Best Traits in Outer Worlds 2

At the start of The Outer Worlds 2, you are given a choice between nine different Traits for your character. Traits grant a base bonus that you can only access with that Trait picked, and they also provide unique RP opportunities that can give you alternate ways to complete missions throughout the game.

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By Erik Petrovich

The best Traits in Outer Worlds 2 provide the best Trait bonuses that don't necessarily favor one build over another, like Brilliant or Innovative, but don't let that dissuade you from choosing Traits that do suit your build. Melee players, for example, benefit a lot from the Brawny Trait, but a long-range sniper build wouldn't benefit nearly as much.

There is really only one Trait Outer Worlds 2 players should avoid picking, but all eight others are viable for one reason or another.

Best Trait: Brilliant

Extra Skill Points & Multiple RP Opportunities

Outer Worlds 2 Best Traits Brilliant Trait

You're intelligent, able to more easily solve problems and pick up new skills.

Brilliant Effect: During skill selection, specialize in 1 additional skill. Specialized skills start with 2 points.

The Brilliant trait is the best trait in Outer Worlds 2 because it allows you to start the game with two points in two skills. This essentially lets players gain an extra level's worth of skill points at the beginning of the game, which can be useful for getting started as you build up different skills to fulfill different Perk requirements.

Brilliant is also one of the best traits because of the number of RP and dialogue options it unlocks. Every trait grants some unique options in certain dialogues, but Brilliant comes up in dialogue checks more often than others.

Innovative

Extra Ammo In An Ammo-Scarce Game

You are inventive and crafty, always able to find unique solutions to complex problems.

You've found numerous ways to be more efficient when crafting.

Innovative Effect: Crafting recipes for ammo, throwables, and resources create up to twice as many of those items for the same amount of crafting materials.

The Innovative trait is a very useful trait that Outer Worlds 2 players should consider picking up to mitigate one of the game's more frustrating elements: the lack of ammo. Throughout the game, but especially in the early game, you won't find a lot of ammo out in the world, and ammo costs a lot of Bits to purchase from vendors.

With the Innovative trait, you'll create double the number of throwables (grenades), resources, and ammo you create when crafting. Pick up this trait if you are playing a heavy combat build to keep your magazines full.

Brawny

The Perfect Pick For Melee Builds

You're able to perform great feats of strength.

In combat, you're an unstoppable force.

Brawny Effect: Sliding or sprinting into hostiles will knock them down. Cooldown: 5s

If you're playing a close combat build, one of the most important things to focus on is your ability to CC enemies. If you can't deal with a crowd of enemies quickly, you're all but guaranteed to die. With the Brawny trait, you will be able to easily knock down all but the largest hostile enemies by either sliding or sprinting into them.

Don't pick up the Brawny trait if you don't plan to be in the enemy's faces at close quarters – but if you're playing a melee build, this is practically required.

Heroic

Use Companion Abilities More Often

Others tend to naturally follow and look up to you.

Heroic Effect: -20% Companion Ability Charge Time

In Outer Worlds 2, you can bring up to two Companions with you when you depart the Incognito to venture onto a planet. Companions aren't the most defensive and seem to die quite often in the midst of combat, but Companion Abilities are incredibly useful (if you can keep them alive long enough).

With the Heroic trait, Outer Worlds 2 players will be able to use their powerful Companion Abilities more often. This trait is useful for just about every build in Outer Worlds 2, but especially for players who go for a long-range playstyle that relies on Companions to distract enemies.

Resilient

Death Prevention In Every Combat Encounter

You can power through even the deadliest of injuries.

It requires more than usual to take you down in combat.

Resilient Effect: Death is prevented for 3s the first time you would have died in each combat.

It's easy to die if you aren't careful in Outer Worlds 2, especially if you are playing a melee-focused build. The Resilient trait is arguably a must-have for all close-combat builds because it gives you a small window of forgiveness if you overcommit to a combat encounter.

However, it's not as useful if you play a mid-range or long-range build, or a build that relies on Companions in combat. Additionally, there aren't many RP dialogue options for the Resilient trait.

Lucky

Great RP Opportunities & Extra Crit Chance

You're lucky, things tend to go your way.

Lucky Effect: +5% Critical Chance. Certain opportunities are just accessible to you.

The stat effect of the Lucky trait is not all that powerful. Crit Chance is great, but you can increase your Crit Chance by equipping certain armors or picking certain perks as you level up instead of wasting a trait slot on it.

The real draw of the Lucky trait is the hilarious RP opportunities it grants you. For example, at the end of Paradise Island, when given the choice of where to send the Vox Relay, players with the Lucky trait can "see it hitting it does anything". Pairing this with the negative trait Dumb leads to especially hilarious RP options.

Suave

Cheaper Goods & More Criminal Wiggle Room

You have a way with words, getting you discounts at vendors and talking your way out of minor crimes.

Suave Effect: 10% discount at all vendors. Bounty must be 2x higher than normal to be seen as an Outlaw.

The Suave trait is not bad, but it's not exactly the best trait in Outer Worlds 2. With this selected, you will get a small discount at every vendor in the game, and the bounty required for a faction to see you as an Outlaw is doubled.

This is a great trait for a smooth-talking criminal build, or a build with the Ex-Convict background. But the discount isn't very much, and the Bounty bonus doesn't matter if you don't commit any crimes.

Witty

All Factions Stay At Neutral Or Above

Your fun demeanor and quick wit makes you popular with others.

Others are willing to forgive your past transgressions.

Witty Effect: Reputation with any faction can never decrease below Neutral, preventing any penalties that would be gained from having a negative reputation with a faction.

The Witty trait is an interesting one, but generally, not a very useful one. This trait prevents any faction's reputation from dropping below Neutral, essentially allowing you to commit any crimes you want (and make any decisions you want) without being punished or hunted by a faction.

The thing is, if you don't commit any crimes and don't intentionally sabotage any of the three reputation-based factions, this trait changes nothing about your playthrough. The one upside of the Witty trait that every build can benefit from is that it grants you a lot of unique RP dialogue choices.

Worst Trait: Nimble

Move & Crouch Faster... But There Are More Useful Traits

You're quick and dextrous, able to move more quickly while stealthing and in combat.

Nimble Effect: +25% Crouch Speed and Combat Sprint Speed

Every trait in Outer Worlds 2 has its upsides and uses, but the one trait you should think twice about before choosing is the Nimble trait. While every other trait appears in dialogue relatively often, Nimble hardly ever appears as a unique RP choice.

The 25% bonus to Crouch Speed and Combat Sprint Speed sounds decent on the surface. But the default Crouch Speed is already pretty fast, and a 25% bonus is hardly noticeable. 25% extra movement speed in Combat can be nice for melee builds, but there are better traits for melee builds that Outer Worlds 2 players should prioritize over this.

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