5 Hogwarts Legacy Side Missions You Do Not Want To Miss

There is a lot of content for Wizarding World fans in "Hogwarts Legacy." Players can get sorted into a house, customize their appearance, or level themselves to their maximum potential. These activities and the main story provide gamers with enough content to stay engaged for dozens of hours, but even more fun is available for gamers who want to go the extra mile and explore the side missions. And more often than not, the player is awarded epic loot or new spells for doing so.

For example, solving the optional bridge puzzle in the Viaduct Courtyard awards players with a legendary chest. Players can also learn new spells, including Unforgivable spells like the Cruciatus Curse, through side content. Some side missions force players to side with the dark arts in exchange for the game's most powerful spells, while others have players going on scavenger hunts around the castle and in people's homes. With so much to do, it can be hard to know where to start and what to skip! Here are the five best side missions in "Hogwarts Legacy."

Every Harry Potter fan has wanted to soar through the sky on a broomstick at some point. And after the "Flying Class" quest, players can do just that. But players will first need to pick up a broom. To do so, players must head to the Sporting Goods Store and talk to Albie Weekes. Once a broom is purchased, Weekes will inform the player that they can upgrade their broom if the protagonist conducts some tests for them. This will trigger the "Flight Test" side mission.

To complete the mission, players must follow the map markers to the Quidditch field and speak to Imelda Reyes. Players will then be launched into a Quidditch Broom Trial. This time trial has players flying through a series of Quidditch hoops to beat Imelda Reyes' time on the course. A useful tip is to aim for the yellow orbs In between hoops, as they give the player a burst of speed. Once Reyes is bested, the player must return to Weekes at the Sporting Goods Store. The shopkeeper will then start working on some new advanced in broom technology, and players can return after some time to receive some useful broom-flying upgrades.

"The Man Behind the Moons" is a lengthy quest requiring the player to go on an extensive scavenger hunt, but the reward proves useful enough to warrant the time investment. "The Man Behind the Moons" quest unlocks after the player learns the lockpicking Alohomora at the end of the story quest "The Caretaker's Lunar Lament."

Once players have progressed to this point in the story, players can speak to Gladwin Moon in the Faculty Tower of Hogwarts to start the side quest. Completing "The Man Behind the Moons" quest will award the players upgraded versions of the Alohomora spell, granting access to more secure locations. The trick is that this side quest sees players collecting 30 hidden Demiguise statues scattered around the map — and they can only be collected at night.

Yes, it's a lengthy undertaking, but players will soon forget all about that when they're opening up one locked room after another.

"In the Shadow of the Study" is a side quest "Hogwarts Legacy" gamers don't want to miss, as it awards the protagonist with the Cruciatus Curse. This spell, also known as Crucio, is the very same torture spell fans of the "Harry Potter" books and movies know and fear. In "Hogwarts Legacy," the spell functions more or less similarly, painfully stunning enemies for a short time when cast — and when you're facing bigger enemies that deal out a lot of damage, a reliable stun is invaluable.

Players must first reach level 16 and complete "Welcome to Hogsmeade" to begin the "In the Shadow of the Study" quest and earn the Crucio spell. To start the quest, players need to talk to Sebastian outside the Slytherin Common Room. Once the quest begins, players will be instructed to follow Sebastian to meet with Ominis Gaunt. The next step is to open the Slytherin secret chamber and explore the creepy area below the school.

At the end of the quest, the player must choose between casting Crucio on Sebastian or allowing him cast it on the protagonist, which will unlock the door blocking their way. If the player chooses to cast the spell onto Sebastian, they will get to keep the Crucio spell. But that isn't the only dark spell available to players in "Hogwarts Legacy," as two more "In the Shadow" quests will allow gamers to learn spells the Hogwarts faculty would rather keep secret.

During another one of Sebastian Sallow's quests, players are tasked with searching for a mysterious relic under some ruins. This relic is of great interest to Sebastian, as it is said to have the ability to reverse dark curses, leading Sebastian to believe it can help his sister Anne. 

"In the Shadow of Time" can be initiated by reading the message sent out by Sebastian after completing the "Shadow of Discovery" side quest and the "Professor Weasley's Assignment" main quest. After the player enters the catacombs to find the relic, they will come across some spiders and a web blockade. Players will need to kill the spiders and burn the webs to continue. 

Once players make it through a literal wall made of bones, Sebastian will ask the protagonist if they want to learn the Unforgivable spell Imperio. The player can choose to turn down this lesson, but accepting the spell will give players a pretty powerful charm to add to their arsenal. Although it dabbles in the dark arts, Imperio can be incredibly useful, allowing players to take control of enemies and make them fight alongside the protagonist for a short time.

One of the final quests in the Sebastian Sallow plot line allows players to unlock a powerful spell that devastates foes, the dreaded Avada Kedavra. After some time passes from the previous quest, In the Shadow of Discovery, players will get an owl message from Ominis stating that Sebastian is in trouble and needs help. Players must then meet Ominis outside the catacomb highlighted on the player's map to start the quest. Then after traveling into the catacombs to rescue Sebastian, players must fend off Inferiu. Finally, after trekking deeper, a cutscene will play, and players will have to go face-to-face with Solomon Sallow in a duel.

After winning the boss battle, players must make their way out of the crumbling catacombs with Sebastian. At the surface, Sebastian will ask the player if they wish to learn the Avada Kedavra spell. If the player accepts, they will be empowered with a new Unforgivable spell. Avada Kedavra instantly kills enemies in one hit when struck, so before going down this path, players really want to think about what kind of wizard they want to be at the end of "Hogwarts Legacy."