Remnant 2 is packed with ways to customize your character. With the release of The Awakened King DLC, there are 12 Archetypes to choose from and over 30 Traits, each of which improves an important aspect of your character, like health, stamina, range, and movement speed.
While some traits are better for certain builds, others are generally applicable and will benefit every character type. These Traits are usually solid picks whatever build you’re playing, so they’re the Traits we’ve included in this list. With that in mind, here are the 10 best Traits in Remnant 2.
Best Remnant 2 Traits, from least to most powerful
10) Endurance
Endurance increases your maximum Stamina by three per point, up to a maximum of 30 extra Stamina at rank 10. It’s a Core Trait, so you start the game with Endurance and don’t need to find or unlock anything to use it.
Extra Stamina is always nice to have in the heat of battle, especially if you’re playing a medium or close-range character that relies on dodging attacks, but there are stronger generic Traits to pick for most builds.
9) Siphoner
You can find the Siphoner Trait in N’Erud, in the Dormant N’Erudian Facility. It increases your Lifesteal by 0.3 percent per point up to a maximum of three percent of your damage dealt. Self-sustain is always important in Soulslikes, as you have limited healing items between checkpoints, and Remnant 2 is no different.
With the Siphoner Trait, you can keep yourself alive without overrelying on your Relic, especially if you’re running a build that does high burst damage. The more damage you can do, the more you’ll heal yourself. I used the Siphoner Trait with the Shielded Heart Relic, which gives you a Shield for 100 percent of your Max Health instead of healing you, and I was nigh-indestructible in all but the hardest encounters.
8) Longshot
Longshot is the Hunter Archetype’s unique Trait, and as its name suggests, it increases the range of your weapons. To unlock it, either choose Hunter when you create your character, or buy the Rusty Medal from Brabus in Ward 13 then give it to Wallace.
For each rank of Longshot, your weapons’ effective range increases by 60 centimeters up to a maximum of six meters extra range at rank 10. This is a valuable Trait that improves all ranged weapons, and it’s vital for builds that excel at a long range. The Longshot Trait makes mid-range Long Guns feel like sniper rifles, and it’s a great choice if you like picking off enemies from afar.
7) Barkskin
Barkskin is a simple but effective trait, and it’s especially important for Hardcore or Apocalypse runs. It reduces ALL incoming damage by one percent per point, up to a maximum of 10 percent less damage. Attacks in the mid-to-late game can be devastating, especially on harder difficulties, so you need every point of damage reduction you can get.
You can find this Trait in Yaesha, in either The Far Woods or The Forbidden Growth zones. To get it, answer selflessly to Meidra’s questions with responses that would benefit the most people. If you answer selfishly, you’ll get the Bloodstream trait instead, which just isn’t as good.
6) Expertise
Expertise is another Core Trait, so you’ll have it by default. It reduces your skill cooldowns by two percent per level up to a maximum of 20 percent, and is a strong choice if your build relies on its skills more than weapon mods or gunplay.
Archetypes like the Archon, with powerful, game-changing skills like Havoc Form, benefit strongly from Expertise and should absolutely consider leveling it up. Most Archetypes and builds benefit from using skills, so Expertise is a safe pick that you generally can’t go wrong with.
5) Swiftness
Swiftness is my favorite Trait in Remnant 2, as I love getting from A to B as fast as possible. Simply put, it increases your movement speed by 1.5 percent per point up to a maximum of 15 percent. Swiftness is the Explorer’s unique Trait, the Archetype you unlock by completing the main story, so you’ll have to wait until after the campaign to use it.
Even still, it’s absolutely worth investing in. Extra movement speed adds up: Not only does it help you traverse levels faster, which is invaluable if you’re searching high and low for secrets, it can also mean the difference between life and death if you’re surrounded by monsters and need to make a quick getaway.
4) Regrowth
Like Barkskin, Regrowth is great for survivability, which is of the utmost importance on Apocalypse and Hardcore. It’s the Summoner Archetype’s unique Trait, so you’ll need to unlock the Summoner to be able to use it. To do this, craft the Faded Grimoire at the Bloodmoon Altar in Yaesha for 15 Blood Moon Essence, five Lumenite Crystal, and 1500 Scrap. Blood Moon Essence drops from rare monsters that spawn during Blood Moons on Yaesha.
Regrowth is an excellent trait to have for any build and vastly improves your self-sustain. It gives you natural health regeneration equal to 0.15 health per second per point, up to a maximum of 1.5 health per second. You start with 100 health, so this corresponds to a full heal in just over a minute, which is nothing to scoff at. Combined with other defensive traits like Barkskin or Siphoner, you’ll be a tough cookie to take down.
3) Footwork
Footwork is undoubtedly the best Trait in the game for ranged builds. It improves your movement speed while aiming, up to 50 percent extra movement speed at maximum rank. That’s a huge difference.
Investing in Footwork makes you a lot more agile while shooting at enemies, and gives you the extra speed you need to maneuver around the battlefield and avoid damage without needing to pause your fire. You can get the Footwork Trait by completing the train event at Terminus Station in N’Erud.
2) Fortify
Fortify is another imperative Trait for harder difficulties where you’ll need every bit of protection you can get. It increases your Armor’s effectiveness by up to 50 percent, five per point, which can be incredibly powerful combined with heavier armor sets like the Leto Mark I or II Armor.
This is the Engineer’s unique Trait, so you’ll need to unlock the Engineer Archetype to use it. This is one of the tricker Archetypes to unlock: The item is hidden in a secret area off the map beyond the poisonous fog on the border of N’Erud’s Eon Vault or Timeless Horizon maps. If you’re struggling to find it, use our handy guide on how to unlock the Engineer in Remnant 2.
1) Vigor
Health. Lose it all, and you’re dead. Vigor gives you Health, and lots of it: three Health per level up to a maximum of 30 extra Health. It’s a Core Trait, so you start the game with it, and if you’re ever unsure of what to buy with your Trait points, it’s always worth investing in Vigor.
30 percent more Health is a substantial increase, and combined with other Traits that improve your survivability, like Barkskin to reduce your Damage taken, or Fortify to bolster your Armor, Vigor will give you the edge you need to survive on Apocalypses and Hardcore.
