Legacy Chess Cave

[Ailene Goldhirsh]

Oneof Hogwarts Legacy's nicest surprises is that there always seems to be another puzzle around the corner. That goes for the most plentiful challenges in Hogwarts and its surroundings, like Merlin Trials and Daedalian Keys, but also for the bonus puzzle rooms hiding in plain sight across the highlands.

Of these special challenges, the most inventive I've found so far are two caves housing a pair of puzzles that ask for a little bit of chess know-how to figure out. Solving both of them also requires a late-game spell and high level lockpicking skills, so don't bother going after these if you're still early in Hogwarts Legacy (though mods to get around those hurdles are always an option on PC).

The first chess puzzle is waiting inside a dusty cave on the northwestern edge of Poidsear Coast, the first chunk of the southern half of the map. The area is rated for levels 20-40, so you won't have an easy time around here until you're at least halfway through the game. The cave sits near a particularly nasty spider den that you'll probably want to deal with before entering, but it's also possible to slip by with a handy invisibility spell.

To open the cave:

Spin the two windmills outside the cave entrance by rapidly casting Depluso on each until the entrance barriers retract. If you fully spin both, the entrance will stay unlocked. Continue down the stairs, past piles of pots and other rubbish until you reach a giant chessboard.

To solve the puzzle:

Cast Revelio and find an object in the room that looks mysteriously like a chess piece, and then cast Transformation on it, turning it into that chess piece. For me it was a pot with a cubic rim like a rook, but it could be different for you (apparently it can even be a chair). You're trying to "checkmate" the black king piece, so place the piece on a square where it could move to take the king. Here's a cheat seat:

The only other chess puzzle we're aware of is in the next region over, Marunweem Lake. You'll find it in the middle of the region's central bulge, not far from a hamlet and directly next to a poacher camp. Like in Poidsear, this region is for levels 20-40, so take caution. Dispense of the poachers and find the cave entrance in the cliff face behind it.

To open the cave:

Find a nearby tent with a puzzle cube inside of it, and unlock the cage with Alohomora. You'll need level three Alhomora for the job, which requires gathering all of the Demiguise statues. If you, like me, enjoy solving puzzles but not hunting down statues, this PC mod to unlock all spells can save you some time. Levitate the cube to the pedestal in front of the cave entrance and then cast Glacius on the cube.

To solve the puzzle:

This one will have an identical solution to the first, but likely with a different chess piece. Cast Revelio to find the object that looks like a chess piece and cast Transformation on it. This time for me, it was a pot with an oblong tip like a bishop. Then levitate the chess piece to a space where that piece could take the black king piece. Here's that cheat sheet again:

Morgan has been writing for PC Gamer since 2018, first as a freelancer and currently as a staff writer. He has also appeared on Polygon, Kotaku, Fanbyte, and PCGamesN. Before freelancing, he spent most of high school and all of college writing at small gaming sites that didn't pay him. He's very happy to have a real job now. Morgan is a beat writer following the latest and greatest shooters and the communities that play them. He also writes general news, reviews, features, the occasional guide, and bad jokes in Slack. Twist his arm, and he'll even write about a boring strategy game. Please don't, though."}), " -0-10/js/authorBio.js"); } else console.error('%c FTE ','background: #9306F9; color: #ffffff','no lazy slice hydration function available'); Morgan ParkSocial Links NavigationStaff WriterMorgan has been writing for PC Gamer since 2018, first as a freelancer and currently as a staff writer. He has also appeared on Polygon, Kotaku, Fanbyte, and PCGamesN. Before freelancing, he spent most of high school and all of college writing at small gaming sites that didn't pay him. He's very happy to have a real job now. Morgan is a beat writer following the latest and greatest shooters and the communities that play them. He also writes general news, reviews, features, the occasional guide, and bad jokes in Slack. Twist his arm, and he'll even write about a boring strategy game. Please don't, though.

Updated on July 31, 2023, by Nahda Nabiilah: Treasure Vaults is a feature in Hogwarts Legacy where players can explore the area to gain various rewards. However, the adventure will not be easy as there are several Spells people must master if they wish to have a smooth journey. To help people travel effortlessly, this article will be updated to include a section that lists out all the Spells required to solve all the puzzles in Cragcroftshire Treasure Vaults.

Go west from the platform to find the enchanted cube next to a couple of broken cages. Guide it back to its platform using Accio or Wingardium Leviosa and cast a fire spell to activate it. Defeat the Inferius inside the vault and open the chest.

To solve the puzzle inside, use Wingardium Leviosa on the cube and levitate it through the opening above the shortest pillars. Next, aim at the cube from between the pillars and cast Depulso to force it onto its platform, solving the puzzle.

The 10th vault is reached by flying southwest of Cragcroft Hamlet or flying west from the previous location. The entrance can be found on the shore, so protagonists might need to fly down to see it. Burn the vines on the right side and pull the lever to open the door and get the chest.

Head north from the Cragcroft Floo Flame to reach the 11th vault. Pull the two levers on each side of the gate to open it. A chess puzzle is inside, and it possesses three solutions.

From the Cragcroft waypoint, fly northwest to see the vault above a firefly Merlin Trial in Hogwarts Legacy. To find the enchanted cube, run northeast from the platform to defeat a couple of spiders before guiding it back. Cast a fire spell and head inside to stumble upon yet another chess puzzle, but this time, it only has two solutions.

The final vault is located in the northern part of Cragcroft and can be reached by flying northeast from the previous one. To open the vault, turn east to guide the enchanted cube back to its platform. Cast Glacius and enter the cave to claim the chest.

A fun callback to one of the standout moments from The Philosopher's Stone, players must solve a puzzle in Hogwarts Legacy that represents a game of chess. Albeit with not nearly as much risk of personal injury as Ron, Harry, and Hermione had to endure, players may struggle to find the solution to this makeshift board. However, players can find the first instance of this confounding chess game within a cave close to the Poidsear Coast section of the open world.

There are a couple of pieces of magic players need to know before even traveling to this cave, most of all, the Depulso spell to spin the two contraptions on either side of the cavern's entrance and open the way inside. A quick use of Revelio helps players locate multiple chess pieces within the room, arranged in a chess match that has clearly gotten close to a conclusion.

As seen by content creator SpookyFairy, both the Wingardium Leviosa and Transformationspells in Hogwarts Legacy are necessary to complete the puzzle, as players are required to put the black king into checkmate using the other objects found in the room. Players must only lock the opposing king piece into a checkmate by transforming an object into another chess piece and positioning it to cause a checkmate.

Earlier, the Revelio spell revealed a specific object in the room, indicating the one players should cast Transformation on. This turns the item into a Bishop piece, which may be moved around the spaces on the chess board through Wingardium Leviosa. Placing the Bishop diagonally from the black king causes a checkmate and spontaneously destroys the figurehead.

Once the enemy king is destroyed, a treasure chest appears in the middle of the room with random rewards players can collect. Similar puzzles exist in multiple caves across the Highlands section of Hogwarts Legacy's vast map, with different objects sometimes turning into pieces other than a Bishop.

The most likely earning from these chests are different pieces of gear, with the rare chance for Legendary items to be given from these containers. If the clothing found does not appeal to players, they can easily transform their gear's appearance to match whatever they've worn in the past. No matter what items are collected, players have plenty of incentive to solve this Chess puzzle in Hogwarts Legacy to receive more loot from exploring the game's map.

While running around the map in Hogwarts Legacy, you're bound to come across dozens of special treasure vaults with at least one chest inside. Most are pretty straightforward and will just require you to use the proper spell to unlock. However, there are also some more tricky treasure vaults that will take more work and puzzle solving.

We'll go over the basic ways to unlock most treasure vaults in Hogwarts Legacy along with more in-depth explanations on how to solve some of the more tricky treasure vault puzzles like the chess puzzle and San Bakar's Tower treasure vault puzzles.

Some treasure vault puzzles will take more work or might be unique puzzles with none others like them on the map. Here are some of these more tricky treasure vaults along with steps on how to solve them.

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