How to upgrade gear in Hogwarts Legacy: Traits and upgrades explained
Even wizards need to use the gear system.
We'd say that Hogwarts Legacy is an amazingly immersive take on the world of Harry Potter, allowing fans to learn spells, brew potions and even fly a broomstick all over the Hogwarts grounds.
However, Hogwarts Legacy is still a video game, and an RPG at that, so there are still plenty of the usual gaming tropes - including a gear/loot system that requires you to constantly change your outfit and upgrade it, especially if you want the best stats possible before your next battle.
Luckily, however, this gear system is linked to getting lots of snazzy new cosmetics such as robes, and also includes a unique trait system - so here's everything you need to know.
How to upgrade gear in Hogwarts Legacy
At the beginning of the game, upgrading your gear is as simple as finding and equipping equipment with better stats.
However, if you want to keep your favourite equipment throughout the game, you can start upgrading your existing gear once you unlock the Room of Requirement and the Enchanted Loom.
These will become available after completing 'The Helm of Urtkot' main quest near Hogsmeade, and then 'The Elf, the Nab-Sack, and the Loom' quest in the Room of Requirement.
You will then be able to conjure the Enchanted Loom and place it wherever you wish in the Room of Requirement. To upgrade gear, all you need to do is interact with the Enchanted Loom and select the gear to be upgraded - nice and simple.
Upgrading gear will enhance the stat that is not their original status - for example, gear that originally buffed Offence will now receive a Defence boost and vice versa.
However, you can only upgrade gear of superb (blue) rarity and above, so green and grey equipment may as well be destroyed at this point. You can only upgrade gear three times - and the higher the gear's rarity, the greater the stat upgrade will be each time.
You will need beast material in order to upgrade, so it is highly recommended that you start breeding beasts in your Vivarium, as purchasing the material from Brood and Peck requires a fair bit of gold. Check out our guide to the best gear in the game to learn more.
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Hogwarts Legacy traits explained
RPG fans in particular will have used a trait system before - rather than simply boost Offence or Defence stats, traits will grant your gear an additional and usually rather specific combat perk.
Trait recipes must be unlocked first, however, either through challenges or finding them in bandit camps. Traits are also added by interacting with the Enchanted Loom - as you hover over an item in the loom, press Triangle on PlayStation, B on Xbox, or F on a PC keyboard and you will see the option to add a trait.
Once again, only gear of Superb rarity and above can receive a trait, and higher rarity equipment will be able to equip higher-level traits. Traits cannot then be removed from gear, but they can be overwritten with other traits.
Crafting traits require rare beast material once again - particularly Puffskein Fur - so make sure your Vivarium is highly populated!
As traits are highly specific, it's worth thinking about which stats you wish to boost - you only want to buff spells that you actually use frequently, or perhaps you want to increase damage against an enemy you know you will encounter soon.
For example, as goblins are the main villains of the game, you may want to consider a trait that reduces damage from goblins specifically. Or if there's a combat spell like Incendio that you use all the time, look for the traits that will bolster its attack power.
Traits are awarded randomly, however - there's no easy way to get hold of a specific one sadly!
Read more on Hogwarts Legacy:
- Hogwarts Legacy review - our full verdict
- Hogwarts Legacy potions - all recipes to know
- Hogwarts Legacy plants - what do they do?
- Hogwarts Legacy level cap - how to spent talent points
- Hogwarts Legacy trophies - the achievements you need
- Hogwarts Legacy release date - staggered launch explained
- Hogwarts Legacy cast - Simon Pegg and more
- Hogwarts Legacy house sorting quiz - take the test
- Hogwarts Legacy character creator - customisation revealed
- Hogwarts Legacy common rooms - tour all four
- Who is Phineas Nigellus Black? Sirius ancestor explained
- Hogwarts Legacy year - when is it set?
- Hogwarts Legacy multiplayer - is it co-op?
- Hogwarts Legacy Switch - handheld version explained
- Hogwarts Legacy PC requirements - the specs you need
- Hogwarts Legacy Deluxe Edition - all perks
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