In Wasteland 3 there are a ton of Quirks and Backgrounds and both of these elements are a major part the game. Choosing the right background and quirk can give you an edge as well as different skills and abilities. In this guide, we’ve detailed all the best quirks and backgrounds that you’ll be able to choose for your character in Wasteland 3.
Wasteland 3 Best Quirks and Backgrounds
One of the first things you’ll be asked during the character creation screen is to choose your desired quirk and background. These won’t only define your character’s backstory but also provide a handful of passive bonuses that enhance your character’s starting attributes and can come in very handy during the course of WL3.
Quirks
Quirks, alongside backgrounds, can be chosen during the character creation screen. You can only select one quirk per playthrough and can also progress without choosing a quirk at all. The most important thing about quirks that you should know is that all the quirks in WL3 provide both positive and negative effects.
The following is a complete overview of all the quirks that you can choose in Wasteland 3 and their positive/negative effects – the middle column has the positive effects and the last column has the negative effects:
| Blunderer | Melee damage is increased by +15%. | Reduces crit. chance by -50%. |
| Bop Bag | Provides additional +6 armor. | Speed is reduced by -0.4. |
| Circus Freak | It provides +25% critical damage resistance and +0.4 combat speed. | You must wear a clown costume. Evasion is reduced by -10% and detection time by -1 second. |
| Death Wish | You gain +3 APs (Action Points) | Unable to wear armor. |
| Doomsday Prepper | You gain +35 resistance against different status ailments. | Unable to read books. |
| Lone Wolf | +20% initiative. | No leadership benefits. |
| Medical Marvel | You acquire +5 con per level. | Unable to being revived in combat. |
| Mime | Your detection time is increased by +2 seconds. | You must wear a mime costume. Constitution is reduced by -10 and throwing range is reduced by -0.5m. |
| Poindexter | For every two levels, you gain +1 extra skill point. | It reduced constitution by -8 and you gain -3 constitution per level. |
| Prospector | Chances to come across gold while digging. | One of your quick slots is deleted. |
| Pyromaniac | You receive approx. +25% bonus to fire and explosive damage. | Using explosives has +15% chances of being caught on fire. |
| Sadomasochist | +50% increased range/melee damage. | Incoming damage is increased by +35%. |
| Serial Killer | Once per turn, you acquire +3 AP for each kill you score. | -1 AP. |
| Two-Pump Chump | For the first 2 turns, you acquire +2 AP and +25% crit. chance. | You also lose -1 AP and -15 crit. chance for 6 turns. |
| Varangian Blood | Whenever an ally is downed, you get +100 crit. chance, crit. damage, and +3 AP for a turn. | You get -4 AP for the consecutive 2 turns. |
| Waste Roamer | You get +100 resistance against different status ailments. | -15% XP bonus. |
| Way of the Squeezins | While you’re drunk, gain +50% damage boost. | -2 AP. |
Backgrounds
There are a total of 16 backgrounds to choose from in WL3. Similar to Quirks, you’re asked to choose a background during the character creation screen. Aside from a little bit of your character’s personal history and a passive bonus that your desired background provides, there isn’t any reason to read into it. The following is a complete list of all the backgrounds in WL3 and the passive bonuses they provide:
| Bookworm | You gain +10% XP bonus from all the sources. |
| Desert Cat | It provides +1 perception. |
| Disciple of the Metal | You receive +15% increased fire damage. |
| Explodomaniac | Explosive damage bonus is increased by +15%. |
| Goat Killer | Your critical hit chance is increased by +5. |
| Grease Monkey | You deal an additional +10% damage to all the vehicles. |
| Lethal Weapon | Melee damage bonus is increased by +10%. |
| Mannerite | Kick Ass is increased by +1. |
| Moneybags | Barter is increased by +1. |
| Mopey Poet | Evasion is increased by +5. |
| Paladin | Your resistance against critical hit damage is increased by +10. |
| Raider Hater | You deal +10% additional damage to humans. |
| Sex Machine | Combat Speed is increased by +1. |
| Stoner | You receive +10% resistance against all status ailments. |
| The Boss | Hard Ass is increased by +1. |
| Vicious Avenger | Penetration is increased by +2. |
These are all the backgrounds and quirks in Wasteland 3. If you are interested in learning more about the game then you can check out our Little Vegas walkthrough. Feel free to check out our detailed Wasteland 3 wiki guides for more help on the game.