Hogwarts Legacy has been bathed in controversy, and that has only gotten more palpable now the game is available. While Hogwarts Legacy does go some way in increasing the diversity of the Wizarding World, its nonchalant approach to goblins - a race associated with antisemitism in the series - isn't great. That being said, the goblins have some intriguing lore in the source material, which Hogwarts Legacy puts front and center.
The main plot of Hogwarts Legacy sees players attempt to quell a violent goblin uprising whose leader, Ranrok, is using ancient dark magic to manipulate others into joining his side. Throughout the core questline, it's often brought up that although goblins can wield their own type of powerful magic, they aren't permitted to use a wand. The lore reasons behind this factoid are quite dark.
Why Goblins Can't Wield Wands in the Wizarding World
In the year 1612, a goblin rebellion swept the streets of Hogsmeade. Though the wizarding world claims that this rebellion was particularly violent and bloody, though just one of several during the same time period, it often neglects to mention the cause behind the rebellion. At this time, goblins were being discriminated against, viewed as lesser beings. The goblins' innate magical abilities also led to widespread fear mongering in the wizarding world, with many being told that goblins would eventually use their magical powers to overthrow society.
The goblin rebellion of 1612 was unsuccessful, but the high body count on both sides only led to more issues. In 1631, the Wizards' Council - which had no goblin members - passed a widespread law that restricted any non-human from using a wand. While other magical beings could still use magic, taking away their ability to wield a wand meant they could never reach the same power level as a wand-wielding witch or wizard, as these are used to channel and enhance magical abilities.
Goblins aren't the only magical creatures affected by this Wand Ban. House-elves, giants, centaurs, Veelas, and other non-human races are similarly banned from using wands, with any non-human that's caught using one given a severe punishment like imprisonment in Azkaban. Even humanoids like vampires were restricted from wielding a wand, though lycanthropes were given a pass since they would lose their magical abilities regardless when changing into a werewolf. This Wand Ban essentially stunted the growth of the rest of the magical world, and ensured that humans would remain the most powerful magic users. This legislation is just one example of the wizarding world stripping rights away from other magical creatures to ensure its own place at the top, and over the course of centuries these other magical beings would only continue to be demeaned and demonized by media.
This Wand Ban is also often associated with the goblin rebellions of the 18th century, being one of the key causes of unrest in the magical world. Despite both peaceful and violent protests, the Wand Ban was never lifted, with goblins still not being allowed to wield a wand by the time Harry Potter goes to Hogwarts. The goblin Griphook even mentions his disdain for the Wand Ban, claiming that wizardkind denies other magical races the possibility of extending their powers.
Hogwarts Legacy is available now on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. PS4 and Xbox One ports are scheduled to release on April 4, the Nintendo Switch version is arriving July 25, 2023.
