Fallout : New Vegas SPECIAL Character creation . The maximum level obtainable in " Fallout : New Vegas " is 30 ; however , each installed adds an additional 5 levels to the maximum . With all four add - ons , the level is increased to a final level maximum of 50 . Primary statistics . The S . P . E . C . I . A . L . system has remained mostly consistent throughout the " Fallout " series . As has been the case since Fallout , the character ' s S . P . E . C . I . A . L . attributes default to 5 points per attribute , with an additional 5 points to be distributed during character creation , for a total of 40 points . As in previous games , individual attributes can be adjusted upward and downward so long as the total equals exactly 40 . Also as in previous games , individual attributes cannot go lower than 1 or higher than 10 ; any bonuses or penalties beyond those are simply ignored . S . P . E . C . I . A . L . stands for : Unlike " Fallout " and " Fallout 2 " , the game internally keeps track of " base stats , " which are the SPECIAL scores without any temporary adjustments ( such as from chems or certain equipment ) . These base stats are used both for checking against the prerequisites for a perk and for determining the number of skill points allocated on a level up . The only ways to modify these " base stats " are through : Starting " Old World Blues " automatically grants the Spineless perk ( + 1 Strength ) and completing it gives the option to replace Spineless with Reinforced Spine ( + 2 Strength ) . However , these bonuses do not count for perk requirements . There is a special Endurance calculation used " just " for the New Vegas medical clinic implant limit , which is base Endurance " minus any Endurance implant " . This is to prevent an Endurance implant from being " free " ( as otherwise it would be possible to install an Endurance implant and still have the same number of available implants as before ) . Taking all these stat buffs will yield 23 SPECIAL points , the maximum possible without the use of cheats . Derived statistics . Derived statistics are attributes of a character that cannot be set directly , but are instead based on ( or derived from ) the character ' s primary statistics or attributes . The following derived statistics are known to exist in " Fallout : New Vegas " : Skills . Skill s in " " determine effectiveness in a variety of situations . As in the previous games , three tag skills out of thirteen are selected as the character ' s specialties . Tagging a skill grants a 15 point bonus to that skill . S . P . E . C . I . A . L . attributes affect the starting level of each skill . The skills in " Fallout : New Vegas " are : Perks . Perk s are special elements of the level up system which grant special effects and abilities . In " Fallout : New Vegas " , a perk is granted every two levels . Many perks have attribute and / or level requirement ( s ) ; for example , the Mysterious Stranger perk requires 6 Luck and can only be taken after reaching character level 10 . Some perks also grant special bonuses ; for example the Mysterious Stranger perk grants a non - player character from above that comes down to help in combat every once in a while . For a list of perks , please see . Traits . Trait s modify different aspects of gameplay , including ( but not limited to ) primary statistics , derived statistics , and skills . Traits always have both positive and negative results . For example , the Small Frame trait grants a + 1 to Agility but also makes limbs more easily crippled . One can choose up to two traits when designing a character ( or none at all ) . For a list of traits , please see . Changes from previous " Fallout " games . Much of the SPECIAL from " Fallout 3 " remains intact , with very few new features being added in the way of character creation or stats . Weapons now have a minimum Strength requirement to be used effectively , like in " Fallout " and " Fallout 2 " . Also returning from the first two games are , which can be created by setting Intelligence to less than 3 . The SPECIAL bobbleheads from " Fallout 3 " have been replaced by implants available from the New Vegas medical clinic .