Editing Night expedition

'''Night expeditions''' ({{j|夜の探索|Yoru no Tansaku|Night Search}}) are a type of activity that the [[Pikmin 4 player character|player character]] is in charge of in {{p4}}. These expeditions take place at night, when some of the [[enemy|creatures]] of [[PNF-404]] are more dangerous and can enter a frenzied state. Because most [[Pikmin family|Pikmin]] are diurnal creatures, they and the [[Onions]] are not available at night, and instead the player has [[Glow Pikmin]] and [[Lumiknoll]]s at their disposal. All [[carry|carriable]] objects vanish at night, and [[cave]]s (including [[Dandori Challenge]]s and [[Dandori Battle]]s) cannot be entered. Night expeditions are necessary because rescued [[leafling]]s need [[glow sap]] in order to be restored back to normal, something that can only be obtained from Lumiknolls at dawn. Hence, the gameplay during night expeditions focuses on protecting the Lumiknolls throughout the night, considering that their light attracts the frenzied creatures and makes them attack.

The medication is managed and created by [[Yonny]], the [[Rescue Corps]] doctor, so night expeditions are only available after he is rescued and after at least one leafling has been rescued as well. At the [[Rescue Command Post]], the player can talk to him in order to dedicate the [[day]] to a night expedition, instead of typical diurnal area exploration with [[Collin]].

The first two expeditions forcefully take place in the [[Sun-Speckled Terrace]], at the Ancient Arches and Rugged Scaffold bases respectively. After beating the first two expeditions, you can do every expedition unlocked in any order.

! Area || Base || Lumiknolls || Starting Glow Pikmin || Danger

! rowspan="3" | [[Sun-Speckled Terrace#Night expeditions|Sun-Speckled Terrace]]

! rowspan="3" | [[Blossoming Arcadia#Night expeditions|Blossoming Arcadia]]

! rowspan="3" | [[Serene Shores#Night expeditions|Serene Shores]]

! rowspan="3" | [[Hero's Hideaway#Night expeditions|Hero's Hideaway]]

! rowspan="2" | [[Giant's Hearth#Night expeditions|Giant's Hearth]]

! rowspan="2" | [[Primordial Thicket#Night expeditions|Primordial Thicket]]

Eventually, some of the creatures will enter a frenzied state where their eyes will glow red. In this state, they beeline towards a Lumiknoll or [[Tricknoll]] and once they get close enough, they will attack it with the intent to destroy it. These enemies can be distracted by Pikmin on their way to a Lumiknoll. After a few seconds, some other enemies in the area will go through the same, and the process repeats for all enemies.

 

Throughout this entire process, the player must divide their attention between protecting Lumiknolls, covering all routes of attack, wiping out enemies, and trying to keep their Pikmin numbers up by harvesting more glow pellets. Enemies do not leave corpses at night, but some tougher ones do drop differently sized piles of glow pellets upon death. An unusual case is the [[Puffy Blowhog]], which drops 5 Glow Pellets in Blossoming Arcadia but none in Serene Shores. This makes it the only enemy to drop different amounts of Glow Pellets depending on the area.

Around the area the player can also find Tricknolls. They start off deactivated, but approaching with a character or a Pikmin is enough to make them light up and become activated. Once activated, they serve as a drop-off point for glow pellets, and also serve as a target for frenzied enemies. While having a Tricknoll be destroyed by enemies does not result in a failure, and can even be encouraged in order to lure enemies away from a Lumiknoll, the player will lose out on a convenient drop-off point for collected glow pellets.

The first Lumiknoll will always be accompanied by a blue beacon right next to it, similar to the ones the player can place down with the [[Survey Drone]]. If there is a second Lumiknoll, that one will be accompanied by an orange beacon. A Lumiknoll's [[health]] appears at the top of the [[HUD]] so the player can always keep track of its state. To further help the player understand what is going on, a mini-[[radar]] exists on the bottom-right corner of the HUD. This mini-radar, as well as the main radar, highlight the location of Lumiknolls, enemies, and particularly frenzied enemies (alongside their direction). Lumiknolls and frenzied enemies also appear as colored silhouettes if they're behind terrain. As enemies get closer to a Lumiknoll, [[Music in Pikmin 4#Nighttime Expedition|the music]] becomes more alarming and sinister, taking on a harrowing melody if any is actively under attack.

 

Since gameplay during night expeditions takes place in the exact same locations the player explores during the day, the state of any [[obstacle]]s will be reflected between the day and the night. Obstacles may be cleared both in day and night expeditions, and some obstacles may hinder the enemies as well as the leaders. If no open route exists to allow an enemy to reach a Lumiknoll or Tricknoll, it will not turn aggressive throughout the entire night- even if it is in a location the player can reach. If enemies may reach a Tricknoll but not a Lumiknoll, they will turn aggressive, destroy the Tricknoll, and then return to a docile state while retaining their red eyes and glowing red radar icons. Glow Pikmin that cannot return glow pellets to the Lumiknoll because of the presence of an obstacle will mill around the obstacle until it is cleared, just as daytime Pikmin would.

The player only has Glow Pikmin available during night expeditions. They are born when glow pellets are delivered to a Lumiknoll or Tricknoll, with every 3 generating 1 Glow Pikmin. When [[idle]], they instantly teleport from their position to the player's [[squad]], and they also instantly change squads when the player swaps [[leader]]s, allowing the player to focus on defending rather than rallying. They behave mostly like regular Pikmin, and can still be eaten, but they are invulnerable to [[fire]], [[electricity]], [[water]], and [[poison]]. By holding down the [[charge]] button, the player can unite them into what is known as a glowmob, and then unleash them in an explosive blast that can stun multiple enemies in its area of effect. The player can also create more Glow Pikmin by throwing [[Glow Seed]]s.

 

 

When a night expedition is successfully completed, the player will receive a glob of [[glow sap]], one glob per surviving Lumiknoll. This in turn gets transformed into one dose of medicine per glob. In the morning, Yonny will administer any available doses to any [[leafling]]s in wait. In addition, the player will receive [[Glow Seed]]s for every five Glow Pikmin remaining in their squad (rounded up), for a minimum of one Glow Seed. Failing a mission still gives the player Glow Seeds accordingly.

Glow sap will not be obtained if the player is finishing a location that they already cleared in the past, but they will still receive Glow Seeds. Since they will still be received if the mission fails, a player can easily farm Glow Seeds this way by prioritizing collection of glow pellets. Certain maps like ones with Bulborb Larvae and The Sand Keep Mission are easy to grind, because the Larva maps are easily defendable with Oatchi alone, and The Sand Keep immediately gives the Player 50 Glow Pikmin.

 

==Names in other languages==