Discover how Maelle from Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 can unleash over 2 billion damage with her nuke build, and learn about Sandfall Interactive's response to this powerful skill.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Updates
Stendhal Hurts, A Lot
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 continues to evolve as players uncover new strategies daily, including a method to achieve up to 2 billion damage with the character Maelle. After completing the main storyline, players dive into the endgame, which offers additional narrative elements and formidable bosses. These bosses boast massive health pools and some can deliver one-hit kills, prompting players to develop powerful counter-strategies, such as Maelle's nuke build. Be aware that this article contains minor spoilers.
In Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Maelle's skill, Stendhal, deals significant damage, which can be boosted to 200% in her Virtuose stance. To maximize her nuke build, players need two specific Luminas, unlocked through Pictos (equipable items with various effects). The required Luminas are Cheater, which grants an extra turn, and Shortcut, which provides another turn when health falls below 30%.
Additionally, players must equip Maelle with her weapon, the Medalum, allowing her to start battles in Virtuose stance. She also needs the skill Last Stand, which activates her Virtuose stance and reduces her health to one hit point.
To enhance her damage output, Maelle should equip three of the following skills: Painted Power, which enables damage to exceed 9,999; Death’s Door, which boosts damage by 50% at low health; Confident Fighter, which increases damage by 30% but prevents healing; Inverted Affinity, which adds another 50% but causes healing to be harmful; and other skills that amplify her damage by percentage.
With the right combination of Pictos and Luminas, Maelle can inflict over 2 billion damage. For context, the endgame boss, Simon, has around 45 million HP. Maelle’s nuke strategy can theoretically defeat Simon 48 times over, showcasing its sheer power.
Players continue to experiment with different characters and strategies to achieve even higher damage numbers, making Expedition 33’s challenging post-game both engaging and rewarding.
Stendhal Getting Nerfed
Sandfall Interactive has recognized that Stendhal makes the game too easy. In a May 8 X (formerly Twitter) post, the studio announced upcoming changes to Maelle’s skill. Originally, they planned only to address bugs, not make balance changes so soon after launch. However, Stendhal's overwhelming damage prompted a reevaluation.
Sandfall Interactive admitted that Stendhal was underwhelming during development but received a significant damage boost in the final pre-release balance pass, which went too far. "We still want you to be able to break the game—and you absolutely still can—but Stendhal was making it a bit too easy," they stated. The changes to Stendhal will be included in their first full hotfix set, rolling out today on Steam, with other platforms to follow.
2 Million Copies in 12 Days
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 continues to break records, reaching 2 million copies sold just 12 days after its launch, as announced in a May 6 X (formerly Twitter) post. Earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron congratulated Sandfall Interactive on Instagram for their success and for showcasing French culture, stating, "Congratulations to Sandfall Interactive and all the creators of Expedition 33. You are a shining example of French audacity and creativity."
With its ongoing success and updates, Expedition 33 is a strong contender for this year’s Game of the Year award. Sandfall Interactive is committed to enhancing the game, with potential DLC on the horizon.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Stay updated with the latest game information by clicking on our article below!
