Alastor Moody

"Constant Vigilance!"

- Alastor Moody

Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody was an Auror who also worked for the Order of the Phoenix during the First Wizarding War and Second Wizarding War. Moody served with distinction during the first conflict, gaining a considerable reputation (as well as losing an eye, leg, and part of his nose, while fighting the Dark Arts). To this end, Moody became overly-cautious and paranoid about his security. Nevertheless, Moody remained a constant and valuable ally to the assembled forces of good during their battles with Lord Voldemort, until one such engagement in which Moody met his end.

The First War
Moody, during his times with Aurors, served with the Ministry of Magic, fighting the Death Eaters under Voldemort's command, alongside the Aurors and the Order of the Phoenix under Albus Dumbledore. Moody personally ensured half the cells in Azkaban were filled with fugitive Death Eaters following Voldemort's fall from power, even even killing some who resisted.

At some point, Moody retired from active service.

The Triwizard Tournament
In 1994, Moody was convinced to come out of retirement by Dumbledore and serve as Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry's latest Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.

Before the school year began, however, Moody was attacked in his home by Bartemius Crouch Jr. and Peter Pettigrew, at Voldemort's order, and was subsequently over-powered and imprisoned in his own magical trunk. This was done as part of Voldemort's plan to regain power. To this end, Crouch used Polyjuice Potion to take on Moody's form in order to replace him at Hogwarts, successfully fooling staff and pupils alike. Moody's habit of drinking from his own hipflask allowed Crouch to take the Potion regularly without raising suspicion, as well as Crouch successfully acted as Moody by expressing many of his normal eccentric habits. All the while, Crouch did his part in Voldemort's plan.

Working incredibly hard and using all of his cunning, Crouch-as-Moody ensured Harry Potter would get into the Tournament and ascend to the final task. Upon doing so, Voldemort used Harry to rise to power once again. When Crouch learned of this upon Harry's return, he attempted to kill him, but Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape stopped him. The professors waited patiently for the Polyjuice Potion to wear off, revealing Crouch's true form. Under the influence of Veritaserum, he admitted everything, and Moody was free from his trunk. After recuperating in the Hospital Wing, Moody returned to health, but was much more paranoid for his safety than before and his eye occasionally got stuck from Crouch wearing it.

The Second War
In 1995, Moody joined the reformed Order of the Phoenix, and was part of the Advance Guard that took Harry from Privet Drive to Order HQ in Grimmauld Place. Moody took part in engagements with re-formed Death Eater forces on multiple occasions. After Snapes was believed to be a traitor (after killing Dumbledore on his own orders), Moody personally put special protections on Order HQ. All the while, Moody remained a firm and committed friend to the others.

Death
As it turned out, Moody's over-protectiveness of Harry would be his doom. Shortly before Harry's 17th birthday, Moody and a team from the Order attempted to move Harry away from Privet Drive to The Burrow, using a series of broomsticks, Thestrals and a flying motorcycle to reach a network of carefully-placed Portkeys, when the original plan proved useless following Pius Thicknesse's subversion. Moody was partnered with Mundungus Fletcher.

The team was ambushed by Death Eaters upon take-off. Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour witnessed and reported what had happened: Moody and Fletcher were heading north, close by Bill and Fleur, after the Order members scattered. Voldemort, using his ability to fly, went straight for them as he believed Moody to be the greatest threat. Fletcher panicked, crying out, and Moody tried to stop him, but he Disapparated, leaving Moody vulnerable to attack. After a short battle, Moody's wand was blasted out of his hand, leaving him unable to cast a Shield Charm, and Voldemort fired a Killing Curse that hit Moody full in the face. Moody fell backwards off his broom and down to the ground, and even if he survived the curse (which is highly-doubtable), Moody fell about a thousand feet with no wand, making his death a certainty. Because half-a-dozen Death Eaters were on their own tail, Bill and Fleur could do nothing.

The Ministry, meanwhile, did not report Mad-Eye's death, due to Rufus Scrimgeour not wanting to admit Voldemort is as powerful as he is, nor that Azkaban's seen yet another mass breakout.

Moody's broken body was quickly retrieved by the Death Eaters, who were prompt in tidying up after themselves. To this end, they Transfigured Moody's body and stuffed it down an unknown location. While Bill and Remus Lupin left to recover it, they failed to recover his body, as it had been difficult to know where he might have fallen, given the darkness and the confusion of the battle. As such, The Order were unable to hold a funeral for Moody. While Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger held out hope for Moody's survival, Harry promptly pointed out the flaws in their logic, and so all, in the end, accepted the truth, but the shock and sadness were great for all.

Mad-Eye's magical eye, however, was salvaged by the Death Eaters, and then, following the fall of the Ministry, given to the new head of it's Muggle-Born Registration Commission Head Dolores Umbridge, possibly as a gift. It was nailed to her office door and used to aid her in spying on her workers. When Harry, Hermione and Ron infiltrated the Ministry to find the Locket Horcrux, Harry discovered the eye and, disgusted by how it was being used, stole it. Doing so, however, raised the alarm. After escaping, Harry, early the next morning and before the other two were awake, left the tent they were staying in to search the woods around them for the oldest, most gnarled and resilient-looking tree he could find. Then in its shadow, he buried the eye and marked the spot by gouging a small cross in the bark with his wand. While it wasn't much, Mad-Eye Moody was given a proper burial.

Personality


"Moody" means "temperamental" or "sulky" and the members of the Order would agree Moody had his mind constantly on dark things. As a person, Moody was described as being "never one to shy away from danger, rather, he almost seemed to revel in it". Harry looked up to him as being "so tough, so brave, the consummate survivor".

Moody, despite his eccentric nature, had quite a lot of friendships, such as Arthur Weasley, who thought very highly of him, and Auror Nymphadora Tonks, who became his favourite colleague and protegee at the Ministry. All were devastated at his death.

Dark Detectors and other items
Along with his magical eye, wooden leg, and wand, Moody has many useful items in his possession. He had two Invisibility Cloaks, though he lent one to Sturgis Podmore, which was never returned. He also possesses a magical trunk with seven compartments (one in which Barty Couch Jr hid the real Moody during his year at Hogwarts), along with the keys for each compartment. He had many items known as Dark Detectors; among these detectors were a Foe-Glass, a large Sneakoscope, and a Secrecy Sensor. He also had a black traveling cloak, a long staff, and a silver drinking flask.

Behind the scenes
Moody was portrayed in the fourth and fifth films by Irish actor Brendan Gleeson, and was portrayed considerably different from his literary counterpart. Differences between his description in the book and his portrayal on film include his magical eye being held in place by an eye patch and it is not electric blue eye, having a less mutilated face, including a full nose instead of a piece of it missing. Addtionally in the book Moody's magical eye replaced his right eye, in the film adaptation the magical eye replaced Moody's left eye.

He also has blond hair rather than grey, and is somewhat overweight. His artificial leg in the films is made of metal rather than wood.

He also speaks with Gleeson's natural Irish accent, although his nationality in the books is never said to be anything other than British.

In the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix film, Moody has a specialised broom.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Alastor Moody Аластор Грюм