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The Gestral Arena is a gauntlet encounter inClair Obscur: Expedition 33. You’ll face off against several enemies in quick succession to complete it.
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Our guide for defeating the Gestral Arena will go over each boss' attacks, abilities, and how to handle them to earn victory and head one step closer to defeating The Paintress.
This is a mandatory step in main story progression, but most of this experience isn’t too challenging to get through.
How To Prepare For The Gestral Arena
Before we get into how to beat the Gestral Arena inClair Obscur: Expedition 33, it’s important to discuss how to prepare. In the following sections, we will discuss the best party composition and the best skills to equip before engaging the boss.
Best Party Composition For The Gestral Arena
When it comes to putting together yourparty compositionfor the Gestral Arena, this is the first time you have any actual choice.That’s because you can only bring in one party member to fight each boss inside the Gestral Arena.
Keep in mind that each character has a defined role: Maelle is your tank, Lune your healer, and Gustave your DPS.
Best Skills for the Gestral Arena
By now, each character should be decently fleshed out in terms of what they bring to the table. Let’s highlight some of the more important skills every character will have in their arsenal to be able to take down the Gestral Arena. Remember, you can only bring in one party member, so make it count!
Lune is mainly a healer, so she’s not well suited for this encounter.
Party Member
Description
Overcharge
After collecting 10 charges by dealing damage,Overchargedeals immense damage. This is Gustave’s unique ability and doesn’t have to be equipped.
Lumiere Assault
Low Physical damage. 5 hits. Critical hits general 1 additional Charge.
Marking Shot
Low Lighting damage and applies Mark x1. 1 hit
Immolation
Low Fire damage that applies 3 Burn. 1 hit. If Marked, applies 2 more Burns. Consume 1 Ice Stain: damage increased.
Healing Light
Heals the targeted ally by 30-50% Health and dispels Status Effects. Consume 2 Light Stains: Costs 0 AP
Thermal Transfer
Deals low single target Ice damage. 2 hits. Gains 4 AP if target is Burning. Consume 2 Light Stains: Play a second turn.
Low Fire Damage. 1 hit. Applies 3 Burns. If in Offensive Stance, applies 2 more Burn.
Swift Stride
Low Physical Damage. 1 hit. Switches to Virtuoso Stance if target is Burning. Regains 0-2 AP.
Fleuret Fury
High Physical Damage. 3 hits. If in Virtuoso Stance, stay in Virtuoso Stance. Can Break.
These are the skills I’d recommend most for the Gestral Arena boss fight. We’ll discuss why in further detail later on in this guide in the “How to Beat the Gestral Arena” section. You’ll have additional skills to round out your arsenal, but don’t be surprised if you’re not using them that much.
Besides skills and party composition, it’s also wise to use the bestweaponsavailable. For these fights, you can mainly just ensure you’re using your highest level weapons with the biggest base damage number, and you should be in pretty good shape.
Gestral Arena Attack Breakdown
Now that you’re prepared to take on Gestral Arena in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, let’s break down each boss' moveset.
We’ll go over strategy for each boss later in this guide.
Bertrand Big Hands
Attack Phrase Indicator
Attack Description
“Bertrand Big Hands attacks.”
Bertrand Big Hands walks toward you and performs an attack.
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Dominique Giant Feet
“Dominique Giant Feet attacks.”
Dominique Giant Feet staggers toward you before attacking.
Matthieu The Colossus
“Matthieu the Colossus attacks.”
Matthieu the Colossus jumps toward you before attacking with apowerfulpunch.
“Sciel usesMarking Card.”
Sciel attacks you with a combo of projectile cards. If you’re struck, you’re marked.
“Sciel usesSealed Fate.”
Sciel jumps toward you and performs a combo of melee attacks.
“Sciel uses Twilight Sash.”
Sciel charges apowerfulattack before jumping toward you and attacking.
How to Beat the Gestral Arena In Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Let’s break things down, boss by boss.
Despite his intimidating name, Bertrand is all bark and no bite. Simplyparryhis attacks and he’ll be defeated in no time. His animation isn’t too tricky, either, so you shouldn’t have a difficult time here. I used Gustave for this encounter with zero issues.
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Dominque Giant Feet
Dominique is another simple boss encounter, though his attacks are a little trickier. Still, you should have zero issue here. I used Maelle, and Dominique was a piece of cake.
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Mathieu is yet another pushover; you should have zero issue here. I used Maelle once again.
Matthieu does more damage than the prior bosses, though, so Maelle’s defensive prowess came in handy. Despite that, you should be able to make quick work of him.If you’re concerned about not being able to parry, feel free to dodge his attacks.
This is the only real challenge inside the Gestral Arena, partly because Sciel uses more than one attack, but it’s also because her animations take some time to comprehend.
The Sciel encounter is a race to the finish as she’s a glass cannon. As such, it’s essential to take whatever steps are necessary to mitigate or avoid damage. For this reason, I used Maelle.Her defensive abilities and high health are key to acting as a safety net in case you fail at dodges and parries.
Sciel’s most important attack to avoid is herMarking Card. Getting hit with her other attacks while marked will increase the damage you take.
Be careful, as some of her attacks are fakeouts. This is why I prefer to dodge rather than parry; you have a bigger timer while dodging to avoid taking damage.
If you lose the Sciel fight, you still complete the Gestral Arena encounter.
Rewards for the Gestral Arena
After defeating the Gestral Arena, you’ll get the following rewards. We’ve combined them for each boss fight.
Follow these guidelines, and you’ll successfully complete the Gestral Arena.
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