Axes Need Buffed

As it stands now, Axes are the severe underdog of all items. They have no special stat, and they don't do significantly more damage to compensate for that. If you watch the trading scene, you'll find that well-rolled Axes simply do not fetch the same prices as equivalently-rolled items of every other type. They're practically worthless. An otherwise good item like Kaom's Primacy barely sells for a few GCP (partly because one cannot use ground slam with it, unlike its counterpart Marohi Erqi - the other part revolves around Stun Duration/Threshold, which maces have in spades).

I sincerely hope that with the melee changes, that Axes will also receive some love via skills and abilities, but if you look at it from a current balance standpoint, there's a clear reason why Axes simply aren't as desirable: they have no Implicit Mod.

Swords get Accuracy.
Maces get Stun Duration.
Claws get Life Leech.
Daggers and Rapiers get Crit.
Staves get Block.
Wands and Spell Maces get Spell or Weapon Elemental Damage.

Bows are the only other weapons that don't have an implicit mod. I don't think they're hurting for a market or effectiveness, however, given than Bow users are incredibly well-represented.

Yet, somehow, the Axe was left out. Why? Axes have SLIGHTLY more top-end physical damage, but that's it. And it's clearly not enough to make them desirable. If prices are any indication, Axes are probably the most underpowered class of weapons in the game. Take an Axe and a Mace with identical mods, and the Mace will sell for at least 4-5x as much as the Axe.

Personally, I feel that this needs to change by giving Axes an implicit mod like most other weapons.

My suggestion for this Implicit Mod is "Grievous Wound". Essentially, give them a 10-20% (lower for 1H and higher for 2H) chance on hit to wound targets and apply a DoT effect. As to what this effect does, it could be one of many things. A X% of Physical Damage done over X time (like Deep Wounds in WoW). Or a X% of Max HP lost from target over X time. This is going off inspiration of the Axe itself - which is a weapon that has a very hefty amount of force applied to a small point on the blade edge. IRL, this is what Axes do - cut open huge gashes and otherwise cause grievous harm. What I'm describing should be familiar to just about everyone, it's just a Bleed.

On top of this, like some of the other weapons, this could be used as inspiration for changing or adding in new skill nodes that activate this mod, and new gems that provide the same effect. Axes would specialize this way, by having their nodes add chances to apply or increase the potency of the effect.

Right now, Axes are bland as hell and offer nothing to make them desirable or worth building around. They need changes, and need some love similar to what I've outlined above.

That would be kinda cool, but I'm thinking that the top end damage of the axes need to be raised (and maybe the low end daage lowered slightly) so that you can get HUGE hits with an axe without changing the dps too much.

The extra accuracy on slashing swords is also a pretty boring 'Implicit Mod'. Hopefully swords (especially 2h swords) and axes will get some love when GGG starts working seriously on melee balance.

I think axes should just have the most brute attack power compared to others. Like a +20% melee damage or something like that. It would fit their style most.

axes used to have the highest minimum damage, so RT owned with them dont know now tho. they still might

Axes and swords have been in need of a little spice for a long time, it's just that they're still viable so they were low or possibly not yet on GGG's priority table. My hope is that with the advent of OB, the scale of complaints gets magnified to bring this issue under GGG's spotlight, because buffing these would inherently improve melee.

Maybe they already do have plans for this, you never know with GGGsters.