Traits

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This article is for the PC version of Stellaris only.

Traits represents a species' innate functions, abilities and personality. A species's traits are selected at the start of a new game, but a species or certain pops of a species can adapt new traits through genetic engineering or occasionally events. Traits affect a wide variety of areas, from population growth rate to resource output to lifespan or even how pops are viewed by other aliens. Most traits come in mutually exclusive groups that affect the same aspect of the species, such as Nomadic and Sedentary, and each pop can only have one such trait from the group at any given time. These groups include traits with opposite effects, as well as stronger variants of a trait. Though traits are initially decided at a species level, individual pops of the same species can end up with different traits with genetic modification, producing new subspecies or variants. This rarely happens without player intervention.

Traits are mostly fixed at the start of the game. Altering traits during the game is generally possible only later in the game through some select events or by using genetic engineering. Certain technologies and Ascension Perks add additional trait points that can be used to alter a part of your species' pops; modifications can range from altering their planet habitability to adding an additional positive trait or removing a negative one.

Organic traits

Traits are purchased from a points pool, with 2 points being available at the start of the game. Some traits are negative and have a negative cost, refunding points into the pool. Each species is limited to a maximum of 5 traits; non-standard traits do not count against this limit. Non-standard traits are all traits that have a cost of zero.

Initial traits

Initial traits are available when first creating a species. They can all be changed later via genetic modification. Initial traits can be both positive and negative, with the two being mutually exclusive. Traits that affect Happiness cannot be added to species with the Hive-Minded trait.

Positive traits				Negative traits
Trait	Effects		Slave Price	Trait	Effects		Slave Price
Adaptive	Habitability +10%	2	+50	Nonadaptive	Habitability −10%	−2	−50
Extremely Adaptive	Habitability +20%	4	+100
Agrarian	Food from Jobs +15%	2	+50
Charismatic	Amenities from Jobs +20%	2	0	Repugnant	Amenities from Jobs −20%	−2	0
Communal	Pop Housing Usage −10%	1	0	Solitary	Pop Housing Usage +10%	−1	0
Conformists	Governing Ethics Attraction +30%	2	0	Deviants	Governing Ethics Attraction −15%	−1	0
Conservationist	Pop Consumer Goods Upkeep −10%	1	0	Wasteful	Pop Consumer Goods Upkeep +10%	−1	0
Docile	Empire Sprawl from Pops −10%	2	0	Unruly	Empire Sprawl from Pops +10%	−2	0
Enduring	Leader lifespan +20 years	1	0	Fleeting	Leader lifespan −10 years if Biological Leader lifespan −25 years if Lithoid	−1	0
Venerable	Leader lifespan +80 years	4	0
Industrious	Minerals from Jobs +15%	2	+50
Ingenious	Energy Credits from Jobs +15%	2	+50
Intelligent	Research from Jobs +10%	2	0
Natural Engineers	Engineering Research from Jobs +15%	1	0
Natural Physicists	Physics Research from Jobs +15%	1	0
Natural Sociologists	Society Research from Jobs +15%	1	0
Nomadic	Pop Growth from Immigration +15% Resettlement Cost −25%	1	0	Sedentary	Pop Growth from Immigration −15% Resettlement Cost +25%	−1	0
Quick Learners	Leader Experience Gain +25%	1	0	Slow Learners	Leader Experience Gain −25%	−1	0
Rapid Breeders	Growth Speed +10%	2	+100	Slow Breeders	Growth Speed −10%	−2	−100
Resilient	Defense Army Damage +50%	1	0
Strong	Army Damage +20% Worker Output +2.5%	1	+50	Weak	Army Damage −20% Worker Output −2.5%	−1	−50
Very Strong	Army Damage +40% Worker Output +5%	3	+150
Talented	Leader Level Cap +1	1	0
Thrifty	Trade value from Jobs +25%	2	0
Traditional	Unity from Jobs +10%	1	0	Quarrelsome	Unity from Jobs −10%	−1	0
				Decadent	Worker Happiness −10% Slave Happiness −10%	−1	0

Lithoid traits

Lithoid traits are only available to species with the Lithoid archetype. The Lithoid trait is always present on such species.

Type	Effects	Excludes		Slave Price	Description
Lithoid	Pop growth Speed −25% Pop Assembly Speed −25% Habitability +50% Army health +50% Leader lifespan +50 years Leader initial age +22～30 Consumes Minerals instead of Food		0	0	This species has a silicon based biology, and consumes minerals rather than food. They are tougher than traditional organics and have slower metabolisms, making them long lived but slow to reproduce.
Gaseous Byproducts	Each Pop produces 0.01 monthly Exotic Gases	Scintillating Skin Volatile Excretions	2	+100	The metabolic processes of this species cause regular venting of gases useful to industry.
Scintillating Skin	Each Pop produces 0.01 monthly Rare Crystals	Gaseous Byproducts Volatile Excretions	2	+100	The outermost layer of this species is studded with sparkling crystals and gemstones that occasionally flake off.
Volatile Excretions	Each Pop produces 0.01 monthly Volatile Motes	Gaseous Byproducts Scintillating Skin	2	+100	The highly compressed spoor created by this species is unstable and contains an unbelievable amount of power.

Origin traits

Origin traits can only be given by certain Origins. The Serviles trait can be removed after researching the Genetic Resequencing technology but other origin traits are permanent. All origin traits have a 33% chance of being inherited by hybrid species.

Type	Effects	Excludes		Origin	Description	DLC
Serviles	Happiness +10% Resources from Jobs +10% Cannot be employed in Ruler or Specialist Jobs Cannot generate Leaders	Intelligent Erudite Natural Physicists Natural Sociologists Natural Engineers	1	Syncretic Evolution	This species evolved alongside a second, more advanced species. Never particularly intelligent to begin with, selective breeding for physical prowess and docility has reduced them to servile proles.
Survivor	Leader lifespan +10 years Tomb World Habitability +70%		0	Post-Apocalyptic	This species has survived the horrors of a nuclear apocalypse. Their capacity for thriving in the most inhospitable circumstances should not be underestimated.
Void Dweller	Resources from Specialist and Worker Jobs on Habitats +15% Pop Growth Speed on Habitats −10% Pop Growth Speed on Planets −60%		0	Void Dwellers	This species thrives in orbital habitats, with an instinctive ability to efficiently navigate their maze-like corridors and complicated architecture.
Necrophage	Leader lifespan +80 years Pop Upkeep −50% Resources from Ruler and Specialist Jobs +5% Resources from Worker Jobs −10% Pop Growth Speed −75%		0	Necrophage	This species of near-immortals procreates by consuming pops of other species.

Special traits

These traits are required for special cases of species and cannot be removed from the creation menu.

The Hive-Minded trait can only be added by hive mind empires and can only be removed by empires that are not hive minds. Pops with this trait in an non-Hive Mind empire will slowly die while pops without the Hive-Minded trait in a Hive Mind empire can only be displaced, purged or used as livestock.

Special traits that cost trait points can be removed via the biological ascension path. Special traits that do not cost trait points have a fixed chance of being inherited by hybrid species.

Type	Effects	Excludes		Inherit chance	Requirements	Description
Uplifted			0	0%	Epigenetic Triggers	This species was uplifted from a primitive origin, and its members are happier when living on planets belonging to their benefactor.
Self-Modified	Cannot modify or apply this species template if not primary species Cannot apply other templates to this species if not primary species Cannot colonize if not primary species		0		A New Species event	Members of this offshoot species have spontaneously altered their genetic makeup to give themselves an advantage.
Nivlac	Habitability: +50% Pop Growth Speed: +15%		2	random	Impossible Organism event species	This species possessed perplexing adaptability, allowing it to thrive in most environments and survive virtually everywhere.
Bioadaptability	Habitability +5%		0	33%	Speed Demon event (Green solution)	This species has been modified to be slightly more adaptive and can now better endure harsh climates.
Limited Regeneration	Army Damage: +10% Leader lifespan: +10 years		0	33%	Speed Demon event (Blue solution)	This species is has been modified to heal faster, making them more dangerous in battle and somewhat longer-lived in general.
Social Pheromones	Pop Housing Usage: −5%		0	33%	Speed Demon event (Red solution)	This species has been modified to be more social and accepting of crowded conditions.
Cybernetic	Army Damage: +10% Habitability: +20% Leader lifespan: +40 years		0	0%	The Flesh is Weak Driven Assimilator Keepers of Knowledge fallen empire	This species has embraced cybernetics on such a scale that its members may be considered cyborgs. They routinely replace their organic body parts with more advanced mechanical versions.
Psionic	Energy from Jobs: +10% Research: from Jobs: +10% Happiness: +5%		0	25%	Transcendence Holy Guardians fallen empire	All members of this species possess powerful psionic abilities. They typically communicate with each other through telepathy.
Latent Psionic	Energy from Jobs: +5% Research: from Jobs: +5%		0	25%	Mind over Matter Ketling Star Pack pops Racket Industrial Enterprise pops	This species has latent psionic abilities, which are dormant in most of its members. Although quite rare, these powers will manifest in some leaders.
Hive-Minded	Not affected by Happiness Leader initial age −18～30 if species is not Lithoid		0		Hive Mind	This species is made up of semi-autonomous individuals slaved to a single, unfathomably vast consciousness.
Docile Livestock	Pop Growth Speed: +30% Unity from Jobs: +10% Energy from Jobs: −50% Research from Jobs: −75% Cannot be employed in Ruler or Specialist Jobs Cannot generate Leaders Not affected by Happiness	Intelligent Erudite Natural Physicists Natural Sociologists Natural Engineers	1	random	Wild Eukaryotes event species	Docile and delicious, this species has had its higher brain functions genetically altered to create a kind of harmless livestock that can care for itself, without the pesky need for social interaction or self-determination.
Brain Slug Host	Research from Jobs: +10% Unity from Jobs: +10% Pop Growth Speed −25%		0	0%	Neural Symbiosis event	This species is enjoying the presence of a neural symbiont: a helpful slug that attaches itself to the brain stem of its host.
Unlifted	Research from Jobs −60%	Intelligent	0	0%	Enigmatic Cache event	This species has suffered the tragic consequences of an uplifting gone wrong.
Somewhat Uplifted	Research from Jobs +10%	Intelligent	0	0%	Enigmatic Cache event	This species was partially uplifted by a benevolent extragalactic intellect and has left some of its primitive origins behind.
Uplifted	Researcher Output +10% Leader Experience Gain +25%	Erudite Slow Learners Nerve Stapled	0	0%	Enigmatic Cache event	This species was uplifted by a benevolent extragalactic intellect and has left its primitive origins behind.
Numistic Administration	Energy Credits from Jobs +15%		1	random	Numistic Order pops	This species has been trained in the holy art of Numistic Administration.

Biological ascension traits

There are 5 advanced traits which are made available for genetic modification if the Evolutionary Mastery ascension perk is taken and Genetic Resequencing has been researched. Biological ascension traits are only half as likely as standard traits to be inherited by hybrid species.

Type	Effects	Excludes		Slave Price	Description
Erudite	Researcher Output +20% Leader Level Cap +1	Intelligent Nerve Stapled Uplifted (Enigmatic Cache)	4	0	Biological engineering has unlocked previously dormant parts of this species' brains, greatly increasing mental acuity.
Fertile	Pop Growth Speed +30% Pop Housing Usage −10%	Lithoid Rapid Breeders Slow Breeders	4	+200	The natural fecundity of this species has been dramatically enhanced through aggressive physical and behaviorial sculpting.
Robust	Habitability +30% Resources from Jobs +5% Leader lifespan +50 years	Lithoid Extremely Adaptive Adaptive Nonadaptive	4	+200	Bio-Optimized organs with redundant functions have made this species extraordinarily resistant to environmental hazards and disease.
Delicious	Food from Livestock and Processing: +2	Lithoid	2	+100	This species has the curious evolutionary adaptation of being highly nutritious when eaten.
Nerve Stapled	Resources from Jobs +5% Cannot be employed in Ruler or Specialist Jobs Cannot generate Leaders Not Affected by Happiness Can't join a faction	Erudite Intelligent Natural Inclination Talented Communal Solitary	3	+150	Unessential neural pathways relating to self-preservation and free-will are severed, creating a docile and obedient client species.

Pre-Sapient traits

Pre-Sapient species have exclusive traits that cannot otherwise be chosen when creating or modifying a species. They retain these traits after being uplifted as a sapient species. All of these traits cost 1 trait point.

Type	Effects	Description
Conservative	Happiness: +5% Governing ethics attraction: +25% Leader Experience Gain: −33%	Members of this species often prefer old wisdom over new experiences.
Earthbound	Energy from Jobs: +10% Defense Army Damage: +50%	Members of this species are very possessive of the planets they call home.
Irradiated	Tomb World Habitability: +100% Leader lifespan: +30 years	This species has evolved to thrive in environments subject to extremely high levels of background radiation.
Natural Intellectuals	Unity from Jobs: +5% Research from Jobs: +10% Minerals from Jobs: −10%	Members of this species are more philosophically inclined than most.
Proles	Army Damage: +10% Minerals from Jobs: +10% Food from Jobs: +10% Research from Jobs: −15%	This species has traditionally shunned intellectual pursuits in favor of physical labor.
Starborn	Pop Growth from Immigration: +25% Resettlement Cost: −25% Habitability: +10%	This species has always, consciously or not, longed to traverse the void between the stars.

Climate preference traits

Each organic species has a climate preference trait that determines their base Habitability on the various types of planets, usually that corresponding to the type of their homeworld. Habitability traits can be changed through genetic modification, but a pop can never have more than one Habitability trait. The Habitability of other celestial body types is unaffected by these traits.

Preference	Climate	80% Habitability	60% Habitability	20% Habitability
Arid	Dry	Arid	Desert Savannah	Frozen Wet
Desert		Desert	Arid Savannah
Savannah		Savannah	Arid Desert
Alpine	Frozen	Alpine	Arctic Tundra	Dry Wet
Arctic		Arctic	Alpine Tundra
Tundra		Tundra	Alpine Arctic
Continental	Wet	Continental	Ocean Tropical	Dry Frozen
Ocean		Ocean	Continental Tropical
Tropical		Tropical	Continental Ocean

Exotic climate preferences

Exotic climate preferences can only be obtained through Origins, events, conquest of a unique species or when the Omnicodex relic creates a species on a matching celestial body.

Preference	Habitability on native climate	Habitability on regular planets	Source
Tomb	80% Tomb	60%	Pre-FTL or pre-sapient species inhabiting a Tomb World Horizon Signal event A New Species event on a Tomb World
Gaia	100% Gaia	0%	Pre-FTL or pre-sapient species inhabiting a Gaia World Life-Seeded Origin Baol pops created by Nu-Baol Life Seeding decision
Ring	100% Ring World	0%	Sanctuary pre-FTL civilizations
Habitat	100% Habitat	0%	Void Dwellers Origin Marauder and Enclave pops
Machine	100% Machine	0%	Pops created by the Omnicodex relic on a Machine World
Hive	100% Hive	0%	Pops created by the Omnicodex relic on a Hive World
Relic	80% Relic	0%	Pops created by the Omnicodex relic on a Relic World or an Ecumenopolis

Robotic traits

All Robotic Pops have either the Mechanical or the Machine trait. Both traits grant +200% Habitability on all planets. Mechanical Pops can exist within Machine Intelligence empires via conquest but Machine Pops cannot exist outside Machine Intelligence empires. All Robotic Pops can then be given new traits through Robomodding, a few of them being restricted to Mechanical or Machine pops. Robotic Traits can be both positive and negative, which are mutually exclusive with each other, and both of them can be added and removed at will once the technology to enable Robomodding becomes available.

Empires that are not Machine Intelligence must research higher tiers of robot technologies before they can add some of the more powerful traits to Robot Pops.

Positive Traits			Negative Traits			Required technology
Trait	Effect		Trait	Effect
Domestic Protocols	Can be employed in Servant Jobs if under AI Servitude Amenities from Jobs +20%	2				Droids
Double Jointed	Pop Housing Usage −10%	1	Bulky	Pop Housing Usage +10%	–1
Durable	Robot upkeep –10%	1	High Maintenance	Robot upkeep +10%	–1
Efficient Processors	Resources from Jobs +5%	3
Emotion Emulators	Amenities from Jobs +20%	1	Uncanny	Amenities from Jobs −20%	–1
Enhanced Memory	Leader Level Cap +2	2				Synthetic Personality Matrix
Harvesters	Food from Jobs +15%	2
Learning Algorithms	Leader Experience Gain +25%	1	Repurposed Hardware	Leader Experience Gain –25%	–1	Synthetic Personality Matrix
Logic Engines	Research Output +10%	2				Synthetics
Loyalty Circuits	Happiness +10%	2				Synthetics
Mass-Produced	Pop Assembly Speed +15%	1	Custom-Made	Pop Assembly Speed –15%	–1
Power Drills	Minerals from Jobs +15%	2
Propaganda Machines	Unity from Jobs +15%	1
Recycled	Pop Assembly Cost –20%	2	Luxurious	Pop Assembly Cost +20%	–2
Streamlined Protocols	Empire Sprawl –10%	2	High Bandwidth	Empire Sprawl +10%	–2
Superconductive	Energy Credits from Jobs +15%	2				Droids

Game concepts