As you advance further into Act 1 of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, you’ll eventually find yourself in Gestrel Village, which is full of cheeky Gestrels that have plenty of sass. Honestly, if there wasn’t a Paintress posing a threat to people each year, I think I’d live here. These Gestrels seem like good fun, and that includes the keen fighter, Karatom.
Karatom is who guides us to Gestrel Village, under the pretense that Gustave will create him something more powerful than his own arm, and that’s where the hunt for Blue Mushrooms comes in. Here’s how to help Karatom find Blue Mushrooms in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
How to help Karatom find Blue Mushrooms in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
When you find the adorable Karatom in Gestral Village again – found inside of Ancient Sanctuary – in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, you’ll get into conversation about his Sakapatate and how it needs a little more ‘oomph’ in battle.
This is where Gustave comes in, suggesting that Karatom needs some Blue Mushrooms to help make a powerful explosive that’ll give his Sakapatate an extra edge against opponents. Of course, having received Karatom’s guidance earlier, Gustave and the rest of the expeditioners now owe him a favour, and are tasked with tracking down a Blue Mushroom for the little Gestrel.
Fortunately, the item we need for Karatom isn’t too far away or hard to get, but if this is your first time in Gestrel Village, you’ll have a few things that you need to do before helping Karatom out.
First things first, go and speak to Golgra in the Chief House, which is smack bang in the middle of Gestrel Village. They’ll explain that if you win the Village’s tournament, they’ll help you gain passage to Esquie’s Nest, which will help you with crossing the second sea and ultimately reaching the Paintress. It also happens that Esquie’s Nest is where the Blue Mushroom we need is located.
After speaking to Golgra, you can choose to be taken straight to the arena where the tournament is being held. Alternatively, exit the Chief House and take a right, then follow the large signposts labelled ‘Arena’ to reach the tournament grounds.
Upon arrival, speak to the yellow Gestrel – Limonsol – to get started. You’ll then have to face four opponents in total, one by one, choosing a single expeditioner for each fight. The first three opponents are Gestrels, with a fourth mystery opponent…
Upon successfully winning the tournament, you’ll be returned to Golgra, who will now open the gates to Esquie’s Nest and give you the password: ‘Get outta my way.’ You can also challenge Golgra to a duel here before leaving, but they are incredibly tough at this point in the game, so you might want to pass on that for now.
Exit Gestrel Village and return to the Overworld, and you’ll now be able to go through the previously locked-gate to explore even more of the surroundings.
Through the gate and just up ahead, you should see a large portal (pictured above) with plenty of pink and blue mushrooms leading up to it; this is Esquie’s Nest. Head on inside!
Inside, approach Sunniso for a brief cutscene, and you’ll then be able to enter Esquie’s Nest.
Go through the narrow cave passage just up ahead, and once in the wide open area filled with colourful lanterns, look to your right and down. You should see a Mime, and just to the left of them – beneath a green lantern – you should also see a glowing pink item. This is the Blue Mushroom we need!
Hop down and collect the item, avoiding the Mime (unless you want to fight them). Before continuing deeper into Esquie’s Nest (or afterwards, if you want), you can now return to Gestrel Village and give the Blue Mushroom to Karatom.
After handing the item over, Karatom unsurprisingly now wants a rematch, and you’ll then wind up battling his Ultimate Sakapatate. This particular battle is a lot like the last time we fought with Karatom’s Sakapatate, but thanks to Gustave, he hits a lot harder and a lot more often. Oh, and we have to fight him solo!
The main thing to note with the Ultimate Sakapatate is that he’s able to take multiple turns before Gustave can eventually attack, which means you’ll want to focus up, lock in, and try to pull off those parries and counterattacks wherever possible. Aside from that, attacking to charge and ultimately use Overcharge – and the devastating amount of damage it can do – is how you’ll win this fight.
On top of that, remember to free-aim and destroy the Ultimate Sakapatate’s weak point – its shoulder – whenever it is finally exposed.
Upon finally defeating the Ultimate Sakapatate, you’ll wrap up Karatom’s quest and get your rewards: three Polished Chroma Cataylsts, one Recoat, and a new Pure Outfit for Gustave to wear.
For more on Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, take a look at how to help the Demineur and how to help The Small Burgeon, in case you missed them.