Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Gommage

"Expedition 33" opens sixty-seven years after the Fracture, an event which broke the world apart and sent the city of Lumière into the middle of the ocean. On the eve of the departure of Expedition 33, the city holds the Expedition Exposition, an event which sees off the travelling group but also includes the Gommage, during which all of the citizens of a certain age are erased from existence. This year, Gustave watches as Sophie, a woman he still holds feelings for, vanishes in his arms upon the Paintress' awakening.

The Expedition party departs for the docks the next day, and after Gustave's sister, Emma, gives her speech to the people of Lumière, they set off in the footsteps of Expedition Zero. When they hit landfall, however, they encounter a big problem and most of the Expedition is killed outright.

Answer: Lune

Gustave awakens in the Spring Meadows, alone, and realizes that he needs to rendezvous at the Indigo Tree to find any possible survivors. He nearly succumbs to the bleakness of their endeavour, but he's stopped from ending his life by Lune, one of his fellow Expedition members, who encourages him to pass through the coastal forests following distant flares.

The pair will get to the far end of the meadows to fight a massive nevron by the name of Évêque, learning about the ways to approach battles going forward, to find a message. And while Lune reasons that they may be headed into a trap, Gustave refuses to stay put waiting for survivors when he has a chance of saving his sister, Maelle. They'll need to break protocol to do this, but they'll have to head on to the corals further inland.

Answer: The Manor

Gustave and Lune head to Flying Waters, a seemingly underwater world on the land comprised of massive coral structures, finding their way to a central hut containing an out-of-place door, and when they let themselves inside, they emerge into a massive Manor. They're fortunate to find Maelle inside one of the bedrooms here, safe and sound under the care of the Curator.

Introducing themselves to Noco, a real-life gestral, the party is encouraged to head to the Ancient Sanctuary to find the Gestral Village, but before they can they have to pass through an underwater version of Lumière to locate a flowery field and fight Goblu, an otherwise peaceful creature who only lashes out when the Expedition touches his flowers.

That evening, at camp, Maelle starts to have horrible nightmares of the Paintress and the white-haired man who killed the rest of the Expedition.

Answer: Sakapatates

The Expedition needs to find the Gestral Village, and to do that, they need to pass through the red tree forest and maze found at the Ancient Sanctuary, a place crawling with nevrons and gestral creations. At the far end of the maze in Giant Bell Alley, the party will need to go head-to-head against the gestrals' strongest functioning creation, the Ultimate Sakapatate, a construct made with cannons, a large shield, and the ability to fight with a dead gestral in-hand. If they can beat the foe, the gestrals will acknowledge and praise their strength and ask them to head onward to the Gestral Village to meet Golgra, their 'chef', who'll want to speak to them.

Answer: One-on-one

The Gestral Village, as it turns out, is quite the friendly place, and the Expedition party discovers that they're in good company provided they lean into the locals' interest in well-intended fighting. Golgra, the village 'chef', will suggest that the group continues onward to met Esquie in his nest-- he can get them across the water-- but she'll only give over the password to access Esquie if they compete in the local one-on-one arena tournament and beat 'The Stranger', a new opponent who's overtaking all the gestrals.

If the party succeeds and makes it to the final match, they'll find that the Stranger is none other than Sciel, another Expedition member who's made it this far. She'll put on a show and rejoin the others while Golgra will give the password: the phrase "get outta my way" yelled as loud as possible to Sunniso.

As the group departs the Gestral Village, Maelle will start experiencing waking nightmares as camp that depict her interacting with the white-haired man and a woman by the name of Alicia. They claim that everything is Maelle's fault and she doesn't even know it yet.

Answer: A rock

When the Expedition encounters Sunniso at Esquie's Nest, it'll turn out they never needed a password to begin, and more than this, it appears that Esquie is a nice, if not cryptic figure who often speaks in riddles. What he will tell the others is that he is more than willing to help, but he can't carry more people across the sea without Florrie, one of his rocks, which was stolen by his archnemesis, François.

Very fortunately, François is just in the cave next door, and the Expedition can fight him for the rock. When they beat him, however, it'll turn out that he doesn't actually have Florrie, and they'll need to head to the Stone Wave Cliffs to find it. Another stop on the route!

Answer: Gustave

The Stone Wave Cliffs will be a seemingly uneventful location while you hunt through its distinctive areas for Florrie, and you'll eventually find the rock for Esquie when you get through the Old Farm, the Tide Caverns, and the Basalt Waves to encounter the area's boss, the Lampmaster.

The real issue occurs when Lune and Sciel descend to the sea to hop aboard Esquie's back and both Gustave and Maelle stay behind for a moment as the White-Haired Man will emerge to kill the Expedition leader, sparing Maelle for reasons he claims she won't understand. As Gustave is felled, a new face will also appear-- a stranger who's been following Expedition 33 for a short time. He'll stand in the way, vowing to the White-Haired Man that the path they've been set on will have consequences and the Paintress will never paint again.

Maelle will rejoin the others accompanied by this stranger, who'll later reveal his name to be Verso. At camp, he will explain that he was from Expedition Zero and that the White-Haired Man, Renoir, was their commander. The catch is that both of them are immortal and have never suffered the Gommage. Renoir believes that his immortality is a gift from the Paintress and will stop at nothing to protect that. Verso believes the opposite and, despite their loss, wishes to help them see their expedition through to the end. To do that, they'll have to head north through the quarry across the sea.

Answer: Gradient Attacks

As Act 2 of the story begins with Verso leading the Expedition, the group heads north to the Forgotten Battlefield where they encounter the site of several massacres, all of a number of past Expeditions having come face-to-face against the Dualliste, a battle-ready nevron that will swoop in, just as the team reaches an ancient bridge, and fights them in a pit of blood.

In this region, Verso will teach the team of enemy Gradient Attacks, forcing them to fight back in a unique way to avoid a devastating blow. If they can do this against the Dualliste in its two phases of battle, they can continue on into a tranquil grove to lay Gustave's arm to rest.

Before proceeding much further, Verso, now a more substantial part of Expedition 33 (nicknamed 'the Disaster Expedition') will suggest they head further north to Monoco's Station to recruit his old friend, a searcher and a gestral. They'll need all the help they can get because they'll first need to destroy a key item in Old Lumière, otherwise the Chroma surrounding her will be too dangerous to continue.

Answer: Noco

The Expedition will arrive in a snowy mountain range once they're through the Forgotten Battlefield, and following a series of unusable train tracks, they'll reach the abandoned station that Monoco calls home. He is, fortunately, there and available to be spoken to, and Verso will easily convince him to join with the group to continue onward to Old Lumière.

The quintet will also encounter Noco again as the little gestral merchant/searcher will want to continue to the rare treasures in the deeper regions, but he'll come with the news that a Stalact is approaching the station. If they can utilize their new Gradient Attacks and Monoco's Bestial Wheel to their advantage, they can populate the station with Grandises and head out.

At camp, Verso will confide in Monoco that with Maelle in their group, it may be their only shot at finally stopping the Paintress, even if she doesn't completely know her role in all of this. The Expedition doesn't know it, but at this point, their small group is as full as it will ever be leading to the final fight.

Answer: The Paintress' Heart

The Expedition will reach Old Lumière and, in an impulsive effort to show off, Monoco will barge through the buildings and send everyone off in different directions, unexpectedly split into two groups to cross the destroyed cityscape. While Lune, Sciel, and Monoco will locate another Esquie stone (later revealed to be Dorrie, who allows him to pass through coral) and an Expedition Journal that reveals a hidden truth about Verso, Maelle, Verso, and Noco will make their way, quicker, to a well-kept mansion.

Arriving at the doorstep, Maelle will find the house familiar, but her memories won't line up when Renoir and Alicia appear in the doorway. The others will, fortunately arrive quick enough to join in the battle against Renoir, revealed to be Verso's father, but the battle will end in tragedy as a massive Chroma blast will kill Noco in the wake of the battle. Though Renoir may be defeated, for now at least, the house will vanish, taking Alicia and the Paintress' Heart with it.

All of these events pose several problems. With Renoir revealed to be Verso's father and Alicia his sister, Verso's lying by omission doesn't sit right with the others. At the same time, Noco may be able to be resurrected, but not all of him will return.

In perhaps the only good news, there may be a way through the barrier at the Monolith, but it will take great effort. The Curator could, in theory, help make them a weapon that can pierce the barrier, but for that they need enormous amounts of pure Chroma. It will take collecting the hearts from the Axons, one of which is in the west on the Visages Islands, and the other of which is east at Sirène.

Answer: The Mask Keeper

The Expedition, when they choose to head to the island of Visages, they'll arrive to a sea of faces in the forms of massive, stone masks, and while they can proceed directly to the boss fight if they so choose, it's recommended that they pass down the alternative paths around the island, visiting glades and meadows that reflect the emotions of anger, sadness, and joy, each with their own types of foes and obstacles. Before they do this, the Mask Keeper will stop by to let them know that they shall not be harmed; they'll just need to meet the Visages themselves at the end of the path.

If the Expedition can overcome the trials and defeat Visages, the Mask Keeper will return, revealing that he was wearing a mask of his own by lying to them about the true nature of the Axon. After another fight against the real boss of the island, he'll lash out, only being stopped when Sciel can overcome the mask he bestows upon her. She'll kill the foe, save the others, and carry off the magical artifact while Verso will contemplate its real identity.

At camp, the team will hand the Axon's power over to the Curator and Maelle will see the image of Renoir superimposed over its face. Verso chalks this up to a recurring nightmare, but there's something about it that Maelle can't put her finger on. It's not the only thing; she frequently has a sense of déjà vu here.

Answer: Charm

A second Axon artifact is on the island of Sirène, a massive colosseum constructed after the Fracture, and inside, the Axon (and island namesake) will use its powers to create wonderment, playing with the emotions of all who encounter it, even going so far as to show them what they really want even if it's impossible.

The Expedition will pass through several new foes here, many of which will come to Sirène's aid in the final battle (including Tisseur in the Sewing Atelier if you don't defeat it, and Glissando in many forms). Several of these enemies have the Charm ability, which will cause your party members to attack each other if they're afflicted.

If the Expedition can beat Sirène, Lune will deal the final blow with a colossal blast of energy and the party will receive the second piece they need to create the Barrier Breaker, which Maelle can use as they near the Monolith to grant passage to the Paintress.

At camp, Verso will be met by Alicia and Renoir, the latter of whom will try to convince him to abandon his quest, otherwise they will all disappear into nothingness-- their memories, dreams, and love will end. All will pay the price for Verso's choice.

Answer: Visages

When Maelle breaks the barrier, the Expedition will follow a candlelit path to the Monolith and the Paintress herself only to find that the impossible being is non-reactive to their attacks. A short encounter will allow them to pass into the Monolith proper and it will allow them to reemerge into all of the environments and foes they'd encountered in their adventure, in sequence, to test their skills and revisit their meticulously-crafted story all the way back through an old version of Lumière to the peak.

At the end of the path, moments before reaching the peak of the Monolith, the Expedition will once more encounter Renoir. Verso will vow to, finally, take the Paintress down, but Verso can't let him; the pain of losing his son is too much to bear again. This time, he'll fight not only with his characteristic proficiency, but he'll call upon the powers of a Dark Creature to heal and lash out at the group.

When the battle finally ends and Verso is felled, he'll note that Verso has condemned them all to die. Verso, he reminds, is a member of the Dessendre Family; the Expedition is not that family. From nowhere, the Curator will appear to assist Maelle in destroying Renoir once and for all, opening the path to the Paintress at long last.

Answer: On Esquie's back

Proceeding out the door of the Monolith and up to the peak, the Expedition will finally find the Paintress and they'll have one last fight for the future of Lumière, but not before she attempts to talk sense into Verso and the others. She persists that she needs to remain in the canvas, and when both Maelle, who she recognizes as Alicia, and Verso, who she does not regard as her own Verso, push back, she instead decides to fight to hold control.

The battle will be just as difficult as one would anticipate. The Paintress fights back with all in her arsenal before the battle transitions to a second phase and the Expedition is forced to fight the massive Paintress giant, risen from its spot in front of the Monolith and capable of tearing holes in the fabric of reality. Verso will hand over one of Esquie's rocks, Soarrie, so that they can fly on his back to close out the battle.

Upon her defeat, Verso will kindly lay the Paintress down on the ground so that he and Maelle can say their goodbyes. The team will have accomplished their goal and, as a symbolic gesture, they'll plant the Expedition 33 flag at the battle site. They're free.

Answer: Maelle

The Expedition will fly back to Lumière on Esquie's back, realizing that, at last, they have nothing but decades in front of them and the time to spend. Lune is apprehensive, however, because they aren't done yet. There are still questions that need to be answered.

The Expedition arrives to celebration in the Lumière. While the city holds a party for the group's return and the end of the number on the Monolith, Maelle is forced to break the news of Gustave's death to his apprentices, handing over his journal.

While the city celebrates behind him, Verso reads a letter from Alicia that states she's at peace with what needs to happen. Maelle, as she claims, is as Alicia was always supposed to be. The Paintress, after all, painted the world as she did to stave off her grief, and the Alicia in the note does not reach the full potential of her ability. In defeating Renoir, she notes, they have ended the Gommage; the Paintress, their mother, painted life, but Renoir, their father, brought death, and that was the natural order. She wonders, what will Maelle paint?

Gazing out over the sea, Verso watches as a blast of energy drains the colour from Lumière. Maelle can only watch as Sciel, Lume, and the rest of the city vanish, leaving her as the last to Gommage.

Answer: The Writers

In Monolith Year 49, a fire ripped through the Dessendre Manor. Alicia awakens in her room and follows Clea's voice to Renoir's atelier to find their parents seated in front of Verso's Canvas, clearly still fighting inside. Clea tells her sister that Aline has been imprisoned at the top of the monolith; Renoir is trapped beneath. Verso has been recreated inside, an immortal copy of the real thing, killed by the Writers in the real world as a consequence of an ongoing war. Clea is working to keep the chroma from returning to Aline, but she needs to depart-- conflict is spreading and she needs to aid the other Painters to ensure their survival. She asks Alicia to head into the Canvas to help Renoir as she departs.

Before Clea departs, she and Alicia hide the Canvas in an effort to prevent Aline from finding it and using it to once again recompose her family inside. All of this will only end if they destroy the Canvas, but it means stopping the final sliver of Verso's soul from painting and it means losing him forever.

As Alicia places herself into the Canvas, she's unwittingly caught by Aline's chroma and reborn as one of her creations-- Maelle.

Answer: The essence of who they are

Alicia-- actually Maelle-- finds Verso, or the version of him that remains in the Canvas, and she says that while Aline did a horrible thing in creating him here, she's glad he exists. While Verso, like his father, believes that the Canvas should have been destroyed, Maelle disagrees, believing that her mother made creation out of love. Verso is not make-believe to her.

Renoir will arrive in Lumière to help her reconstruct, appearing as the Curator as he always was. He reunites with Maelle, his actual daughter, apologizes to Verso on behalf of the Dessendres. With Aline now out of the Canvas, fortunately, they can destroy it. For the sake of the living, he says, they must end their time with the dead. Maelle disagrees with him, as she did with Verso, as there's nothing but pain waiting for her in the real world. Lumière is her home now. She brings Verso with her, escaping with Monoco on Esquie's back and heading to their old camp.

Now aware of her capabilities as a Paintress, Maelle uses her recovered abilities to bring back both Sciel and Lune, following Verso's suggestion to create them using the essence and truth of who they really were to her. She could theoretically bring back everyone, but she needs the chroma to accomplish this, and with Renoir in control of all of the Canvas' chroma, all she has is what's been left behind in the fallen Expeditioners on the Continent. They set out to collect it, and when they do, they will commence the final (and greatest) Expedition in history.

Answer: The crooked Eiffel Tower

When the final Expedition steps foot back on the docks in Lumière, Maelle reveals her capabilities, creating an army of Expeditioners to fight Renoir's dark creations all the way to the Crooked Tower. When she finally stands before him, she begs her father to think about how much Verso's Canvas means to her. While Renoir doesn't want to destroy this last piece of Verso's soul, he admits he must. Life forces cruel choices and they must do what they must to get through them.

The fight unfolds across several phases of battle with Renoir as the Curator, and when the situation gets dire, he'll call upon the power of the Axons to restore and support him. Fortunately for the Expedition, however, Aline will return to the Canvas, arriving as the Paintress to fight off the massive creations. Renoir will instead pass through the Dessendre painting to empower himself for one last segment of the battle...until Maelle leaps in and destroys him with one final strike.

With the battle over, Aline and Renoir will both be required to leave the Canvas, unable to sustain themselves. Renoir notes that he spent sixty-seven years in the Canvas watching Aline struggle every day, ever since the fire and the day their family crumbled. Verso's death broke them apart and he needs it, and the family, to be fixed. Despite his hesitation, he has no choice but to leave Maelle to her wishes, quietly hoping that she may, one day, find peace and leave the Canvas.

With the fight over, Verso will pass through the portal left behind and find the fractured boy from the Expedition's travels hard at work at his painting. All he needs to do is stop the boy-- himself-- from painting, and it will destroy the Canvas once and for all. Maelle, following behind him, does not wish for this to happen, even though he reminds her of their father's words to "see things as they are, not how you want them to be". He knows she lied to Renoir about her ability to break through the grief.

It's a stand-off. If Alicia leaves the Canvas, Renoir will destroy it. If she stays, she will be consumed.

Answer: An opera performance

Selecting Maelle to back in the final fight will see her fend off Verso with an impassioned argument to protect the memory and the world. Verso begs her to let the boy stop painting, but she refuses as he begins to Gommage. He asserts that he doesn't want this life; he wants to be unpainted. She wants a life she feels was stolen from them.

The epilogue here-- A Life to Paint-- sees a restored Lumière, at least as far as it can be restored. A crowd gathers at the opera house for a performance with Expedition 33 in attendance in the audience. Maelle joins Gustave and Sophie, Sciel and her husband, and Lune moments before the lights go down. Onstage before them, Verso takes his seat at the piano and performs to the theatre crowd.

In her seat, Maelle's eyes drip with paint, a sign that she, like her mother, has remained in the Canvas to her detriment.

Answer: The Canvas will be destroyed

If you choose to select Verso, the final battle between Verso and Maelle will still feature Maelle begging to keep the Canvas intact so that she can stay inside, but it will end with Verso defeating her, forcing her out of the world. He promises that it will be okay as she Gommages and returns to her real world, and he'll allow the fractured boy-- himself-- stop painting.

Monoco and Esquie will pass through the portal to embrace him and say their goodbyes while Sciel, passing through alone, will Gommage in resignation. Lune, in protest, will remain on the other side to sit and watch as Verso, taking the boy, will declare that it's finally over.

The epilogue here-- 'A Life to Love'-- will show the Dessendres alive and awake in the real world, gathered around Verso's grave to pay their final respects. While the rest of the family departs, Alicia watches on as the members of the Expedition, or spectres of them, will wave goodbye and vanish in a wash of flower petals.