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Want to know all of the Starfield traits and how they work? The scale of Bethesda’s new title doesn’t just apply to the game’s world, but also to the options you have available to customise your character. Traits are a small but important part of that, so knowing what each one does will be a big boost to your playthrough.
You’ll also want to make sure to brush up on where to find all the Starfield cities, as well as getting an overview of all the Starfield weapons. Once you’ve settled on your traits, check out our Starfield tips and tricks to start your journey with the right foot forward.
What do traits do in Starfield?
Starfield’s traits are a perk which you can use to give your character certain buffs. Each trait has a positive and negative effect attached, and you can choose up to three traits at a time.
Some traits can’t be combined with others if they have opposite effects. For example, a trait that boosts endurance while exploring alone can’t combine with one that boosts endurance when your with a companion. Similarly, you can’t combine traits relating to more than one faction and more than one religion.
If you want to, you don’t have to take any traits at all. If you’re wanting to start off with a blank slate and just go from there, you do have the opportunity to do so.
How many traits does Starfield have?
There are currently 17 traits in Starfield.
What traits are in Starfield and what do they do?
Here is a list of all of the traits in Starfield and their effects:
| Trait | Effect |
|---|---|
| Alien DNA | Higher health pool and greater endurance, but healing items aren’t as effective. |
| Dream Home | You own a small house on a peaceful little moon, but it comes with a 50,000 credit mortgage with GalBank. |
| Empath | Increase combat effectiveness when performing actions that your companions like, but reduce when it when performing actions they don’t like. |
| Extrovert | Use less oxygen when adventuring with human companions, but more when adventuring alone. (Can’t be combined with Introvert.) |
| Freestar Collective Settler | Gain access to special Freestar Collective dialogue options, and better rewards from some missions given by the faction. Crime bounty towards other factions is greatly increased. (Can’t be combined with any other faction allegiance trait.) |
| Hero Worshipped | An annoying “Adoring Fan” will show up randomly and give you gifts. |
| Introvert | More endurance when adventuring alone, but less when adventuring with other human companions. (Can’t be combined with Extrovert.) |
| Kid Stuff | You can visit your parents at their home, but 10% of all the money you earn is deducted automatically and sent to them. |
| Neon Street Rat | Gain special dialogue options and better rewards from some missions on Neon. Crime bounty by other factions is greatly increased. (Can’t be combined with any other faction allegiance trait.) |
| Raised Enlightened | Gain a significant discount at the Enlightened organisation store, but lose access to Sanctum Universum store. (Can’t be combined with any other religion trait.) |
| Raised Universal | Gain a significant discount at the Sanctum Universum store, but lose access to the Enlightened store. (Can’t be combined with any other religion trait.) |
| Serpent’s Embrace | Shows that you are a follower of the Great Serpent religion. Grav jumping provides a temporary boost to health and endurance, but health and endurance are lowered if you don’t continue jumping regularly. (Can’t be combined with any other religion trait.) |
| Spaced | Health and endurance and increased when in space, but decreased when on the surface. (Can’t be combined with Terra Firma) |
| Taskmaster | Your crew can automatically repair ship systems that have been damaged, but all crew cost twice as much to hire. |
| Terra Firma | Health and endurance are increased when planetside, but decreased when in space. (Can’t be combined with Spaced.) |
| United Colonies Native | Gain access to United Colonies dialogue options, and better faction rewards. Crime rewards from other factions is increased. (Can’t be combined with any other faction allegiance trait.) |
| Wanted | Receive a damage buff when at low health. Mercenaries will randomly appear to attack you. |
Each trait also comes with its own in-game description, providing a brief overview of its effects, as well as in some cases, giving pieces of lore about its origins. Here is a list of all of the in-game trait descriptions that we know about so far:
Alien DNA
You volunteered for a controversial experiment that combines alien and human DNA. As a result, you start with a higher health pool and greater endurance, but healing items aren’t as effective.
Dream Home
You own a luxurious, customizable house on a peaceful planet! Unfortunately, it comes with a 125,000 credit mortgage with GalBank that has to be paid weekly.
Empath
You are deeply connected to the feelings of others. Performing actions your companion likes will result in a temporary increase in combat effectiveness. But performing actions they don’t like will have the precise opposite effect.
Extrovert
You’re a people person. Exerting yourself uses less oxygen when adventuring with human companions, but more when going alone.
Freestar Collective Settler
You gain access to special Freestar Collective dialogue options, and better rewards from some missions given by the faction. But, crime bounty towards other factions is greatly increased.
Hero Worshipped
You’ve earned the attention of an annoying “Adoring Fan” who will show up randomly and jabber at you incessantly. On the plus side, he’ll give you gifts…
Introvert
You really need your alone time. You have more endurance when adventuring alone, but less when adventuring with other human companions.
Kid Stuff
Your parents are alive and well, and you can visit them at their home. But 2% of all the money you earn is deducted automatically and sent to them.
Neon Street Rat
You grew up on the mean streets of Neon. You gain access to special dialogue options, and better rewards from some missions on Neon. Crime bounty by other factions is greatly increased.
Raised Enlightened
You grew up as a member of the Enlightened. You gain a significant discount at the organization store, but lose access to Sanctum Universum store.
Raised Universal
You grew up as a member of the Sanctum Universum. You gain a significant discount at the church store, but lose access to the Enlightened store.
Serpent’s Embrace
You grew up worshipping the Great Serpent. Grav jumping provides a temporary boost to health and endurance, but health and endurance are lowered if you don’t continue jumping regularly – like an addiction.
Spaced
Your body has become acclimated to space. Health and endurance are increased when in space, but decreased when on the surface.
Taskmaster
Occasionally, if you have crew trained in a certain ship system, that system will automatically repair itself to full health whenever it is damaged below 50%. However, all crew cost twice as much to hire.
Terra Firma
You’ve never acclimated to space. Health and oxygen are increased when on the surface, but decreased when you’re in space. (Can’t be combined with Spaced.)
United Colonies Native
You gain access to special United Colonies dialogue options, and better rewards from some missions given by the faction. However, crime bounty by other factions is greatly increased. (Can’t be combined with any other faction allegiance trait.)
Wanted
Someone put a price on your head, and word has spread. Occasionally, armed mercenaries will show up and try to kill you, but being cornered gives you an edge – when your health is low, you do extra damage.
What are the best traits in Starfield?
The best traits to start with in Starfield are Extrovert, Wanted, Alien DNA, and either Raised Enlightened or Raised Universal.
Extrovert
For the majority of the game, you’ll have companion tagging along, with many of the game’s main missions outright forcing you to have one. Having the Extrovert trait will reduce your oxygen consumption for the entire time that you have a companion with you, making it much easier to get around quickly without running out of stamina. Exploring with the Extrovert trait becomes much more efficient, and will save you plenty of time across your playthrough.
You could similarly take the Introvert trait, if you really don’t want to explore with any companions. And while this effectively provides the same boost, especially when it comes to non-main missions, it will make completing those main missions a bit more of a chore. Potentially a great choice for any Starfield new game plus playthroughs instead.
Alien DNA
Alien DNA gives you a buff to both health and oxygen, both vital for exploring the galaxy without having to pause every 30 seconds to catch your breath or chug down a healing item. Yes, healing items are tad less effective with the Alien DNA trait, but you’ll come across so many Med Packs that it shouldn’t be an issue.
Wanted
Having bounty hunters randomly show up to try and kill you doesn’t sound all that appealing. But when you consider that you’re basically fighting against armed mercenaries every five minutes in Starfield, it suddenly doesn’t seem all that bad. And when you consider that the trait grants a powerful damage buff when your health is low, Wanted is almost a no-brainer. If you’re playing on higher difficulties, that’s especially true, as you’ll spend more time on low health and make even more use of the damage bonus.
Raised Enlightened or Raised Universal
Raised Enlightened and Raised Universal are two of the three religious traits available in Starfield, and are effectively two sides of the same coin. Raised Enlightened provides you with access to a special chest full of items in the House of the Enlightened in New Atlantis, while Raised Universal does the same, but with a Sanctum Universum chest, also in New Atlantis. However, choosing one means you lose access to the other.
While it seems that by choosing one of these traits, you’re missing out on content for the other trait, you should remember that if you choose neither, you gain access to neither chest. As such, it’s better to choose one of them simply to get any kind of access to a chest, and potentially get some powerful items along the way. As for which one you choose, our Starfield religion guide has the details on every religion to help you make your choice.
United Colonies Native
While all of the traits linked to a particular place, such as Neon Street Rat and Freestar Collective Settler give you great lore dialogue options and some unique interactions, United Colonies Native definitely has the best benefits of all of them. You’ll likely spend more time in New Atlantis than anywhere else, where discounts at shops can come in incredibly handy. In addition, you can also purchase property in the city right from the start of the game. You can earn citizenship of the United Colonies later in the game, but if you want these benefits from the start, it’s a great option.
How to get rid of traits
You can get rid of traits or remove them in Starfield, useful if halfway through your playthrough the negative effects get jarring. The process is different for each trait. Here’s a breakdown of how to remove each trait in Starfield:
- Alien DNA – Visit a doctor, med bay, Reliant Medical, or clinic and pay 10,000 credits.
- Dream Home – Visit the GalBank branch in New Atlantis.
- Empath – Visit a doctor, med bay, Reliant Medical, or clinic and pay 10,000 credits.
- Extrovert – Talk to Andy Singh at the Church of the Enlightened in New Atlantis.
- Freestar Collective Settler – Talk to Mayor Elias Cartwright in Akila City in the Cheyenne system.
- Hero Worshipped – Ask the Adoring Fan to leave or attack or kill them.
- Introvert – Talk to Andy Singh at the Church of the Enlightened in New Atlantis.
- Kid Stuff – Tell your parents you can no longer pay for their upkeep.
- Neon Street Rat – Talk with the owner of Madame Sauvage’s in Neon.
- Raised Enlightened – Talk to Andy Singh at the Church of the Enlightened in New Atlantis.
- Raised Universal – Talk to Keeper Aquilis at Sanctum Universum in New Atlantis.
- Serpent’s Embrace – Talk to Mir’za in the UC Security Office near the New Atlantis spaceport.
- Spaced – Visit a doctor, med bay, Reliant Medical, or clinic and pay 10,000 credits.
- Taskmaster – Talk to Andy Singh at the Church of the Enlightened in New Atlantis.
- Terra Firma – Visit a doctor, med bay, Reliant Medical, or clinic and pay 10,000 credits.
- United Colonies Native – Talk to Administrator Rookes in the Colonial Health and Human Resources department of the UC office MAST building in New Atlantis.
- Wanted – Pay off your bounty for 3,000 credits by talking to the bounty hunters in New Atlantis, Akila CIty, or Cydonia.
That covers all the traits in Starfield. If you’re wanting to know more about customisation options, we’ve got a guide to the Starfield character creator. And if you want to learn about Starfield crew members, we’ve got a guide for that, too. For more help on your cosmic journey, check out our Starfield Delivering Devils quest guide, the best Starfield reactor, our Starfield Absolute Power quest guide, and the best Starfield spacesuits to get throughout the game.
Best Starfield traits FAQs
What are the best traits in Starfield?
The best traits in Starfield are Extrovert, Alien DNA, Wanted, Raised Enlightened, Raised Universal, and United Colonies Native.
How do you get rid of traits in Starfield?
To get rid of traits, you have to visit a specific NPC, with a different person depending on the trait.
