Embracing randomness: Using --weird, --chaos, and --seed
Midjourney gives you the ability to introduce creative unpredictability into your image generation process—but with control. The Weirdness, Variety, and Seed parameters allow you to guide the model’s randomness in specific ways: whether to stylize with oddity, increase layout exploration, or stabilize a favorite image layout.
In this section, we’ll walk through how each parameter works, how it behaves across the Web and Discord interfaces, and how they can be used together for best results.
Weirdness: Encouraging stylistic experimentation
The --weird parameter (also written as --w) controls how creatively Midjourney interprets your prompt. Higher values make the result stranger and more abstract—while still respecting the original subject.
You can adjust this setting using the Weirdness slider in the Web UI under the Advanced settings panel. In Discord, you can add --weird or --w followed by a number at the end of your prompt. The valid range is from 0 to 3000.
Prompt:
anime style dog
Weirdness 0
With the default value, the output stays close to the expected aesthetic. The dog is cleanly drawn in traditional anime style, with simple colors, balanced proportions, and a plain background.
Weirdness 1500
At this level, the style becomes noticeably more stylized. The dog may have exaggerated features, expressive poses, and painterly shading. Background elements might start to take on surreal qualities—like glowing clouds or geometric halos.
This parameter is ideal when your subject is fixed but you want to explore new visual treatments. It’s particularly useful for fantasy, experimental art, or mood-driven illustrations.
Variety (Chaos): Exploring layout and composition options
The --chaos parameter (called Variety in the Web UI) determines how far Midjourney spreads its interpretation of your prompt across the four images in the grid.
You can adjust this value using the Variety slider in the Web UI, or by adding --chaos or --c in Discord. The available range is from 0 to 100. Lower values produce images with similar structure and detail. Higher values lead to greater differences in pose, perspective, and composition.
For example, with the same prompt “anime style dog” at Variety (Chaos) 50, you can get a wider variety of output images.
Seed: Reproducing structure and composition
Every time Midjourney generates an image, it begins with a unique random noise pattern called a seed. This seed serves as the foundation for the composition—impacting structure, pose, and overall layout. By reusing a seed, you can preserve this base structure while experimenting with changes to style, color, lighting, or descriptive elements.
In the Web interface, to retrieve the numeric seed, hover over a generated image and click the More button. Then select Copy → Seed. You can paste this seed into a new prompt to explicitly lock in the same layout. In the case below, you’ll get seed number 449428764.
In Discord, you can set a seed manually by appending --seed <number> to your prompt. Valid seed values range from 0 to 4,294,967,295. If you want to retrieve the seed from a previously generated image, react with the 📩 envelope emoji. The Midjourney bot will respond with the seed number and other image metadata via direct message.
To use the seed parameter, you’ll type in the prompt section, like below.
Prompt example:
anime style dog --seed 449428764
This prompt gives you similar output as the original images.
This feature is especially helpful when refining variations of a specific idea. Once you've found a layout you like, saving and reusing the seed allows you to develop stylistic variations without losing visual structure. It's also a valuable tool for side-by-side testing, as it isolates the effect of other parameters while holding the composition constant.
Practical case study
The best way to grasp how parameters like Weirdness and Chaos (Variety) influence Midjourney outputs is by reviewing side-by-side image comparisons. Websites like AI Compare Hub offer a helpful environment for this, allowing users to observe how subtle changes in values can significantly affect the outcome.
Below are several real examples based on the same prompt, where only the parameter settings were adjusted:
- Resting Lion Weird Test – Weirdness 0, 500, 1000, and 2000
- Floating Bear Chaos Test – Chaos 0 to 40
- Skybound Warrior & Emerald Dragon Chaos Test – Chaos 0 to 30
Each of these examples reflects how much influence a single parameter can have—even when everything else stays the same. For best results, experiment by changing only one variable at a time. Then combine them to push both composition and style in directions that support your creative goal.
The --weird, --chaos, and --seed parameters offer powerful ways to break free from repetition and spark surprising directions in your creative work. Whether you're chasing the unusual or just trying to pin down a result, learning how to use randomness as a tool—not just a byproduct—can make your Midjourney sessions more purposeful and expressive.