I'd really appreciate any feedback on this comment. It's how I'm currently viewing the Methods universe, and if wrong, learning so would save me some minutes re-thinking things should obvious contrary evidence arise.
I've read up to chapter eighty-three.
I have always assumed that their magics cannot interact in any way without destroying each other and having devastating effects on the casters. Likewise, they can't touch each other. Thus the sense of doom when they approach each other, and the need for Harry to completely undo his transfiguration (as Quirrell couldn't cast anything on it), and him wearing a glove so he wouldn't directly touch Quirrell's transfigured rocket. In the duel the two spells actually touched, destroying both. Since magics are an extension of a person (hypothetical) it was almost like the two of them touched physically. Tossing his wand helped Quirrell put some magical distance between the two of them.
Edit: New thread posted here.
This is a new thread to discuss Eliezer Yudkowsky’s Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality and anything related to it. This thread is intended for discussing chapter 86. The previous thread has long passed 500 comments.
There is now a site dedicated to the story at hpmor.com, which is now the place to go to find the authors notes and all sorts of other goodies. AdeleneDawner has kept an archive of Author’s Notes. (This goes up to the notes for chapter 76, and is now not updating. The authors notes from chapter 77 onwards are on hpmor.com.)
The first 5 discussion threads are on the main page under the harry_potter tag. Threads 6 and on (including this one) are in the discussion section using its separate tag system. Also: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16.
As a reminder, it’s often useful to start your comment by indicating which chapter you are commenting on.
Spoiler Warning: this thread is full of spoilers. With few exceptions, spoilers for MOR and canon are fair game to post, without warning or rot13. More specifically: