After 200 hours in Hogwarts Legacy, I finally tried the most broken trick in the game

Let's face it: combat in Hogwarts Legacy is not always the hardest, but it's plenty complicated. Only after crossing that Level 25 marker did I, an intrepid and inexplicably powerful fifth-year student, truly start to get the hang of its unique spell-swapping, potion-swigging, broom-flying mechanics. Even after beating the game three times over, however, there is one combat feature I have been wilfully neglecting until recently: the use of magical plants.

I've long heard whisperings of the troll-melting capabilities of the Herbology 3 trait, which applies a stackable damage buff to all combat plants once weaved into each article of your character's clothing. Messing around with planters, seeds, and fertilizer didn't sound like much of a party to me when I first played the game a few months ago, and it still doesn't now. But curiosity has finally gotten the better of me, and now, my green thumb is starting to match my robes.

Seed of destiny

Using plants in battle is not something I'd ever given much thought to in Hogwarts Legacy; I'd set out to be as evil a Slytherin as the game would let me, and did Voldemort ever wield mandrakes or chuck Venomous Tentacula at Harry? No, he didn't. He used dark magic, so naturally, those were the first Hogwarts Legacy spells I endeavored to learn. Not only that, I embossed all my clothes with powerful Unforgivable traits – something I should perhaps reconsider, now that I've experienced the true ferocious might of the Chinese Chomping Cabbage.

"You're sending plants to fight your battles?" That's what an Ashwinder Duellist exclaimed moments before being turned into compost. Just a few hefty bites from a rabid leafy green, and one by one, I had the bandit camps of the Forbidden Forest razed to the ground. I really wanted to hate chucking plants around instead of fighting, and it did take everything in me to resist casting a spell or two as I stood back to have the dirty work done for me, but I can't deny it any longer. Those Chinese Chomping Cabbages are wicked good, and this is just with Herbology 2.

The enemy-melting trick has been doing the rounds on Reddit, Tik Tok, and just about anywhere else you'll find Hogwarts Legacy fans sharing tips. It sounded simple enough at first: gather cabbages, find the Herbology 3 trait hidden in one of the 200 collection chests dotted around the open world map, sew said trait into all your clothes, and have the cabbages sort your foes out for you. It sounded too good to be true, and in many ways, it was.

Cabbage patch kids

Getting your hands on Herbology 3 is easier said than done. Loot in Hogwarts Legacy is randomized, but I was still surprised that I didn't already have the trait in my inventory. 

I was sure I would have found it over the course of past travels – showing how much I was paying attention to all things herbology before today – but oh well; off I went on a bandit-hunting mission for this all-important piece of swag. 

Three fruitless hours later, I decided to make do with Herbology 2 – and even with the less-powerful version of the trait, just a few cabbages was all it took to oust an armored troll in ten seconds flat. 

Sure, a touch of Avada Kedavra would have sorted him out in just one, but as I watched the unsuspecting brute getting absolutely bodied by a bunch of leaves, I thought back to my early hours in Hogwarts Legacy and wanted to weep. I remembered all those spider dens that could have been cleared that much easier, of the hordes of Ashwinders and poachers that could have been taken care of had I dared deviate from  my tried-and-tested method of "curse 'em all".

At this point in my Hogwarts journey, though, the cabbages feel like extra work. Not only do you need to buy all the requisite items to plant your cabbages, you have to wait about ten minutes for each one to grow. Then, of course, you'll have to catch, feed, and groom three Kneazles to use their fur to add the trait to your clothing at the loom in the Room of Requirement. 

The Hogwarts Legacy cabbage trick is a satisfying yet time-consuming venture, and it would have been an incredible help 180 hours ago. Although I can definitely see the appeal of Herbology 3 for anyone doing an Unforgivable-free run, or if you're struggling with crowd control in larger battles, Chinese Chomping Cabbages aren't the most effective trick in the post-games book once you've collected every spell and have reached max XP.

When I finally found the Herbology 3 trait locked in a chest, nestled away at the back of the very last bandit encampment on the whole stinking map, I cheered. Then, I quickly lost interest. I'll still make use of these bitey boys at some point, I'm sure, so I wove Herbology 3 into a few bits of clothes just in case. But when I took off from the Room of Requirement and headed back out to a troll den, I found myself excited and relieved to be using my dark magic once again. After all, why should plants have all the fun?

Check out the best games like Hogwarts Legacy if you're looking for another kind of magic.