How to Beat Simon in Expedition 33
Simon in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is one of the toughest bosses in the game, which is why the query "how to beat Simon in Expedition 33" frequently appears among players after completing the main story. This isn't a standard story opponent that you can simply overpower with level or defeat on the first try due to sheer luck. Simon tests almost everything at once: how well your team is assembled, whether your weapons are upgraded, if your pictos and lumina are chosen correctly, if the player can parry long attack sequences, and if they understand when to finish the fight rather than heal. According to game guides, Simon is located in the Abyss within Renoir’s Drafts and is considered one of the most challenging bosses in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
The main mistake most players make is approaching Simon like a standard boss. It seems like it's enough to pick your favorite three characters, level them up, equip some strong skills, and gradually dismantle the opponent. But with Simon, this approach often breaks down in the second phase. He deals massive damage, quickly punishes missed parries, and doesn't allow for calm recovery if the team is assembled without a specific plan. Here, you need not just a "strong squad," but a pre-planned scheme: who applies the mark, who reduces defense, who breaks the gauge, who deals the main damage, and how the team survives the most dangerous sequences.
Where to Find Simon and When to Fight Him
It's best to approach Simon not immediately after the finale, but after thorough preparation in the endgame. Formally, players can reach the boss earlier, but practically, the fight is designed for a very strong team, upgraded weapons, and collected pictos. If you come to him with characters who haven't yet unlocked their key synergies, without proper vulnerability damage, and without consistent parrying, the battle quickly turns from tactics into an attempt to survive what you're not yet ready for.
The optimal time for the fight is when you have your main characters leveled up, strong weapons, a clear strategy for Mael, Verso, Ciel, or another chosen composition, and a stock of consumables. For many players, victory is built not on a long "fair" exchange of blows, but on proper preparation for powerful burst damage. Guides often highlight a strategy using Mael, the Virtuose stance, and the Stendhal attack, because with proper buffs and debuffs, it can shave off a huge portion of Simon's health.
Best Team Against Simon
The most popular and straightforward team composition against Simon is built around Mael as the primary damage dealer. Her task is not just to attack every turn, but to enter the correct stance, receive enhancements, and deliver a decisive blow when Simon is already debuffed. In this scheme, the other characters work not for their personal damage, but to set up the main attack. This is an important point: if each hero simply does "something useful," the fight drags on, and the longer the fight with Simon lasts, the higher the chance of making a mistake during an attack sequence and losing the entire team.
Verso is well-suited for applying marks, assisting with penetration, and preparing a window for big damage. Ciel can empower the team, help with resources, and create conditions for Mael to get the most benefit from her turn. You don't have to copy someone else's build exactly, but the logic should be precisely this: one character prepares the target, a second buffs or supports, and the third deals the main damage. Simon is too dangerous to fight without clear role distribution.
If Mael is poorly leveled, the fight can still be won, but it will be significantly harder. Then you'll have to rely on stable parrying, gradual gauge breaking, careful healing, and repeated damage windows. This path is more mechanically demanding. For an SEO guide and practical playthrough, it's simpler to recommend the powerful burst damage option to players, as it reduces the number of dangerous boss turns and provides a clear preparation goal.
How to Prepare for the Fight with Simon
Before the fight, you need to check three things: damage, survivability, and turn order. Damage is important because Simon cannot be comfortably chipped away at with small attacks. Survivability is needed so that the team doesn't fall apart after the first mistake. Turn order is crucial because a strong combination might not work if characters act in the wrong sequence. Some strategies emphasize that the order Verso → Ciel → Mael allows for applying the mark and preparing resources first, and only then giving Mael the opportunity to strike with maximum force.
The main damage dealer's weapon should be upgraded as high as possible. If you are using Mael, special attention should be paid to weapons and pictos that enhance the first strike, critical damage, damage to marked targets, damage to defenseless targets, and overall burst potential. Don't equip everything all at once. It's better to choose enhancements that specifically work during the main damage window. Simon is a fight where one correctly prepared turn can be worth ten average attacks.
It's also important to bring consumables for AP recovery, healing, and emergency revives. However, don't build your strategy solely around healing. If you are constantly healing, it means Simon is already dictating the pace of the fight. Healing should save you after a mistake, not be the foundation of your plan. The foundation of the plan is to quickly create a window, apply necessary effects to the boss, break or weaken him, and deal maximum damage before the fight descends into chaos.
Simon's First Phase
In the first phase, Simon is still relatively readable. His attacks are dangerous, but this is where the player should get used to the pace of the fight. Don't try to play too aggressively right away if you don't know the timings well. It's better to spend a few attempts learning his animations: where he pauses, where an attack comes faster, where a sequence lasts longer than it seems. Many defeats occur because players parry the first hits, relax, and then take the final hit of the sequence.
Your goal in the first phase is not just to chip away health, but to set the pace of the fight. If the team is built around Mael, you need to set her up for a strong attack, and Simon for a state where he takes more damage. Marking, defense reduction, Mael's buffs, the correct stance, and sufficient AP are more important than random attacks for minor damage. The cleaner you clear the first phase, the better your chances of transitioning smoothly into the second.
Don't be greedy. If you see that you can deal moderate damage now, but the team will be out of resources afterward, it's better to prepare for the next turn. Simon punishes greed: the player tries to finish the phase, misses a sequence, loses a key character, and enters the second phase in bad shape. The first phase should end not just in victory, but in victory with the team structure intact.
Simon's Second Phase
The second phase is the main filter of the fight. After the transition, Simon becomes significantly more dangerous, and his attack sequences require much greater concentration. Here, you can no longer play "by feel," especially if you haven't memorized the rhythm well. Some attacks seem similar but differ in pauses, and these pauses are what throw off parries. Russian guides specifically note the long series of attacks and the need to carefully read the attack order, because a mistake in the middle of a combo often results in a character's death.
The main goal of the second phase is to create a decisive damage window as quickly as possible. If you are using the Mael strategy, repeat the same logic: mark, weaken, prepare stance, buff, strongest attack. In some tactical variants, Simon is targeted for an almost immediate kill after transitioning into the second phase, to prevent him from ramping up for too long. This doesn't always work on the first try, but the idea itself is correct: the fewer turns Simon gets in the second phase, the less chance the fight will fall apart.
If your damage isn't enough for a quick kill, play defensively and focus on breaking his gauge. Keep an eye on his gauge, don't waste powerful skills unnecessarily, and remember that a good moment to attack appears after a successful defense. Don't panic if Simon survives your main attack. It's important to quickly assess the situation: can he be finished off by the remaining characters, does Mael need to recover, are there resources for a repeat combination, or is it better to switch to an cautious mode?
Why the Mael Strategy is So Effective
Mael often becomes the center of tactics against Simon because her damage, when properly prepared, increases sharply. In conjunction with the Virtuose stance, the Stendhal skill, a mark on the target, and additional enhancements, she can deal enormous single-hit damage. Various guides describe options where players specifically assemble a team so that Mael acts after characters who apply debuffs and prepare resources.
The point of this strategy is not that Mael "breaks the game" by herself, but that the fight with Simon is best won through precise timing. If you simply attack Simon with regular skills, he gets too many opportunities to retaliate. If you prepare one powerful strike, you shorten the duration of the fight and reduce the number of parry checks. For a difficult boss, this makes a huge difference.
However, the strategy has a weakness: it requires preparation. If Mael has low damage, insufficient AP, the wrong turn order, or Simon doesn't have the necessary effects, the strong attack turns into an ordinary one. Therefore, before the fight, it's better to spend a few minutes checking your build than to repeat the attempt dozens of times afterward and not understand why Simon remains alive.
Common Mistakes in the Simon Fight
The first mistake is going for Simon too early. If the team isn't ready, the fight will feel unfair. In reality, the game is simply showing that this is an endgame opponent who requires a dedicated build. The second mistake is trying to heal after every hit. Healing is important, but if the entire fight is spent on recovery, you have no tempo, and without tempo, Simon will gradually overwhelm the team.
The third mistake is ignoring turn order. In regular fights, this may not be as noticeable, but against Simon, incorrect sequencing breaks the entire combo. If Mael acts before the target is marked and debuffed, you lose the primary purpose of the build. The fourth mistake is spamming powerful skills without preparation. Big damage comes not from a single skill, but from a sum of conditions.
The fifth mistake is not learning the boss's attacks. Even the strongest build doesn't always save you if the player consistently misses sequences in the second phase. Simon requires practice. The first few attempts can be viewed not as defeat, but as timing practice. When you start to understand where the boss makes a deceptive pause, where he continues a series, and when you can safely retaliate, the fight becomes much more manageable.
Short Tactics for Defeating Simon
Before the fight, level up your main damage dealer, prepare your weapon, and equip pictos for maximum damage. In your team, include a character for marking, a character for buffs or support, and the hero who will deal the main strike. In the first phase, take your time, learn the attack rhythm, conserve resources, and try to enter the second phase without losses. In the second phase, create a window for big damage as quickly as possible: mark Simon, weaken his defense, prepare Mael in the correct stance, and use your strongest attack.
If Simon survives the combo, don't try to chaotically finish him off with everyone. First, assess who goes next, whether you have AP, if a key character can be revived, and if part of the combo can be repeated. Sometimes victory depends not on a perfect one-shot, but on a calm finish after a powerful initial blow. The main thing is not to give Simon extra turns due to panic.
Conclusion: How to Finally Beat Simon in Expedition 33
To defeat Simon in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, you need to treat him not as an ordinary boss, but as a final test of the entire combat system. Prepare your team, upgrade your weapons, assign roles correctly, learn his attacks, and don't drag out the second phase. The most reliable path for most players is the strategy using Mael, marking, defense reduction, and a powerful strike in the Virtuose stance. This approach allows you not just to survive, but to truly control the fight.
Simon is difficult not because he has a lot of health, but because he forces the player to play precisely. Here, you cannot randomly press skills, forget about turn order, or hope that healing will solve all problems. Victory comes when every part of the combat works towards one goal: surviving dangerous sequences, creating a short window, and dealing enough damage that Simon doesn't have time to unleash his full potential. That's why defeating him feels not like luck, but a true result of preparation.
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