The following contains spoilers forClair Obscur: Expedition 33.
According to aClair Obscur: Expedition 33journal entry, Expedition 35 was a brutal incident that led to the creation of the “human bridge.” It’s never too hard to imagine the tragedies past expeditioners faced, yetClair Obscur’s journal entries often manage to catch players off guard. While some offer guidance for the journey ahead, others paint a bleak picture of the events leading up to Expedition 33.
Clair Obscur’s journalsare key pieces of the game’s lore, written by previous expeditioners to document their discoveries and, often, their tragic ends. Players can find 49 of these collectibles scattered across the map, each shedding light on a different historical expedition. Many entries have earned players' respect for highlighting acts of heroism, but one note has recently drawn particular attention for detailing an epic chapter in expeditioners' history.
As highlighted by Drekein on Reddit, Expedition 35, which likely occurred around 65 years afterClair Obscur’s first Gommage, appears to have ended in brutal tragedy. According to Mathieu, the expedition’s sole survivor, the group encountered powerful Nevrons in the Falling Leaves region. Realizing their journey was doomed, the dying expeditioners attempted to form a bridge with their bodies. This “human bridge” can be seen in the game, described as a path for those who would come after. Though Mathieu survived that particular incident, he ventured deeper into the region, and it remains unclear whether he ultimately survived or perished.
Did Expedition 35 End for Nothing?
Recently, fans on Reddit have been discussing the legacy of Expedition 35. Some admire the dying expeditioners for giving everything to aid future explorers. Others argue the sacrifice was in vain since the human bridge in Falling Leaves appears to lead nowhere. Some comments even jokingly suggest that the group died forClair Obscur’s Colour of Luminadespite the item likely being unusable at the time.
Many fans, however, have defended the dead soldiers by noting that the Expedition 35 team likely had no clear destination in mind. In the face of uncertainty, they used their final moments to create a new path, hoping it might one day lead to an answer, making their sacrifice admirable.
Before Expedition 35 caught the community’s attention, another journal entry was widely regarded as epic. During Expedition 60, which likely occurred around 40 years after the first recorded Paintress encounter, a note by William highlighted some remarkable achievements. He wrote that years of training and discipline had turned the expeditioners' bodies into weapons capable of withstanding monstrous creatures. Though the Expedition 60 team’s fate was just as tragic as those before them, William’s entry is still seen by fans as one of themost powerful and respectable stories inClair Obscur.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
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Once a year, the Paintress wakes and paints upon her monolith. Paints her cursed number. And everyone of that age turns to smoke and fades away. Year by year, that number ticks down and more of us are erased. Tomorrow she’ll wake and paint “33.” And tomorrow we depart on our final mission - Destroy the Paintress, so she can never paint death again.We are Expedition 33.Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a ground-breaking turn-based RPG with unique real-time mechanics, making battles more immersive and addictive than ever. Explore a fantasy world inspired by Belle Époque France in which you battle devastating enemies.
