Hogwarts Legacy puts you in the shoes of a fifth-year student at the school, learning magic for the first time. While there are many other spells available, you have the option of learning and using the three Unforgivable Curses; Crucio, Imperio and Avada Kedavra. Crucio causes someone immense pain, Imperio controls them, and Avada Kedavra kills. These spells are illegal to use in the Hogwarts Legacy world, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have them at your disposal if you want them. Here’s how to learn Unforgivable Curses and any possible consequences of using them. Some story spoilers below.
Consequences of Black Magic
As for the consequences of using Dark Magic, they really don’t exist. There is no morality system in Hogwarts Legacy, nor choices that lead to different paths. Any NPC that is with you when you use them may have a shocked reaction and may verbally scold you for using them, but there will be no gamified punishments.
Curses cannot be used on Hogwarts grounds, enforced by the game not allowing them to be cast within the school. As for full game completion, spells are not required for any Achievements/Trophies, nor will their use prevent you from unlocking any of them. They are not required for the Achievement/Trophy for learning all spells, nor for completing Sebastian Sallow’s questline.
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You can start learning the Dark Arts, including Unforgivable Curses, during the Fall section of the game. These arts are learned as part of Sebastian Sallow’s questline, which begins in earnest when you travel to his family home and meet his sister as part of the main story. After this quest is completed, you must speak to Sebastian in the castle after he has a discussion with his friend Ominous. During this conversation, Sebastian will bring out Crucio and talk about trying to find Slytherin’s Scriptorium.
After talking to him he will send you an owl starting the side quest “In The Shadow Of The Study” where you will learn the first Unforgivable Curse, Crucio. You, Ominous and Sebastian venture into the Slytherin Scriptorium. After solving some snake dial puzzles where you need to match the symbols on the gates with the symbols on the dial with a time limit, you’ll be trapped in a hallway where someone must cast the Crucio spell on someone else to proceed.
Ominous refuses to cast the spell again and warns that whoever uses it will be forever scarred, worse than the person who receives it. Sebastian says he’s sure he knows how to cast it and asks if you want to learn it and use it on him or have him try it on you. There is also a third option where you can learn the spell but still let Sebastian do it to you. If you want to learn Crucio, you need to choose one of the two options where you learn the spell. Afterwards, you’ll find a spell book and this side quest will be complete.
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After completing the second trial and advancing to Winter, Sebastian will ask you to come talk to him at Undercroft. He informs you that the spellbook you found contains information about some sort of artifact that can reverse dark magic curses, which could save your sister. After some time, he will send another message.
The next time we talk to Sebastian, it will be part of a main story quest called “In the Shadow of the Mine”, where you must find him in the Overlook Mine. However, this is not where you’ll learn the next Unforgivable Curse. At the same time you receive this quest, you will receive another message from Sebastian, saying that he believes he has found the relic that could help Anne and has asked you to find it in a catacomb near Feldcroft.
About halfway through the catacomb, Sebastian will suggest that you teach Imperio, which puts the target under the user’s control. If you want to learn Empire, you need to choose the option where Sebastian teaches you. Imperio is not required for the completion of this dungeon, so you don’t need to use it here even if you learn it. After finding the relic, Ominous will arrive and yell at Sebastian for his recklessness. After exiting the catacomb, you’ll head back to Feldcroft, which is being attacked by goblins. After defeating them, a cutscene will play where Sebastian uses Imperio to stop a goblin from killing his sister, but his uncle and sister are upset that he used Dark Magic. Talking to Sebastian’s Uncle will complete this quest and Sebastian will ask you to meet him in Undercroft where he says he will continue researching the relic.
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After the time has passed – for me it was just after completing the third trial – Sebastian will once again send you a message, asking you to meet him and Anne outside of Feldcroft. This starts the “In the Shadow of Hope” search. Here you talk to Anne and Sebastian about using the Relic and the aforementioned “Dark Sacrifice”, but all that happens here is that Sebastian says he’ll convince Ominous and Anne to join in and send you another message later.
Before continuing, you will need to have completed the main story quest “Lodgok’s Loyalty” before the next part of this questline becomes available. Ominous will send you a message, asking you to meet him in the catacombs, as Sebastian has become irrational and impatient. This starts the “In the Shadow of the Relic” quest, which is where you can learn Avada Kedavra.
Go back to the catacomb near Feldcroft, where you and Ominous need to enter and find Sebastian. Go inside to find a ton of Inferni, who are supposedly being controlled by Sebastian. Ominous leaves to interfere with Principal Black and after finding Sebastian, his uncle arrives and a fight ensues. After defeating his uncle Solomon, Sebastian casts Avada Kedavra on him. Anne burns all of the Inferni and the spell book before leaving. Sebastian runs out of the catacomb, where you talk to him again.
When you talk to Sebastian outside, side with him when given the choice of dialogue. Eventually he will ask if you want to learn Avada Kedavra and you should say you want to learn. At this point, Sebastian will teach you the killing curse. This doesn’t complete your questline, but it does mean you now know the three Unforgivable Curses.
Hogwarts Legacy is developed by Avalanche Software, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The game has been mired in controversy due to transphobic comments by Harry Potter author JK Rowling. Although she is not personally involved with its development, she can profit from its success. To find out more, read our in-depth article on how Rowling’s comments impacted the trans community. In this article, you’ll also find links to trans creators you can support, as well as charities you can donate to.
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