With some creative thinking, Quidditch, famously known from the Harry Potter series, has been made possible for those without magical powers.

After reading about Quidditch in a newspaper article, junior Kraig Thomas thought it would be an exciting thing to have at Simpson, but he didn’t know much else about it. When he mentioned it to the Buxton Hall, Picken Hall and Worth House (BPW) staff, a plan for Quidditch was immediately set into motion.

“It’s a more complicated game than a lot of other intramurals because you all have a certain role as chasers, beaters, keepers and seekers,” Thomas said. “I’ve determined, I think, that I want to be a Chaser.”

For those who haven’t read Harry Potter, Quidditch is a game that involves two teams of seven players each. These consist of three “chasers” who score the points, two “beaters” who try to knock other players down, a “keeper” who guards the goal hoops and a “seeker” who chases the snitch.

In the books, the snitch is a small ball with wings that flies around the Quidditch field. The seeker’s goal is to catch the snitch before the other team’s seeker. The game cannot end until one of the seekers catches the snitch, or the team captains can decide on a winner.

There will be roughly four cross country runners playing the role of the snitch. While most of the action stays on the field, the snitch is free to run around campus while being hunted down by the seeker.

“Chasing the snitch across campus is the best idea of the game,” junior Kyle McVay said.

Just like in the Harry Potter series, players will be required to not only wear a cape, but also to hold a broom between their legs at all times.

“I think it’s something new and fun for those Harry Potter enthusiasts,” McVay said. “If you follow Harry Potter then it’s something you want to experience.”

A volleyball will pose as the “quaffle,” which is used by the chasers to score points. The beaters will use a dodge ball as a “bludger” to knock players of the opposite team off of their brooms. The three hoops on each end of the field will be made out of hula hoops, PVC pipe and gold spray paint.

“What intrigues me is how they are going to accomplish this without magical powers,” sophomore Nikki Bornong said.

Even Harvard has its own Quidditch team that practices regularly. And while many say Quidditch is for nerds, Thomas begs to differ.

“Actually it’s kind of funny how it’s a fairly physical sport, so it’s not just something that is a fantasy game,” Thomas said.

However, just being athletic won’t help in winning the game. Those in charge of the Quidditch tournament at Simpson have altered some of the rules.

“If you’re more athletic and you’re putting more effort into it, you will benefit from that, but it’s not like you can just be bigger and rougher than the other team and win that way,” Thomas said.

Thomas hopes for a tournament bracket of 16 teams, but will be happy with 10. Right now Thomas and Bryan Bruening have only two teams signed up, and they are looking for more teams that want to participate.

The idea is that if Simpson embraces Quidditch with open arms and the game grows in popularity, a whole new organization could be created in the future, which wouldn’t have it only run by BPW staff members.

“I hope it continues and is able to get popular enough where it is sponsored by its own club, kind of like how Humans vs. Zombies is now,” Bruening said.

A lot of excitement is building on campus for the tournament, which will be sometime during the afternoon of Sunday, Oct. 24. The most likely place for the tournament to take place is the practice soccer fields behind the fraternity houses. Sign-up for teams ends Sunday, Oct. 17 at midnight.