- "We are looking for talented young witches and wizards with a liking for danger."
- —A recruitment advertisement[src]
A Hit Wizard or Hit Witch is a member of the Magical Law Enforcement Squad that are trained to deal with highly dangerous combat situations, such as high-risk arrests, riot controls and presumably, hostage situations. As such they are the Wizarding Britain's equivalent of specialist firearms officers.
History
A team of Hit Wizards arrested Sirius Black in 1981 when he was thought to have murdered Peter Pettigrew and twelve Muggles with a single curse.[1]
Arnold Peasegood suffered a minor attack of boils while arresting goblins during the riot in Chipping Clodbury in 1992/1993.
Hit wizards were also needed to escort the Quidditch team members to safety during the riots that occurred at the Puddlemere United v Holyhead Harpies grudge match.
Alastor Gumboil handles applications for Hit Witches and Hit Wizards from room 919 at the Ministry.
The job
The Department of Magical Law Enforcement maintains squads of trained Hit Wizards and Witches whose job it is to move out at a moment's notice in dire and dangerous situations, be it to disperse the crowd during riots or apprehend dangerous wizarding criminals once they have been located.
While Hit Wizards are trained to fight Dark Wizards, just like the Aurors, the latter appear to differ in that unlike Hit Wizards, they are more of an elite force whose abilities goes far beyond simply arresting suspects such as investigation, concealment and disguise, stealth and tracking, poisons and antidotes, etc., whereas Hit Wizards appeared to be primarily a fighting and controlling force, and not trained to investigate crime.
Job requirements:
- 17 years of age or older
- five or more O.W.L.s including Defence Against the Dark Arts
- not of nervous disposition[2]
Benefits include:
- starting salary of 700 Galleons per month
- Ministry of Magic broomstick
- regular bed at Saint Mungo's[3]
Known Hit Wizards
- Alastor Gumboil
- Arnold Peasegood[4]
- Cerberus Langarm (formerly)
Behind the scenes
- Hit Wizard is a play on the term "hitman."
- It is generally believed by fans that Rowling intended them to be Aurors, but had not created the name "Auror" at the time of their introduction.
- According to Officer Cerberus Langarm of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, whose duties have described in the game Fantastic Beasts: Cases from the Wizarding World and are identical to those described to be carried out by a Hit Wizard, he is "trained to fight Dark Wizards". This might indicate that while Aurors are investigators who detect and analyse traces of Dark magic, prepare several strategies and track down Dark Witches and Wizards, Hit Wizards are just trained combatants and general law enforcers. Indeed, considering how Sirius Black was believed to be a Death Eater working for Voldemort, the greatest adversary of the British Auror Department in the late 20th century, it would appear that Hit Wizards might be called upon by Aurors to assist in bringing in Dark Wizards once their location has been pinpointed.
- It is interesting to note that while Harry, Ron and Neville became Aurors after the Second Wizarding War immediately without the N.E.W.T. requirements and Auror training, that both Harry and Ron can actually qualify for the entry requirements of becoming a Hit Wizard, in that they both have seven O.W.L.s including one in Defence against the Dark Arts, are 17 years or older and are not of nervous disposition. Neville can also qualify for this, with the only minor exception for his achievement of only four O.W.L.s, instead of at least five.
See also
Appearances
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (First appearance)
- Daily Prophet Newsletters
Notes and references
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Chapter 10 (The Marauder's Map)
- ↑ Daily Prophet newsletters - Issue 2
- ↑ Daily Prophet newsletters - Issue 2
- ↑ Daily Prophet Newsletters, Feb 8th 1999, p. 2
