Starfield: Best Traits Explained & Ranked

Choose the perfect traits in Starfield – We ranked all traits from the best to worst and explained what to pick to enhance your gameplay.

The best traits in Starfield provide your character with enhancements in combat, roleplaying opportunities, or ways to earn more credits. Your choice depends on your priorities in the game. Fortunately, you can select up to three traits, allowing you to create a character optimized in multiple aspects. In Starfield, during the “One Small Step” mission, you’ll pick up to three character creation traits with bonuses and disadvantages.

Best Traits in Starfield Explained

We found out that the best traits that worked well for us were Wanted, Empath, and Taskmaster.

Players who prefer combat might want to pick the Wanted, Terra firma, or Spaced trait, while the best trait for snipers and stealth-focused characters will be Alien DNA. Empath and Extravert will be the best for you if you value interactions with NPC and are primarily focused on story or roleplaying. Lone wolves will greatly benefit from the Introvert trait. Taskmaster is always a good choice if you plan to spend time managing your ship’s crew.

For example, roleplaying opportunities consider the Kid Stuff trait. This trait enables your character to interact with their living parents, allocates 2% of your earnings to support them, opens up unique dialogue options, and unlocks special events. If you like decorating houses or want to enrich your character’s backstory, you can choose the Dream Home trait, which grants you ownership of a small house with the option to pay off a mortgage.

What Traits Should You Choose?

It’s important to note that while these bonuses are beneficial, they are not essential or game-changing. Feel free to choose the traits that align with your character’s concept and preferences. Starfield offers a wide range of traits and backgrounds to select from, ensuring extensive replayability and a customized gaming experience! Keep in mind that at the time of writing this, after you create your character and level the character creation menu, you can’t change the traits in Starfield, only remove them.

Some traits are obvious and instant benefits, such as Dream Home, but others sound good in theory, but we found out that they are not really that beneficial. For example, the Hero Worshipped trait did not seem worth it. The fan that joined our crew didn’t offer any valuable items, and the number of available companions in Starfield is rich in good benefits and crew members, so there is nothing worthwhile Hero Worshiped provides.

This all sounds like a big decision, but truly, it all depends on your playstyle, and there is no bad decision. You can always remove your traits if you find them no longer appealing.

Starfield Best Traits – All Traits Ranked

Here is a list of the best Traits in Starfield ranked from best to worst (below we explained them in detail):

1. Wanted
2. Alien DNA
3. Taskmaster
4. Extrovert or Introvert
5. Empath
6. Terra firma, Serpent’s Embrace or Spaced
7. Dream Home
8. Faction Allegiance Traits (Neon Street Rat & Freestar Collective Settler & United Colonies Native)
9. Religion Traits (Raised Enlightened & Raised Universal)
10. Kid Stuff and Hero Worshiped

1 Wanted

• Effect: 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.

It is a good trait overall that boosts your damage always when your health is lower. The ultimate survival trait may save you from tough situations or when you find yourself overwhelmed by enemies. The downside is nearly noticeable, and mercenaries that are sent after you aren’t strong enough to be dangerous. However, they offer some loot and experience after you kill them, so it depends on how you look at it, this trait really doesn’t have any disadvantages.

2 Alien DNA

• Effect: You volunteered for a controversial experiment that combines alien and human DNA. As a result, you start with increased health and oxygen, but healing and food items aren’t as effective.

This trait is fantastic for players who plan to play as a sniper or stealth-based character. Both playstyles won’t put you at risk of losing a lot of health. Dealing damage from stealth will ensure your enemies can’t even see you, so you eliminate them before they can even deal any damage to you, and you will be in need of any med kits. The same applies to snipers, and you will be far from most foes’ reach and at low risk of losing your health, eliminating any threat before anyone can react.

Pair it with Wanted to make up for the healing and food debuff and deal more damage while at low health.

3 Taskmaster

• Effect: 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.

Inventory management can be painful in Starfield, but ultimately, it’s easy to earn credits in Starfield, so extra credits you must spend on the crew will ultimately cost less than all repairs that a well-trained crew can make for you with this trait, especially if you like space combat in Starfield.

4 Extrovert or Introvert

• Extravert Effect: You’re a people person. Exerting yourself uses less oxygen when adventuring with human companions but more when adventuring alone. (Can’t be combined with introvert.)
• Introvert Effect: You really need your alone time. Exerting yourself uses less oxygen when adventuring alone but more when adventuring with other human companions. (Can’t be combined with Extrovert)

Both are good options if you have a defined preference for playing with or without companions. If you choose the Extravert, ensure to interact with your companions, and when you take Introvert, travel alone and to make up for the lack of help they could provide, you can invest in carry capacity skill and isolation skills.

5 Empath

• Effect: 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.

The empath trait is best paired with the extravert trait, so If you like focusing on companions and interactions with them will give you extra bonuses just for doing what you enjoy.

6 Terra firma, Serpent’s Embrace or Spaced

• Terra Firma Effect: 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.)
• Spaced Effect: Your body has become acclimated to space. Health and oxygen are increased when in space, but decreased when on the surface. (Can’t be combined with Terra Firma.)
• Serpent’s Embrace Effect: You grew up worshiping the Great Serpent. Grav jumping provides a temporary boost to health an oxygen, but health and oxygen are lowered if you don’t continue jumping regularly – like an addiction. (Can’t be combined with any other religion trait.)

All three can provide combat boosts and buffs in certain situations. If your favorite thing is space combat and boarding, you may enjoy Spaced and Serpent’s embrace. For health and Oxygen benefits on the planet’s surface, pick Terra Firma. You may also pick them based on what you struggle the most to increase your chances of success.

7 Dream Home

• Effect: 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.

Pick Dream Home if you want to jump into housing and decoration. The mortgage can be a little frustrating, but a private house right from the start of the game is a luxury that many of you may enjoy. It’s an instant benefit and fun gameplay.

8 Faction Allegiance Traits (Neon Street Rat & Freestar Collective Settler & United Colonies Native)

• United Colonies Native Effect: 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.
• Neon Street Rat Effect: 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.
• Freestar Collective Settler Effect: 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.

It’s fun for roleplaying, but we didn’t notice any significant dialogue changes with all three of those traits. Loot is very random in Starfield, so some rewards may be worthwhile. It all depends on your character; those traits will not have big upsides. However, bigger bounties may be annoying if you plan to play a bounty hunter and focus on this part of the gameplay. If you want on purpose, enhance this mechanic and tell your own story about why your crime bounties are higher in other factions.

Remember that choosing one of those traits will lock you away from other alliance traits.

9 Religion Traits (Raised Enlightened & Raised Universal)

• Raised Universal Effect: You grew up as a member of the Sanctum Universum. You gain access to a special chest full of items in the Sanctum Universum in New Atlantis, but lose access to the House of the Enlightened chest.
• Raised Enlightened Effect: You grew up as a member of the Enlightened. You gain access to a special chest full of items in the House of the Enlightened in New Atlantis, but lose access to the Sanctum Universum chest.

Similarly, the chests you gain access to are very random and don’t provide such good rewards to rank them higher. However, it is a fun option to enhance your play style.

Remember that choosing one of those traits will lock you away from other religion traits.

10 Kid Stuff and Hero Worshiped

• Kid Stuff Effect: Your parents are alive and well, and you can visit them at their home. But you will automatically send 2% of your credits home to them every week.
• Hero Worshiped Effect: 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 join your ship’s crew and give you gifts…

As mentioned, those two traits don’t provide any significant bonuses outside roleplaying opportunities. Hero Worshiped is a fun addition, and Kid Stuff is a one-time thing that you probably won’t do or take advantage of often while you still need to send credits to your family.

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