u/CheesyDonut

Hello again,

In my previous post, I compared the Speed and Stamina traits. Here is a link to that post: https://www.reddit.com/r/Palia/comments/1teqtwm/the_best_rider_trait_combination_in_my_opinion/

Now I’ve tested turning, and the results were not what I expected. From my testing, I found that a horse with a decrease in turning (-) has the same turning radius as a horse with both an increase and a decrease (+-). This is different from stamina, where a decreasing trait does not fully negate an increasing trait.

So the only way to get a turning benefit is to avoid any traits that decrease turning. Because of this, I changed my mind about the optimal rider traits. It made me want to get rid of Bulldozer so I could keep the full turning increase.

I also redid my entire speed test with this setup, and a horse with 2 speed decreases was just as fast as a horse with a speed increase and no speed decreases.

I now think the best trait combination is: Marathoner + Technical

This gives:

Speed: (- -)

Stamina: (+)

Turning: (+)

From my testing, decreases in speed make no noticeable difference. Stamina management is very strong, and avoiding any decrease in turning seems to be the only way to get the full turning benefit.

A horse can only have 3 rider traits, one for each stat increase. So you cannot double up on the same stat increase.

I timed horses with the speed increase trait and without it. From my testing, I found that “Faster than usual” only gives about a +0.5% speed increase. I found no difference in acceleration speed either. So I’m not sure if +speed actually does anything. Maybe I tested it wrong. I just timed the horses between set points on the map, both at full speed and at one bar below full speed.

I also measured how long horses could run at max speed with and without a stamina trait. From my testing, I found that “Better at managing stamina” gives about +10%, which is roughly 1.5 seconds longer at max speed.

Stamina regeneration was equal in all my tests, and it seems you get the same amount of stamina back when running through flow sparks. So from my testing, stamina management stands out as the best trait. That’s why I chose these traits (Bulldozer, Marathoner, Technical), because they don’t decrease stamina. And they mostly reduce speed, which barely makes a difference from what I tested.

I’d love to be proven wrong about +speed, so do your own testing. Right now, I think +stamina is the best, and turning is just nice to have.