[Original Title]: What are the Best Starfield Traits? A Comprehensive Guide
What are the best Starfield traits? Touted by Todd Howard as “the most flexible yet”, Bethesda’s latest suite of creation tools allows you to select unique character traits that apply positive and negative modifiers to your spacefarer. There’s a wide variety of options on offer, so we’ve collected them all into one handy list to help you decide your favorites ahead of time.
Traits can offer additional choices when completing Starfield missions, such as granting access to additional dialogue options and determining faction allegiances. They also supplement your Starfield background and Starfield skills when shaping the character you’ve created in Starfield. Are you an introverted homebody that prefers to stay planetside, or a wanted street rat with alien DNA? Either is possible with Starfield traits – just take a look.
Starfield Traits List
- Alien DNA
- Dream Home
- Empath
- Extrovert
- Freestar Collective Settler
- Hero Worshipped
- Introvert
- Kid Stuff
- Neon Street Rat
- Raised Enlightened
- Raised Universal
- Serpent’s Embrace
- Spaced
- Taskmaster
- Terra Firma
- United Colonies Native
- Wanted
You can choose up to three Starfield traits during character creation, though it’s worth bearing in mind that it’s not necessary to fill all three slots. Additionally, certain traits can contradict one another and, therefore cannot be paired together – even in the Settled Systems, you can’t be an extroverted introvert.
What are the Best Starfield Traits?
- Alien DNA – This grants you a helpful boost to your HP and endurance levels, which is especially handy early on in your adventure.
- Kid Stuff – While this Starfield trait does result in you earning less money over time, it wouldn’t be right to skip out on the chance to meet, then occasionally visit, your character’s parents.
- Hero Worshipped – Yes, the Adoring Fan is a lot, but by skipping out on this trait, you’d be missing out on free gifts and his regular words of encouragement.
- Wanted – Being attacked by bounty hunters means more XP and more loot for you, so it’s not really a con, and being able to deal increased damage while you’re low on health can turn the tide of battle.
The best Starfield traits depend on your playstyle and can include traits that benefit exploring alone, having your human companions tag along with you, or if you use grav jumping often.
Some traits might come naturally to the way you play the game, like if you’re part of a Starfield faction. It’s also worth thinking about the rewards and credits you can obtain from bounties showing up with the Wanted trait, or the gifts you can receive from your adoring fan with the Hero Worshipped trait.
Starfield Trait Pros and Cons
Starfield Trait | Pros | Cons |
---|---|---|
Alien DNA | High HP and endurance | Healing items are less effective |
Dream Home | You have a small house on a ‘peaceful little moon’ | You have a 125,000 credit mortgage with GalBank, and you have to pay a portion of it back weekly |
Empath | Performing actions your companions like increases their effectiveness in combat | Performing actions your companions dislike decreases their effectiveness in combat |
Extrovert | Use less oxygen when adventuring with human companions | Use more oxygen when adventuring alone |
Freestar Collective Settler | Better Freestar Collective dialogue and rewards | Other factions bounties are greatly increased |
Hero Worshipped | The adoring fan gives you gifts randomly and can join your crew | The adoring fan randomly turns up, and they’re really annoying |
Introvert | Increased endurance when adventuring alone | Decreased endurance when adventuring with human companions |
Kid Stuff | You can visit your parents, and they can give you things | You automatically send 2% of your credits home weekly |
Neon Street Rat | Better Neon dialogue and rewards | Other faction bounties are greatly increased |
Raised Enlightened | Access to the House of the Enlightened chest | Lose access to the Sanctum Universum chest |
Raised Universal | Access to the Sanctum Universum chest | Lose access to the House of the Enlightened chest |
Serpent’s Embrace | Grav jumping provides a boost to health and oxygen | Health and oxygen suffer if you don’t jump regularly |
Spaced | Increased health and oxygen in space | Decreased health and oxygen when on the surface |
Taskmaster | Trained crew members on ship systems will automatically repair the system if it is damaged below 50% of its health | Each crew member costs twice as many Starfield credits to hire |
Terra Firma | Increased health and oxygen when on the surface | Decreased health and oxygen in space |
United Colonies Native | Better United Colonies dialogue and rewards | Other faction bounties are greatly increased |
Wanted | Increased damage when you’re at low health | Bounty hunters randomly appear and attack you |
Now let’s take a deeper look at all the Starfield traits, their pros and cons, and the in-game descriptions for each one.
Alien DNA
Pros: High HP and endurance.
Cons: Healing items are less effective.
Dream Home
Pros: You have a small house on a ‘peaceful little moon’.
Cons: You have a 125,000 credit mortgage with GalBank, and you have to pay a portion of it back weekly.
Empath
Pros: Performing actions your companions like increases their effectiveness in combat.
Cons: Performing actions your companions dislike decreases their effectiveness in combat.
Extrovert
Pros: Use less oxygen when adventuring with human companions.
Cons: Use more oxygen when adventuring alone.
Freestar Collective Settler
Pros: Better Freestar Collective dialogue and rewards.
Cons: Other factions bounties are greatly increased.
Hero Worshipped
Pros: The adoring fan gives you gifts randomly and can join your crew.
Cons: The adoring fan randomly turns up, and they’re really annoying.
Introvert
Pros: Increased endurance when adventuring alone.
Cons: Decreased endurance when adventuring with human companions.
Kid Stuff
Pros: You can visit your parents, and they can give you things.
Cons: You automatically send 2% of your credits home weekly.
Neon Street Rat
Pros: Better Neon dialogue and rewards.
Cons: Other faction bounties are greatly increased.
Raised Enlightened
Pros: Access to the House of the Enlightened chest.
Cons: Lose access to the Sanctum Universum chest.
Raised Universal
Pros: Access to the Sanctum Universum chest.
Cons: Lose access to the House of the Enlightened chest.
Serpent’s Embrace
Pros: Grav jumping provides a boost to health and oxygen.
Cons: Health and oxygen suffer if you don’t jump regularly.
Spaced
Pros: Increased health and oxygen in space.
Cons: Decreased health and oxygen when on the surface.
Taskmaster
Pros: Trained crew members on ship systems will automatically repair the system if it is damaged below 50% of its health.
Cons: Each crew member costs twice as many Starfield credits to hire.
Terra Firma
Pros: Increased health and oxygen when on the surface.
Cons: Decreased health and oxygen in space.
United Colonies Native
Pros: Better United Colonies dialogue and rewards.
Cons: Other faction bounties are greatly increased.
Wanted
Pros: Increased damage when you’re at low health.
Cons: Bounty hunters randomly appear and attack you.
How to Remove Starfield Traits
You can remove your traits in Starfield, but it’s not a simple case of visiting a special vendor to redesign your character. In a Constellation Questions video, Todd Howard explains that there’s a quest you can do to remove or solve each trait during a playthrough, such as killing the adoring fan to remove the hero-worshipped trait.
The only other trait we know that you can remove is Kids Stuff. You can do this by telling them you can no longer afford to give them the 2% credits you have on you every week.
Can You Get More Starfield Traits?
Unfortunately, you can only pick three Starfield traits at the start of your playthrough, then you’re locked into those throughout the rest of your adventure, with no way to add additional traits over time.
Does Every Starfield Trait Come with a Negative Effect?
Starfield traits are a double-edged sword: a simple stat boost from one trait will be to the detriment of another stat, whereas a discount in one shop will render another entirely inaccessible. Of course, stat boosts are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the traits on offer. If you’ve ever wanted a mortgage in space, Starfield’s got you covered.
Have you recently flown the nest, or are you an orphan settled on a distant moon? Time will tell, but more importantly, so will your Starfield traits. If you’re looking for more details on Starfield character creation, take a look at the Starfield religions that govern the beliefs of the Settled Systems. We’ve also got the scoop on Starfield cities and Starfield houses, as well as all the Starfield companions that can aid you on your journey.
Still looking for more? While a good Starfield wiki can be a handy source of information, our new Starfield Database goes further, offering you daily news, searchable databanks, and even interactive tools.
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