Horcrux Hunt Escape Room Part 4: Hogwarts, Ravenclaw Diadem

As noted in the overview post, our horcrux hunt party had (3) locations with (2) horcruxes per location. This allowed for the large number of guests to be broken down into smaller groups and rotate between locations.

Each group was given a clipboard with blank paper to take notes, and a blacklight flashlight.

For the party overview, see THIS post.

The Hogwarts portion of the party was our living room (Gryffindor Common Room) and dining room (Great Hall). It contained the Ravenclaw Diadem & Tom Riddle's Diary horcruxes.

Ravenclaw Diadem: Logic Puzzle Challenge

Very little was known of the Ravenclaw diadem in Harry Potter. Harry assumed he was looking for a relic that was related to Ravenclaw, and in the end, he obtained its whereabouts from Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter (the Grey Lady, the Ravenclaw ghost). 

This did not give us much of a story to follow for our hunt, so I played heavily on the Ravenclaw theme, 'Wit Beyond Measure.'

The Diadem hunt began with a logic puzzle that I designed:

Last week, one student in each of the four Hogwarts houses was reprimanded by a Hogwarts professor for an infraction and had house points deducted. There are 5 clues to help you solve the puzzle. Wit beyond measure will unlock the horcrux!

Can you work out the name of the student, the infraction, the professor who deducted points and how many points?

Hint: House points are the key you need!

This piece was openly displayed with a logic puzzle worksheet.

There was a piece of parchment next to the logic puzzle with five riddles. The answers to the five riddles on the parchment led to where the five clues needed to solve the logic puzzle were hidden within the Hogwarts rooms.

Riddle 1:

To the left of the clergy of backwards discourse,

And to the right of the fortress sits the knight and his horse.

He's duty bound to protect his majesty and queen,

And though his path is straight he always lands in between.

What is he?

The riddle led the groups to the chess board in the Gryffindor Common Room.

The chess board was missing one black knight.

Within the room, there was a knight statue sitting innocently. Clue #1 was hidden under the knight.

Riddle 2:

Stiff is my spine and my body is pale,

I'm always ready to tell a tale.

There were several books in the Hogwarts room, and one of the books was a hollow 'Potions' book box that held the second clue.

Riddle 3:

What has many keys but cannot open any doors?

This riddle led to the piano, where the third clue was hidden under the piano key cover. 

Riddle 4:

First think of the person who lives in disguise,

Who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.

Next, tell me what's always the last thing to mend,

The middle of middle and end of the end?

And finally give me the sound often heard

During the search for a hard to find word.

Now string them together and answer me this, 

Which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?

This one had the added bonus of being a riddle used in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. It was the riddle used by the sphinx during the Triwizard Tournament. The answer to this riddle is 'spider.' The only spider in the room was on the Gryffindor Bulletin Board. Hidden on the backside of the 'Secondhand Spellbooks!' flier was the fourth clue.

Riddle 5:

Course concluder,

Proctored event.

Measuring knowledge,

Student's lament.

This riddle (the only one I actually wrote, the rest were found online) led to the Defense Against the Dark Arts exam sitting on the school desk. The groups found the fifth clue on the backside of the third page of the exam. 

Once all five clues were found, the groups could solve the logic puzzle.  This would determine which student (one per Hogwarts house) lost a specific number of house points.  

The solved logic puzzle is below. The lost house points are the key to breaking a color coded lock in the room. The lock has green, yellow, blue and red numbers.

When used in the correct order of colored dials, Red = 7, Green = 5, Yellow = 9, and Blue = 3, the box could be opened.

I bet you thought that was the end of it.

So did they. 

... But it wasn't. 😁

Inside of the box was a floor plan of our main floor, labeled 'Marauder's Map,' and a key. Each of the rooms was labeled (ex. Diagon Alley, Stairs, Great Hall, Gryffindor Common Room...) except the coat closet.

In Harry Potter, the Room of Requirement didn't show up on the Marauder's Map. It only showed itself to those who needed it:

"I think it'll be part of the magic of the Room," said Hermione. "If you need it to be unplottable, it will be."

When the groups shined their black lights on the map, invisible ink showed footprints leading to the closet and it was labeled the Room of Requirement.

We had a little fun revealing that there was a hidden extra location for Hogwarts. 😉

The diadem horcrux was found in a locked box in the Room of Requirement... because the Diadem was found in the Room of Requirement. 

The key that came with the Marauder's Map was the key to open the box.