Comprehensive List of Flaws and Their Effects in The Outer Worlds 2

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No one is perfect. Some of us might come close, but everyone has a flaw or two that prevents us from being flawless. And honestly, that’s a good thing! If everything was perfect, life would be pretty boring. Obsidian understands this well, which is why in The Outer Worlds 2, your character can also have a variety of Flaws.

Flaws aren’t all sunshine and rainbows, of course. But when your character isn’t perfect, it opens up many more ways for you to experience the game. Let’s go over all the Flaws available and which ones are actually worth recognizing in yourself.

What Are Flaws?

When creating your character, you get to choose many aspects — your appearance, Skills, Traits, and Background. But Flaws are different. They show up randomly during gameplay, often as a result of your actions, and they can both punish and reward you. For example, repeatedly crouching to stay sneaky might give you the Bad Knees Flaw, which makes you move faster while crouched but also causes you to make noise that alerts enemies.

In the original The Outer Worlds, selecting a Flaw was just a penalty in exchange for a bonus Perk point. In this sequel, however, accepting Flaws comes with both negative and positive effects to make the decision more interesting.

If you ignore a Flaw when it first appears, it’s unlikely to appear again, so there’s no need to second-guess your choices.

How Many Flaws Can You Have at Once?

In the first game, you could only have a limited number of Flaws—three on normal difficulty, up to five on harder settings. But in The Outer Worlds 2, there’s no limit. You can keep adding Flaws, and once you’ve accepted one, it stays forever. If you decide to accept the Flawed Flaw, you’ll have to accept every Flaw offered, so choose carefully.

Every Flaw and What It Does

The game features a wide range of Flaws. Many are unlocked through specific actions or situations, and some are quite unusual. Here are some of the known Flaws and how to get them:

Flaw	What It Does	How to Unlock
Bad Knees	+50% crouch speed but makes noise within 10 meters when standing or crouching.	Frequently crouching and staying crouched for long periods.
Kleptomania	Items you steal sell for 100% more, but you sometimes automatically steal items you look at.	Constantly stealing items.
Overprepared	Magazine size increases by 50%, but damage drops by 40% for 8 seconds if you empty your magazine.	Always reloading before magazines run out.
Flawed	Must accept all Flaws, but you gain an extra Perk point every five levels.	When you accept three or more Flaws.
Treacherous	-25% max health, but +100% sneak attack damage and enemies lose awareness faster.	Frequently performing Sneak Attacks and attacking undetected.
Anger Mismanagement	+50% damage taken when blocking, but +25% damage from Power Attacks.	Attacking with melee or taking hits often.
Foot-In-Mouth	Dialogue choices are random after a few seconds, but you get +15% experience.	Skipping dialogue before NPCs finish talking.
Dangerously Curious	Use an extra Bypass Shunt to hack, but gain +100% hacking experience.	Frequently hacking into systems.
Reckless Leadership	Cannot revive teammates in combat, but when one falls, the other is healed and empowered.	Letting your teammates be defeated without revival.
Gluttony	+15% healing from food/drinks but move 10% slower in combat.	Healing often with food or drinks.
Technophobia	+20% damage from and to Automechanicals.	Defeating or taking damage from Automechanicals.
Hermit	Prices at vendors are 50% higher, but you have a chance to double materials when breaking down items at workbenches.	Breaking down items or crafting at workbenches.
N-Radiated	5% chance when damaged to become camouflaged, but also takes 5% max health as N-Ray damage.	Leaving the N-Ray zone or range.
Energy Hog	Gadget energy recharges 25% slower, but you have +50 gadget energy.	Using gadgets frequently until the energy bar depletes.
Easily Startled	Footsteps quieter and enemies detect you 25% slower, but you ignore Damage Resistance and Evasion for 8 seconds after detection.	Sneaking around enemies often.
Teetotaler	Medical Inhaler heals 25% more but increases Toxicity by 25%.	Avoiding the use of Med-Inhalers during combat.
Drug Addiction	Less health from Med-Inhalers but 40% less Toxicity.	Using Med-Inhalers repeatedly in combat.
Dependent	Deal more damage to enemies your allies recently attacked but 10% less overall damage.	Letting your companions land a lot of hits.
Consumerism	15% discount at vendors but items sell for 10% less.	Shopping frequently.
Easily Distracted	+3 Skill points per level, but must put points into the lowest Skill not at zero.	Spreading points over many Skills.

Best Flaws to Take

While Flaws always come with some drawbacks, some offer incredible benefits that may outweigh the negatives. Here are a few that are particularly advantageous:

Easily Distracted: Gains an extra Skill point each level, making your character much more versatile early on. Keep in mind, if you’ve already invested in Skills, you’ll need to level them evenly to keep up.
Dangerously Curious: Increases experience gained from hacking, which can be very useful for tech-focused builds. The extra Bypass Shunt used is easily replaced through crafting or character perks.
Overprepared: Your weapons’ magazines are larger without any immediate penalty, so you’re less likely to be caught empty.
Treacherous: Reduces health but doubles Sneak Attack damage, making stealth-based playthroughs devastatingly effective.

Many Flaws are about weighing risks and rewards. Sometimes, accepting a flaw can give your character powerful advantages if you play your cards right.