Best house and wand setup
Your first 30 minutes feel like permanent decisions. Most aren't — only the house pick truly locks. Here's what each choice actually does.
Character creation — relax, you can change it later
Almost every appearance choice is editable in-game at Madam Snelling's Tresses Emporium in Hogsmeade. You can re-do:
- Hair colour, hairstyle
- Complexion, freckles, moles, scars, markings
- Eye colour, eyebrow colour, eyebrow shape
The only thing locked is your face shape. So pick a face you like and don't agonise over the rest.
House — this one IS locked
- Pick the house you want to roleplay. Cannot be changed mid-run.
- Each house has one exclusive side quest (Slytherin's In the Shadow of Discovery / quill quest is the most famous).
- House also affects your common room location and a few small NPC reactions.
- Zero combat or build difference.
Wand — purely cosmetic
All wand wood / core / length combinations are stat-identical. The Sorting Hat ceremony just personalises the look. Pick what looks cool.
Pre-launch goodies
If you signed up before launch, your account has the pre-order onyx Hippogriff mount + a unique cosmetic broom + Hogsmead-shop-set. Check the in-game System → Bonuses menu — these are auto-claimed.
Save before Sorting
Make a manual save before the Sorting Hat scene. It's the only restart point if you regret the house pick.
If stuck: if you regret your house at hour 10, there's no in-game switcher — you'd have to start a new save. The exclusive quest content per house is small (~30 min), so most players just live with the choice.