There are seven different special stats in Fallout 4, and Strength is the stat that deals with heavy weapons, melee weapons, and unarmed weapon damage. Strength is also useful for increasing hip-fire accuracy and carry weight.
The Strength stat is much more diverse in terms of perks than stats such as Perception or Luck since it focuses on more than one damage type. There are a few Strength perks that focus on equipment upgrades and power armor as well. With all of these unique options, you’ll need a guide to which of these perks are must-haves and which of the unimportant and silly perks you can completely ignore. Here’s our ranking to help you prioritize.
10 Steady Aim
Hip-fire accuracy is usually important in any game containing guns. However, that isn’t the case in Fallout 4, at least when compared to other effects such as damage bonuses and extra armor.
As such, the Steady Aim perk isn’t useful for most players, and considering that it requires you to have Strength level seven before you can unlock it, it isn’t worth considering for the majority, even if you use firearm weapons regularly.
9 Basher
The Basher perk increases the amount of damage that you deal when you bash an enemy with your gun. Although gun bashing can occasionally result in an enemy’s death, it doesn’t deal very much damage, even with every level of this perk unlocked, and it’s only worth considering if you have an extra perk point that you have nothing else to do with.
If you are early into a playthrough of Fallout 4, then it would be best to spend your perk points elsewhere, considering how many useful perks are categorized under the Strength special stat.
8 Iron Fist
The Iron Fist perk is useful, but only for players that regularly use unarmed weapons in combat. There aren’t many different types of unarmed weapons throughout Fallout 4, and this is one of the reasons why it is the least-used, but still interesting builds in the entire game.
If you enjoy using weapons such as the deathclaw gauntlet, then it is definitely worth unlocking every tier of the Iron Fist perk. Otherwise, you should avoid this perk entirely and spend your perk point elsewhere.
7 Rooted
One of the most unique perks in Fallout 4 is Rooted, a perk that makes it so that you take less damage and deal more melee damage while you are standing still. Although this is a strange perk, you can utilize it efficiently in the correct situation.
Unfortunately, most players move around during combat and don’t focus on damage resistance which is why the Rooted perk isn’t particularly useful. However, Rooted is a great perk for a power armor build since you can stand still for a long period of time and take little damage.
6 Blacksmith
The Blacksmith perk is focused on upgrading melee weapons, and it allows you to craft a plethora of different upgrades for melee weapons such as the Super Sledge.
Melee weapons are a common weapon type in Fallout 4, and many players enjoy using them because they have a high damage output and they don’t require ammo. If you are creating a melee build, then the Blacksmith perk is a must-unlock.
5 Armorer
Similar to the Blacksmith perk, the Armorer perk is focused on upgrading your equipment. However, Armorer is a perk that allows you to unlock and craft new upgrades for your armor.
These upgrades include new equipment for both regular types of armor that you wear over your clothing and power armor as well. The Armorer perk is most useful for a power armor build; however, any player can benefit from it since everybody wears armor.
4 Pain Train
Power armor builds aren’t particularly common in Fallout 4; however, they are among the most powerful ways to explore the Commonwealth. The Pain Train perk is essential for any player that uses power armor because it allows you to sprint into enemies causing damage, and after unlocking the third tier of this perk, you can even knock your enemies onto the ground.
The damage dealt when you sprint into an enemy with the Pain Train perk is massive, and it gives you a reason to upgrade and equip a power armor suit if you haven’t already.
3 Big Leagues
The Big Leagues perk is vital for melee builds since it increases your melee damage every time a new tier of this perk is unlocked. As previously mentioned, powerful melee weapons are a great choice for combat, and it is difficult to use them effectively without unlocking this useful boost.
Luckily, you can unlock the Big Leagues perk at only Strength level two, which means that almost every player can access it, even if they don’t have many points dedicated to the Strength stat.
2 Strong Back
The Strong Back perk increases your carry weight by an extra 25 and then an extra 50 points. At the third tier of this perk, you can move faster while carrying too much, and at the fourth tier, you can fast travel while you are over your carry weight limit.
Regardless of what type of build you’re using, you need to have a lot of carry weight so that you don’t have to regularly stop by merchants to sell items or, even more annoying, drop useful items onto the ground to make room for new items. For these reasons, Strong Back is one of the most useful Strength perks.
1 Heavy Gunner
Heavy Gunner is powerful because of how strong heavy weapons become during the end-game of Fallout 4. This perk grants you extra weapon damage with heavy weapons, and it is useful for weapons such as the Fatman, Missile Launcher, and Gatling Laser.
Although heavy weapons aren’t viable for the beginning of a new playthrough since ammo is scarce, by level 30 or 40, you can easily find enough heavy weapon ammo to use these powerful weapons, and you will also have enough caps to buy heavy weapon ammo from merchants. The Heavy Gunner perk is a must-have for players that want to create the strongest damage build in Fallout 4.
NEXT: Fallout 4: The 10 Best PS4 Mods, Ranked
