Vault 713 Archive v1 is here! Found a bug or have a feature request? Get in touch.

← Blog

Collecting

A Complete Guide to WOTC Harry Potter TCG Promos

Twenty-five promos, sorted from the ones you can find easily to the ones that almost never come up for sale. How each one was handed out and what languages it came in.

October 4, 2026 · 19 min read

By Vault 713 Archive · @vault713archive · contact@vault713archive.com

Common PromosMid-range PromosGrails

Wizards of the Coast put out twenty-five promo cards for the Harry Potter TCG. Some came from movie theaters, some from league nights, a few from a toy store, a bookstore, and Japanese magazines, and one from an Italian store nobody has been able to date. A couple you can buy today for about the price of a sandwich. A few almost never come up for sale at all.

This guide goes through all of them, from the easiest to find to the hardest. For each one I've covered when and how it came out, which languages it was printed in and what the card does. Every section links to the card's page in the archive.

If you want the bigger story of why these cards exist and how the game around them fell apart, read the history of the Harry Potter TCG. For a plain list of every promo in release order, see the promo catalogue.

How this list is ordered

Ranking promos by how hard they are to find is harder than it sounds. A promo can be cheap and still hard to find, or common and expensive because everyone wants it, and the two don't move together. I ranked on both: how widely each one was distributed, how often a copy comes up for sale, and what it tends to cost when one does.

That gives three tiers: cards you can find without much trouble, cards that take some looking, and the grails. Inside a tier the order is my best guess, so the closer two cards sit, the less the order between them means.

The ranking at a glance

#PromoLanguagesHow it was distributed
1Swelling SolutionEnglishChamber of Secret Movie Release
2Snape's QuestionEnglishSorcerer's Stone Movie Release
3RemembrallEnglish, Japanese, French, Italian, German, SpanishWOTC Harry Potter TCG Introduction Promo
4Diagon AlleyEnglish, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Spanish, PortugueseWOTC Harry Potter TCG Introduction Promo
5Bluebell FlamesEnglish, SpanishSorcerer's Stone Movie Release
6Strategy SessionEnglish, French, ItalianSorcerer's Stone Movie Release
7DiffindoEnglish, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Spanish, PortugueseHarry Potter TCG League Promo #1
8Forest TrollEnglish, Japanese, French, Italian, German, PortugueseHarry Potter TCG League Promo #2
9Moonseed PoisonEnglish, Japanese, Italian, GermanHarry Potter TCG League Promo #5
10Swelling PotionEnglishDiagon Alley Game Day Tournament
11OllivandersEnglish, Italian, GermanHarry Potter TCG League Promo #6
12Hover CharmEnglishHarry Potter TCG League Promo #7
13Rainy-Day MatchEnglishChamber of Secret Movie Release
14Keeping Dobby QuietEnglishChamber of Secret Movie Release
15Hufflepuff MatchEnglish, Japanese, French, Italian, German, PortugueseHarry Potter TCG League Promo #3
16Unusual PetsEnglish, Japanese, French, Italian, GermanHarry Potter TCG League Promo #4
175 Points From GryffindorEnglishGoblet of Fire Bookstore Promo
18IllegibilusEnglish, JapaneseHarry Potter PC Game Promo
19Forbidden CorridorEnglishHarry Potter TCG League Promo #8
20Meeting FluffyEnglishAdventures At Hogwarts Game Day Tournament
21Wingardium Leviosa!JapaneseCoroCoro Comic Promo
22AlohomoraItalianItalian Game Store Promo
23Backfire!JapaneseShogakukan Fourth Grade Magazine Promo
24Through The TrapdoorEnglish, ItalianSorcerer's Stone Toys-R-Us Pre-Order Promo
25Devil's SnareEnglishHarry Potter PC Game Promo
Twenty-five promos, easiest to hardest. Each name jumps to its section below.

Tier 1: Easy to find

These are the ones you can find without much trouble and without spending much. If you're starting a promo collection, start with these.

1. Swelling Solution

November 2002 · Chamber of Secret Movie Release

Swelling Solution, Harry Potter TCG promo 84/140
Swelling Solution · 84/140 · Uncommon
Languages
English
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Alex Horley

Swelling Solution was one of three promos handed out in theaters when Chamber of Secrets opened in November 2002, along with Keeping Dobby Quiet and Rainy-Day Match. The film came out in the US and the UK on November 15, a few weeks after the Chamber of Secrets set itself had reached stores. The card is a Potions spell that does 8 damage to your opponent unless they discard three cards from their hand. In this game damage means cards coming off the top of your deck, so that's a real choice for the person on the receiving end.

The flavor text is from the Potions lesson where Malfoy's nose swells up to the size of a small melon. Alex Horley painted it. He was born Alessandro Orlandelli outside Milan, taught himself English from comic books, and took the name Horley because he figured editors wouldn't remember his real one. He has painted for Heavy Metal, Marvel, and DC, and for years for Wizards on Magic: The Gathering.

This is the one to get if you want a Chamber of Secrets film promo and don't need all three. It was printed in English only.

See Swelling Solution in the database →

2. Snape's Question

November 2001 · Sorcerer's Stone Movie Release

Snape's Question, Harry Potter TCG promo 104/116
Snape's Question · 104/116 · Common
Languages
English
Rarity
Common
Credit
Daren Bader

Snape's Question went out for the Sorcerer's Stone film in November 2001. It was one of three promos handed out around the theatrical release, along with Strategy Session and Bluebell Flames, and a factory-sealed pack held one of them. The movie opened in the US on November 16, which makes these some of the earliest promos in the game's first year.

The card is Harry's first Potions class boiled down to a card. It does 4 damage to your opponent unless they can show you a Potions Lesson from their hand, so it punishes anyone who built a deck light on Potions. The flavor text is Harry's answer to Snape's barrage of questions: "I don't know, sir," and the sneer that follows. Daren Bader illustrated it. He's a concept artist and art director who has worked with Disney, Nintendo, Capcom, and Rockstar, and he's painted somewhere between 150 and 200 Magic cards, mostly in oil and acrylic on illustration board.

It shares its number, 104/116, with the regular Base Set printing, so the promo stamp is what tells the two apart. It was printed in English only.

See Snape's Question in the database →

3. Remembrall

August 2001 · WOTC Harry Potter TCG Introduction Promo

Remembrall, Harry Potter TCG promo 101/116
Remembrall · 101/116 · Common
Languages
English, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Spanish
Rarity
Common
Credit
Marcelo Vignali

Remembrall and Diagon Alley were the two introduction promos, produced for the launch of the game in August 2001. They're a few months older than anything else on this list, and like the other earliest promos Remembrall carries the smaller version of the promo symbol that Wizards later enlarged. The history article covers why.

It's a good card for something this cheap to own. The Remembrall is an Item that lets you spend an Action to put a Lesson from your discard pile into play, and getting Lessons back is how you keep your Power coming. Marcelo Vignali painted it. He started at Disney in 1987, worked as a concept designer at Walt Disney Imagineering, and has since done production design and art direction for films like Hotel Transylvania and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

It was printed in six languages, which makes it a popular pick for people collecting translations.

See Remembrall in the database →

4. Diagon Alley

August 2001 · WOTC Harry Potter TCG Introduction Promo

Diagon Alley, Harry Potter TCG promo 48/116
Diagon Alley · 48/116 · Uncommon
Languages
English, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Ron Spears

Diagon Alley was the other introduction promo, produced for the launch of the game in August 2001. It's an Adventure, which in this game is a card you play against your opponent. They have to meet the conditions printed on it before they're free of it. This one stops them from using Actions to draw cards until they've skipped a total of seven Actions.

The flavor text is Harry's first look at the shops: "There were shops selling robes, shops selling telescopes and strange silver instruments Harry had never seen." Ron Spears illustrated it. Spears was the art director on Magic: The Gathering from Urza's Saga through Odyssey, and he illustrated widely for this game too. He died in June 2026.

It was printed in seven languages, the same as Diffindo and more than any other promo.

See Diagon Alley in the database →

5. Bluebell Flames

November 2001 · Sorcerer's Stone Movie Release

Bluebell Flames, Harry Potter TCG promo 44/116
Bluebell Flames · 44/116 · Uncommon
Languages
English, Spanish
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Marcelo Vignali

Bluebell Flames is one of the three Sorcerer's Stone film promos from November 2001, along with Snape's Question and Strategy Session. You got one of the three from a sealed pack.

It's a Charms spell that does 4 damage to your opponent or to a Creature of your choice. The flavor text is Hermione's blue fire in the Devil's Snare scene, "Bright blue flames shot from her wand." Marcelo Vignali illustrated it, the same artist as Remembrall.

It was printed in English and Spanish.

See Bluebell Flames in the database →

6. Strategy Session

November 2001 · Sorcerer's Stone Movie Release

Strategy Session, Harry Potter TCG promo 49/80
Strategy Session · 49/80 · Uncommon
Languages
English, French, Italian
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Michael Koelsch

Strategy Session is the third of the Sorcerer's Stone film promos, handed out in November 2001. Whichever sealed pack you picked up, this was one of the cards it could hold. It's the odd one of the three because it isn't a Base Set card at all. It's Quidditch Cup number 49, from a set that hadn't come out yet, and Wizards left the set symbol off so the card wouldn't give anything away about what was coming.

The effect is simple and strong for a Quidditch deck: you can put up to three Quidditch Lessons from your hand into play at once. Michael Koelsch illustrated it. He grew up in Huntington Beach, studied at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, and works in a style that borrows from 1940s to 1960s pulp covers and B-movie posters. His clients include DreamWorks, Universal, Scholastic, and Apple TV+.

It was printed in English, Italian, and French.

See Strategy Session in the database →

7. Diffindo

January 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #1

Diffindo, Harry Potter TCG promo 1
Diffindo · 1 · Foil
Languages
English, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese
Rarity
Foil
Credit
Tim Hildebrandt

Diffindo was League Promo #1, January 2002, the first of a monthly run of foil prize cards for people playing in Harry Potter leagues. Like the other early league promos it has no set symbol and no collector number. A league number takes their place, which is why this card is just numbered 1.

The card makes your opponent discard one of their cards in play, other than their starting character. It was painted by Tim Hildebrandt, one half of the Brothers Hildebrandt. He and his twin brother Greg painted the Tolkien calendars for Ballantine that made them famous in the 1970s, and in 1977 they painted the original theatrical poster for Star Wars. Tim died in 2006.

Diffindo was printed in seven languages, tied with Diagon Alley for the most of any promo, so there's a full language set to chase if that's your thing.

See Diffindo in the database →

8. Forest Troll

February 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #2

Forest Troll, Harry Potter TCG promo 2
Forest Troll · 2 · Foil
Languages
English, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Portuguese
Rarity
Foil
Credit
Chris Seaman

League Promo #2, February 2002, foil. This is the troll from the Halloween scene, club and all, and the flavor text is the first good look at it: "It was holding a huge wooden club, which dragged along the floor because the arms were so long."

It's cheap to play. You discard one Care of Magical Creatures Lesson from play and the troll comes down, which is a fair price for a big body. Chris Seaman did the art. It was printed in six languages.

Of the five foil league promos it's one of the easiest to find. If you want to know what the league treatment looks like in hand without spending much, this is a good first one to buy.

See Forest Troll in the database →

9. Moonseed Poison

May 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #5

Moonseed Poison, Harry Potter TCG promo 5
Moonseed Poison · 5 · Foil
Languages
English, Japanese, Italian, German
Rarity
Foil
Credit
Alex Horley

League Promo #5, May 2002, and the last of the five foil league prizes. After this one the league promos went back to plain, non-foil cards.

Moonseed Poison is a Potions Item that does 3 damage when you play it. Later you can spend an Action, discard it from play, and do 6 more. That's a slow burn with a big finish, and it makes the card a lot better than it looks. Alex Horley painted it, the same artist as Swelling Solution and Hover Charm, which makes him the most prolific illustrator on this list.

It was printed in four languages, fewer than the earlier league cards.

See Moonseed Poison in the database →

10. Swelling Potion

April 2002 · Diagon Alley Game Day Tournament

Swelling Potion, Harry Potter TCG promo 72/80
Swelling Potion · 72/80 · Common
Languages
English
Rarity
Common
Credit
Greg Hildebrandt

Swelling Potion was a prize at the Diagon Alley Game Day tournaments in April 2002. It's the Diagon Alley card numbered 72 with a gold Promo stamp in the bottom right corner, so it's a regular card turned into a tournament prize and not something that exists only as a promo.

The card does 5 damage to your opponent and stops them from using Actions to play Items on their next turn. Greg Hildebrandt illustrated it. He and his twin brother Tim worked together as the Brothers Hildebrandt for decades, and Greg kept painting on his own after Tim died in 2006, until his own death on October 31, 2024.

Tournament prizes only reached people who showed up, and this one was printed in English only. That's most of why a card with a plain effect is so much harder to find than the film promos.

See Swelling Potion in the database →

Tier 2: Takes some looking

Prices climb from here, and several of these only come up for sale now and then. A saved search on eBay does most of the work.

11. Ollivanders

July 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #6

Ollivanders, Harry Potter TCG promo 6
Ollivanders · 6 · Uncommon
Languages
English, Italian, German
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Daren Bader

League Promo #6, July 2002, and the first league prize without the foil. It also drops the set symbol and the collector number, so what you get is the art and a stamp.

Ollivanders is a Charms spell that puts an Item from your discard pile into your hand. The flavor text is Harry's wand-buying scene: "The pile of tried wands was mounting higher and higher on the spindly chair..." Daren Bader painted it, the same artist as Snape's Question.

Don't mix it up with the Base Set Ollivanders, number 59. That's a different card with art by Jon Foster. The promo was printed in three languages.

See Ollivanders in the database →

12. Hover Charm

August 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #7

Hover Charm, Harry Potter TCG promo 115/140
Hover Charm · 115/140 · Common
Languages
English
Rarity
Common
Credit
Alex Horley

League Promo #7, August 2002. Hover Charm is the odd one in the league series because it kept its set symbol and its collector number, and the number is 115/140. Chamber of Secrets didn't reach shops until October 7, so anyone reading the corner of a league prize in August could work out how big the next set was going to be, and see its symbol, two months early.

It's a Charms spell that sends one of your opponent's cards in play, other than their starting character, back to their hand. The flavor text is Aunt Petunia's pudding, "the mountain of cream and sugared violets," floating up near the ceiling after Dobby's visit. Alex Horley painted it.

It has no foil, and it was printed in English only.

See Hover Charm in the database →

13. Rainy-Day Match

November 2002 · Chamber of Secret Movie Release

Rainy-Day Match, Harry Potter TCG promo 80/140
Rainy-Day Match · 80/140 · Uncommon
Languages
English
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Ron Spears

The second of the three Chamber of Secrets film promos, November 2002. They were given out in theaters while the movie was running.

Rainy-Day Match is a Quidditch Match, a card type where both players race for the same goal. Whoever does 9 damage to the other player first wins, and the winner shuffles up to six non-Healing cards from their discard pile back into their deck. Playing one is a bet that you'll get there first. Ron Spears illustrated it.

It was printed in English only.

See Rainy-Day Match in the database →

14. Keeping Dobby Quiet

November 2002 · Chamber of Secret Movie Release

Keeping Dobby Quiet, Harry Potter TCG promo 71/140
Keeping Dobby Quiet · 71/140 · Uncommon
Languages
English
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Kevin McCann, Michael Collins

The third Chamber of Secrets film promo, November 2002. It's an Adventure. Your opponent discards the card they draw at the start of each of their turns until they've taken 8 damage, and when they finally get through it you take 2.

The flavor text is Harry's very polite objection to finding Dobby in his bedroom. It's the only promo credited to two illustrators, Kevin McCann and Mike Collins. Collins is better known for comics. He drew Judge Dredd for 2000 AD and has the longest uninterrupted run as an artist on Doctor Who Magazine's comic strip.

English only, like the other two Chamber of Secrets film promos.

See Keeping Dobby Quiet in the database →

15. Hufflepuff Match

March 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #3

Hufflepuff Match, Harry Potter TCG promo 3
Hufflepuff Match · 3 · Foil
Languages
English, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Portuguese
Rarity
Foil
Credit
Ben Thompson

League Promo #3, March 2002, foil. It's a Quidditch Match won by doing 8 damage to your opponent while the card is in play. The winner draws 5 cards and the loser takes 5 damage, which is a lot to put on the line in a game where your deck is your life total.

Ben Thompson illustrated it. He went on to be art director for the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game, joined Blizzard in 2009, and helped shape Hearthstone. He contributed more than seventy illustrations to Magic: The Gathering.

It was printed in six languages, so it's one of the better-distributed league promos.

See Hufflepuff Match in the database →

16. Unusual Pets

April 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #4

Unusual Pets, Harry Potter TCG promo 4
Unusual Pets · 4 · Foil
Languages
English, Japanese, French, Italian, German
Rarity
Foil
Credit
Thomas Gianni

League Promo #4, April 2002, foil. The flavor text is Hagrid's note to Harry, "It's hatching," the note that sets up Norbert's arrival. The card is an Adventure that makes your opponent take 4 damage before each of your turns. To solve it they have to choose two of their Creatures in play and discard them, and then they get to draw a card.

It was painted by Thomas Gianni, a Chicago artist who spent years as a courtroom sketch artist for WGN, NBC, and CNN and illustrated 28 cards for Magic: The Gathering. He died in 2020.

It was printed in five languages.

See Unusual Pets in the database →

17. 5 Points From Gryffindor

September 2002 · Goblet of Fire Bookstore Promo

5 Points From Gryffindor, Harry Potter TCG promo 31/80
5 Points From Gryffindor · 31/80 · Uncommon
Languages
English
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Scott M. Fischer

This one wasn't handed out at a game store. It went out in September 2002 at select bookstores as a giveaway with the Goblet of Fire paperback, which makes it a promo aimed at book buyers and not at players.

It's an Adventures at Hogwarts card, number 31/80, and an Uncommon in the regular set. You need at least five Lessons in play to cast it, and once it's out your opponent has one fewer Action on every turn until they solve it. Scott M. Fischer illustrated it. He's the longtime cover artist for Joss Whedon's Buffy and Angel comics, and his work is in the Dungeons & Dragons core rulebooks and on more than 150 Magic cards.

It was printed in English only.

See 5 Points From Gryffindor in the database →

18. Illegibilus

November 2001 · Harry Potter PC Game Promo

Illegibilus, Harry Potter TCG promo 92/116
Illegibilus · 92/116 · Common
Languages
English, Japanese
Rarity
Common
Credit
Jason Bernardin

Illegibilus is one of the two promos tied to the Harry Potter PC game, November 2001. The Windows game came out on November 16 that year, published by Electronic Arts and developed by KnowWonder, on the same day the first film opened in the US. The card came in a sealed promo pack packed inside the game's big box, which is why a sealed Illegibilus is one that's still in the pack it shipped in.

The card is a Charms spell that lets you look at your opponent's hand and make them discard one card from it. Jason Bernardin illustrated it. It was printed in English and Japanese.

See Illegibilus in the database →

19. Forbidden Corridor

September 2002 · Harry Potter TCG League Promo #8

Forbidden Corridor, Harry Potter TCG promo 8
Forbidden Corridor · 8 · Uncommon
Languages
English
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Warner Bros.

League Promo #8, September 2002, and the last of the league prizes. It's a non-foil Location, the same card as the Adventures at Hogwarts Forbidden Corridor but with different art. The Adventures at Hogwarts printing is credited to Doug Chaffee, and this promo is credited to Warner Bros.

The card is brutal. When you play it you discard any other Location in play, and before each player's turn that player has to choose one of their cards in play, other than their starting character, and discard it. At the end of a player's turn, if they have no Lessons in play, the Forbidden Corridor is discarded. The flavor text is the line that closes the third-floor corridor scene: "And now they know why it was forbidden."

Like Ollivanders it has no set symbol or collector number, and it was printed in English only.

See Forbidden Corridor in the database →

20. Meeting Fluffy

June 2002 · Adventures At Hogwarts Game Day Tournament

Meeting Fluffy, Harry Potter TCG promo 17/80
Meeting Fluffy · 17/80 · Foil
Languages
English
Rarity
Foil
Credit
Kevin Dobler

Meeting Fluffy was a prize at the Adventures at Hogwarts Game Day tournaments in June 2002, and it's the strangest-looking card on this list. It's foil, it carries the Adventures at Hogwarts set symbol rather than the scar, and its embossed gold text says LAUNCH where every other promo says PROMO.

It's an Adventure you can only play if you have at least nine Lessons in play. After that your opponent takes 12 damage before each of your turns until they solve it, and solving it means letting you pick three of their cards in play and discard them. Kevin Dobler illustrated it. He graduated from the Joe Kubert School in 2000 and went on to paint cards for every Wizards of the Coast Harry Potter set.

English only.

See Meeting Fluffy in the database →

Tier 3: Hard to find

These are the grails. Copies are expensive when they come up, and for a few of these they almost never do. The order inside this tier is a judgment call, so don't read too much into it.

21. Wingardium Leviosa!

December 2001 · CoroCoro Comic Promo

Wingardium Leviosa!, Harry Potter TCG promo 111/116
Wingardium Leviosa! · 111/116 · Common
Languages
Japanese
Rarity
Common
Credit
Ron Spencer

Wingardium Leviosa! came as an insert in CoroCoro Comic in Japan, December 2001, and it was an exclusive of the Japanese launch of the game. It's numbered 111/116, a Base Set number.

The card is a Charms spell that prevents all damage done to you by your opponent's Creatures during their next turn. The flavor text is Ron levitating the club right out of the troll's hand. Ron Spencer painted it. He grew up on a farm in Aurora, Nebraska, reading Conan comics, and he was one of the original twenty-five artists on Magic: The Gathering.

It's Japanese only, and it's easier to find than Backfire, the other Japanese magazine promo in this guide.

See Wingardium Leviosa! in the database →

22. Alohomora

Release date unknown · Italian Game Store Promo

Alohomora, Harry Potter TCG promo 32/80
Alohomora · 32/80 · Uncommon
Languages
Italian
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Bob Petillo

Alohomora is an Italian promo with no release date on record, the only card in the catalogue without one. It's speculated to have been given out at Toys, the Italian counterpart to Toys R Us, but the card itself doesn't say. It's numbered 32/80, so it's a promo copy of an Adventures at Hogwarts card, an Uncommon in the regular set, and it was printed in Italian only.

It's a Charms spell that searches your deck for a Location or Adventure card and puts it into your hand. The flavor text is Hermione unlocking the door to Fluffy's room with Harry's wand. Bob Petillo painted it. He's a photo-realist painter who illustrated cards for both Magic and the Harry Potter game in 2000 and has spent the years since painting classic American cars.

See Alohomora in the database →

23. Backfire!

November 2002 · Shogakukan Fourth Grade Magazine Promo

Backfire!, Harry Potter TCG promo 92/140
Backfire! · 92/140 · Common
Languages
Japanese
Rarity
Common
Credit
Mark Brill

Backfire! was a giveaway in Shogakukan's Fourth Grade magazine in Japan, November 2002. Shogakukan publishes a long-running series of learning magazines for children, one for each year of elementary school, and this was the fourth-grade one.

The card does 5 damage to your opponent. The flavor text is Ron's broken wand from Chamber of Secrets, the one that shot out of his hand in Charms and hit Professor Flitwick between the eyes. Mark Brill illustrated it. He's a cartoonist and caricature artist who has also drawn for Magic: The Gathering and worked on The Power Within, an anti-bullying comic distributed to schools.

It was printed in Japanese only and numbered 92/140 to fit the Chamber of Secrets set.

See Backfire! in the database →

24. Through The Trapdoor

May 2002 · Sorcerer's Stone Toys-R-Us Pre-Order Promo

Through The Trapdoor, Harry Potter TCG promo 48/80
Through The Trapdoor · 48/80 · Uncommon
Languages
English, Italian
Rarity
Uncommon
Credit
Ken Steacy

Through the Trapdoor came with the Sorcerer's Stone DVD, but only if you pre-ordered it at Toys R Us. That was May 2002, the month the DVD came out.

It's an Adventure. Your opponent discards the card they draw at the start of each of their turns, until one of the cards they discard is a Lesson. Ken Steacy illustrated it. He's a Canadian artist who published his first work in the Star Reach anthology in 1977, won a Will Eisner Award in 1988, and worked with Harlan Ellison on the 1987 graphic novel Night and the Enemy.

It's an English and Italian promo with a single retailer behind it, which is a big part of why it's so hard to find.

See Through The Trapdoor in the database →

25. Devil's Snare

November 2001 · Harry Potter PC Game Promo

Devil's Snare, Harry Potter TCG promo 34/80
Devil's Snare · 34/80 · Uncommon
Languages
English
Rarity
Uncommon

Devil's Snare is the other Harry Potter PC game promo, from November 2001, the same month as Illegibilus and the same day as the Windows release of the game. It's numbered 34/80, a Quidditch Cup number, and it was printed in English only.

It's a Plant Creature. To play it you discard one Care of Magical Creatures Lesson from play, and at the end of each of your turns every damage counter on it is removed, so it's very hard to kill. That's a lot of staying power for the price of a single Lesson.

This is the rarest promo in the guide. If you're hunting one, expect to wait.

See Devil's Snare in the database →

Sealed cards with no promo stamp

One more group belongs in a promo guide even though none of its cards carry a promo stamp. A handful of promos were just regular set cards, identical to the ones in boosters, sealed in a wrapper and given out in certain magazines and at stores. Once the wrapper is open there's no way to tell one from a pulled copy, so they only count as promos while they're still sealed. That also makes them rarely sold, since you have to trust the seal to know what you're buying.

Cleansweep Seven, Drowsiness Draught, and Gone! were handed out sealed at retail outlets to promote the Quidditch Cup set. Dog Biscuits and Madam Malkin's Robes were sealed into Nintendo Power magazine to promote Diagon Alley. Pet Rat and Cauldron to Sieve are Base Set cards that were also given out sealed, and where they came from is less well documented.

Cleansweep Seven, Quidditch Cup 54

Cleansweep Seven

Drowsiness Draught, Quidditch Cup 59

Drowsiness Draught

Gone!, Quidditch Cup 61

Gone!

Dog Biscuits, Diagon Alley 57

Dog Biscuits

Madam Malkin's Robes, Diagon Alley 42

Madam Malkin's Robes

Pet Rat, Base Set 98

Pet Rat

Cauldron to Sieve, Base Set 79

Cauldron to Sieve

CardSetLanguagesHow it was given out
Cleansweep SevenQuidditch Cup 54/80English, Japanese, French, Italian, GermanSealed, from retail outlets, for the Quidditch Cup set
Drowsiness DraughtQuidditch Cup 59/80English, Japanese, French, Italian, GermanSealed, from retail outlets, for the Quidditch Cup set
Gone!Quidditch Cup 61/80English, Japanese, French, Italian, GermanSealed, from retail outlets, for the Quidditch Cup set
Dog BiscuitsDiagon Alley 57/80English, Japanese, French, Italian, GermanSealed in Nintendo Power, for the Diagon Alley set
Madam Malkin's RobesDiagon Alley 42/80English, Japanese, French, Italian, GermanSealed in Nintendo Power, for the Diagon Alley set
Pet RatBase Set 98/116English, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Spanish, PortugueseGiven out sealed
Cauldron to SieveBase Set 79/116English, Japanese, French, Italian, German, Spanish, PortugueseGiven out sealed
Languages are the ones each card was printed in, not necessarily the ones it was given out sealed in. Every card links to its page in the database.

Everything else about each card, including its number, release, event, languages, rarity, and credit, comes straight from this archive's catalogue, so it matches the card's own page. If something here looks wrong, or you know where a promo with no documented date came from, tell me and I'll fix it.

Browse every promo in the catalogue, or go back to the history of the game.

Sources

  1. 1.Vault 713 Archive promo catalogue Source for every card's number, release, event, languages, rarity, and credit, and for the illustrator biographies.
  2. 2.The Harry Potter Trading Card Game, A History Source for the promo symbol, foil, and numbering details, which it draws from Greg Hodgkinson's 2002 promo taxonomy on Pojo.
  3. 3.Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (PC video game), Wikipedia Source for the game's November 16, 2001 release, developer, and publisher.
  4. 4.Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film), Wikipedia Source for the film's November 15, 2002 US and UK release.