After rescuing Highwing during “The High Keep” main quest in Hogwarts Legacy, you unlock the ability to ride the friendly white hippogriff without needing a saddle. Those who purchased the Deluxe Edition or pre-ordered the game will gain access to additional flying mounts, including Thestral and Caligo, an exclusive Onyx Hippogryph. Initially, all of your mounts will fly slightly faster than a broom without upgrades due to no restrictions on elevation or stamina usage. However, as you progress through your journey as a Hogwarts student, you may wonder if you can upgrade your saddle or mount speed to fly faster.
Related: All landing pad locations in Hogwarts Legacy
Can you improve the editing speed in Hogwarts Legacy?
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Unfortunately, all flying mounts in Hogwarts Legacy have the same base speed and cannot be upgraded with special mounts. On the other hand, you can upgrade your broom by visiting Albie Weekes at Spintwitches Sporting Needs in Hogsmeade. Upgrading your broom to its maximum requires three currency investments totaling 12,500 G. However, each subsequent purchase will only be available after completing a broom trial with Imelda Reyes. Specifically, all three updates and trials will be accessible after reaching “It’s All Gobbledegook” in the main quest line.
In contrast, your mount and mounts do not have upgrades in Hogwarts Legacy, but will retain the same speed abilities throughout the game. In our case, we verified this fact by completing the main story and acquiring all of Broom’s upgrades. However, we could not discover any means for such improvements. Future DLC may introduce mount or mount upgrades, but until then you should be happy with how fast your Hippogryph or Thestral currently flies.
Is it a broom or a faster mount in Hogwarts Legacy?
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As noted above, a saddled mount is slightly faster than a broom without upgrades in Hogwarts Legacy. Still, some students might wonder if a fully upgraded broomstick is eclipsed by a flying mount. Based on our somewhat basic testing and time trial, a broomstick with level 3 upgrades is slightly faster than a flying mount. In addition, the Escoba is more agile and easier to maneuver.
Also, the character animation and space required to pull out and store the broom is much smoother and more convenient than a mount. In other words, your magic broom is a superior means of travel once you fully upgrade it in Hogsmeade, while a flying mount focuses more on cosmetic beauty and grandeur. The only advantage a Hippogryph or Thestral will have over your broomstick is that the beasts can fly at higher altitudes without any stamina increase limitations.
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