Night Expeditions Guide Pikmin 4

Pikmin has delighted fans since its first release in 2001. The game’s beautiful art style, adorable characters, and unique puzzles gained a massive following over the years. Pikmin 4, the franchise’s latest installment, showed fans a reimagined Pikmin world. Now, players can customize the main character, meet new Pikmin, and travel with a helpful Rescue Pup named Oatchi.

Night Expeditions are also a new feature of the video game series. If you need help with them, this guide might be for you.

Night Expeditions Guide Pikmin 4

What is it, and what do you do?

In short, Night Expeditions are tower defense mini-games in Pikmin 4. Your objective is to protect dirt mounds called Lumiknoll from vicious creatures. Complete these missions to collect the Glow Sap used to cure Leaflings, castaways infected with a strange, plant-like disease.

These Night Expedition locations are smaller areas of the same levels you visit during the day. The only exception is that you explore the places at night, and the creatures are more hostile. Each location also has a danger rating, indicating how ravenous the enemies are.

How to Unlock

Night Expeditions aren’t available to players immediately. You must find Yonny, the Doctor, to unlock them. He’s in the Kingdom of the Beast cave in Blossoming Arcadia. Prepare to fight a giant grub known as an Empress Bulbax to get to Yonny.

You also need to start exploring a region before you can do a Night Expedition in the same area.

Lumiknolls

As mentioned before, your main goal is to protect Lumiknolls, which are glowing dirt mounds filled with Glow Sap. You can do this using one of two ways: (1) Kill all enemies or (2) defend the Lumiknolls until sunrise.

Keep in mind that you’ll only get one Glow Sap per Lumiknoll. In other words, you can’t repeatedly harvest sap from the same Lumiknoll.

You’ll have to protect two Lumiknolls during some Night Expedition levels. If one Lumiknoll gets destroyed, the expedition will end, and you’ll return to base without sap.

Glow Pikmin also spawn from Lumiknolls. The little green guys will carry Glow Pellets, little star fragments, to the Lumiknoll to produce more Glow Pikmin.

Tricknolls

Tricknolls are decoys. They distract creatures from the Lumiknoll, giving you time to pick enemies off.

Tricknolls also serve as checkpoints to store Glow Pellets. In this case, your Glow Pikmin won’t have to walk far to get more Glow Pikmin.

The Night Expedition also won’t end if a Tricknoll gets destroyed, but you’ll have fewer distractions from the Lumiknolls.

Glow Pikmin

Glow Pikmin are bioluminescent, nocturnal, and almost indestructible. They’re resistant to fire, electricity, water, ice, and poison attacks, making them the preferred Pikmin for battle. Unfortunately, they can still be eaten or squished.

The good news is that you don’t permanently lose them when they die. Glow Pikmin respawn from a Lumiknoll after a creature kills them. They also automatically return to you, so you do not have to gather them.

Unlike other Pikmin, Glow Pikmin have a unique charge attack called a Glowmob. This attack allows the Pikmin to stun enemies for a short time as they attack.

Glow Seeds

Glow Seeds let you summon Glow Pikmin. You can do this while on Night Expeditions or in caves. Remember, you can’t bring Glow Pikmin back to the surface after using them in caves.

You will get one Glow Seed for every five Glow Pikmin that survive a Night Expedition.

Oatchi

This good boy is a major help on Night Expeditions. Not only will the puppy help you fight enemies, but he will eventually be able to guard Lumiknolls by himself. That way, you can have the Rescue Pup patrol one sap source while you protect another.

I highly recommend maxing out Oatchi’s Chomp and Rush abilities. Level 3 Rush can take out many enemies in a single hit. If you fully upgrade Oatchi’s Big Chomp, the dog can take down small creatures, like the Dwarf Bulborb, with one attack.

I also suggest upgrading Oatchi’s defense and health with Tuff Stuff and Air Armor. The former increases his HP, and the latter reduces the damage he receives.

Work on getting Pup Drive by saving castaways to level up the dog’s skills. Oatchi gets more Pup Drive with every Glow Sap you collect as well. You can also talk to Russ to exchange raw materials for Gear that Oatchi needs.

10 Tips

1. Enemies will get hostile after a few minutes. Spend the beginning of the expedition getting as many Glow Pikmin as possible.
2. If you prefer, you can take enemies out before they start getting riled up. However, I wouldn’t advise straying too far from Lumiknolls.
3. Use your mini-map. It shows the locations of everything, including enemies, Lumiknolls, Tricknolls, and Glow Pellets. The survey drone is best for scoping out the entire area.
4. Prioritize killing the faster enemies over the slower ones.
5. Use the Glowmob attack as much as you can.
6. Don’t use Oatchi to transport Glow Pellets when the enemies go wild. He’s more useful for fighting.
7. There’s no shame in using items. Bring some on the Night Expeditions.
8. Some enemies spawn from burrows. Destroy them if you come across any.
9. Clear obstacles and build bridges during daylight. Then, you won’t have to worry about them at night.
10. The more Glow Pikmin you have in your squad, the stronger the Glowmob effect will be.

If you enjoyed this article, you may also like our Pikmin 4 review.