Maelle's 2 Billion Damage Build Nerfed by Clair Obscur

Discover the secrets behind Maelle's 2 billion damage nuke build in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and learn how Sandfall Interactive is addressing this powerful skill.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Updates

Stendhal Hurts, A Lot

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 continues to captivate players with daily discoveries, including a groundbreaking 2 billion damage build for the character Maelle. After completing the main storyline, players dive into the endgame, which offers additional narrative elements and formidable bosses. These encounters can be challenging, with bosses boasting massive health pools and even one-hit kill capabilities. To counter this, players have crafted a potent nuke build. Note: This article contains minor spoilers, so proceed with caution.

Maelle's skill, Stendhal, is the cornerstone of this build, capable of inflicting substantial damage, especially when boosted to 200% in her Virtuose stance. To maximize her damage output, players must equip Maelle with two specific Luminas, which are unlocked using Pictos (items that offer various effects). The required Luminas are Cheater, which grants an extra turn, and Shortcut, which provides another turn when Maelle's health drops below 30%.

Additionally, Maelle needs her weapon, the Medalum, which allows her to begin battles in Virtuose stance, and the skill Last Stand, which activates Virtuose stance while reducing her to one hit point.

To further enhance her damage, Maelle should equip at least three of the following skills: Painted Power, which allows 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; and Inverted Affinity, which adds another 50% damage but makes healing detrimental. With the right combination of Pictos and Luminas, Maelle can unleash over 2 billion damage. For context, the endgame boss Simon has approximately 45 million HP, meaning Maelle's nuke could theoretically defeat him 48 times over.

Players continue to experiment with different strategies and characters to achieve even higher damage outputs, making the post-game content of Expedition 33 both challenging and engaging.

Stendhal Getting Nerfed

Sandfall Interactive has acknowledged that Stendhal's extreme damage was making the game too easy. In a May 8th post on Twitter (X), the studio announced upcoming adjustments to Maelle’s skill. Originally, no balance changes were planned this early in the game's lifecycle, only bug fixes. However, the overwhelming power of Stendhal prompted a reevaluation. Sandfall admitted that during the final pre-release balance pass, they significantly boosted Stendhal's damage, perhaps too much.

"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 included in the first full hotfix, set to go live today on Steam, with other platforms to follow shortly.

2 Million Copies in 12 Days

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has achieved another milestone, selling 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 congratulated the team 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 continuous updates, Expedition 33 is a strong contender for this year's Game of the Year award. The developers are committed to enhancing the game further, with potential DLC on the horizon.

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