Want to know how to break the Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 damage cap? You've probably seen the videos of players that are hitting values way past of the 9,999 damage cap, you're probably asking yourself when the big stuff kicks in.
At first, even strong characters like Maelle or Verso can easily hit that cap by leveling up correctly and stacking the right boosts.
But when you run into tougher late-game bosses with massive health, that cap shifts from a victory to a burden.
The good news is that you can go beyond it in the game — as long as you earn it by progressing. Here's how that moment happens—and how to make the most of it once it does:
How to Break the Damage Cap
The key to breaking the damage cap lies in an unmissable story reward called the Painted Power Pictos.
This is unlocked only in the last sections of Act 2, so if you're still in the middle of the campaign, bear with it. After a major boss fights with the Paintress at Monolith Peak in the Monolith area, the Painted Power Pictos is granted.
After you take her down, the Pictos will be added to your inventory automatically. It's easy to overlook with all the story exposition that follows, but it's important for unlocking your party's full offensive potential.
The Painted Power Pictos let one party member exceed the 9,999 damage cap right off the bat, but that's only the start. You'll need to complete at least four battles with that Pictos equipped to apply the perk to your whole squad.
Once finished, it becomes a Lumina, a passive ability that you can assign to each party member — as long as you have enough Lumina Points. It's not the cheapest at five points, but it's totally worth it.
From then on, any character with the Lumina can break the damage cap, making one-shots and faster takedowns in tough spots like the Endless Tower possible. The real charm comes from how this mechanic blends with build diversity.
As an example, Sciel buffs Maelle, who then taps into her high-impact "Stendhal" move to eliminate enemies with a single strike. The lifted cap allows Lune's Gradient attacks, including "Tremor," to scale impressively with late-game stat growth.
If you've been relying on multi-hit skills to work around the cap, Painted Power renders that obsolete — you can now hit harder, not just more often. There's potential for synergy with different Pictos and Luminas as well.
Abilities that boost critical hit chance, elemental output, or counterattack damage (like Augmented Counter I) will scale beautifully now that a fixed damage cap does not bottleneck you.
Once the break mechanic kicks in, stunning enemies and boosting damage, stacking Painted Power on everyone turns your team into a turn-skipping wrecking crew.
Bear in mind that some optional bosses, especially those tied to side quests or obscure villages, could introduce special damage rules.
A few encounters seem to retain the 9,999 caps for balance reasons, so if your numbers look stuck despite having Painted Power equipped, don't panic — it's likely a scripted limitation.
In short, breaking the cap in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is both a narrative milestone and a mechanical turning point. Once you've crossed that boundary, the game allows you to redefine your entire combat strategy.
If you're heading into Act 3 or endgame challenges, Painted Power is a must. Get it ready, evolve it, and dominate with your strongest builds.