Packed with hidden secrets and unexplained features, Portkey Games has purposely designed Hogwarts Legacy in a way that encourages players to explore the vast magical world and discover the secrets for themselves. But, with little explanation on many of the game’s key features, things can quickly get a bit overwhelming, so we’ve put together a list with all the important features and secrets that Hogwarts Legacy does not tell you or does not explain and that they can come in handy in your game.
Follow this sound to easily discover the pages of the field guide
When you cast Revelio, you will hear a sound similar to a bell. If the bell is present, it will indicate that a Field Guide Page is nearby and available to discover. The louder the chime and the stronger the vibration of your controller, the closer you will be to discovering the collectible. Keep in mind that the sound can sometimes be a bit misleading, so if you think you’re in the right place but the page doesn’t appear, you may need to check the levels above (or below) where you are.
You can swim, and it’s useful
If you’ve explored the Highlands, you may have noticed that there are quite a few large ponds, and unless you’ve completed The Lost Astrolabe side quest, you probably didn’t realize you can swim.
Although the feature is pretty basic (you can’t dive underwater, at least not in the traditional sense), you can find a number of bubbling spots that you can searchas well as chests, which contain rewards such as galleons and equipment.
Your choice of house and wand style do not affect gameplay
As much as we hate to be the bearer of bad news, your home choice is, for the most part, a cosmetic choice and does not affect the main story or overall gameplay in any way. The most important differences are the following:
- House colors incorporated into some of your equipment will reflect the chosen house.
- Exclusive access to your Common Room (and a Floo Powder fast travel point that cannot be accessed by other houses).
- Socialization and additional presentations with other 5th year students from your house.
- Certain additional dialogues that may refer to your house.
- Regardless of your house, you’ll be able to mingle, quest, and even group up with 5th graders from each of the houses, and some will have their own quests that don’t depend on you being in the same house as them.
That being said, if you don’t care too much about the house you choose, We recommend that you choose the color of the house or the Common Room that you preferas many of the cosmetic skins you’ll unlock are based on your house color.
And what is worse, the same goes for the choice of wand. While the wand design process is extremely complex and painstaking, your choices, whether it be wood, length, or flex, are also purely cosmetic and will not affect how your wand performs in combat.
How do you open those doors with animal symbols and numbers in Hogwarts Legacy?
If you have explored Hogwarts, it is very likely that you have come across those strange enigmatic doors surrounded by symbols of magical beasts. Well, unless you’ve found the hidden encrypted note on the Library Addendum, you’re probably as stumped as we are when it comes to finding a solution.
Fortunately, these doors can be opened immediately, and You do not need any special spell or have found the number to open them. It is enough to know what the symbols represent and how to apply them to the mathematical equations that must be solved to open the door. Once you’ve cracked the code, you’ll be rewarded with collectible loot, field guide pages, and sometimes secret rooms.
Open Sesame!
We’d like Open Sesame Street to work because those pesky locked doors you’ll find early in the game will stay locked for quite some time. This is because you need the Alohamora spellwhich is unlocked after seven or ten hours of the main story, more specifically, in the mission The caretaker’s lunar lament.
Behind these locked doors, you’ll discover small hidden rooms, loot chests, and pages of field guides.
How to open the eye chests in Hogwarts Legacy
Like closed doors, eyeball chests are protected by the Disillusionment spell. Fortunately, unlike other spells, this one is unlocked relatively early in the main story, specifically during the Secrets of the Forbidden Section quest.
Once the spell is unlocked, just throw it to turn invisible and start slowly approaching the chest. If you’re careful, you’ll be able to open the chest before it freaks out and closes itself.
Look for destructible objects in your environment
Search destructible objects and secret walls that you can interact withas you’ll often discover hidden chests containing gear upgrades and other valuable loot.
The magical world is full of secrets
As expected, Hogwarts is full of secrets, so we strongly recommend that you interact with as much as you can. Yes, we mean everything, as there’s a good chance you’ll discover hidden ladders and other useful items that will lead you to secret chests and other collectibles, like Field Guide Pages.
Statues that light up at Hogwarts Legacy but you don’t know what to do?
Field Guide Pages are sometimes hidden behind statues marked with the Levioso symbol on their base. These orb-holding statues are highlighted with the Revelio Spell and are highlighted in white when you walk near them. To discover the Field Guide Page, you will have to cast the Levioso spell on the statue.
This also applies to the dragon brazier statues that you will find on the floor and hanging on the walls. But instead of casting the Levioso spell, you’ll need to light them up with the Burning spell to reveal the Field Guide Page.
Do not wait any longer, go from day to night (and vice versa) in Hogwarts Legacy with a simple button
When you see the world map, you will find a small “Wait” option that you can activate by pressing the right stick of your controller. By selecting this option you will be able to change the game from day to night (and vice versa).
Keep hollyhock leaves planted
Before leaving Hogwarts to complete the quest The Girl from Uagadou, we recommend that you attend the Herbology class as it will lead you to the Trials of Merlin. This quest will teach you everything you need to know to complete Merlin’s Trials, a series of optional puzzles that unlock additional inventory slots.
However, to activate these tests, you will need mallow leaves, a plant that you will learn to grow in Herbology class. A small number of vendors sell mallow leaves and have a limited inventory of this resource. But, if you have mallow leaves planted, you can always fast travel to the greenhouses to retrieve them when you need them.
Are the vendors at Hogwarts Legacy out of stock?
If you want to pass Merlin’s tests, you’ll have to buy hollyhock leaves in bulk. But there is a problem, since the stocks of these sheets are very limited and the sellers will only replace them when two and a half days have passed.
Fortunately, Is there a way to speed up this process?. To do this, simply visit the world map and use the Wait option mentioned above to skip three days. Now when you visit the store again, everything will be fully restocked.
Avoid pause menu when waiting for plants to grow
Do you try to grow plants? Note that plant growth stops when viewing the map and pause general menu.
You can change the appearance of your character
Although you cannot change the general facial structure of your character after initial creation, you can visit the barber of hogsmeadewhich will do more than just cut your hair, since you can also change your complexion and the color of your eyes.
appearances are forever
As long as you have obtained a piece of equipment, you will always have access to their appearanceregardless of whether you sold or destroyed the item.
The equipment adapts to your level, so do not open the legendary chests
The equipment varies depending on the level of your character, so when it comes to opening legendary chests, We recommend that you do it when you have a higher level to make sure you get the most out of these items as they will give you the best stats and upgrade possibilities.
The loot is random, but there is a way to know what type you will receive
Unfortunately, the loot you receive from searching Hogwarts Legacy chests is completely random. However, it is known that certain types of equipment appear in certain types of chestsso if you’re looking for something in particular, like wand handles, keep your eyes peeled for the following chests:
- Cylindrical shaped chests contain wand handles.
- Hexagonal chests contain spells.
Sit back, relax and reap the rewards
As you explore the Highlands, you will sometimes come across various factions fighting each other. This is a great way to get easy lootsince you will receive the items that the enemy drops whenever you land the final blow.
So if you’re not in a hurry, sit back, cast Disillusion, and watch the factions clash. When they are nearly exhausted, spring into action, Deal the final blows and collect all your “hard-earned” resources.
Focus on the first half of the story
Many of Hogwarts Legacy’s core features, such as the flying mounts, broomsticks, and fundamental spells, are limited by story progression, and not by a few hours. We estimate that it takes between seven and ten hours to get to the point where you can access the vast majority of the key features of Hogwarts.
If you focus on the story until you unlock the Beasts (towards the middle of the game), you will avoid having to go back too far to find chests and other hidden areas and features that you could not otherwise access.
If you want to know more, take a look at our Hogwarts Legacy analysis.