I've noticed that in Half-Baked Plot when they're discussing silent spells they didn't really put a limit on what spells could be done silently. So couldn't in theory the Unforgivables be cast silently? I would like to see what you all think on this matter. Please cover the three curses indevidualy.

1.) Well this is my theory on why the Avada can't be cast silently. It is my belief that no necromatic spells can be cast as such as the words have to travel outside this dimenson and into the afterlife ensnaring willing and (if strong enough) unwilling spirits to be bound once again unto a body of flesh and blood. And that the Avada is necromatic in nature as the most popular belief about this spell is that it severs the soul from the body, which as we all know is something necromancers can do quite easily if the will of the soul isn't strong enough to resist the tempting call of the afterlife.

2.) Ah yes the infamous Imperio, favorite of all dark! Harry fics. The power to ensnare ones mind into doing your biding is very tempting. It is my beleif that the reason this spell is cast aloud is the strain it puts on ones mind, which in turn causes one to lose focus easily when first entering. The words help to keep the goal in mind. But I also beleive that a strong minded Individual could cast this silently or if one posses a certain degree of mastery in Occulmency.

3.) The last and one of my personal favs, the Crucio. This curse holds an obsene amount of sway for those sadists out there. My beleif is that you realy don't need to say this one aloud. Most due I suppose either because its a habit or because the screams of your most hated foe are far to pleasurable for you to concentrate properly.

Please share your theories.

 

I believe that all spells can be cast non-verbally. Casting a spell non-verbally is no different from casting a spell out loud, only the words are in your head rather than out loud. So the words are still said, only no-one can hear them.

As for proof, in OotP in the atrium fight, Voldemort shoots an Avada Kedavra at Dumbledore without words.

However, if when you speak of 'silent' spells you are refering to the fanon creation of simply thinking of the effect of a spell and willing it to happen rather than the canon 'non-verbal' spell effect, then I suppose your theories are good.

 

I don't think you can cast them silently because they are emotion-based. And to pump out emotions into spell, it seems that shouting out incantation is neccessary. Hell, even Voldemort does it and he should be the first one to show off his silent casting abilities.

 

heh heh sorry bout that sree still gettin used to the changes.

 

He doesn't always use the incantation, only when he's fighting people he underestimates. When he was fighting Dumbledore he used a non-verbal Avada Kedavra - it wasn't until he lost his temper that he started shouting the spell.

Admittedly, for a mediocre wizard it will be easier and more convinent to cast an emotion based spell by shouting a spell, but for someone with the control over their own minds as Voldemort it should be childs play. It wasn't until he lost that self-control that he stopped casting non-verbally.

 

I believe that you can cast all spells silent, too. But it takes you more power. So it's often unnecessary to cast some spells silent because if your enemy can't shield himself against them and has no time to dodge he would get hit no matter what. So why waste power?

 

Ah but in canon they said that you could cast virtualy any spell silently with enough focus. But it didn't mention any of the students seeming abnormaly tired when they suceeded. Also why wouldn't Harry be able to do it then? He does have the power to after all, Patronus at 13. If it was only a matter of power he would have had it first or second try.

 

I think you're mixing up power and focus. Harry has power (e.g. the patronus) but he lacks focus (e.g. his inability to master occlumency, his inability to cast silently).

Focus is to do with the mind, power to do with what you're born with.

 

I hate the entire idea of unforgivables being silenced because then it just becomes majorly unfair and uberPowerful.

Hell, the unforgivables should be obscenely tiring as it is. No random new recruit should be able to throw an instakill. I say that the average person should only have the power to cast it three or four times before it becomes too tiring.

 

I'm a firm believer of the idea a person doesn't 'run out' of magical power...otherwise wizards would just be nothing more than a supercharged muggle.

Magic is part of a wizard, it is who they are, they are a magical race. Just because a wizard isn't disfigured like a Goblin, doesn't mean they're closer to Muggles.

So, a person either has the power to cast something, at which point they can cast it as much as they like, or they don't have the power to cast it, at which point no amount of 'storing up' your power will help.

That's my view anyway. It is my opinion that only the top, say 10%, should have the power to cast unforgivables.

 

It could be that you draw magic from your surroundings...it's just that you get worn out from drawing it too often.

 

Slightly off topic:

Why to people take the fact that Harry cast a patronus at age 13 as the example of his power?

Hermione and Neville and the DA start doing it when they're 14/15, so it's not that much of a difference.

I jsut treat it like this: His atronus, regardless of the age he can cast it, was able to drive away a hundred Dementors. I think he could have practiced the AK and done that at the age of 13 as well.

On Topic: I'm stretched. On one hand, i personally believe that you ahve to incant the AK and the Cruciatus for it to work. No silent casting for those two.

For Imperio...no incantation necessary. It's a mind art, so if you can do legilimency/occumency without the words, then you can possess/command someone without it. In GOF, they describe the AK as green and Crucio as red. I don't think they describe Imperio.

Since it's like possession, in a way, i'd think you don't need the words.

On the other hand, it's fuckin' cool when a good writer shows his Evil!Harry or his Voldemort casting all the unforgivables silently. It's like it registers subconsciously with me as a massive show of power.

In that vampire fic, where he casts the AK on a bug wandlessly and silently...that was pretty cool.

 

Ah well then Let me change my litttle example. What I ment by it was that he cast a corpeal one at 13 that could drive off at least 100 dementors not that casting the patroni itself was amazing.

I hate that steriotype too but it was the only one I could pull off the top of my head.

But I don't think wandless forgivables(at least Avada) would work well. I mean if you accedintaly blow off a finger that got in the way of a banisher that can be fixed. But if that happens with the Avada....

 

Yeah, i agree with that entirely. Voldemort and Dumbledore, i'd think, would be able to silently cast the most powerful dark/light spells respectively.

Voldemort would be forced to enunciate Light spells of medium complexity and above, and if Dumbledore ever cast dark magic, he'd have to speak out the words.

I dunno, it appeals to me in a "i've declared myself as a Light Wizard/Dark Wizard" way.

 

Yeah. This sounds good. Maybe if you have enough training in the Dark Arts and especially with the unforgivables you can cast them silently, that is, if you have enough power. If not you can't cast them or only with incantation.

 

The whole argument about magical power and reseveres are shot. Remember the big blone death eater in HBP that was throwing killing curses around like party favors. If the killing curse was so draining that a wizard could only cast it three of four times before having to rest then the death eaters wouldn't open fire with that curse every time their mentioned. It would be for finishing someone or hiting someone who couldn't dodge. Not used a max range at the start of a fight. The idea of magical exhaustion is a Fandon creation to prevent charcters from being uber with a single good curse.

 

I don't consider HBP canon.

 

Yeah...and Magical Exhaustion is a fucking good idea. I have to agree...i don't consider HBP as canon.

Not only because i'm writing pre-HBP, but because i plain didn't like the book. Too many holes and avenues for fuckups. The only thing i liked was the CONCEPT of Horcruxes. The fact that JK gave Voldemort Horcruxes pissed me off...it makes him far too invincible.