Monoco is one of the most unique playable characters in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and a prime candidate for a class in your party comp. Unlike the other characters, Monoco unlocks skills by collecting the feet of dead Nevrons that you defeat in battle — and yes, you did read that right. To unlock Monoco's many awesome and powerful skills, you need to make sure you have him as one of your three active party characters during combat. When you defeat certain Nevron enemies, a corresponding skill will unlock in Monoco's skill tree.

Monoco is a great example of what makes Clair Obscur such a unique RPG, boasting some of the most entertaining and hilarious dialogue and storylines along with one of the most creative combat mechanics. Aside from his Nevron-foot fetish, Monoco uses something called a Bestial Wheel that can upgrade corresponding skills depending on which mask the wheel lands on. Every skill he uses rotates the wheel a set number of turns, and there are five different masks: Balanced, Agile, Heavy, Caster, and finally, Almighty, which upgrades all skills regardless of their designated mask type.

Best Skills For A Monoco Build In Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

Monoco's Skills Buff All Allies & Keep Them Stocked Up On AP

Monoco is a prime candidate for a class while playing Clair Obscur, with some of the best skills to boost health, increase AP, and apply party buffs to all allies. Monoco has a ton of skills and is viable for a range of different playstyles, but I prefer to tank him up with high Defense and Health and take advantage of his -based skills.

You'll need to put in some work to unlock all of these skills, but if you fully explore Clair Obscur and take on as many enemies as possible with Monoco in your party, you should have access to these skills by Act 3. This build utilizes the following Monoco skills:

1. Pelerin Heal
2. Orphelin Cheers
3. Potier Energy
4. Boucheclier Fortify
5. Contorsionniste Blast
6. Chapelier Slash

The first three of these are all Caster skills that buff allies in various ways. Pelerin Heal applies Regen and will heal allies by 40% if used while Monoco is in Caster Mask. Orphelin Cheers gives 1–3 allies the Powerful buff, which increases damage by 25%, and will give 3 AP to allies if used in Caster Mask. Finally, the Potier Energy skill will also provide up to 4 AP to all allies if used in Caster Mask. All three of these skills provide incredibly useful buffs and will keep the rest of your party alive and kicking.

A Monoco skill is considered "upgraded" if it is used with its dedicated Mask on the Bestial Wheel, with Almighty Mask upgrading all skills.

The other Monoco skills for this build include one for each of the remaining Masks: Boucheclier Fortify is a Heavy Mask skill, Contorsionniste Blast is a Balanced Mask skill, and Chapelier Slash is an Agile Mask skill. Boucheclier Fortify applies Shell to 1–3 allies and will also apply a Shield if upgraded. Contorsionniste Blast is an offensive skill that deals medium Physical damage to all enemies and heals all allies by 10%, while Chapelier Slash is a high Physical damage attack that hits all enemies and applies Mark.

Best Weapons & Attributes For Monoco In Clair Obscur

The Ballaro Is A Great Source Of AP For The Whole Party

I opted for the Ballaro weapon, which is acquired from defeating Sirene and is an excellent source of AP boost for the entire party. The Ballaro has a unique Level 4 upgrade that reverses the Bestial Wheel order, but more importantly, it has two excellent AP-boosting upgrades at Levels 10 and 20. At Level 10, Monoco will provide 1 AP to all allies when he uses an upgraded skill, while at Level 20, switching to the Almighty Mask provides 2 AP to all allies. Ballaro's element is Light, and when fully upgraded to Level 33, it has 8053 Power.

The Ballaro is also ideal because it scales primarily with Agility and Defense, meaning both Monoco's weapon damage and defenses will benefit from investing in these attributes. Your third main attribute investment for this build should be Vitality for a further Health boost, since having Monoco tanked up with Health and Defense is more important than dealing maximum damage.

Best Pictos & Luminas For Monoco

Boost Health, Defense, & Immunity With Anti-Freeze, Anti-Burn, & Anti-Charm

To make Monoco an OP tank of a unit, I recommend using the "Anti" status effect Pictos: Anti-Freeze, Anti-Burn, and Anti-Charm. You can find Anti-Freeze and Anti-Burn in Frozen Hearts, an area so full of loot that I'd recommend exploring it regardless of this build, while Anti-Charm can be picked up by killing the Tissuer before taking on Sirene. At max level (33), each one of these provides 3577 additional Health and 2361 additional Defense on top of their inherent immunities.

You can unlock a bunch of unique weapons at the merchant in Monoco's Station by collecting Eternal Ice from the final boss in the Frozen Hearts area.

Frost and Burn are among the most common status effects used by enemies in Clair Obscur, and Charm is the most devastating, so having these three equipped is essential for Monoco to persevere through the toughest fights. The Lumina effects from these cost quite a few points, so having them dedicated to Monoco's Pictos slots frees up a ton of Lumina points. Some of the best Luminas to grab for this build include Energising Heal, Healing Share, Protecting Heal, and Powerful on Shell.

Any of the Shell Luminas are great for Monoco, but Protecting Heal will apply shell when he heals an ally, making it extremely useful as a ive effect. Shell is a buff that reduces damage received by 20%. Healing Share will also heal Monoco when he heals other characters, while Energising Heal provides 2 AP when healing an ally (though I think this only applies to using Healing Tints). Cleansing Tint is a natural addition to Monoco's Luminas, as he should be your go-to character for using tints during combat, if possible.

"​​​​​​​This build outmatches any other build possible out of all the playable characters in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33."

Overall, these Pictos and Luminas will make Monoco an absolute powerhouse in combat, able to withstand even the most devastating attacks and effects. When combined with proper attribute investment, the Ballaro weapon, and Monoco's unique skill buffs, this build will make each character in your party more effective and durable in battle. This is only one of the many different build types possible with Monoco's numerous skill choices, but in my view, this build outmatches any other build possible out of all the playable characters in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.