Perfect Chroma Catalysts in Expedition 33: How Many There Are & All Locations

There are nine Perfect Chroma Catalysts in a standard Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 playthrough — one of which is missable — and each one takes a single weapon from level 32 to level 33, the game’s final upgrade. New Game+ adds one more from Golgra, repeatable up to twice, which is why you will see totals of 10 or 11 quoted elsewhere.

That number is the whole reason this item causes so much anxiety. Nine catalysts across a party of six characters is not enough to finish everyone’s favourite weapon, so the real question is not where they are. It is which weapons deserve one.

All Perfect Chroma Catalyst locations

#	Source	Location	Notes
1	Lampmaster	Flying Manor — south-east path	One of four gatekeepers before Clea
2	The three Évêques	Flying Manor — north-east path	Flame, Frost and Thunder as one encounter
3	Dualliste	Flying Manor — south-west path	Across the bridge
4	Clea	Flying Manor — the atelier	Behind the central door, after the gatekeepers
5	Serpenphare	The Continent (world map)	Optional world boss; drains party AP
6	Chromatic Creation	Renoir’s Drafts	Some guides list this Chromatic in Flying Waters
7	Endless Tower	Stage 11, Trial 3 — Painted Love	Also pays 5 Colour of Lumina and Verso’s Painted Love outfit
8	Fading Boy request	Painting Workshop	A request hand-in, not a fight
9	Trash-Can Man	Lumière, Act 3	Missable — only if you interacted with him in the prologue
+	Golgra	Gestral Village	New Game+ only, repeatable up to twice

Four of the nine are inside the Flying Manor. That single optional area is nearly half your endgame weapon budget, which makes it the highest-value detour in the game even though it is also one of the hardest — it sits on a floating island you can only reach once Esquie can fly, and it is commonly recommended at level 80+.

The one you will miss: Trash-Can Man

This is the only catalyst in the game with a condition attached, and the condition happens hours before the reward. You must interact with the Trash-Can Man during the prologue; if you did, you can collect a Perfect Chroma Catalyst from him in Lumière during Act 3.

If you skipped him in the prologue, that catalyst is gone for the run. It is not recoverable later, and it is the single most common reason players end up with eight instead of nine. Check it early — knowing you are one short changes how you spend the other eight.

What a Perfect Chroma Catalyst actually does

One catalyst takes one weapon from level 32 to level 33. That is it — it is not a currency you spend in fractions and it does not do anything else.

Level 33 matters because weapons in Expedition 33 unlock passives at set upgrade thresholds, and the final tier is where the build-defining ones live. Maelle’s Medalum is the clearest example: level 4 starts her in Virtuose Stance, level 10 doubles the Burn she applies in that stance, and level 20 makes that Burn deal double damage. The upgrade path is not a flat power increase — it is a sequence of mechanics unlocking, and the last one is usually the one your build was waiting for.

The practical consequence: read the weapon’s remaining passives before you spend. A conditional passive you rarely trigger is worth less than an always-on effect on a weapon you actually use, no matter which has the bigger attack number.

Which weapons to spend catalysts on

There is no universal answer, because it depends entirely on which two or three characters you actually run. But the decision framework is consistent:

• Feed your mains, not your collection. Two finished weapons will outperform five half-finished ones in every fight that matters. If you are splitting catalysts evenly across the party, you are converting a scarce resource into a mediocre one.
• Prefer always-on passives over conditional procs. Medalum’s stance and Burn effects fire every turn. A passive that triggers on a specific enemy state will not.
• Test at level 25–30 first. Play a couple of hours with a candidate weapon before committing. A weapon that feels good on paper and bad in your hands is a wasted catalyst.
• Match the catalyst to the build, not the character. If your Maelle is a burn build, Medalum is the answer. If she is a counter build, Jarum’s shield-scaling counter damage at max is worth more.
• Hold at least one in reserve until after the Flying Manor. You will come out of that area with a much clearer picture of what your party is missing.

For the wider resource picture — Chroma, Grandiose Chroma Catalysts, and how the upgrade economy fits together — our Chroma guide covers the tiers below Perfect, and the farming guide covers where to get the materials that fund everything up to level 32.

The most efficient route

You cannot get these in any order you like — several are gated behind story progress and Esquie’s traversal abilities — but this ordering minimises wasted trips:

1. Prologue: interact with the Trash-Can Man. Takes seconds. Do not skip it.
2. Painting Workshop: pick up the Fading Boy request as soon as it becomes available.
3. Flying Manor once Esquie can fly: Lampmaster, the Évêques, the Dualliste, then Clea. Four catalysts in one area. Restock between gatekeepers rather than pushing through in one run.
4. Serpenphare on the world map, once your party can survive its AP drain.
5. Act 3, Lumière: collect the Trash-Can Man reward.
6. Renoir’s Drafts: Chromatic Creation.
7. Endless Tower: all 33 trials, ending at Painted Love in Stage 11, Trial 3.
8. New Game+: Golgra in Gestral Village, twice.

Note the Endless Tower’s position at the end. It is eleven stages of three trials — 33 fights — and its final challenge is one of the hardest encounters in the game. Do it once your weapons are already carrying you, not as a way to get the catalyst that would have helped.

Before you fight for one: prep that actually helps

• Master your Pictos first. Four battles converts a Picto into a Lumina the whole party can equip. Doing this before the Flying Manor is worth more than five levels.
• Parry, do not just dodge. Every successful parry refunds 1 AP. Against Serpenphare, which drains your AP, that is not a stylistic preference — it is the counter to its main mechanic.
• Bank your Gradient Charge. It builds at roughly 5% per AP spent, and a Gradient Attack immediately grants another turn. Save it for phase transitions rather than opening with it.
• Drop the difficulty if you are stuck. Story, Expeditioner and Expert are all valid. A catalyst you actually collect on Expeditioner is worth more than one you keep failing to earn on Expert.

Full fight-by-fight breakdowns for the encounters above are in our hardest bosses ranked guide, and the mechanics themselves are covered in the combat system guide.

FAQ

How many Perfect Chroma Catalysts are in Expedition 33?

Nine in a standard playthrough, one of which (Trash-Can Man) is missable. New Game+ adds Golgra’s, repeatable up to twice, which is where quoted totals of 10 and 11 come from.

What is a Perfect Chroma Catalyst used for?

Upgrading a single weapon from level 32 to level 33 — the final upgrade tier, where a weapon’s most build-defining passive unlocks.

Where do I get Perfect Chroma Catalysts?

Four in the Flying Manor (Lampmaster, the three Évêques, Dualliste, Clea), one each from Serpenphare, Chromatic Creation, the Endless Tower’s final trial, the Fading Boy request in the Painting Workshop, and the Trash-Can Man in Act 3.

Can you farm Perfect Chroma Catalysts?

Not in a first playthrough. In New Game+, Golgra’s can be repeated up to twice.

Which catalyst is missable?

The Trash-Can Man’s, in Lumière during Act 3. It only appears if you interacted with him during the prologue.

TL;DR

• Nine per playthrough, plus up to two more from Golgra in New Game+.
• Four of them are in the Flying Manor — the highest-value optional area in the game.
• One is missable: talk to the Trash-Can Man in the prologue or lose his Act 3 catalyst forever.
• One catalyst = one weapon from 32 to 33. Read the passive before you spend it.
• Finish two weapons, not five. Scattered upgrades are the most common way players waste this resource.