The Sims 4 Skills and Emotions

Faster Skill Gains and Better Results when in the Best Mood.

The Sims 4's Skill System ties directly to Emotions. When you use a Skill, being in the Ideal Emotion helps raise the rate at which you'll gain Skill Levels. This has been proven by Forum Moderator Nutella who did some testing comparing results between Very Happy and Very X for each Skill. Being near 'Very' Emotions does not help - you need to be all the way to Very Inspired, Very Happy, etc. However, do know that Very Happy or just Happy are good Moods for Skilling, as they affect all Skills in a positive way, allowing you to gain levels faster.

Skills' Ideal Moods for Gaining Levels Faster

Here are all the Skills and their Ideal Moods. Being in the Ideal Mood will boost Skill Level gain over Happy by about 20%, depending on the Skill. I must thank Member DarkWalker for providing the actual numbers. On each, you will see a link to an Emotion Guide to help you get that Emotion. Read the main Guide to Emotions to understand how the system works, getting Emotional Auras, Teas, and how Happiness boosts all other Positive Emotions. Happiness increases Skill gains by 20% when Happy and 40% when Very Happy, so it's helpful to all Skills.

Muser - Note all the Skills that are boosted by Muser, which is a Bonus Trait for selecting a Creativity Aspiration for your Sim upon creation. This boosts many Creative Skills and also raises effective level, as seen below!

Skills, Emotions and Best Results

Now, all those Emotions will help your Sims make it to level 10. Forum Member Darkwalker submitted some interesting data from the game that helps us understand what Emotions do to Skills. Being under the effects of an Emotion will raise your Sim's effective Skill level, meaning they are more likely to produce higher quality items (Painting, Writing) or have a lesser chance of failure (Charisma, getting shocked with Handiness). Negative Emotions may boost some Skills, but drain others dramatically as in the case of Dazed. Thankfully, it's clear that these can boost your Sim past the max of 10, as evidenced by the increased rate of Masterpieces or Bestsellers when Very Inspired.

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Obviously, the Ideal Emotion is usually best, but based on this information you may not worry if your Sim is confident and working on a Skill that doesn't require it. Every Emotion has impacts on Skills' effective levels as follows:

Happy : +1 to all Skills, +2 if Very Happy

: +1 to all Skills, +2 if Very Happy Confident : +1 to all Skills, +2 to Charisma. +2 to all Skills if Very Confident

: +1 to all Skills, +2 to Charisma. +2 to all Skills if Very Confident Energized : +2 to all Physical Skills, +3 when very Energized.

: +2 to all Physical Skills, +3 when very Energized. Flirty : +1 to Charisma, +2 if Very Flirty

: +1 to Charisma, +2 if Very Flirty Focused : +2 to all Mental Skills, +3 if Very Focused

: +2 to all Mental Skills, +3 if Very Focused Inspired : +2 to all Creative Skills, +3 if Very Inspired. With Muser (bonus Trait for Creative Aspirations) it is +3/+4!

: +2 to all Creative Skills, +3 if Very Inspired. With Muser (bonus Trait for Creative Aspirations) it is +3/+4! Playful : +2 to Comedy, +1 to Charisma. +3 to Comedy if Very Playful, +4 to Comedy if Hysterical (but can be Dangerous)

: +2 to Comedy, +1 to Charisma. +3 to Comedy if Very Playful, +4 to Comedy if Hysterical (but can be Dangerous) Angry : -1 to Creative, Mental Skills and Charisma, +1 to Mischief/Physical, Furious is -2 Creative/Mental/Charisma and +2 Mischief/Physical. +3 if Enraged, but the others suffer -3. Being Enraged can be dangerous, as it is near the border for Killing a Sim.

: -1 to Creative, Mental Skills and Charisma, +1 to Mischief/Physical, Furious is -2 Creative/Mental/Charisma and +2 Mischief/Physical. +3 if Enraged, but the others suffer -3. Being Enraged can be dangerous, as it is near the border for Killing a Sim. Bored : -1 to All Skills

: -1 to All Skills Dazed : -3 to All Skills

: -3 to All Skills Embarrassed : -1 to Social Skills.

: -1 to Social Skills. Sad : -1 to all Skills except Creative, which gets +1. Depressed makes it -2 and removes the bonus to Creative. If your Sim has the Gloomy Trait, you get a +2 Bonus when Depressed. Sad is not a dangerous Emotion.

: -1 to all Skills except Creative, which gets +1. Depressed makes it -2 and removes the bonus to Creative. If your Sim has the Gloomy Trait, you get a +2 Bonus when Depressed. Sad is not a dangerous Emotion. Tense : -1 to all Skills, -2 if Very Tense.

: -1 to all Skills, -2 if Very Tense. Uncomfortable: -1 to all Skills, -2 if Very Uncomfortable

This should teach you how to use Emotions to benefit your Sim, and maybe go ahead and work on something without being in the Ideal Emotion at times. Emotions do have a massive impact on Skills as evidenced above. You can thank DarkWalker for providing the valuable data here.

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