Beast collecting in Hogwarts Legacy is far more in-depth than you might initially expect. There are 13 magical beasts to capture all over the world map and you can even bring them back to the Room of Requirement to breed. What's more, similar to how there are shiny Pokémon in Game Freak's popular creature-collecting games, there are special colored variants of magical beasts that you can capture in Hogwarts Legacy. The internet has deemed these shiny beasts.
I'll start by going over all of the different types of magical beasts you can collect in Hogwarts Legacy and then I'll dive into how to get shiny magical beasts as well as how to breed these creatures.
Hogwarts Legacy: How to get magical beasts
Many of the magical beasts in Hogwarts Legacy unlock after you've completed the side quest entitled, "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." It's through this quest that you obtain the special Nab-sack that allows you to capture creatures. However, some of the other magical beasts can only be unlocked after completing certain other quests. It's this in-depth attention to detail that helps make Hogwarts Legacy one of the best PC games and best Xbox games out there.
| Beast | How to unlock |
|---|---|
| Diricawl | Small dodo-like bird that unlocks after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Fwooper | A small pink bird that unlocks after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Giant Purple Toad | Large toad that unlocks after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Graphorn | Large sabre-toothed tiger-like creature with tentacles at its mouth that can be unlocked after completing "San Bakar's Trial" |
| Hippogriff | Part bird-part horse creature that is unlocked after completing "The High Keep." |
| Jobberknoll | Small blue bird that unlocks after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Kneazle | Large house cat-like creature that unlocks after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Mooncalf | Almost resembles a gerbil mixed with a lama and is unlocked after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Niffler | An echidna-like creature that collects shiny objects and gets unlocked after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Phoenix | A large fiery bird that only unlocks after completing "Phoenix Rising." |
| Puffskein | Fluffy spherical creature that unlocks after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Thestral | Winged horses that can only be seen by those who have seen death. They unlock after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
| Unicorn | A horned horse that unlocks after completing "The Elf, the Nab-sack, and the Loom." |
How to tell if you have a shiny magical beast in Hogwarts Legacy
If you're close enough to a wild beast then you should be able to see its species and gender at the top of the screen. If the magical beast is shiny then it will also have a small star symbol after its name. Most shiny beasts are lighter than their usual coloring. However, depending on the time of day the lighting might make them look darker than they are, so it's easier to shiny hunt during the day.
After you've caught a beast, you can look at it by going to the Menu → Inventory → Beasts. If the same star symbol appears by the name of a creature on this screen then you know this beast is shiny.
There's one final place that you can check to see if a beast is shiny. When you're back at the Room of Requirement, open your beast inventory and once more look for a star-like symbol on the right of your beast's card.
Magical Beast Den locations
Most magical beasts in Hogwarts Legacy have multiple dens around the map, so I'll just list a few for each one.
Hogwarts Legacy Diricawl Den location
Male vs female: Diricawl are small dodo-like birds that come in a variety of different colors. However, males are slightly larger and have more plumage on their heads. They can spook rather easily if you get too close.
Shiny Diricawl: These birds come in plenty of different colors, but the shiny is extremely pale compared to the others, so look for a bird that is basically white when shiny hunting.
Den Location 1: Hogwarts Valley - World Map → West Hogwarts Valley Floo Flame and heading southeast until you hit the ruins on the hill. You'll find them wandering around near these ruins.
Den Location 2: Marunweem Lake - World Map → Marunweem Ruins. Head south to the mainland and it will be on the coast nearby.
Hogwarts Legacy: Fwooper Den location
Male vs female: Male and female Fwoopers come in a variety of colors but females are slightly smaller and don't have as much stray plumage on their heads.
Shiny Fwooper: These owl-like creatures can come in a number of colors, but the shiny variant is basically white.
Den Location 1: Hogwarts Valley - World Map → Northern South Sea Bog Floo Flame and travel northwest.
Den Location 2: Feldcroft Region - World Map → Rookwood Castle Floo Flame and travel northwest.
Hogwarts Legacy: Giant Purple Toad Den location
Male vs female: Males are large and reddish with an antenna in the middle of their heads while females are slightly smaller, blue-grey in color, and don't have any antenna.
Shiny Giant Purple Toad: These are very pale with albino-like coloring. When bred, shiny babies are also paler.
Den Location 1: North Ford Bog - World Map → East North Ford Bog Floo Flame. Head northeast. The toads themselves will be hopping around in the marshes.
Den Location 2: North Ford Bog - World Map → San Bakar's Tower Floo Flame. Head southeast and down to the bottom of the cliff.
Den Location 3: Forbidden Forest - World Map → West Forbidden Forest Floo Flame. Head east to find them.
Hogwarts Legacy: Graphorn Den location
Male vs Female: Males are larger with reddish coloring and huge horns while females are slightly smaller with thinner horns.
Shing Graphorn: The original Graphorns are reddish-brown, but the shiny Graphorns are an albino-white. They can make shiny white babies when bred.
Den Location: The one and only Graphorn Den on the map is located in the Clagmar Coast way down to the south of the map. You can easily fast-travel here by going World Map → South Clagmar Coast Floo Flame and following the path east. Note that this den cannot be accessed until you complete the "San Bakar's Trial" quest.
Hogwarts Legacy: Hippogriff Den location
Male vs Female: These are about the same height and can be white, brown, or golden brown. Those who preordered Hogwarts Legacy could also get an onyx (black) Hippogriff as an exclusive reward.
Shiny Hippogriff: Shiny Hippogriffs are grey, which is pretty boring compared to other shinies you can get.
Den Location 1: Forbidden Forest - World Map → West Forbidden Forest Floo Flame and head slightly southeast.
Den Location 2: Manor Cape - World Map → West Manor Cape Floo Flame and head south towards the ruins.
Den Location 3: Poidsear Coast - World Map → South Poidsear Coast Floo Flame and head northwest to the other side of the river that flows into the lake.
Hogwarts Legacy: Jobberknoll Den location
Male vs female: Irondale Floo Flame and head east towards Feldcroft to the large tree next to the waterwheel.
Shiny Jobberknoll: These are white and grey.
Den Location 1: Forbidden Forest - World Map → North Ford Bog Entrance Floo Flame and head east to the ruins.
Den Location 2: Feldcroft Region - World Map → Irondale Floo Flame and head east towards Feldcroft to the large tree next to the waterwheel.
Hogwarts Legacy: Kneazle Den location
Male vs female: Both male and female Kneazles can be brown or dark grey. Males are slightly larger and have more fur around their faces like manes. Alternately, females are slightly smaller and have more pointed faces since they don't have all that extra fur.
Shiny Kneazle: They are a golden brown, which is paler from the usual brown or grey coloring.
Den Location 1: Hogwarts Valley - World Map → Brocburrow Floo Flame and head south.
Den Location 2: South Sea Bog - World Map → Northern South Sea Bog Floo Flame and head south until you get beyond the marshes.
Den Location 3: Marunweem Lake - World Map → Marunweem Ruins Floo Flame and head south along the path to the small beach.
Hogwarts Legacy: Mooncalf Den location
Male vs female: These can only be seen at night. Males and females are about the same size and come in a variety of different patterns.
Shiny Mooncalf: White with Blue eyes.
Den Location 1: South Hogwarts Region - World Map → Mooncalf Den Floo Flame and head south just a short way.
Den Location 2: Forbidden Forest - World Map → North Ford Bog Entrance Floo Flame and head south.
Den Location 3: Feldcroft Region - World Map → South Feldcroft Floo Flame and head east along the coast to the large dead tree. (When I went to this location at night I found a group of seven shiny Mooncalves)
Hogwarts Legacy: Niffler Den location
Male vs female: Males have a deep blue color while females are a deep brown.
Shiny Niffler: Light grey coloring.
Den Location 1: North Hogwarts Region - World Map → Jackdaw's Tomb Floo Flame. Jump on your broom and head west over the rocks and river until you see the tree with lanterns.
Den Location 2: Hogwarts Valley - World Map → Keenbridge Floo Flame and head east across the river and over the hilly land for a decent distance. They'll be near a tree that's lit up with lanterns.
Den Location 3: Feldcroft Region - World Map → Feldcroft Catacomb Floo Fame and head east. They'll be near a tree that's lit up with lanterns.
Hogwarts Legacy: Phoenix Den location
Unfortunately, there are no phoenix Dens in Hogwarts Legacy. The only way to get a phoenix is by completing the "Phoenix Rising" quest, which is given to you by House Elf Deek. At that point, one of these fiery birds will appear in the Room of Requirements.
What about a Shiny phoenix? As far as I'm aware, there is no way to get a shiny phoenix in Hogwarts Legacy.
Hogwarts Legacy: Puffskein Den location
Male vs female: These look pretty similar and can be brown, reddish brown, or grey.
Shiny Puffskein: These are a rather sandy light brown, much paler than usual.
Den Location 1: Forbidden Forest - World Map → Jackdaw's Tomb Floo Flame and head southeast.
Den Location 2: South Hogwarts Region - World Map → Forbidden Forest Floo Flame and head east along the path towards Hogsmeade.
Den Location 3: Feldcroft Region - World Map → Feldcroft Floo Flame and head north and up the hills and into a huge cavern.
Hogwarts Legacy: Thestral Den location
Male vs female: Males are darker in hue and larger while females have a greenish tint.
Shiny Thestral: They have a silver hue to them rather than green or brown. They can produce white shiny babies when bred.
Den Location 1: North Ford Bog - World Map → East North Ford Bog Floo Flame and heading north with a very slight western angle.
Den Location 2: Marunweem Lake region - World Map → Coastal Mine Floo Flame. Jump on your broom and fly south onto the cliffs where the Thestrals are.
Hogwarts Legacy: Unicorn Den location
Male vs female: Unicorns are usually white with symbols all over their bodies. Males have thicker manes, though.
Shiny Unicorn: These are a warm golden color, but it might look brown in dark light.
Den Location 1: Forbidden Forest - World Map → East North Ford Bog Entrance Floo Flame and travel south.
Hogwarts Legacy: How to catch a shiny beast
Just like how there are shiny Pokémon in Game Freaks popular game series, there are different colored variants of the 13 magical beasts in Hogwarts Legacy. Thankfully, it's a lot easier to get a shiny in Hogwarts Legacy than it is in Pokémon. Just note that there are no additional perks to having shiny magical beasts other than them looking cool. Here's what you can do to increase the chances of catching a shiny beast.
- Go to a magical beast den for the creature you want to collect.
- Check if any of the beasts there are shiny and if so capture them.
- If there aren't any shinies, capture all of the creatures in the den using your Nab-sack to force the den to respawn.
- Go into the map and change the time of day (F on Windows, right stick on console and Steam Deck).
- Create a new save.
- Load this new save.
- Check the beast den again. If no shinies appear repeat steps two through six until you do.
Hogwarts Legacy: How to breed magical beasts
You can breed magical beasts in the Room of Requirement's Vivariums, however, you'll first need to unlock these areas. To do that, you'll need to advance through House Elf Deek's sidequests and complete the once-called "Foal of the Dead." You must have captured a male and a female of a species in order to mate them.
- Go to Tomes and Scrolls in Hogsmeade and purchase a Breeding Pen for 1,000 Galleons.
- Return to the Room of Requirement.
- Enter the Vivarium (animal habitat) you want to breed in.
- Use the Conjuration spell to open the conjuration menu.
- Select Beast Items
- Select Breeding Pen (requires 15 Moonstone).
- Place the Breeding Pen somewhere that it fits.
- Interact with the podium on the right side of the Breed Pen gates.
- Select the animal you want to breed.
- Wait for the breeding process to complete.
Hogwarts Legacy: How to unlock Brood and Peck
Brood and Peck Location: Hogsmeade Map → North Hogsmeade Floo Flame. Go across the nearby bridge and it will be on your left.
How to unlock it: This Hogsmeade shop unlocks after you complete the quest entitled, "The Elf, the Nab-sak, and the Loom." Once open, you can purchase any ingredients that come from beasts here in order to upgrade your gear. The one exception is that you cannot purchase Phoenix Feathers at this store.
You can also sell beasts you've collected at this shop for 120 Galleons each in order to earn some quick cash. The price of a beast does not increase if it is shiny.
| Ingredient | Cost |
|---|---|
| Diricawl Feather | 250 Galleons |
| Fwooper Feather | 250 Galleons |
| Graphorn Horn | 700 Galleons |
| Hippogriff Feather | 700 Galleons |
| Jobberknoll Feather | 150 Galleons |
| Kneasle Fur | 400 Galleons |
| Mooncalf Fur | 150 Galleons |
| Niffler Fur | 250 Galleons |
| Puffskein Fur | 150 Galleons |
| Thestral Hair | 400 Galleons |
| Toad Warts | 400 Galleons |
| Unicorn Hair | 700 Galleons |
A beast of a time
When I first started playing Hogwarts Legacy I didn't expect the magical beast creature collecting to be so in-depth. But if you like this aspect of the game, you can spend hours running around the map, collecting magical beasts, hunting for shinies, and even breeding these creatures. Once you have all of the creatures you want, you can collect ingredients needed for upgrading your gear from them.
Of course, if you want to spend more time with these animals, you can decorate their Vivarium habitats to the nines with the various Conjuration items you unlock while playing. If you need to make some quick cash, you can also sell the creatures for Galleons at the Brood and Peck in Hogsmeade.
