Unforgivable Curses from Hogwarts Legacy.

Hogwarts Legacy: How to Unlock the Unforgivable Curses

Learn the Unforgivable Curses to become overpowered in Hogwarts Legacy.

Written by:
Avatar photo
Rhett Roxl is a professional writer who has been gaming for as long as he can remember. He merged both passions together to become a writer in the game industry in 2020.

Reviewed by:
Avatar photo
Marshall is a seasoned writer and gaming enthusiast based in Tokyo. He's a prolific wordsmith with hundreds of articles featured on top-tier sites like Business Insider, How-To Geek, PCWorld, and Zapier. His writing has reached a massive audience with over 70 million readers!

Key Takeaway

You can unlock the Unforgivable Curses by doing Sebastian Sallow’s questline. Crucio, Imperio, and Avada Kedavra are respectively learned during the following quests:

  • In the Shadow of the Study
  • In the Shadow of Time
  • In the Shadow of the Relic

Hogwarts Legacy allows you to use the three Unforgivable Curses. Crucio, Imperio, and Avada Kedavra are powerful spells that will turn tough encounters into minor inconveniences. However, these spells are entirely optional and missable. To unlock these spells, you’ll need to follow the questline of an NPC named Sebastian Sallow.

Table Of Contents

    Sebastian’s Questline

    Sebastian Sallow is a Slytherin student who will occasionally accompany you during main quests. Eventually, a series of side quests called “Relationship Quests” will unlock. These quests further the questline of certain NPCs, and there’s one for Sebastian.

    Progress through the game and Sebastian’s Relationship Quests will automatically become available to you. It is during these quests that you’ll learn Crucio, Imperio, and Avada Kedavra, in that exact order.

    There are moments in these quests where you’ll have the option to either learn the spell or refrain from it. If you choose not to learn the spells during these given moments, you won’t have the option to unlock them anymore. Not unless you start another playthrough.

    That said, take note of the quests where the curses become available and the correct dialogue options stated below. Choose them accordingly so you can unlock the Unforgivable Curses.

    How to Unlock Crucio

    Unlocking Crucio in Hogwarts Legacy.

    Crucio is known as the Torture Curse. This Unforgivable Curse can inflict immense pain on those unfortunate enough to fall victim to it, almost to the point of insanity. In Hogwarts Legacy, enemies hit with Crucio will continue to take damage over time. It will also inflict them with Curse. Cursed enemies take extra damage.

    You can unlock Crucio during the “In the Shadow of the Study” side quest. This is the second Relationship Quest for Sebastian. To make the quest available, you must first complete “The High Keep” main quest. Then, do one more quest after that. You will then receive an owl from Sebastian telling you to meet him outside the Slytherin Common Room.

    When you get to this side quest, you’ll get to a part where you’ll have the option to either refrain from learning the curse, learn the curse but have it cast on you, or learn the curse and cast it on Sebastian.

    When you get to this point, choose an option where you learn the Crucio spell. Choosing to be the caster or be at the receiving end of it during this quest is irrelevant to learning the spell.

    How to Unlock Imperio

    Unlocking Imperio in Hogwarts Legacy.

    Imperio, or the Imperius Curse, allows the caster to take full control of the victim. When used in Hogwarts Legacy, the enemy will temporarily become an ally and attack other enemies for you. Use this on big, powerful enemies like Trolls and Sentinels and fighting hordes of enemies suddenly becomes trivial.

    You can unlock Imperio during the “In the Shadow of Time” side quest. This is the fourth Relationship Quest for Sebastian. To do this quest, you’ll first need to complete “Professor Weasley’s Assignment” mission.

    During the side quest, Sebastian will offer to teach you the Imperius Curse. Just like with Crucio, choose to learn the spell.

    How to Unlock Avada Kedavra

    Unlocking Avada Kedavra.

    Avada Kedavra is one of the most infamous spells in the Wizarding World. Also known as the Killing Curse, its effect is exactly as the name implies. This spell will automatically kill those who get hit by it. This same effect is true in Hogwarts Legacy, making it the most powerful spell in the game.

    Using Avada Kedavra will instantly kill your enemy, even though their HP is full. This is very helpful against enemies that have huge health pools such as Trolls. However, the spell doesn’t seem to have this effect on the final boss.

    You can unlock the Killing Curse during the “In the Shadow of the Relic” side quest, Sebastian’s last Relationship Quest. This quest becomes available after you complete the “Lodgok’s Loyalty” main quest. After completing the quest, do other side quests and activities for a while until you receive a message from Ominis, asking you to meet him at Feldcroft Catacomb.

    At the end of the “In the Shadow of the Relic” quest, when the option arises during dialogue, choose the option that says, “Everyone should know about that curse.” Then, choose “Yes, please” after Sebastian offers to teach it to you.

    With that, you’re now capable of instantly killing enemies in the game. The game does not have a morality system that turns you into an evil Dark Lord each time you use these curses. This means you’re free to use these overpowered attacks whenever you can, free of repercussions.