All Playable Characters in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Ranked

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but every party member in Sandfall Interactive’s Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is great. Perfect even. For some reason, every character has a charming factor about them. They each have unique personalities, attributes, and abilities as well. I mean, that’s the trifactor for creating the most exceptional party list.

Still, when you combine their abilities in battle, with a maximum of three playable characters at a time, you’ll find some combinations thrive better than others, whether that’s based on your play style or enemy type. In any case, every character has their usefulness in the story and combat.

But dare we say, we’re up for the challenge in ranking all the playable characters in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33? Here goes something.

8. Sophie

Let’s place Sophie at the bottom of the ranking of all the playable characters in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, simply because she is barely on screen for too long to make an impact. Sophie appears in the opening prologue and, unfortunately, dies in the Gommage along with everyone in her age group. Despite her short stay on screen, she still impacts the story as Gustave’s former girlfriend. She’s a headstrong woman who, sadly, knows her time is nearly ending and is grappling with making peace with it. 

7. Esquie

Esquie is placed next on the list because you mostly use her as a mythical traveling companion. Children’s stories are told about this creature, about how he can “soar through the heavens and dive deep beneath the sea.” You’ll recruit him into your party and spend time with him to level up your relationship, which, in turn, will unlock Esquie’s powerful abilities like swimming, flying, and underwater diving. You can also use him to destroy obstacles like Paint Spikes and Coral Reefs standing in your way.

6. Gustave

Once an engineer and now a devoted expeditioner, Gustave quickly becomes a reliable party member throughout Act One. He wields a pistol against the enemy’s weak points and swords. However, you can only exploit his full potential with keen upgrades. At his most powerful, you’ll mostly use him for his Overcharge ability. This needs charging by using your Skills to inflict damage on enemies.

As you gain Charges, your bionic arm will glow red, which indicates that you can now unleash Overcharge’s devastating lightning-based attack, capable of breaking armor and destroying enemies. Besides Overcharge, Gustave lacks other significant perks. Plus, he’ll only be available to you temporarily in Act One. 

5. Monoco

Combat for Monoco is like therapy, despite his scholarly interests. He joins you in Act Two and can change into a Nevron, the very monsters you’re fighting, and adapt their skills to his. It gives him much-needed diverse abilities. Moreover, he has the Bestial Wheel perk that spins across the Agile, Caster, Balanced, Heavy, and Almighty Mask abilities, which in turn give you nearly every buff and offense skills you can think of, from fire-based to dark-based damage.

Unfortunately, he’s the last character to unlock, which can feel pretty late, especially when his potential is fully unlocked when you backtrack to defeat all the Nevrons Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has. 

4. Lune

Lune is the most burdened to defeat the Paintress and live up to her parents’ legacy, which can make her a bit of a pain in the ass. Still, her powers are undeniable, as she is an elemental mage who uses her skills to power up her Stain. These include Ice, Fire, Lightning, Earth, and Light Stains. Moreover, she can inflict elemental affinities on enemies, which can have benefits ranging from dealing 50% more damage to taking 50% less damage and healing rather than taking damage. 

3. Verso

Verso’s personality comes off as a bit of an oddball, but curious nonetheless. However, it’s his Perfection perk that makes him the most attractive character to add to your party. With every attack or successful parry or dodge, you gain a higher Perfection Rank. This increases your damage output alongside unlocking additional buffs. Since unsuccessful dodges or parries take away one Perfection Rank, it’s vital that you perfect your defenses to make the most of Verso’s perks. Alternatively, you can take a chance and maximize Verso’s offense, giving him more opportunities to attack enemies or stronger weapons so he can level up faster.

2. Sciel

Sciel has a warm and outgoing personality. She used to be a farmer, then a teacher, and now an expeditioner. She’s the optimistic character who, despite a dark past, still wears a smile on his face. The same optimism has led her to accept her fate and the darkness of the world. However, her approach to combat is the most interesting, using her skills to apply Foretell to enemies so she can consume it and enhance her skills. It’s a push-and-pull combat style, which can be highly effective with careful study of each skill’s effects. 

1. Maelle

At only 16 years old, Maelle joins the expedition to get away from eventual death. Her character arc is therefore quite interesting, leaning more on self-discovery and exploration of the freedom of life beyond Lumiere. She’s also an orphan who struggles to trust and connect with others. However, her foster brother, Gustave, helps her open up more. 

During combat, she can be quite the beast, switching between different Stances. At Stanceless, she has no special effects. However, when you unlock Defensive Stance, she takes less damage and gains AP from successful parries and dodges. In the Offensive Stance, she inflicts more damage on enemies. However, be careful, as she takes more damage as well. And finally, Virtuose Stance allows you to unleash a considerable amount of damage on enemies. 

It gets better, though. Every time you switch between Stances without interruption, you gain one AP, which enhances your Skills. Ultimately, it all depends on how well you manage Maelle’s abilities. For instance, when you use basic attacks, you can automatically switch between Defensive and Offensive Stances. Or when you use your Offensive Switch skill, you can enter Offensive Stance, which applies Defensive Stance as well. 

Maelle is incredibly useful when breaking enemy shields. Most of her abilities also have Burn damage, all of which make her the best playable character you can rely on in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.