Potter fans, help me! I am so confused about that bloody Elder Wand in The Deathly Hallows.

[JackSawMamaKissingSantaClaus]

I'm not normally dim, and have read The Deathly Hallows three or four times. But I just can't get my mind around the thing with the Elder Wand.

Why does Voldemort want it so much, and isn't there some confusion with the last spell done by the wand, and something backfires on Voldemort, which is how Harry finds himself in the white train station talking to Dumbledore and deciding whether to live or die in the end... help!!

I know Voldemort steals the Elder Wand out of Dumbledore's grave... but it ends up not being the right wand...? Or something...?

HELP!!

[BelleDeChocChipCookieMonster]

Voldermort wants it because:

It's really powerful and can kill things easily: including Harry Potter (?)

Dumbledore didn't have the Elder Wand when he died in Book 6. Draco Malfoy disarmed him, so the Elder Wand-ness passed to Malfoy.

Harry disarmed Malfoy at Malfoy Manor (Book 7) so Harry had the wand. Harry used Draco's wand as his got broken at Godrics Hollow.

He used the Elder wand in the fight with Voldemort and won, but when Harry "died" I think he must have passed out and dreamed it or something? Or maybe part of Dumbledore's magic?

[JackSawMamaKissingSantaClaus]

OK, so the power of the Elder Wand is not in the actual wand? Is that what you mean by Elder Wand-ness?

[slightly less confused]
[but still a little fuzzy on the details]

[DasherandSmugly]

It's an unbeatable wand but people who get it can't stop bragging about it so invariably get killed by someone who hears about it and wants it. It's supposed to be unlucky.

Spell thing Dumbledore expected the wand to die with him (can't remember how but it was something to do with him arranging for Snape to kill him). But Draco expelliarmised it from him so by rights it belonged to Draco who didn't know. When Harry disarmed Draco in the Malfoy Manor the wands allegiance passed to him (even though Draco didn't have the EW at the time). That's why the wand didn't work for Voldemort as it knew it belonged to Harry.

[BelleDeChocChipCookieMonster]

It's not the wand that does the damage, it's the owner and the fact that the owner owns the wand. The Elder Wand is so hard to track; that's because it moves person.

Wizard A kills Wizard B. Wizard A gets the wand from Wizard B's body. That's normal.

Wizard C disarms Wizard A and takes the power of the wand. It's a bit like pass the parcel. It's not necessary to kill to get the power, but Voldemort doesn't know that. Voldemort thought Dumbledore had the wand so robbed his grave. Dumbledore -did- have the wand, but then Draco Malfoy got the power by disarming Dumbledore (but he didn't know)
Draco had the wand power, then Harry took Draco's wand, along with the power of the Elderness. Harry has the Wandiness.

[frasersmummy]

I am loving all these terms...

elderness, wandiness, wand-ness [grin}

[JackSawMamaKissingSantaClaus]

[JackSawMamaKissingSantaClaus]

I'm beginning to see why I am was confused

[BelleDeChocChipCookieMonster]

Are you still confused??

[JackSawMamaKissingSantaClaus]

No... I think I got it... I think. You explained it very well. Now it just has to sink in.
I will probably have to read TDH again. And refer to this thread.

[JackSawMamaKissingSantaClaus]

Thank you Belle!

[sybiltherednosedreindeer]

ok, so I read it as -

the wand changes allegance even if the actual wand itself is not moved.

Malfoy beat Dumbledore so the wand changed to him, then Harry beat Malfoy so the wands allegiance changed to him. So, even though Harry had never held the wand before he won at the end because the wand recognised him as its true owner.

The whole railway station thing is very confusing. I think that because Harry went willingly to his death (like his mum) for the sake of his friends he wasn't killed by the killing curse. Instead, it killed the bit of Voldemart that had been attached to Harry when Voldemart killed his mum (Harry being one of Voldemorts Horcuxes in effect) I may be completely wrong about that bit though...

[potplant]

Straight from the horses mouth

I read an explanation of Harry 'dying', but can't remember what it was. I think that they might have to give explanatory notes for part 2.

[JackSawMamaKissingSantaClaus]

Huh. Must read again when I am not at work have more time.

[pinkhyena]

What I want to know is what is that dying creature in the train station? It never gets explained! Or it does and I missed it completely.

[DasherandSmugly]

Surely explanation of Harry dying is the death of the horcrux attached to him?

[DasherandSmugly]

The dying creature in the train station is the bit of Voldemort's soul that has just been killed.

[pinkteddy]

Isn't the dying creature at the railway station the horcrux that was attached to Harry?

[pinkhyena]

Ok, that makes sense, thank you :)

[BelligerentGhoul]

Yes the dying thing is the bit of Voldie's soul that was destroyed in his attempt to kill Harry, who was going willingly to his death and thus didn't die.

And doesn't Voldie think that Snape gained possession of the Elder-wand by killing Dumbledore - so therefore he kills Snape? He completely forgets about Draco, showing how unimportant Draco has been in the grand scheme of things - Voldie only ever used him in order to punish Malfoy.

[PureBloodMuggle]

I thought i understood this (the whole wand and the station/dying creature thing but now I've forgotten again.

Oh dear.

Looks like I HAVE to re-read!!

[DancingThroughLife]

I'd never made the link between the Harryhorcrux and the dying thing! But it makes perfect sense!

Was going to give a whole explanation about allegience rather than in-your-hand-ence with the wand, but others have got there first.

It took me about 6 reads to get the Elder Wand thing Jacksaw.

[potplant]

It will be interesting to see how they explain it in the film. Its hard enough to follow in the book

[EricNorthpolesChristmas]

Ys Belligerent because he tinks you have to kill the wandster to get the wandness, but you just have to beat them, which was what Draco did.

[BelligerentGhoul]

Yup!

Want to re-read but only did so a couple of months ago and it makes me cry too much! Ooooooooooohhhhhhhhh Doooooooooooooobbbbyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. :(

[DasherandSmugly]

And what Harry did. Love the explanation re. the fist fight between two teenagers being intergral to something so magical and powerful.