Build 42 Traits — Every New Trait, What Was Removed, and Builds That Work

Build 42's balance pass landed hardest on character creation: a batch of brand-new crafting traits, a rename, and a whole column of classic traits quietly deleted from the game. If you're copying a Build 41 build, half of it no longer exists — Lucky, Marksman, Patient, and the drinker traits are gone. This guide lists what's actually selectable on stable 42.20, with verified point costs from PZwiki's Trait page (stamped 42.19.0), and closes with combos worth running. Checked 2026-08-04. For how traits pair with jobs, see our occupations guide.

New traits in Build 42

All costs verified from the current trait table:

Bushcrafter rounds out the new arrivals as a rename (below). Note the pattern: B42 traits mostly buy starting skill levels and recipe access rather than raw stats — the build-defining choice is which production chain you front-load.

Renamed: Wilderness Knowledge → Bushcrafter

The old wilderness trait kept its identity but absorbed new duties. Bushcrafter (-8): +1 Carving, +1 Foraging, +1 Knapping, +1 Maintenance; finds medicinal herbs and crafts medicines and poultices; makes simple stone and bone tools; starts campfires faster with a notched plank. That fire-starting bonus is the one Outdoorsy lost in the reshuffle — Bushcrafter is now the definitive wilderness package, and at -8 it competes directly with Handy for the "expensive but shapes the whole run" slot.

Removed traits

PZwiki's removed/future table confirms these are no longer part of normal character creation on 42.20:

One oddity: Motion Sensitive (+4, motion sickness in moving vehicles) appears in the wiki's removed/future table despite being added during the B42 unstable cycle — treat its availability as version-sensitive and check your character screen.

Rebalanced traits worth knowing

Community-reported from the veterans' transition coverage: Smoker landed at +3 (not B41's +4), Cat's Eyes and Wakeful cost more, First Aider and Iron Gut cost less, and Desensitized now also grants discomfort immunity. The current wiki confirms Cat's Eyes at -3 and First Aider at -2 on 42.19.

Recommended combos

The forge base — Blacksmith Knowledge (-6) + Mason (-2) + Crafty (-3): start forging on day one, stone blocks for furnaces come easy, and 130% crafting XP compounds across blacksmithing, masonry, and pottery. Pair with the Blacksmith occupation (details here).

The homesteader — Handy (-8) + Keen Cook (-3) + Organized (-4): construction HP and speed for the base, +2 Cooking/+1 Butchering for the kitchen chain, and 130% container capacity when your storage becomes a warehouse.

The wilderness start — Bushcrafter (-8) + Whittler (-2) + Outdoorsy (-2): knapping, carving, foraging, herbs, and fire without matches. Ideal for the borderless wilderness beyond the towns (map guide).

The shooter — Target Shooter (-5) + Keen Hearing (-6) + Adrenaline Junkie (-4): +1 Aiming, doubled perception radius, and speed under panic for kiting.

Budget crafting dip — Inventive (-2) + Artisan (-2): four points buys easier recipe research plus the pottery/glass head start that unblocks blacksmithing's crucible bottleneck.

Verified on 42.20 · Last checked 2026-08-04

Trait costs and effects come from PZwiki's Trait page stamped 42.19.0, re-checked against stable 42.20.0. The Crafty vs Fast/Slow Learner conflict and rebalance specifics (Smoker, Wakeful, Desensitized) are community-reported via the B41 veterans' guide — the wiki's page-version banner warns of drift between 42.19 and 42.20, so re-open the character screen before committing a build.