In Fallout: New Vegas, two traits can turn a fragile courier into a Mojave legend.
Best starting traits in Fallout: New Vegas
Some of the best starting traits in Fallout: New Vegas give strong early advantages without heavy drawbacks. Good Natured raises most non-combat skills, helping with dialogue and crafting early on, while Built to Destroy boosts critical hit chance for players favoring high-damage builds despite slightly faster weapon decay. Small Frame grants extra Agility for faster movement and better V.A.T.S. performance, at the cost of more limb damage. Skilled from the Old World Blues DLC is also a favorite, providing a flat boost to all skills for smoother progression. Choosing traits that suit your preferred playstyle can dramatically change how your Courier handles the Mojave.
At the start of the game, during character creation, you get to choose up to two traits for your Fallout: New Vegas character. Traits are optional, so you don’t have to pick any, but they offer many benefits. Beware that traits are permanent (at least without the use of mods or console commands), apart from one opportunity to change them when you first enter the wasteland.
So, since it’s quite important to make the right choice, here’s a list of the Fallout: New Vegas traits we recommend.
- Skilled: You receive 5 skill points to every skill (Guns, Speech, etc.), but receive -10% experience throughout the game. This is the best trait for a massive early-game boost, but your progress will be slower. Note that you can pick the Skilled trait again when the “rebuild your character” option pops up (upon your first visit to the wasteland) to gain an additional 5 skills boost, while the experience penalty remains the same.
- Good-Natured: Grants 5 skill points to Speech, Medicine, Repair, Science, and Barter, but subtracts -5 skill points from Energy Weapons, Explosives, Guns, Melee Weapons, and Unarmed skills. It’s well worth the trade-off if you’re interested in a pacifist playthrough with a focus on Speech and abilities rather than combat.
- Built to Destroy: Boosts critical hit chance by 3%, but your weapon decays 15% faster. Having to repair weapons more frequently is a bit annoying, but other than that, extra critical hit chance is almost always great to have. Just don’t grab this Fallout: New Vegas trait if you’re going for a non-critical build (such as explosives-based).
- Claustrophobia: Gain 1 point for every “special” attribute (Strength, Perception, Endurance, etc.) when you’re outside, but -1 when you’re inside. As many tricky encounters take place outside, this trait works in your favor more often than not.
- Early Bird: Gain 2 points to all “special” attributes (Strength, Perception, Endurance, etc.) between 6 a.m. and 12 p.m. in-game time, but lose -1 point between 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Your character is stronger in the morning, thus granting an advantage during difficult quests and fights if you plan them accordingly.
- Wild Wasteland: This Fallout: New Vegas trait is not like the others. Instead of changing your character’s stats, it adds “wacky content” to your playthrough in the form of random encounters with tons of popular entertainment references. You also gain access to the alien blaster and holy hand grenade weapons. It’s a great option if you want some extra silliness!
Although it’s hardly the best trait in terms of combat prowess or special skill boosts, Wild Wasteland is highly recommended if you’re looking for the most “fun” Fallout: New Vegas trait. With Skilled as the best overall option (since it benefits any possible character build), and Good-Natured as the best non-combat choice, you might want to consider either of those plus Wild Wasteland.
If you’re quite sure you’ll be using critical attacks, Built to Destroy Skilled is great for players who just wish to boost their combat prowess as much as possible.
Best trait combos for a melee build
For a melee build in Fallout: New Vegas, the strongest trait combos emphasize raw damage output, survivability, and skill coverage without relying on critical hits or guns. Heavy Handed and Skilled form the top pairing, delivering consistent unarmed/melee power across all playstyles.
Optimal Combo
Heavy Handed boosts melee and unarmed damage by 10% (with some crit reduction, irrelevant for non-crit melee), while Skilled grants +5 to all skills to offset early weaknesses in Survival or Speech. This duo shines with perks like Slayer and Super Slam, turning you into a one-hit wonder by mid-game.
Tanky Alternative
Pair Heavy Handed with Built to Destroy for +3% crit chance (synergizing with melee crit perks) despite faster weapon degradation, manageable via Repair skill. Add Four Eyes later for +2 Perception with glasses, enhancing VATS targeting without a trait slot.
Skill-Heavy Variant
Good Natured (+5 to Barter, Medicine, Repair, Science, Speech) with Skilled supports melee via better gear maintenance and vendor deals, ideal for non-combat utility. Avoid Trigger Discipline, as it hurts melee range; prioritize Strength 8+ at creation.
Best weapon and trait synergies for glass cannon melee
Glass cannon melee builds in Fallout: New Vegas prioritize massive upfront damage over defense, leveraging high Strength, critical hits, and VATS for quick kills before enemies retaliate. Pair traits that amplify melee output with weapons like the Ballistic Fist or Legion Warlord’s Axe for devastating synergy.
Top Trait Combos
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Built to Destroy + Heavy Handed: Built to Destroy’s +3% crit chance stacks with melee crit perks like Better Criticals, while Heavy Handed adds 10% raw melee damage (crit penalty is negligible here). This turns every swing into a potential one-shot.
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Built to Destroy + Skilled: Gain +3% crits and +5 to all skills for early VATS/Melee Weapon boosts; repair handles weapon wear from rapid strikes.
Best Weapons
Ballistic Fist excels with its high DPS and knockback, synergizing with crit traits for VATS headshots that shred armored foes like Deathclaws. Thermic Lance offers insane crit damage (pairs with Slayer perk) but drains fast-use Built to Destroy to offset degradation.
Build Tips
Max Strength (9-10) and Agility for VATS hits; grab perks like Slayer (+30% attack speed), Super Slam (disarm chance), and Grim Reaper’s Sprint (VATS refresh). Light armor like Joshua Graham’s suit keeps mobility high without DT penalties.
