Clair Obscur Expedition 33: Top 10 Essential Early Game Skills to Unlock

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is an exciting turn-based combat game inspired by the JRPG genre, designed to truly challenge players as they progress. The game’s combat system relies heavily on Quick Time Events (QTEs) that involve parries and dodges, offering a much more fluid and engaging fighting experience once mastered. However, during the initial gameplay, players may find it a bit tricky to adapt to these mechanics.

Each party member in Clair Obscur possesses a unique skill tree filled with various abilities. Players will encounter pivotal choices right from the start, as skill points are limited and must be allocated wisely to enhance the team’s combat effectiveness. For newcomers, this skill allocation process can be daunting, especially when determining which abilities to prioritize for the best chance of survival.

This guide focuses on the essential skills that can be unlocked in the early hours of the game. While your party will ultimately expand to six members, we will concentrate on abilities accessible to the first three heroes—in this case, Gustave, Lune, and Maelle. These initial companions will provide the necessary support as players familiarize themselves with the game’s mechanics.

For the purposes of this list, we’ve included skills that require four or fewer skill points for unlocking. Though there are some powerful abilities available for the trio beyond this threshold, they are more suited for mid-to-late game play, necessitating considerable grinding to access them early on.

10 Lune’s Healing Light

Keep Your Team Healthy

Skill Points To Unlock

1 Point

Pre-Requisite Skills

None

AP To Cast

3

Fans of the JRPG genre know the value of keeping a team’s health replenished during battles, and Clair Obscur is no exception. Early in the game, Lune is positioned as the most effective healer for your team.

Unlocking Healing Light is essential since it can be obtained right away from Lune’s skill tree without any prerequisites. This skill allows players to heal a chosen teammate, with QTE determining the amount of health restored, ranging from 30% to a beneficial 50%.With a manageable AP cost of just three, this ability is critical for maintaining your party’s vitality during challenging encounters. Additionally, if Lune has accumulated two Earth or Light stains, the casting becomes free of AP cost.

9 Maelle’s Guard Down

Setting Up Big Punishment

Skill Points To Unlock

4 Points

Pre-Requisite Skills

Degagement—2 Points

AP To Cast

3

In quality turn-based titles, the urge to deal direct damage during a character’s turn can be strong. However, in *Clair Obscur*, overlooking setup or debuff abilities can be a misstep. Maelle’s Guard Down is an invaluable skill, impacting all enemies in combat by applying a Defenceless debuff for three turns, increasing the damage they receive by 25% from all attacks.

Although casting this skill may not seem exciting at first glance, it paves the way for swiftly dispatching foes burdened by this debuff.

8 Gustave’s Powerful

Getting Buff

Skill Points To Unlock

1 Point

Pre-Requisite Skills

None

AP To Cast

3

Like Maelle’s earlier skill, Gustave’s Powerful may lack flashiness, but it delivers significant long-term benefits. This buff can amplify the damage dealt by all teammates by 25% if executed correctly during the QTE.

The effect lasts for three turns, allowing your team ample opportunity to lay into enemies. On top of that, casting Powerful grants Gustave up to two Charges, which are essential for activating his formidable move, Overcharge. By synchronizing the casting of Powerful and utilizing Overcharge afterward, players can unleash devastating attacks.

7 Gustave’s From Fire

Good Damage With The Chance To Heal

Skill Points To Unlock

2 Points

Pre-Requisite Skills

Marking Shot—1 Point

AP To Cast

4

While Overcharge stands as Gustave’s most potent ability, the time taken to charge it can impede progress. Here’s where From Fire comes in.

This skill inflicts medium damage over three hits, making it an excellent option for early-game offense while only consuming four AP points. The damage output relies on the equipped melee weapon’s elemental attribute. Moreover, if the target is on fire, Gustave can heal by 20%, facilitating sustainability in battles.

6 Lune’s Wildfire

Feel The Burn

Skill Points To Unlock

2 Points

Pre-Requisite Skills

Thunderfall—1 Point

AP To Cast

4

While Lune may eventually be replaced by other characters, her Wildfire skill remains a viable choice in the early game. Unlocking Thunderfall is a prerequisite for this ability, but investing points here can yield significant returns.

This attack inflicts medium fire damage on all opponents, and it additionally applies three Burn statuses, immensely increasing damage outputs in battles. Stacking Burn on enemies consistently proves beneficial, leading to more manageable encounters.

5 Maelle’s Rain of Fire

The Perfect Setup

Skill Points To Unlock

4 Points

Pre-Requisite Skills

Degagement—2 Points

AP To Cast

5

Among the initial characters, Maelle possesses the potential to become a formidable force, though mastering her stances requires practice. Establishing the requisite burning effects on your enemies is crucial to making the most out of her skills.

Rain of Fire deals medium fire damage twice to a singular target while applying three Burn statuses. If Maelle casts this while in Defensive Stance, the burn count increases to five. This move not only inflicts damage but sets the stage for future attacks by stacking debuffs effectively.

4 Maelle’s Swift Stride

Charging Up

Skill Points To Unlock

1 Point

Pre-Requisite Skills

None

AP To Cast

3

When the Burn effect is applied, Maelle’s Swift Stride is a pivotal skill choice. While it deals minimal damage, it transitions Maelle into her Virtuose Stance if the targeted enemy is marked by Burn.

Transitioning to this stance grants her an impressive 200% damage boost on attacks, making it an essential move for offensive strategies.

3 Lune’s Mayhem

Breaking Point

Skill Points To Unlock

4 Points

Pre-Requisite Skills

Thunderfall—1 Point, Electrify—1 Point

AP To Cast

3

Consider investing in Lune’s Mayhem early on, as it offers powerful elemental damage that compounds as she gathers stains during encounters. Requiring the prior skills of Thunderfall and Electrify, either of which are inexpensive to acquire, it leads to massive damage output.

Notably, using Mayhem consumes all existing stains, resetting them, but the potential for high damage makes this skill invaluable, particularly with a chance to break enemies by leveraging four stains when casting.

2 Gustave’s Marking Shot

X Marks The Spot

Skill Points To Unlock

1 Point

Pre-Requisite Skills

None

AP To Cast

2

Gustave’s Marking Shot is a skill that merits serious consideration for early investment. It is a core move that proved to be invaluable throughout my playthrough. It inflicts low lightning damage to a single opponent but features an additional effect: it marks the target, increasing the damage they receive by 50% on subsequent attacks.

This synergy between marking an enemy and launching a potent follow-up attack—especially from Maelle, who in Virtuose Stance can multiply damage output substantially—creates a powerful tactical advantage.

1 Maelle’s Fleuret Fury

The Finisher

Skill Points To Unlock

2 Points

Pre-Requisite Skills

Swift Stride—1 Point, Guard Up—2 Points

AP To Cast

6

Last but not least, Maelle’s Fleuret Fury represents the pinnacle of early-stage skills. Once players have gotten Maelle situated in her Virtuose Stance, this skill can be unleashed for devastating returns.

Despite its six AP cost, the multi-hitting nature of Fleuret Fury allows it to strike targets three times with high damage. If employed while Maelle is still in her Virtuose stance, this will amplify the damage output, making for highly efficient and punishing attacks. Effectively managing AP and maintaining this stance enables successive powerful moves, solidifying victory against adversaries.

For a deeper exploration of these skills and how they synergize in battle, check the original article here.

Related Articles:

Top 10 Survival Games Featuring Soulslike Mechanics

Top 10 Metroidvania Games to Convert You into a Fan

Comprehensive Reggie Guide: Master the Art of Dating Everything

Top 10 Iconic Boss Fights From the PS1 Era

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 – Top Pictograms for Early Game Success

Clair Obscur Expedition 33: Comprehensive Guide and Walkthrough

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *