If you've wandered around Hogwarts castle at all, you've likely come across ornate doors that won't open. Named after the conundrums they display on their front, you'll want to learn how to open door puzzles in Hogwarts Legacy before you move on and forget where you found them. The puzzle doors with ornate archways and animal symbols all over? They're easier than they look, and we're going to explain them down below.
These doors don't require any spells to unlock. And while you'll come across a clue that applies to the lot in the upper levels of the building, you don't need to be on a particular quest to start opening them up. Once you know how they work, you can open them whenever you please, reaping some valuable rewards others may miss out on. Here's how they work.
How to open puzzle doors in Hogwarts Legacy - Door puzzle solution
The ornate puzzle doors in Hogwarts Legacy all work the same way. Once you know how to solve one, you'll know how to solve them all. At least in the early areas of the game.
To solve the animal doors, you need to first get close to them. Interact with the door and you'll see the puzzle appear on the surface. You'll need to solve the door puzzle to open it up.
click to enlarge
+ 2Simply put, it's a basic math puzzle - or two, technically. Just look at the first large number in the triangle at the top and add the smaller number around it to the number the animal references. The animals go from zero to nine clockwise around the arch of the door, but you can refer to the image above for a guide as well.
click to enlarge + 2Once you have the answer, just spin the corresponding object on the wall to the animal that represents it. Do the same for the second, interact with the door again, and it will open if you got it right. If not, just try again until you do.
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You'll know which object refers to which part of the puzzle by matching the orientation of the triangle motif or by how many question marks it has as one of its options - one or two.
Where is the second roll for a Hogwarts Legacy puzzle door?
While some of the door puzzles in Hogwarts Legacy have both of their rollable answer emblems within view of the door itself, some don't. If you can only find one answer to input into a puzzle door, you'll need to search around the general area for the next.
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They can be on the wall of the next corridor or even sometimes on the floor above or below. They'll always be in the same room/area, though, so you shouldn't need to stray far. You'll just need to memorize your answer. You won't be able to see the door or its puzzle while you're away.
All Hogwarts Legacy door puzzle locations
| Area | Top button location | Top solution | Bottom button location | Bottom solution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ravenclaw Tower | Behind the arch leading to the stairwell, by a suit of armour and a table. | 4 (bird) | Behind and to the right when you're at the door | 5 (crab) |
| Grand Staircase (top) | On the right of the tower wall just further up. | 6 (lizard) | On the staircase pillar. | 7 (squid) |
| Central Hall | To the left of the door. | 4 (bird) | On the floor directly above. | 3 (hydra/snake) |
| Divination Classroom rafters | To the left of the door. | 4 (bird) | To the right of the door. | 3 (hydra/snake) |
| Arithmancy Classroom (east) | To the left of the door. | 4 (bird) | To the right of the door. | 5 (crab) |
| Arithmancy Classroom (south) | To the left of the door. | 6 (lizard) | To the right of the door. | 1 (Unicorn) |
| Faculty Tower (second floor) | To the left of the door. | 0 (Demiguise/Monkey) | To the right of the door. | 9 (Kelpie) |
| The Long Hallway (Library Annex) | To the left of the door. | 2 (beast) | To the right of the door. | 1 (Unicorn) |
| Locked door opposite the music room (West Tower) | To the left of the door. | 6 (Lizard) | To the right of the door. | 3 (Hydra) |
Over time, we'll curate a list of door puzzles you'll find scattered across Hogwarts Legacy. They're all found on the castle grounds, so there's no need to go hunting elsewhere in the open world.
While we're work on that, just know why it's a good idea to seek them out. They're almost always hiding some powerful gear behind their ornate arches. So long as you're not opening them long after you could have, you'll get gear upgrades that'll make the story missions a lot easier.
For a few more tips and tricks before things get confusing, check out how to change your appearance in Hogwarts Legacy. You might want to know how to change the time of day or view the minimap in a way that won't hurt your eyes from all the squinting.
For more articles like this, take a look at our Guides and Hogwarts Legacy page.