Harry Potter: All 7 Ways to Survive the Killing Curse, Ranked by Ridiculousness

Look, there are ways to survive the Killing Curse, alright? Apart from being the titular protagonist of the Harry Potter series, that is. Using our impeccable knowledge of the franchise, we deduced seven methods of countering Avada Kedavra — and ranked them based on how bizarre they are. Because some of them are genuinely ridiculous.

7. By Dodging the Spell

The easiest way to survive the Killing Curse aimed at you is to move out of its way. Regardless of the caster’s magical strength, if they can’t hit their target, Avada Kedavra will not deal any real damage. Just try to make sure there’s no one you hold dear standing cluelessly behind you before you dodge, or it might get awkward.

6. By Physically Blocking the Spell

Another straightforward counter to Avada Kedavra is putting a physical object between yourself and the attacker. While there’s not always a conveniently placed tombstone around you if you’re not Harry Potter, you can still conjure a solid object if your reaction time is quick enough. Don’t take too long making it nice and detailed!

5. By Colliding It with Another Spell

While many battle spells in Harry Potter are presented as beams of light, they also possess physical characteristics. This can be used to your advantage since when two spells collide, they virtually stop each other from going further. It would be a tough task to aim your spell directly at the already-cast Killing Curse, though.

4. By Using the Bird Power

Birds do qualify as physical objects, but they’re living things capable of completely negating Avada Kedavra’s effects. Some of them are, anyway. Dumbledor’s Phoenix took the Killing Curse for the Headmaster and survived thanks to its unique abilities. But don’t use an owl: as Harry Potter learned the hard way, it’s a one-time method.

3. By Having a Same-Core Wand

Shared wand cores are unbelievably unique but still, this method might just work if you and your assailant have cores made out of the same creature’s parts. Such wands recognize each other as “siblings” of sorts and interact in a weird way, almost as if refusing to hurt each other. Even Avada Kedavra can’t counter such a defense.

2. By Using Ancient Blood Magic

If it just so happened that someone willingly sacrificed their life to protect you despite being given an option not to, you’re one of the tragically lucky and ultimately rare people protected by ancient blood magic. As proven by Harry Potter himself, the Killing Curse is deflected from a person who boasts such superior protection.

1. By Getting Horcrux Armor!

Very few things can hurt Horcruxes, and the Killing Curse isn’t one of them (Voldemort’s piece of soul in Harry was destroyed by the spell for a different reason). Theoretically, this means that if you were to turn an armor set into a Horcrux and wear it, Avada Kedavra wouldn’t be able to penetrate it and kill you. We recommend against testing this method for a handful of reasons, though.