Summary

  • Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Pictos let players increase and customize their characters’ damage by equipping them with special effects.
  • Players can equip multiple Pictos at a time and get all of their effects during battle.
  • The best Pictos in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 include a mix of damage-boosting, healing, and utility buffs.

Do you want your Expeditioner character to deal more damage, heal allies, or get an extra turn during combat? You should build them with Pictos, which can enhance and even completely transform your combat experience through special buffs. Some of the best Pictos in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 can be difficult to obtain. Let’s look at the 10 best ones and learn where you can get them.

Painted Power

Effect: Removes the 9,999 damage cap for both damage and HP

How to Get It: You’ll receive this automatically after defeating The Paintress, a mandatory boss at Monolith Peak during Act 3.

Painted Power is arguably the most important Picto in the game. Late-game bosses often have massive health pools, requiring a ton of damage dealt per turn if you want easier fights. This Picto allows you to bypass the damage ceiling of 9,999 and reach six or even seven digits. 

Cheater

Effect: Act twice every turn

Where to Find It: Defeat Sprong, a large roaming enemy found in the open waters between Crimson Forest and Blade’s Graveyard. You’ll need Esquie’s swim or flight ability to reach this area.

In a turn-based game such as Expedition 33, an extra action per turn can definitely feel unfair. That’s basically what Cheater does, giving your character two full actions every turn. You can open with a buff and follow with a devastating attack, or chain multiple abilities in a single round.

Energy Master

Effect: Increases every AP gain by 1

Where to Find It: Defeat the Serpenthare, a flying Nevron that roams the sea between the Coastal Cave and Boat Graveyard.

This gives you an extra AP point when gaining AP, such as when attacking, parrying, or using certain abilities. This massive boost to your action economy works well for all characters. However, you can particularly feel its effect more for AP-hungry damage dealers like Lune.

Inverted Affinity

Effect: +50% damage but unable to be healed

Where to Find It: Find Kasumi, who sells this Picto for 9,870 Chroma.

One of the best Pictos in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 gives you 50% more damage for the first three turns. This, however, comes at the cost of not being able to receive healing. When combined with other damage-boosting Pictos or those that give you more turns, this one is especially deadly.

Immaculate

Effect: +30% damage until hit

Where to Find It: Defeat the Mask Keeper boss in Visage Plaza, which is part of the main story progression.

Good at parrying and dodging? You’ll want to always have this Picto equipped. You’ll get a 30% damage boost provided you don’t take damage, keeping you at an advantage until then.

Clea’s Life

Effect: Heals to full health at the start of each turn if you avoided damage

Where to Find It: Defeat Clea in the Flying Manor to receive this Picto.

Similar to Immaculate, Clea’s Life rewards your dodge timing, parries, and counters. You can potentially achieve near-immortality, making it one of the best Pictos in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

Auto Regen

Effect: Start every battle with Regen already applied

Where to Find It: On Sirène, from the Dancing Classes checkpoint. Take the path to the right of the room with the large statue and go to the bottom to find this Picto.

Auto Regen frees up your healers to focus on other actions while providing consistent healing each turn. The additional 479 defense boost helps keep your characters alive longer.

Healing Fire

Effect: Heal up to 25% of your max HP when attacking burning enemies

Where to Find It: Found in Sirène near the Crumbling Path checkpoint.

Fire is a common element in many character movesets, making Healing Fire an excellent choice for sustaining your party. Combine it with other Pictos that extend burn duration for maximum effect.

Revive Paradox

Effect: Play immediately after being revived

Where to Find It: Defeat the optional boss Chromatic Danseuse.

Revive Paradox gives you an extra turn after being revived, creating powerful synergies with other revival-based Pictos. This can turn what would be a setback into a strategic advantage.

Healing Share

Effect: Receive 15% of heals affecting other party members

Where to Find It: Purchase it from the merchant in Visages.

Healing Share makes any single-target heal become a party-wide recovery. This ensures all of your characters can stay healthy, especially your less tanky characters like Lune or Sciel.

Conclusion

Pictos provide a good variety of buffs that will definitely help you as your enemy encounters become progressively difficult. Experimenting with different combinations and looking for particularly strong Pictos can help you grow tougher, matching your next opponents.  

Remember that only one Picto can be equipped by any character at once. You should try to match them with who can use them best. After winning four battles while a certain Picto is equipped, though, you can learn its Lumina permanently. That means mastering the best Pictos in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 can provide even greater benefits for all your characters. 

What do you think is the strongest Picto in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33?