Choosing the right weapon for the right job is one of the core elements of success in Battle Brothers. With so many enemy types and situations, it helps to understand each weapon’s strengths, weaknesses, and signature traits. In this guide, we’ll go over every weapon category, how they function, and when they shine best.

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Spears

• +20 to hit chance with the standard attack.
• Excellent for low melee skill brothers and tanks who focus on defense.
• Suffers -50% damage vs. enemies resistant to piercing (e.g., Skeletons, Alps, Ifrits).
• Signature Ability: Spear Wall – Strikes enemies entering range (50% damage) and pushes them away. Excellent for crowd control and early game defense.

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Swords

• +10 to hit chance on basic attacks.
• No penalty against pierce-resistant enemies, unlike spears.
• Signature Ability: Riposte – Strikes any enemy that misses a melee attack against the user. Strong on high melee defense builds.

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Flails

• Ignores shield defense bonuses.
• Has a chance to hit the head—useful for looting undamaged body armor.
• Signature Ability: Lash – Guarantees a head hit if the attack lands. Great for fighting shielded brigands.

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Daggers

• Very light; no fatigue cost to carry, low attack fatigue cost.
• Can attack three times per turn with Dagger Mastery (without relying on perks like Berserk).
• Signature Ability: Puncture – Ignores armor, hits HP directly. Slightly reduced accuracy (-15%).
• Ideal for preserving loot—excellent against armored enemies when their armor must remain intact.

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Axes

• Solid all-rounders.
• High armor damage and bonus headshot damage.
• Signature Ability: Split Shield – 100% chance to destroy shields. Crucial for dealing with shield-heavy enemies.

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Maces

• Moderate armor damage, good armor penetration (ignores more armor).
• Inflicts +10 fatigue per hit on the enemy.
• Signature Ability: Stun – Stuns enemy for 1 turn (50% damage, 75% success chance without mastery).
• Excellent for controlling dangerous units and slowing enemy action economy.

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Cleavers

• Applies Bleed with each strike, ideal for enemies with large HP pools (e.g. Unholds).
• Signature Ability: Decapitate – Deals bonus damage based on lost HP and decapitates enemies on killing blow.
• Very effective vs. Zombies and large beasts to prevent reanimation.

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Whips

• Technically a cleaver-type, but behaves very differently.
• Attacks up to 3 tiles away with Bleed.
• Ineffective against armor but excellent for disabling spellcasters or ghosts.
• Signature Ability: Disarm – Prevents target from using their weapon for one turn.

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Hammers (War Picks)

• Deal 200% armor damage.
• Always do at least 10 HP damage regardless of armor.
• Signature Ability: Crush Armor – Even more armor damage; easily breaks heavy gear.
• Essential vs. Orc Warriors, Ancient Honor Guards, and heavily armored opponents.

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General Weapon Strategy by Game Phase

Early Game

• Focus on accuracy-enhancing weapons like:
  • Spears (+20 to hit)
  • Swords (+10 to hit)
• Hitting consistently matters more than high damage.

Mid to Late Game

• Once brothers have higher melee skill:
  • Shift to weapons with armor penetration or status effects.
  • Consider Maces, Hammers, or Cleavers.

Match Weapon to Enemy Type

• Spears – Great against beasts like Direwolves.
• Maces / Hammers – Excel vs. heavy armor (e.g. Orc Warriors, Honor Guards).
• Cleavers – Perfect for Undead, Zombies, and big HP enemies.
• Axes / Flails – Best for shielded enemies (destroy or ignore shields).

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Final Thoughts

You won’t always have perfect gear for the situation, but knowing each weapon’s strength lets you make smart decisions.

Equip weapons based on:

• Enemy type
• Brothers’ current stats
• Fatigue limits

Use accurate weapons to train low-skill bros and switch to power weapons as your campaign progresses.

Having a flexible and diverse armory ensures you’re always ready for the next fight.

Thanks for reading, and good luck leading your warband to victory!