Understanding Traits in New Vegas
Character creation in Fallout: New Vegas can feel like a critical moment. You’re faced with choices that will define your early game, and few are as impactful as the selection of traits. Which ones are actually worth it? Which will propel your Courier from a freshly awakened amnesiac to a Mojave Wasteland legend? The wrong choices can lead to frustrating gameplay and missed opportunities. Don’t doom your character from the start! Fallout new vegas traits best provide a unique opportunity to customize your character.
Fallout: New Vegas offers a deep and engaging role-playing experience, and the traits system is a key part of that. These aren’t just minor bonuses; they are defining characteristics that shape your gameplay from the moment you leave Doc Mitchell’s house. This article will explore the best and worst traits in Fallout: New Vegas, providing recommendations based on different playstyles and character builds. We’ll help you navigate the often-confusing options and ensure you make the most of your character’s potential. Selecting the fallout new vegas traits best for your playstyle is crucial.
Before diving into the recommendations, let’s clarify how traits function within Fallout: New Vegas. During character creation, after setting your SPECIAL stats and before leaving Doc Mitchell’s, you’re given the opportunity to select up to two traits. These traits provide both a positive and a negative effect, a trade-off designed to add depth and complexity to your character. It’s also important to understand these choices are *permanent*. Unlike skills or perks, you cannot change your selected traits during the game without resorting to mods. This permanence underscores the importance of carefully considering your choices. Selecting the fallout new vegas traits best suited to your playstyle is important.
Traits offer a wide range of effects, influencing everything from combat effectiveness and skill proficiency to interactions with the environment and even the narrative itself. Some traits might grant bonuses to certain skills while simultaneously hindering others, while others might alter fundamental game mechanics, such as experience gain or weapon durability. The key to selecting the right traits lies in understanding their individual effects and how they synergize (or conflict) with your intended playstyle and character build. The fallout new vegas traits best for you is a matter of finding what fits you.
The Top Tier Choices: Power Up Your Courier
Let’s examine some of the most beneficial traits Fallout: New Vegas offers. These traits provide significant advantages that can greatly enhance your early game and provide lasting benefits throughout your adventure.
The Keen Eyed
This trait is fantastic for nearly any build. It offers a plus one bonus to your Perception stat while wearing any form of headgear – glasses, hats, helmets, etc. Perception is a crucial stat, influencing your accuracy in VATS and your overall awareness of your surroundings. The bonus from Four Eyes helps you pass early-game skill checks related to perception and makes you more effective in combat, especially with ranged weapons.
This trait is excellent for players who want a boost to their accuracy and awareness. The downside is the small amount of perception taken from your SPECIAL stats at the start of the game can make you struggle at some of the earliest skill checks, if you chose to ignore it when leveling. However, by selecting Four Eyes you are giving yourself the choice to have that skill, without sacrificing another SPECIAL to obtain it.
Skill Maximization
This trait offers a plus five bonus to all your skills but reduces experience earned by ten percent. This is especially helpful for creating a more rounded character. While the reduction in experience gain might seem daunting, the benefits of boosted skills far outweigh this drawback, especially early in the game. The plus five bonus can make the difference between passing a difficult skill check and failing, opening up new dialogue options, quest paths, and opportunities for loot. Furthermore, the increased skills make the early game much easier, allowing you to specialize later as you gain levels and perks.
This trait is ideal for players who want a versatile character capable of handling a variety of situations. It’s particularly useful for characters who rely on skills outside of combat, such as Speech, Science, or Lockpick. Some players also ignore the ten percent, claiming they did not notice it at all. The reduction in experience earned only effects the player in the long run, but most people complete the game long before that becomes a detriment.
Light as a Feather
This trait offers a plus one to Agility. Agility directly impacts your Action Points and weapon handling. Light As A Feather is a solid, general-purpose trait that benefits nearly any character build. More Action Points allow you to perform more actions in VATS, while improved weapon handling reduces the spread of your weapons, making you more accurate.
This trait is a fantastic choice for builds that rely on VATS or ranged combat. The additional Action Points provide a significant advantage in firefights, allowing you to target multiple enemies or unleash a flurry of attacks. It’s also beneficial for melee characters, as it allows them to close the distance quickly and deliver more powerful strikes. There are no downsides to the trait and can be very powerful for any build.
Something’s Not Right
The Wild Wasteland trait. This trait increases the number of wacky, surreal, and often humorous encounters throughout the game. While this trait doesn’t directly enhance your combat prowess or skill proficiency, it adds a layer of unpredictability and entertainment to your gameplay experience. You will encounter unique characters, bizarre situations, and references to popular culture that you wouldn’t otherwise see.
This trait is perfect for players who want a more lighthearted and unconventional Fallout experience. If you enjoy exploring the fringes of the Mojave Wasteland and discovering hidden secrets, Wild Wasteland is a must-have. However, be aware that some of the encounters can be quite challenging, and you might miss out on some more traditional quests and storylines.
Honorable Mentions: Good Traits for Specific Builds
While the traits listed above offer broad benefits, certain traits excel in specific builds or situations. Here are a few honorable mentions:
Critical Build Potential
The Built to Destroy trait offers a plus three percent bonus to critical hit chance but decreases weapon condition by fifteen percent. This trait is perfect for characters who focus on dealing critical hits, maximizing their damage output with each strike.
Rapid Fire
The Fast Shot trait boosts the speed with which you can fire guns and reduces the AP costs for doing so. For gun-based builds.
Traits to Avoid: The Worst Choices and Why
Not all traits are created equal. Some offer minimal benefits, while others come with significant drawbacks that outweigh any potential advantages. Here are a few traits you should generally avoid:
The Nice Guy
The Good Natured trait increases your points in your speech skills (speech, barter, medicine, etc). This is good in theory, it’s more beneficial to choose a more specialized trait that complements your intended playstyle, rather than spreading your skill points too thinly.
Taking Your Time
The Trigger Discipline trait reduces weapon spread but increases AP costs. Accuracy is already easy to obtain, and it is better to pick a trait that affects your AP usage.
Explosives
The Loose Cannon trait boosts the damage of explosives but reduces weapon condition. Explosives are already powerful in Fallout: New Vegas. This trait makes explosives even more powerful but the condition decrease makes them more of a liability.
Tips for Choosing Traits Wisely
Choosing the right traits can significantly impact your Fallout: New Vegas experience. Here are a few tips to help you make informed decisions:
First, consider your playstyle. Are you a gunslinger, a melee brawler, a sneaky assassin, or a charismatic diplomat? Choose traits that complement your preferred approach to gameplay.
Next, think about your build. What skills are you prioritizing? What weapons will you use? Select traits that enhance your strengths and compensate for your weaknesses.
Also consider the early game versus the late game. Some traits are more useful early on, providing a much-needed boost to your skills or combat abilities. Others offer long-term benefits that become more apparent as you progress through the game.
Finally, don’t overthink it. Fallout: New Vegas is a forgiving game, and you can still complete it with suboptimal traits. However, well-chosen traits can make your journey much smoother and more enjoyable.
Conclusion
Choosing the best traits is an important first step in building the character *you* want to play in Fallout: New Vegas. By carefully considering your playstyle, build, and goals, you can select traits that enhance your strengths, mitigate your weaknesses, and create a truly unique Courier. From the keen-eyed accuracy of the Keen Eyed to the quirky encounters of Wild Wasteland, the traits in Fallout: New Vegas offer a wealth of customization options. Experiment, explore, and find what works best for you.
So, what are *your* favorite Fallout new vegas traits best? Share your preferences and experiences in the comments below!
