In Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, every character can be customized in countless ways through the game's Pictos and Lumina system. While many builds aim to enhance a character's existing strengths, some completely alter your tactical approach—sometimes in surprising or even extreme ways.

One of the most unconventional strategies you can try is the Auto-Death build. This setup intentionally causes one of your characters to be knocked out at the very start of battle. While it sounds like a huge disadvantage, it's actually a powerful opener because the fallen character's other equipped Pictos and Lumina grant significant buffs to the two surviving members, allowing them to start the fight with an explosive advantage. With the right tools—particularly the Second Chance Picto—the "dead" character will be revived instantly, letting you reap all the benefits with minimal downside.

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Unlocking Auto-Death & Second Chance Pictos

The core of this build is the Auto-Death Picto. You can acquire it fairly early, during Act 1. Visit Yellow Harvest, which is located in the first continent section's northwest. Enter the open area in front of you after starting at the Harvester's Hollow Flag. Stick to the right side until you see a sloped path. Follow it upward, pass through a small lamp-lit clearing, and use the grapple point at the end. This will bring you to the merchant Barnaby, who sells the Auto-Death Picto.

The Second Chance Picto, which is acquired considerably later in Act 2, is the second crucial component. You'll get it automatically from a mandatory boss fight, so it's impossible to miss if you keep pushing through the main story. Second Chance instantly revives the character who fell from Auto-Death at the very start of combat. If you don't have it yet, you can still run the build by ensuring your Auto-Death user isn't the fastest character; your first acting teammate should then revive them manually.

Recommended Pictos & Lumina for the Build

The setup is simple once you have unlocked both Pictos: assign Auto-Death and Second Chance to the member of your current party that has the least amount of direct combat influence. Since this character's role is to die and trigger buffs, their personal offense isn't important. The Pictos and Lumina you assign should focus on improving the other two fighters—whether through attack power boosts, defense increases, or resource regeneration.

The key point is that the Auto-Death user does not benefit from these effects; only the surviving teammates do. Ideally, you'll stack as many synergistic buffs as possible to ensure your other two members can unleash devastating damage or strong utility from the first turn onward.

Who to Assign Auto-Death To

Nearly every party member can deal solid damage with the right setup, but some lend themselves better to the sacrificial role. Two strong candidates are Verso and Monoco, who are often slightly less impactful as immediate heavy hitters compared to others.

When one of them carries the Auto-Death role, your remaining duo should be built for raw offensive output. One of the best pairings is the so-called Maelle Nuke build—an arrangement that lets Maelle unload an enormous damage spike right at the start. Combining this with Auto-Death's teamwide buffs pushes her opening power to extreme levels.

If Verso is the one running Auto-Death, Monoco becomes an especially good beneficiary of the buffs. By contrast, characters like Sciel and Lune tend to need a turn or two to build momentum. Fortunately, Auto-Death buffs typically last at least three turns, giving you ample time to set up and deliver those high-impact turns.

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Practical Tips for Execution

Choose the sacrificial member carefully – Pick someone whose absence for the first fraction of a turn won't cripple your team's opening.

Prioritize start-of-battle impact – The entire purpose of this build is to front-load your combat advantage, so the other two members should be ready to make big plays immediately.

Balance buff duration with damage windows – Even if your damage dealer needs setup time, remember the buffs last for multiple turns—plan your rotation to peak while they're active.

Don't overlook survivability buffs – Offense is important, but survivability can ensure your team capitalizes on those boosted turns without losing momentum.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's Auto-Death build is unusual, but when used properly, it may provide a powerful opening that establishes the tone for the remainder of the battle. With the proper Picto combination and the right choice of teammates, you'll open battles with overwhelming strength—and sometimes, the best way to win is to start by letting someone "lose" first.