Ever wanted to optimize your personality in real life? I’ll admit, I’m guilty of that too, but it’s a lot harder in real life than it is in video games. Luckily, in Rue Valley, you can fine-tune your character’s personality by changing several key aspects to your liking. But is there such a thing as the best build? And what does switching Traits actually do in Rue Valley? Buckle up - we’re diving deep into each of these aspects of the game.
Is There the Best Personality Build in Rue Valley?
Let’s be honest: No, there’s no such thing as the best build in Rue Valley. If you’ve played Disco Elysium or similar narrative-driven RPGs before, you already know that stats exist purely to support the role-playing aspect of the game. The goal is to spend your personality points shaping who your character is: how he acts, reacts, and engages with the world around him.
While playing, you’ll inevitably fail many personality checks, as the game is balanced around you being a specific type of person with particular Rue Valley Traits. For example, some dialogue options will be locked because you’re more introverted than extroverted, while certain actions might be unavailable because you’re too paranoid to attempt them. And that’s perfectly fine - that’s exactly how the game is meant to be played.
If someone really wants to optimize their build (which isn’t how this game is meant to be played), they could, in theory, count the number of personality checks and dialogue options to see which setup has the fewest restrictions and failed checks. When that happens - sure, go ahead and follow the stats. But honestly, the difference will likely be so minimal that it defeats the entire purpose of playing Rue Valley. I strongly recommend against doing this.
PRO TIP: While I generally recommend building your character the way you want to play, I also suggest allocating your personality points so that you unlock at least one Trait in each of the three personality bars.
Rue Valley Traits Explained
In Rue Valley, Traits are permanent passive effects that grant unique dialogue options, influence how your character reacts to events, and occasionally lock out certain interactions or responses. They serve as the defining cornerstones of your character’s personality, shaping his worldview and the way he communicates with others.
What Are The Best Traits?
There are no better or worse Traits in Rue Valley. You should choose them based on your desire to role-play a certain type of person. There’s no need to worry about the “optimal build” or the value each Trait provides. The real value lies in role-playing, and in that sense, the best Traits are simply those that fit the person you want to play in the game.
What Does Switching Traits Do in Rue Valley?
The only thing switching Traits does is let you unlock them with fewer personality points invested in that personality bar. For example, if you assign two points to Calculated, you’ll unlock the first Trait slot there. By default, that’s Paranoid.
However, you can simply press the Switch button and put Indecisive into that slot. In that way, you don't need to invest four personality points into Calculated in order to unlock Indecisive. To put it simply, you're not unlocking specific Traits; you are unlocking slots. And then you can switch between traits to decide which one to unlock if you only have two points there.
Related: Rue Valley Willpower & Inspiration Points – Intentions Guide
All Traits in Rue Valley and What They Do
In total, Rue Valley has 12 Traits. There are two for each personality aspect. Check out what they do.
| Trait | Personality Type | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Reckless | Impulsive | Opens Reckless dialogue options, locking you out of some calculated options. |
| Impatient | Impulsive | Opens Impatient dialogue options, locking you out of some calculated options. |
| Paranoid | Calculated | Opens Paranoid dialogue options, locking you out of some impulsive options. |
| Indecisive | Calculated | Opens Indecisive dialogue options, locking you out of some impulsive options. |
| Secretive | Introverted | Opens Secretive dialogue options, locking you out of some extraverted options. |
| Awkward | Introverted | Opens Awkward dialogue options, locking you out of some extraverted options. |
| Nosy | Extraverted | Opens Nosy dialogue options, locking you out of some introverted options. |
| Arrogant | Extraverted | Opens Arrogant dialogue options, locking you out of some introverted options. |
| Guilt-Ridden | Emotional | Opens Guilt-Ridden dialogue options, locking you out of some indifferent options. |
| Dramatic | Emotional | Opens Dramatic dialogue options, locking you out of some indifferent options. |
| Flat | Indifferent | Opens Flat dialogue options, locking you out of some emotional options. |
| Unkind | Indifferent | Opens Unkind dialogue options, locking you out of some emotional options. |
Can You Lose or Remove Traits?
Once you create your character, allocate personality points, and start the game, you can’t change them. There’s no respec feature or anything similar. However, throughout the game, you’ll encounter various status effects that can temporarily add or remove points from different aspects of your personality. As a result, some traits from those personality aspects may become temporarily locked or unlocked.
These temporary changes remain in effect until you remove the corresponding status effect. So yes, you can technically change your traits (lock and unlock them) but only through the status effects you encounter as part of the story and your decisions. You can’t deliberately do this by adding or subtracting points on your own.
Rue Valley Character Personality & Traits FAQ
No, you can’t. You start the game with nine personality points, and that’s all you’ll get. However, your personality will change periodically through various status effects.
No, there’s no respec feature in Rue Valley. You only get to spend your nine points at the start of the game, once per playthrough.
No, the ability to switch traits is only available while you're creating your character. You can not switch Traits once you start your playthrough.
Yes. The deeper you go into a specific personality type, the more extreme your reactions and viewpoints will become in that direction. If you max out Calculated, for example, you’ll turn into a paranoid wreck who sees conspiracy in everything.
Nikola has been playing video games since his father bought him an NES and a Sega Mega Drive in the early 1990s. Over the years, he has mainly become a PC gamer with a love for narrative-driven RPGs, real-time strategy games, and psychological/survival horror titles. Still, he enjoys any game that’s worth his time.
