Night expeditions are a type of activity that the player character is in charge of in Pikmin 4. These expeditions take place at night, where some of the creatures of PNF-404 are more dangerous and can enter a frenzied state. Because most Pikmin are diurnal creatures, they and the Onions are not available at night, and instead the player has Glow Pikmin and Lumiknolls at their disposal. Night expeditions are necessary because rescued leaflings 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. 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.
Locations
Each night expedition takes place at one of the previously-visited bases of a previously-explored area. After talking to Yonny and choosing to go on a night expedition, a menu will appear allowing the player to choose where to land. Within this menu, the player can know if a given location has already been cleared, the location's danger level, and a comment by Yonny about the sorts of challenges that await them. Locations that have already been cleared can be redone at will, but the player will not obtain any glow sap. Once the player is ready to go, the game will cut to sunset where the player departs from the Rescue Command Post, arriving at the chosen location at the start of the night.
The first two expeditions forcefully take place in the Sun-Speckled Terrace, at the Ancient Arches and Rugged Scaffold bases respectively.
Areas and bases that have not been visited will not appear in the selection of choices. The following locations exist:
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| Area | Base | Lumiknolls | Danger |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun-Speckled Terrace | Ancient Arches | 1 | 1/5 |
| Rugged Scaffold | 1 | 1/5 | |
| Meandering Slope | 1 | 2/5 | |
| Blossoming Arcadia | Fragrant Ravine | 1 | 1/5 |
| Sunwashed Plateau | 1 | 1/5 | |
| Misshapen Pond | 2 | 2/5 | |
| Serene Shores | Blossoming Dunes | 1 | 1/5 |
| Water's Edge | 2 | 2/5 | |
| The Sand Keep | 1 | 3/5 | |
| Hero's Hideaway | Stargazer's Spot | 2 | 2/5 |
| Feasting Center | 1 | 3/5 | |
| Foot of the Stairs | 1 | 4/5 | |
| Giant's Hearth | Line of Logs | 2 | 3/5 |
| Abandoned Throne | 1 | 4/5 | |
| Primordial Thicket | The Sylvan Gate | 1 | 4/5 |
| Autumnal Gully | 1 | 5/5 | |
Gameplay
When the night begins, the player will land at the chosen base, but then be placed next to a Lumiknoll, from which Glow Pikmin will come out and join the player's squad. Depending on the location, there may one or two Lumiknolls. During the first part of the night, the player can find glow pellets and task the Glow Pikmin to bring them back to a Lumiknoll. They can also work on obstacles or wipe out enemies, though it is recommended to focus on growing the Pikmin army instead.
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 some 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. Once a creature is defeated, there is nothing else to be done with it, since they do not drop corpses in this game mode. That said, some harder enemies do drop a small pile of glow pellets.
The player's objective during a night expedition is to either wipe out all of the enemies, or survive until dawn. If a Lumiknoll is destroyed, the night expedition ends right away and the player will have to retry at a later day. The player can choose to retry if this is the case. If the player suffers a Pikmin extinction, the Lumiknoll will spawn 5 Glow Pikmin.
Around the area the player can also find Tricknolls. They start of 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, 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 obstacles will be reflected between the day and the night, meaning the player will have an easier time if they clear obstacles during the day before trying out a night expedition at that same spot. The same is not true for the corpses of enemies killed during the day, which are removed during night expeditions and brought back during the day.
During night expeditions, the player is able to order Oatchi or the player character to go to a Lumiknoll. In Oatchi's case, he will actively circle around the Lumiknoll and attack any nearby enemies.
Glow Pikmin
- Main article: Glow Pikmin.
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 leaders, 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 at an enemy to stun it. The player can also create more Glow Pikmin by throwing Glow Seeds.
Rewards
When a night expedition is successfully completed, the player will receive a glob of glow sap, one glob per Lumiknoll. This in turn gets transformed into one dose of medicine per glob. In the morning, Yonny will administer any available doses to any leaflings in wait. In addition, the player will receive Glow Seeds for every Glow Pikmin that was propagated, though the exact formula is not known.
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.
When an expedition ends, the game will show a menu listing how many creatures were defeated and how many there were in total, though this has no impact on gameplay.
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
 Japanese |
夜の探索? Yoru no Tansaku |
Night Search |
 Chinese(traditional) |
晚上的探索 Wǎnshàng de Tànsuǒ |
Night Search |
 Dutch |
Nachtexpeditie | Night expedition |
 French |
Expédition de nuit | Night expedition |
 German |
Nachtexpedition | Night expedition |
 Italian |
Esplorazione notturna | Nocturnal exploration |
 Korean |
야간 탐색 yagan tamsaeg |
Night Search |
 Portuguese |
Expedição noturna | Nocturnal expedition |
 Spanish |
Expedición nocturna | Nocturnal expedition |