In Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, building powerful characters is all about choosing the right Pictos and Luminas. If you’re wondering what they are, how they work, and why upgrading them matters, this guide breaks it all down step-by-step.
What Are Pictos?
Pictos are special items you collect by exploring the world, defeating bosses, or finding hidden Paint Cages. Each Picto provides:
- Stat bonuses (like more HP or AP)
- Passive effects (like healing on parry, bonus damage, etc.)
You can equip up to three Pictos per character, but each Picto can only be used by one character at a time.
How Do Luminas Work?
Luminas are upgraded versions of Pictos. When you convert a Picto into a Lumina:
- It becomes usable by any character (as long as they have enough Lumina Points)
- It only carries over the passive effect, not the stat boosts
- It uses Lumina Points, which you can increase by upgrading your expedition resources or finding them in the wild.
This is ideal for customizing your build across your whole team.
How to Upgrade Pictos to Luminas
Upgrading a Picto into a Lumina is easy:
- Equip the Picto to a character in your party and use that character in battle.
- Over time, you’ll see the Lumina bar fill up (yellow-white lines). Once full, that Picto becomes available as a Lumina for everyone.
- Alternatively, as you progress through the game, you’ll come across higher-level versions of Pictos in the wild or buy them from a merchant. When this happens, the new and stronger version will replace the older one automatically, since you can’t hold multiple copies of the same Picto.
Tip: You can speed this up by fighting easy enemies in areas like Flying Waters — sometimes just 1–4 fights are enough.