Hogwarts Legacy has five different types of challenges which players will have to complete entirely if they want to get 100% completion in the game. While the Room of Requirement and Field Guide Page challenges take time and effort, it is the combat and exploration challenges that are the most varied and will need more focus to complete.
Exploration challenges include finding and solving astronomy tables, Hogwarts secrets, popping balloons and landing on landing platforms, and more. The exploration challenges can be a (Merlin) trial, but with a few tips, players will be able to find everything they need to complete them all.
6 Do Story First
Hogwarts Legacy players looking to sweep across the map and deal with all of their exploration challenges in one clean swoop should progress quite far down the main story before engaging in too much exploration. Getting the broom is obviously a point when players will feel more able to explore readily across the map, and this is a huge assist.
However, players may wish to go even further, so they don’t end up having to search the whole map over again near the end of their gameplay for the astronomy tables. This exploration challenge isn’t unlocked until quite well through the story, so players will need to get at least that far before they will be able to get through all of their exploration challenges. It can be fun to venture out into the world beyond Hogwarts and start exploring early, but players should probably at least get a broom before they try to go too far.
5 Revelio Everything
This is more of a tip for field guide page challenges in Hogwarts Legacy, but there are some particular uses for exploration challenges as well. Firstly, while flying around the map, if players revelio an area, they will see a lot in the surrounding zone. Some of this will then remain on the larger map whenever players go back to examine that area.
Secondly, one of the toughest exploration challenges in the game is the Hogwarts Secrets. Finding these three ancient puzzles and solving them is tricky, but players will be helped by searching every area of Hogwarts Castle with Revelio, as points of interest linked to the Hogwarts Secrets will glow blue like many points of interest when Revelio is used on them.
4 Zoom Out
The map in Hogwarts Legacy doesn’t appear very helpful initially. If players fly all over the map, use Revelio frequently, and keep an eye on the map while doing so, they’ll probably find most of what they need for exploration challenges. However, they still won’t be able to pin down certain locations like those of balloons and landing platforms, which do not appear on the map.
To have an easier time finding the balloons and landing platforms, the best idea is for players to go to the map screen and zoom out as much as possible. Eventually, the map will split into fourteen zones which divide the Highlands, and enable players to see how many of each exploration activity is available in each zone. This doesn’t give the exact location for these tricky-to-find items, but it will give players a much smaller area to scour for them if they’re only missing a couple of either across the map.
3 Always Carry Mallowsweet
A problem that a lot of Hogwarts Legacy players run into frequently is trying to actually begin Merlin Trials. There are 95 such trials across the map and a lot of these need to be completed if players want to finish all the exploration challenges. Having said that, the biggest challenge with Merlin trials isn’t usually completing them.
Carrying Mallowsweet at all times is vital for exploration. Players should buy Mallowsweet seeds from a shop in Hogsmeade as early as they can and use these to start growing their own plants in the Room of Requirement. It will feel frustrating to continually run out, as players will just have to keep going back to the same Highland areas to complete those Merlin Trials later if they don’t have Mallowsweet the first time they find them.
2 Cheat Ancient Magic Traces
Ancient Magic traces can be found around the map, and after finding them players simply have to collect three drops of ancient magic to complete it. Collecting enough ancient magic traces unlocks more ancient magic meter for players to fill and use to destroy opponents. Collecting plenty of ancient magic can be hugely important going into some late-game bosses.
Players should be able to usually cheat a little on solving puzzles to collect the ancient magic traces. After getting the broom, players will often be able to fly up to the spots where they are supposed to climb and land their broom to gather the traces without needing to put quite as much work in.
1 Unlock All Floo Powder Stations
A simple, but vital tip, is that players looking to fully explore the map of Hogwarts Legacy should fully explore it first. If that doesn’t make sense, it simply means players after getting the broom should fly to each floo powder station to find all the versions of Ignatia Wildsmith.
After doing this, exploration will become much easier, as most exploration challenge items will appear on the larger map after the area has been scanned in a cursory manner while flying to each floo powder station. It can be more difficult trying to find landing platforms and balloons, but these can be seen by area on the map when zoomed out.
Hogwarts Legacy was released on February 10th, 2023, and is available on Windows PC, PlayStation 4 & 5, Xbox Series X & S, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.