"Clair Obscur Nerfs Maelle's 2B Damage Build"

Discover the explosive power of Maelle's nuke build in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, capable of dealing over 2 billion damage. Learn how to achieve this staggering feat and how Sandfall Interactive is responding to this game-changing strategy.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Updates

Stendhal Hurts, A Lot

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 continues to unveil new layers of gameplay as players dive deeper into its mechanics. A recent highlight is the discovery of a way to deal up to 2 billion damage using the character Maelle, known as the Expeditioner.

After completing the main storyline, players enter the endgame, which not only offers more narrative depth but also introduces formidable bosses with massive health pools and one-hit kill capabilities. This challenging environment has spurred players to innovate, leading to the development of Maelle's nuke build. Note: This article contains minor spoilers, so proceed with caution.

Maelle's key to this astronomical damage is her skill, Stendhal, which can be amplified to 200% when she is in her Virtuose stance. To execute the nuke build, Maelle requires two specific Luminas, unlocked through Pictos—equipable items that enhance various effects. The essential Luminas are Cheater, which grants an additional turn, and Shortcut, which provides another turn when Maelle's health drops below 30%.

Additionally, equipping Maelle with the Medalum weapon is crucial as it allows her to start battles in Virtuose stance. Another vital skill, Last Stand, activates Virtuose stance and reduces Maelle's health to one hit point.

To further enhance her damage output, Maelle should equip any three of the following skills: Painted Power, which allows damage to exceed 9,999, Death’s Door for an extra 50% damage at low health, Confident Fighter for an additional 30% damage but disables healing, and Inverted Affinity, which boosts damage by another 50% but causes healing to damage her instead. Various combinations of Pictos and Luminas can be experimented with, but with the right setup, Maelle can achieve over 2 billion damage. For perspective, the endgame boss Simon boasts around 45 million HP, meaning Maelle's nuke could theoretically defeat him 48 times over.

Players continue to push the boundaries, experimenting with different strategies and characters to achieve even higher damage numbers. The challenging post-game content of Expedition 33 encourages players to explore innovative tactics to enhance their gameplay experience.

Stendhal Getting Nerfed

Sandfall Interactive has acknowledged that Stendhal's immense damage output is making the game too easy. In a May 8th Twitter (X) post, the studio announced upcoming adjustments to Maelle’s skill. Initially, the developers had planned only bug fixes and no balance changes at this early stage. However, Stendhal's overpowering nature necessitated a revision.

The developers admitted that Stendhal was underwhelming during most of the development cycle, but a last-minute balance pass before release inadvertently made it too strong. "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," Sandfall Interactive stated. The changes to Stendhal will be part of the first full hotfix, set to go live today, initially on Steam and subsequently on other platforms.

2 Million Copies in 12 Days

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has reached yet another milestone, selling over 2 million copies within just 12 days of its launch, as announced in a May 6th Twitter (X) post. Earlier this month, French President Emmanuel Macron publicly congratulated the team on Instagram for their success and for showcasing French creativity and boldness.

With its ongoing success and updates, Expedition 33 is a strong contender for Game of the Year. The developers are committed to enhancing the game through updates and are considering future DLCs if the game continues to perform well.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is now available on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Stay updated with the latest news and developments by clicking on our article below!