One-handed axe

Bannerlord v1.4.8 · checked 2026-11-11 · updated 2026-11-12

This guide answers two questions for the one-handed axe: which piece moves which stat, and what the best design is for each goal when the highest piece tier you can use is 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5. The formulas were read out of the game's own code: they were recovered from v1.4.6 and compared method by method against v1.4.8, where none of the compared methods changed (some could only be compared by their headers; Value and price has the details). Rows labelled "NavalDLC" give the best result with NavalDLC active, which adds pieces and changes which pieces each weapon type can use; they are listed only where they beat the base game. How smithing works in general is in the Crafting guide; slots, usages and an example recipe are in Weapon templates.

Usages and damage

The one-handed axe has one usage, held in one hand, and three slots: blade, handle and pommel. It has no guard.

Blades: 29 in the base game, 45 with NavalDLC.
Swing damage factor: 2.1 to 4, depending on the blade.
Thrust: none. No axe blade has a thrust, so thrust damage is 0 and the damage comes from the swing alone.
Swing drag: 1.17 per unit of reach, the low drag of a one-handed grip.
Damage type: set by the blade.

Which piece drives which stat

Blade: sets the swing damage factor and the damage type, adds length, and counts most for difficulty.
Handle: adds weight and length. Weight far from your hand makes the axe harder to turn than weight near it.
Pommel: adds weight but no length. The game counts it as if it sat past the blade tip when it works out how hard the axe is to turn, so a heavy pommel costs handling and swing speed far beyond its weight.
Weight overall: swing strength grows with the weight, so a heavier axe usually hits harder. It also swings slower, and strength grows with the square of the swing speed.
Length overall: more length adds swing drag and turning weight, so a longer axe swings slower.

Smithing calculator

Every piece at scale 100. Pick a piece for each slot.

Loading pieces…

How far each goal goes

Best result with tier-1 pieces, then with tier-5 pieces:

Swing damage: 53, up to 87. NavalDLC is better at tier 2 (69), tier 3 (78) and tier 4 (84), but not at tier 5.
Swing speed: 100, up to 108 from tier 2 (111 with NavalDLC from tier 4).
Handling: 96, up to 107 from tier 2 (108 with NavalDLC from tier 4).
Length: 99, up to 120 from tier 3 (NavalDLC is better at tier 2 with 111).
Weight (lightest): 1.05 kg, down to 0.89 from tier 3 (0.78 with NavalDLC from tier 4).
Value: 362, up to 10,999 (NavalDLC is better at tier 2 with 1,121).

Best recipes by highest piece tier

Each row is the best design when no piece above that tier is allowed. A NavalDLC row is only listed where the result with NavalDLC active beats the base game.

One-handed axe usage

Goal	Highest piece tier	Pieces from	Blade	Handle	Pommel	Stat
Swing damage	1	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_20_handle	aserai_pommel_4	53
Swing damage	2	Base game	axe_craft_2_head	axe_craft_25_handle	aserai_pommel_4	66
Swing damage	2	NavalDLC	axe_craft_2_head	naval_axe_handle07	aserai_pommel_1	69
Swing damage	3	Base game	axe_craft_28_head	axe_craft_27_handle	aserai_pommel_1	77
Swing damage	3	NavalDLC	axe_craft_28_head	naval_axe_handle03	battania_pommel_6	78
Swing damage	4	Base game	axe_craft_11_head	axe_craft_27_handle	aserai_noble_pommel_1	83
Swing damage	4	NavalDLC	axe_craft_19_head	naval_axe_handle07	cleaver_pommel_4	84
Swing damage	5	Base game	axe_craft_8_head	axe_craft_16_handle	aserai_noble_pommel_1	87
Swing speed	1	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_20_handle	default_polearm_pommel	100
Swing speed	2	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_1	108
Swing speed	3	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_1	108
Swing speed	4	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_1	108
Swing speed	4	NavalDLC	naval_axe_head_06	axe_craft_33_handle	cleaver_pommel_4	111
Swing speed	5	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_1	108
Swing speed	5	NavalDLC	naval_axe_head_06	axe_craft_33_handle	cleaver_pommel_4	111
Handling	1	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_20_handle	default_polearm_pommel	96
Handling	2	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_2	107
Handling	3	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_2	107
Handling	4	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_2	107
Handling	4	NavalDLC	naval_axe_head_06	axe_craft_33_handle	cleaver_pommel_4	108
Handling	5	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_33_handle	aserai_pommel_2	107
Handling	5	NavalDLC	naval_axe_head_06	axe_craft_33_handle	cleaver_pommel_4	108
Length	1	Base game	sickle_blade_1	axe_craft_20_handle	aserai_pommel_2	99
Length	2	Base game	sickle_blade_1	axe_craft_2_handle	aserai_pommel_1	103
Length	2	NavalDLC	sickle_blade_1	naval_axe_handle07	aserai_pommel_1	111
Length	3	Base game	sickle_blade_1	axe_craft_18_handle	aserai_pommel_1	120
Length	4	Base game	sickle_blade_1	axe_craft_18_handle	aserai_pommel_1	120
Length	5	Base game	sickle_blade_1	axe_craft_18_handle	aserai_pommel_1	120
Weight (lightest)	1	Base game	axe_craft_32_head	axe_craft_20_handle	default_polearm_pommel	1.05
Weight (lightest)	2	Base game	axe_craft_20_head	axe_craft_15_handle	default_polearm_pommel	0.95
Weight (lightest)	3	Base game	axe_craft_12_head	axe_craft_23_handle	default_polearm_pommel	0.89
Weight (lightest)	4	Base game	axe_craft_12_head	axe_craft_23_handle	default_polearm_pommel	0.89
Weight (lightest)	4	NavalDLC	naval_axe_head_06	axe_craft_13_handle	default_polearm_pommel	0.78
Weight (lightest)	5	Base game	axe_craft_12_head	axe_craft_23_handle	default_polearm_pommel	0.89
Weight (lightest)	5	NavalDLC	naval_axe_head_06	axe_craft_13_handle	default_polearm_pommel	0.78
Value	1	Base game	axe_craft_37_head	axe_craft_20_handle	cleaver_pommel_1	362
Value	2	Base game	axe_craft_24_head	axe_craft_2_handle	spear_pommel_2	1,099
Value	2	NavalDLC	axe_craft_20_head	naval_axe_handle07	spear_pommel_2	1,121
Value	3	Base game	axe_craft_21_head	axe_craft_18_handle	spear_pommel_3	3,029
Value	4	Base game	axe_craft_18_head	axe_craft_17_handle	empire_noble_pommel_2	6,014
Value	5	Base game	axe_craft_9_head	axe_craft_16_handle	empire_noble_pommel_1	10,999

All pieces at scale 100. Weight in kg.

Line charts of the best one-handed axe result for each goal by highest piece tier, 1 to 5, every piece at scale 100, base game values in order. Swing damage 53, 66, 77, 83, 87 (NavalDLC better: tier 2 69, tier 3 78, tier 4 84); Swing speed 100, 108, 108, 108, 108 (NavalDLC better: 111 from tier 4); Handling 96, 107, 107, 107, 107 (NavalDLC better: 108 from tier 4); Length 99, 103, 120, 120, 120 (NavalDLC better: tier 2 111); Weight (lightest) 1.05, 0.95, 0.89, 0.89, 0.89 kg (NavalDLC better: 0.78 from tier 4); Value 362, 1,099, 3,029, 6,014, 10,999 (NavalDLC better: tier 2 1,121).

Every recipe here has every piece at scale 100, its default size. Scaling changes a piece's weight and length; see Scaling a piece in the crafting guide. What the solver research found about scale is in Getting the best weapon from your pieces.

Worked example. Your best pieces are tier 3 and you want the hardest swing. The table gives blade axe_craft_28_head, handle axe_craft_27_handle and pommel aserai_pommel_1, for swing damage 77. With NavalDLC the same blade with handle naval_axe_handle03 and pommel battania_pommel_6 gives 78.

Practical tips

Swing damage grows with every tier. It climbs from 53 to 87, and at tier 5 the base-game axe_craft_8_head is best: no NavalDLC piece improves on it.
Where NavalDLC helps. It has 45 blades instead of 29. Its recipes win swing damage at tiers 2 to 4, length and value at tier 2, and swing speed, handling and weight from tier 4.
Speed and handling need only tier 2. In the base game the fastest and best-handling axes from tier 2 are both built on axe_craft_37_head and axe_craft_33_handle.
For reach, use sickle_blade_1. Every longest design at every tier uses it; the handle sets the rest.