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A curious piece of trivia: The “Obscur” in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 alludes to the initially cryptic nature of the in-game systems and mechanics.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has you leading a band of glamorous spellcasters, spearheaded by the bold British Daredevil, on a mission to combat a global affliction that prevents aging. It blends strategic role-playing encounters with timed defensive moves inspired by Soulslike games, all wrapped in a idiosyncratic artistic lexicon.

It has proven to be the most successful titles of the year, having garnered a huge player base and earned the premier award accolades. The experience can feel a bit off-putting initially, but after you grasp its systems, you’ll find a deep and engrossing role-playing game that is quite unique from contemporary titles. Here are are 10 essential beginner's tips for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

Change Team Members Regularly

In Expedition 33, party members who participate in a battle receive a hefty increase to experience compared to those in reserve. What's more, the campaign will periodically mandate you to field certain characters. The simplest approach to these challenges is to switch members often and aim to keep everyone at a similar strength.

The positive aspect is that leveling up is not too tedious. Encounters provide a generous amount of XP, often enough for a character progression after just a few. You can refresh an local foes by resting at an expedition flag—these points are located throughout each zone. If you need to power level, simply engage in combat near a flag, rest, and do it again.

Rotate Accessories Regularly

You have a couple of key ways to bestow constant buffs to your party members: Pictos and Lumina skills.

• Pictos are accessories that provide numerical bonuses and include a constant effect. Every party member can wear a maximum of three Pictos. When equipped, winning four fights with a Picto will unlock its corresponding Lumina.
• Luminas are not gear pieces but can be thought of as equippable passives. A party member has a number of LP (which you can raise via items). Each Lumina has a set cost. If a character has sufficient LP, there is no limit can equip the same Lumina, allowing you to combine key bonuses across your whole party.

The optimal tactic is to make sure a party member is wearing every new Picto and fights through four battles to reveal its Lumina. That way you’ll have it for when needed.

When you aren't have unleveled accessories to work on, simply slot the Pictos with the highest bonuses for your needs.

Perfect Guards Are Not Your Sole Defense

Expedition 33’s signature mechanic is its marriage of strategic battles with real-time parries. However, the parry window is extremely brief on every setting. Instead of frustrating yourself trying to land parries, focus on dodging.

While a perfect guard grants a resource and inflicts a huge damage spike, failing to parry gives you nothing. Fortunately there are a number of accessories and abilities that grant AP on a well-timed evade. If you find parrying difficult, equip those evasion-based options instead.

Break Is Your Secret Weapon

Inflicting Break is a battle-altering condition that can turn the tide. As you whittle down health, a special bar increases beneath their HP bar. Once charged, you can stun the enemy, which lowers their damage resistance by a significant amount and skips their turn for an entire round. It is the most impactful debuff in the game, but only particular abilities can trigger it.

Level Up Intentionally

You can reset attributes and skills using a limited consumable called a Recoat item. Because it's rare, it's prudent to think ahead before committing your skill points. Try out a party member's role and plan a build strategy beforehand.

Don't Forget to Stop At the Checkpoint Flag

Stopping at an checkpoint refills the health of your whole team and refreshes your supply of healing items, including healing potions and phoenix down equivalents. Make it a habit to rest at every flag!

Expedition flags also function as the closest thing to fast travel in the game. The game lacks a mini-map, waypoint system, or objective markers. But, each flag has a name and number. By resting, you can see a menu of all discovered flags in that level under a fast travel menu. It's a basic yet helpful way to navigate the world.

Glowing Cages Are Invariably Worth It

Paint Cages are effectively locked treasure chests that need you to find and hit three hidden locks in the immediate vicinity prior to claiming the prize. The contents is consistently worthwhile, such as rare resources or strong equipment. The required seals aren't always obvious, but they are typically located close by. If you can't find one, try exploring thoroughly or checking elevated spots.

Yes, Challenge the Vendor

Each shopkeeper carries a secret, unique item that doesn't appear in their standard shop. To get them to sell it, you must pick a champion and beat them in combat in a solo battle. This proves to be rewarding, as these items are game-changing. The first merchant you meet, for instance, sells a Picto that causes the vulnerability status, which amplifies attacks against the affected enemy by a quarter.

Have Faith in the Auto-Save System

The game lacks {manual saving