PM on June 20, 2019

I'm playing (and was going to make a FPP later, though if someone else wants to - go ahead). There's a lot that I only vaguely get, but I've been managing it by ignoring 3/4 of what's surrounding me when I'm walking.

Friend code is 4910 3456 7277. (Operafloozy, profile picture is a cat).
posted by dinty_moore at 6:03 AM on June 21, 2019

FPP
posted by dinty_moore at 7:43 AM on June 21, 2019

This is definitely Pokemon GO 2. They learned, at least, from their experiences.

I have learned that speed is the important factor over accuracy when spellcasting. I just wish there were a daily trickle of spell energy because there are no Inns I can reach from my home, so I have to loiter in a parking lot for a half hour if I want any amount of spell energy recovery. Pokemon GO added those weekly rewards that helped a lot with getting my Pokeball supply up to a comfortable margin; I hope we get something like that for this along with an Adventure Sync equivalent.

8220 4679 8853 for me.
posted by Scattercat at 7:49 AM on June 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

Just got started with this as well. Who knows how long I'll stick with it, but it seems fun for now. I found Hagrid standing on my bed!

Friend code is 4004 1909 2849
posted by duien at 9:30 AM on June 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

I just installed this. Fucking Hagrid was in my house!

I don't know what I am doing since I never played Pokemon Go and don't even like Harry Potter. My friend code is 8168 5213 7836 but I will probably be useless.
posted by riruro at 9:58 AM on June 21, 2019 [2 favorites]

I am not at all sure what I'm doing (and I'm a veteran PokemonGo player!) but I'm happy to do it with friends. 1731 1679 6684 .
posted by booksherpa at 10:00 AM on June 21, 2019

Okay, so I fought some magic chickens.

Friend code is 8071 1629 2723 (linepainter, just sent friend requests to people in this thread)
posted by betweenthebars at 10:12 AM on June 21, 2019

This seems like it must be a stupid question but ... how do I get water?
posted by duien at 10:15 AM on June 21, 2019

duien: This seems like it must be a stupid question but ... how do I get water?

Not at all a stupid question - there seem to be way more moving parts to this game than Pokemon Go. I've gotten water by having it just appear on the main map. There may be other ways, but that's the only way I've encountered.
posted by booksherpa at 10:20 AM on June 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

That makes sense. Thanks booksherpa! I assumed it was different than all the other things I keep finding everywhere, since it goes in a different inventory section ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
posted by duien at 10:57 AM on June 21, 2019

The energy drought is definitely a common complaint.

I got my cat to sit in front of the camera for the profile picture but the filters could not pick him up. I guess the Ministry does not have animaga support yet.

Wizards United code: 5337 5904 8025 (Glimmermir)
posted by Karmakaze at 11:27 AM on June 21, 2019 [3 favorites]

I got my cat to sit in front of the camera for the profile picture but the filters could not pick him up. I guess the Ministry does not have animaga support yet.

I have the same complaint! At least I could add a lightning scar to sticker to my cat portrait, but at least allow for a wizard hat sticker.
posted by dinty_moore at 11:48 AM on June 21, 2019

I tried to get my dog, but she wouldn't sit still. I had to settle for mangling my photo as much as the filters would let me.
posted by Scattercat at 11:59 AM on June 21, 2019

Oh, there's a place to practice spellcasting: wizardsuniteworld.com/spell-caster so you can get better and not have to recast so much.
posted by Karmakaze at 12:44 PM on June 21, 2019 [3 favorites]

This is making it take a lot longer to get to BART at the end of the day

Friend code is 1436 9452 9338. I’m Whenceforth.
posted by smartyboots at 1:03 PM on June 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

Wow, this is so much more fleshed out than when Pokemon Go released. I think it's a considerable perk that I work on a university campus (smug about my low paying job) 9748 3787 2349
posted by lizjohn at 2:17 PM on June 21, 2019

I’m 7573 8798 4716 — so far so good on learning what’s going on but it’s a little annoying re-learning my local stop geography after playing Pokémon Go for so long.
posted by bitter-girl.com at 2:32 PM on June 21, 2019 [1 favorite]

just to stir the pot: you can speed up your potions using the right gestures in the right order (Cheat guide here)You have to perform them on three separate brews of the potion for it to stick in your master pages.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 2:33 PM on June 21, 2019 [3 favorites]

I like this so far but I wish the writing/story was better. Where's the charm of the books? Everything's presented in such a flat, exposition-y way that it doesn't feel like Potter at all.
posted by storytam at 6:49 PM on June 21, 2019

My Friend Code is: 2352 7569 1173 and 2nd account is 9423 2771 5596
posted by k8t at 7:31 PM on June 21, 2019

Ok, I don't know if this was intentional or not, but ever seeing the title I've had 'Wizards United! Will never be divided!' running through my head.

So yes, I'm ready to join the wizarding union.
posted by dinty_moore at 7:34 PM on June 21, 2019 [2 favorites]

I want to be Team Fuck The Statute of Secrecy.

My friend code is 8906 6205 8839 - creatrixtiara !
posted by divabat at 9:28 PM on June 21, 2019

I am figuring it out! Best so far was watching Luna try to pet a fire breathing chicken.
Friend me: 0722 2878 4443 BlueMum
posted by ceramicblue at 6:52 AM on June 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

I’m giving it a whirl too. 5890 4089 8018 Is my code.
posted by fnord at 6:54 AM on June 22, 2019

There is a one time complimentary gift at the bottom of the Diagon Alley section - 50 spell energy!
posted by booksherpa at 8:33 AM on June 22, 2019 [2 favorites]

Haven't really started playing yet, but my friend code is 8817 9424 1738, username Extremely Danger.
posted by mbrubeck at 9:26 AM on June 22, 2019

I am 0356 8704 4702.
posted by Margalo Epps at 9:34 AM on June 22, 2019

Just started this - had a lovely walk around my neighborhood learning how to play. (also delighted that my little free library is an Inn!)
6489 7026 2455
posted by tangosnail at 11:55 AM on June 22, 2019 [3 favorites]

My friend code is 3248 5969 5965.
I've friended anyone above who posted their code. Thanks for the tip on the spell energy =)
posted by soelo at 1:59 PM on June 22, 2019

Just started this as well & sent invites to the above posters. Friend me up at 1267 1921 0593.
posted by deludingmyself at 2:40 PM on June 22, 2019

dinty_moore- Yes, that was very much intentional. Growing up, whenever I would try the childish ploy of going and asking dad when mom said no to something, he'd say yes (because he wasn't read in to the policy papers on the issue of playing in the sprinkler or what have you) I'd obviously get caught doing the thing she just told me no on. When I protested, that "dad said I could!", my good old lefty mom, daughter of a union organizer, replied the first time by saying that the parents are an unitary voice and a no from mom is a tacit no from dad (but in 6 year old terms, natch). And then she started chanting "THE PARENTS, UNITED, WILL NEVER BE DEFEATED" at me. After that, whenever I invoked dad said i could status on a prohibited activity, the chanting started up again. She'd get pretty into it, with clapping and occasional unghs for emphasis. I was never happy at this point, for a multitude of reasons.
Fast forward 15 some years and i'm at my first protest before the iraq invasion, and THAT FUCKING CHANT STARTS UP...but it's "the people, united". The penny drops, finally, that my mom was rewording union protest chants to streamline her parenting.
tl;dr: My mom taunted me with a chant as a child, thus the title.
posted by Cold Lurkey at 7:01 PM on June 22, 2019 [9 favorites]

It's just now come out in Malaysia (and so probably Singapore), come add me please! I'm 3061 4722 3734. I'll go thru this thread and add people now.
posted by cendawanita at 10:59 PM on June 22, 2019

Forget finishing this PhD, doing a postdoc, and the perils of the academic job market, I'M A PROFESSOR, SUCKERS!

Also my forward-momentum-driven dog hates this game already because of all the stopping on walks now.
posted by deludingmyself at 1:54 PM on June 23, 2019 [1 favorite]

Also spellcasting while being pulled by a Husky mix emitting high-pitched, irritated whining sounds is... challenging.
posted by deludingmyself at 1:57 PM on June 23, 2019 [2 favorites]

I am 4483 3924 0213

It does seem kinda clunky and fussy but I’m still interested!
posted by aabbbiee at 2:39 PM on June 23, 2019

I don’t know what I’m doing or how long I’ll play but I’m 9514 0405 4889. Hufflepuffs woo!
posted by PussKillian at 9:25 AM on June 24, 2019

I was away, so I only started today. So far so Pokemon Go, but I loved that for a while, and I was always way more into HP than Pokemon. Friend code is 1194 9630 9087
posted by featherboa at 12:30 PM on June 24, 2019

I already love the game more than PoGo, and last night, I had a dream about Hufflepuffs.

1421 7859 8476 - Quappelle
posted by spinifex23 at 1:44 PM on June 24, 2019 [2 favorites]

My husband and I have gotten pretty into it, and we're playing as much as we can while still being semi-responsible parents to a 7 month old. Our local park is pretty well populated with POIs, so we went up there for a walk yesterday afternoon. We sat down at an inn next to the playground, and during a lull in the action I thought, "Hmm, I wonder if he's old enough for the bucket swings yet?" Folks, he was and he LOVED it! Best baby laughs ever!

3855 0161 6022, same user name. Friending y'all now.
posted by natabat at 3:06 PM on June 24, 2019 [4 favorites]

Is there an easier way to see how much spell energy I currently have other than going all the way to Diagon Alley?
posted by Bibliogeek at 3:19 AM on June 25, 2019

You can see your spell energy in your vault. It's in the upper left corner, next to your coins. (It's not part of the things you can tab through.)
posted by Margalo Epps at 3:58 PM on June 25, 2019

Had anyone succeeded at planting in a greenhouse? I planted seeds yesterday, it said to come back eight hours later, and when I went back closer to 24 hours later, it was an empty pot again. What am I missing?
posted by Margalo Epps at 7:46 PM on June 25, 2019

I've planted, but I've never picked up.

So it's says 'come back eight hours later', but random passers-by can give up some of their spell energy to shorten the time. And when the timer goes off, you only have half an hour to pick up whatever you planted.
posted by dinty_moore at 8:13 PM on June 25, 2019

Actually, adding spell energy to planted seeds increases output of plants, it doesn’t shorten length of grow time. The half hour window to get your plants is correct, though.
posted by booksherpa at 8:55 PM on June 25, 2019 [1 favorite]

Wow, I can't imagine ever getting back to pick things you planted then. A half hour window is bonkers.
posted by Margalo Epps at 9:33 PM on June 25, 2019

OK, it's only been like three days, but I'm invested enough in the game that I probably will keep playing for a while, so: my friend code is 2128 7703 6838 (Puzzlefuzz).

Oh wow, we can have up to 200 friends? I guess I'm adding you all, then
posted by Meow Face at 10:30 PM on June 25, 2019

I've been looking forward to this one for a while! My friend code is 0658 5885 8846
posted by shirobara at 6:41 AM on June 26, 2019

I am enjoying this more than Pokemon Go, and I played Pokemon Go for a few months when it was first released. I like that there's more to do in this game other than just spin Pokestops and catch endless Rattatas and Pidgeys for XP. I'm less embarrassed playing this than Pokemon Go, but I never played Pokemon Go as a child (I'm 41) while Harry Potter has been an indelible part of my whole adulthood (starting from college on) so obviously I know a lot more about Harry Potter than Pokemon.
Pokemon originally varied by geographic region- I wonder if the types of Foundables vary by geographic region for Wizards Unite? I've been seeing a lot of the same ones but it's less annoying somehow than in Pokemon Go. I think it's that I don't know what the Foundable is until I open it, instead of tapping on Yet Another Rattata just for the XP. Maybe I'll start to feel that way later.

One thing to note is that I didn't like the learning curve of Pokemon gyms. I didn't have a comprehensive knowledge of Pokemon types and which to battle against what- I just liked catching the little guys and evolving them. So I was avoiding the Wizards Unite fortresses until yesterday because of that, but it turns out it's much much easier than the Pokemon gyms.

I agree the greenhouses are weird. I keep collecting seeds and water but there's only one pot in each greenhouse? Why? And then the plants mature at random times. Maybe if I start really wishing I had one particular ingredient it would make sense to try to run over and grab something while it was matured but right now greenhouses are just a way to get rid of some of this seed that I have.

I work on a college campus so we have a lot of Greenhouses, Inns, and Fortresses within walking distance. I like that the Inns vary by color but they appear to be in groupings of that color. I've read that the colors make a difference on the results you get from them, but I don't know if that's true. The Pokestop at the front of my building used to be just out of reach from my desk, but I can hit an Inn from my desk, and that's pretty nice. I also like that there are regions with little flags for certain types of Foundables.

All my Portkeys have gone to the same place with the same wrackspurts in the same places each time. That's kind of dumb and removes the surprise that Pokemon eggs had. I do like that I can postpone the little Portkey minigames until later since they take a minute or two each and can't really be done discreetly (you have to move the phone around to find the wrackspurts).
posted by aabbbiee at 7:15 AM on June 26, 2019 [1 favorite]

I think I've gotten a different portkey location for 5 and 10k. Did pokemon eggs ever do anything more than wiggle and hatch?

I like saving up the portkeys for the end of the day, but it's kind of annoying that the finished portkeys still take up space.
posted by dinty_moore at 12:56 PM on June 26, 2019

Finally installed it since now it's available in my country. Sure is a drain on my battery, even with the save battery option turned on. Shame that the speed limit is so low, biking to work would really help with opening the portkeys :-)

My friend Code: 9412 5905 8026
posted by Pendragon at 4:59 AM on June 27, 2019 [1 favorite]

Pendragon: I've still had my distance count even while on the tram/train.
posted by divabat at 6:41 AM on June 27, 2019

I've tried biking while having the app open on my phone, but apparently the time between putting my phone in my bag and me actually moving is too long, because my phone shuts off the app without even trying to log anything. Your mileage my vary.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:48 AM on June 27, 2019

I sent out a bunch of invitations under the name Choogler.
posted by tofu_crouton at 8:40 AM on June 27, 2019

Pokemon eggs hatched into something different each time. Sometimes it was a bust and you got a common Pokemon, but a few times I got one that I'd never seen before.
posted by aabbbiee at 11:48 AM on June 27, 2019

The main thing you get from the portkey aren't the wrackspurts; 'catching' the wrackspurts gets you different items/experience/foundables depending on how many you catch. I stopped playing pokemon go a few years ago, so I wasn't sure if the wiggle/hatch animation was ever made more elaborate.
posted by dinty_moore at 11:55 AM on June 27, 2019

I've been really enjoying it! My favorite part is that foundables are different at different times of day or different times of the week/month -- like the vampires only come out at night, and apparently werewolves only come out around the full moon.

My friend code is 8227 8209 1315 -- adding all of y'all!
posted by Ragini at 9:59 PM on June 27, 2019

Can anyone confirm that the potions that we haven't finished using in an encounter is counted as all used up regardless?
posted by cendawanita at 7:30 AM on June 28, 2019

Yep, that’s exactly the case. If you drink a potion that lasts for three casts, and you catch the confoundable on the first cast, the other two casts do not carry over to the next encounter. I believe it works the same way in fortresses.
posted by booksherpa at 9:26 AM on June 28, 2019

Aghhhh that actually bums me out more than the spell energy limit.
posted by cendawanita at 9:58 AM on June 28, 2019

I was all geared up to play a lot just as soon as I got home. And then I managed to leave my phone on the bus of the town I was leaving. So I'll get it back eventually, but it may be a bit before I can dive into it. By the way, I'm Penelope Bounce, for those of you trying to match personas.
posted by Margalo Epps at 1:05 PM on June 28, 2019 [1 favorite]

So a little more than a week, and 18 levels later I have thoughts:
1. I'm (to this day!) super mortified at the typos in the title post.
2. I've come to enjoy the fussiness, overall, that this game presents versus pokemongo, excepting the always exacerbating bag/vault management. The co-ordination of brain elixers, portmantaus, potion done time, daily rewards and nearest fortress is, at least for now, taking up some processing power that pogo never did.
3. Things I miss from pogo: having at home activities... like pop a lucky egg and just evolve the hell out of everything. Level up, at your leisure, or incense equivalent. While there are occasional traces to catch at home, I'm so used to having walked/catched my ass off for a few hours and therefore can evolve/catch at my leisure for an hour at home.
4. what is the point of friends. ( storms off in a huff)
5. give me a nearby or give me deatheaters. If it's only high+ traces, fine, just tell me what is out there to get my ass out the house. the grind in this game vs. pogo is particularly unrewarding when all you need is certain foundables to prestige.
6. weather doesn't make much sense herein. and also, jfk, if you are telling your gamers what phase the moon is in... make that the phase of the moon in the overland map!!!
7. I've been stuck on the SOS quest of formidable pixies for days, can anyone predict what foes one encounters at the fortresses?
posted by Cold Lurkey at 7:41 PM on June 29, 2019 [1 favorite]

re: pixies, i've managed to find them at the Oddities encounters without going to Fortresses in my first week.
posted by cendawanita at 2:19 AM on June 30, 2019

OH MY GOD WHEN WILL I EVER GET THE LONDON FIVE TRANSCRIPT

also I wish this came with an actual map overlay, so I could have directions without having to switch between this and my Maps app
posted by divabat at 4:24 AM on June 30, 2019 [3 favorites]

I made a Google form to try to figure out how weather, time of day, and moon phase relate to ingredients in the wild. If you're willing to add your ingredients*, here's the form. If you want to play with the data, here are the results so far.

* I take screenshots when I find an ingredient, and occasionally take screenshots of the weather/time of day screen. I've also just made a note in my notes app. With both methods, I found it easiest to enter a bunch at once sitting at my computer.
posted by booksherpa at 8:26 PM on July 9, 2019 [1 favorite]

re: formidable pixies... I'm still stuck at five encounters. I had a not-empirically-sound-but-good run of using level 1 runes at level 4-6 in the fortresses to get them, until that ended. However, I'm a wee bit pissed at the game's insistence on formidable ONLY, and not, like pogo, counting imposing pixies as equivalent, when you vanquish them as higher evolution forms do when counting towards a catching goal.
Booksherpa, that looks like an amazing start... and as always the thing i need (runespoor eggs) is very underrepresented. I wonder if there's a shifting scarcity model this game uses to keep us burning through gold?
er moon phases, yes, that surely.
What do we think of this game, at this point? I've abandoned pogo entirely for it, and mostly prefer it, but I keep wondering about what I'll feel in a few months. (nb. the silver prestige page is a thing of glory, and revitalizes the game when you just catch every damn thing) novelty/vs annoyance curve is going to weigh heavily at that point
posted by Cold Lurkey at 4:46 PM on July 10, 2019

It's getting to be more like a slot machine than anything else. It took more than a week of intense playing to get that London 5 transcript. I've found that Great or Masterful traces have very little impact on my ability to capture something, indeed I've observed that Masterful traces just lead to a lot of Foundables running away. This is a phenomenon others have documented. (To the point that I'm more grateful when I get a Good because my odds are better.) The WCs can only go so far if you're primarily a solo player, yet so much of the game hinges on that.

I noticed that the game was bringing out addictive tendencies (because of the aforementioned London 5 thing) so I've put a pause on it. If there was a greater correlation between trace quality and capture rate, if captures worked like WCs where you could wear the resistance down and capture things that way, I'd be more into it. Now? Eh.
posted by divabat at 6:20 PM on July 10, 2019 [2 favorites]

My Friend Code is: 8521 7689 4984.

I'm using a male name there because I don't want to be creeped on. my code name is the Gaelic for opal
posted by brujita at 11:22 AM on August 17, 2019

So, I'm still playing this and quite enjoying it. I don't have any friends bc I didn't see the need (and don't have any IRL friends who play) but now this event requires me to make a friend!

(Yes, I am stuck forever on the SOS task that requires you to battle with friends.)

So, my code is 5864 2535 0246 if anyone needs to make a new friend as well.
posted by gaspode at 12:09 PM on November 12, 2019 [2 favorites]

I'm stuck on that event as well - I only have one friend that I wizard fight with, and we have not been successful in making other people wizard fight with me. There's enough to do without the SOS missions, but I do wish I could pay some wizard gold to buy out that task.

I'm mostly taking a break for the winter because it's too cold to have my phone out while walking, but I am doing that SOS event. They've changed a few things around, including letting the potions last longer than the one encounter.
posted by dinty_moore at 12:33 PM on November 12, 2019

I'm playing the Brilliant Event, and in need of a new friend to add. My code is 6220 2116 4186, and my username is SaraLu. (Gaspode, I sent you a friend request.)
posted by terooot at 4:34 PM on November 12, 2019 [1 favorite]

I'm still playing! If anyone needs a friend, I've shared my code above but here it is again, 3061 4722 3734
posted by cendawanita at 4:49 PM on November 12, 2019 [1 favorite]

I'm squiddisco at 7257 0165 4012. Happy to befriend anyone!
posted by irontech at 6:46 AM on November 14, 2019 [1 favorite]

If you drink a potion that lasts for three casts, and you catch the confoundable on the first cast, the other two casts do not carry over to the next encounter. I believe it works the same way in fortresses.

Potions now carry over.
posted by tilde at 3:27 PM on November 19, 2019

So friends look to be a good investment starting soon: https://www.harrypotterwizardsunite.com/post/gifting/ in much the same vein as PoGo.
To that end, as well as the immediate needs of the brilliant event my friend cod3 is 9317 6086 7607 .
Gaspode, I've already added you with my oblique reference to hedwig. For the rest of you, I look forward to your friendings and would wish that geography could matter as much as it did with PoGo,
posted by Cold Lurkey at 5:30 PM on November 19, 2019 [1 favorite]

There's a theory that region matters for ingredients, at least! It might also be seasonal/weather related - I've noticed a lot fewer flowers available now than a few months ago.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:22 AM on November 20, 2019

I. Think it just fluctuates but I don’t use flowers much except to get my plant/reap numbers up.

This event means friend me if you need one

4355 4998 9489
posted by tilde at 12:06 PM on December 3, 2019

What I really want to know is what mad butcher is scorrying about pulling out frog brains, dragon livers, newt spleens, armadillo bile, and torturing scarabs and hermit crabs with such a driving abandon that they just spill this crap everywhere?
posted by tilde at 12:32 PM on December 3, 2019 [4 favorites]