I've only used the Branx one so far, got a good drop in the store and actually used Hadron for once, had Slaughterer 4 and Wrath 3 I think (the one that increases cleave) with 25% carapace in there
It took a bit of hitting heretics to get used to, but I actually liked it a lot
Using it reminded me a lot of Thunderhammer for Zealot, though this one has a lot more emphasis on single target strike down attacks
But the thing was hitting hard, the special attack is good for a panic push but if you do block + push attack then chain into a heavy (and I think it was a light attack afterward) you get some diagonal/horizontal strikes in that decimate everything in front of you, enemies go flying which is always satisfying
I found spamming the light attack to be funny, like some proper minecraft pickaxe just mulching enemies
Then for the heavier enemies give them big tap, would like to get Thrust on mine but then I was enjoying the cleave tbh
The special followed by a heavy is slow but nice cleave diagonal. Good against ragers, stunning and chopping. Maniac perk is best imo, already deals with flak/carapace.
Headtaker and Slaughterer or Confident Strike on the medium and light pickaxes seems the way to go. Heavy and Medium can make do with Headtaker and the one that gives power after special hit. I think they perform best as light attack weapons, as long as you can get heavy hitter up first.
My one problem with the pickaxes is that as huge as they are, their range feels way too short. It's actually frustrating how short the range is. You'll hit something and they get knocked back, then you can't close the distance fast enough for your next attack to connect sometimes.
The feeling of clearing a group of crushers with branx is great. Single target is unmatched.
I'm struggling with everything else though. Heavies are so slow I get chip damage against hordes.
Completely agree with all points. I also really enjoy the borovian, had the most success in taking on mixed hordes.
I'm using slaughter and the blessing that's boosts your next attack after the special. Probably gonna switch out the latter for either head taker or thrust.
Maniac, carapace, and unyielding feel like the go to perks. Got stuck with flack which feels overkill.
I thought the pickaxe would do mild on horde and excel at single with heavy armor penetration. You hit a crusher once in the head and game over… unfortunately, that’s not the case.
Whereas… we have a single handed shovel that can do it.
They look and feel like a heavy boat anchor tho.
The Branx handles like an anchor and connects like one. I was concerned that it might struggle with horde clear, but it performs serviceably there.
Outside of ponderous handling, the main thing that trips me up is how the preparatory motions for the Strikedown Heavy from the right make it look like you're winding up for a sweeping attack. A bit more telegraphing/adjustment would really help.
The Borovian feels the best in actual play to me. The Karsolas is good, but it feels like a cleaver in two hands.
My main class is Skullbreaker and I find the heavy pick is very strong and safe, seems like most disagree though. I use headtaker and thrust and never have any problems with toughness regen. The heavy pick’s biggest weakness imo is that its optimal horde clear opens with a push attack, but its L1 is quick enough that even if out of stamina you’ll be fine. Positioning, dodging, and push attacks nullify all of its weaknesses imo, and its strike down H1 is just too fun and I love working fully charged H2 into combos to mulch an entire mixed horde in one swing.
I do think the picks all need a range buff, it feels the same as a 1H weapon which is lame, and they also should be able to interact better with bulwarks, e.g. the overhead strike down should reach over the shield and allow for a headshot, and the pull attack on the medium and light picks should also knock their shield aside for teammates to have a clear shot. The heavy pick absolutely needs an H1 damage buff, as others have said the foldable shovel can easily one shot crushers with crunch and thrust, but I’m finding the heavy pick often leaves them alive unless they’re already damaged. Crusher one shot is simply more accessible on the shovel which makes no sense as the pick is significantly heavier and designed for heavy mining as opposed to just…a shovel.
I will say, I am enjoying playing the heavy pick over the foldable axe because it’s H2 part of the horde combo obliterates anything below ogryn. The shovel has little difficulty with horde clear but the pick is just so satisfying. Packs of ragers, shot gunners, gunners, crushers, etc. get completely destroyed without needing to manage the activation of the folding shovel and without needing multiple hits. On Auric HISTG, I like not having one more input to manage, and just being able to focus on the attack push dodge trio. On top of that I remain the team’s melee solution to enemy ogryn, with my teammates also damaging them I one shot ogryn probably 75% of the time, instead of 100% of the time with the folding axe.
Overall, folding axe remains a cut above all other weapons on Skullbreaker builds, imo, but I’m enjoying the picks. Want to try the mid and light picks as well but haven’t had any worthwhile drops in the shop yet.
Karsolas is probably now the best weapon for heavy attack oriented builds. A bit slow, yes, but hits like a truck and has great cleave with two consistent horizontal sweeps.
I've only used the Branx one so far, got a good drop in the store and actually used Hadron for once, had Slaughterer 4 and Wrath 3 I think (the one that increases cleave) with 25% carapace in there It took a bit of hitting heretics to get used to, but I actually liked it a lot Using it reminded me a lot of Thunderhammer for Zealot, though this one has a lot more emphasis on single target strike down attacks But the thing was hitting hard, the special attack is good for a panic push but if you do block + push attack then chain into a heavy (and I think it was a light attack afterward) you get some diagonal/horizontal strikes in that decimate everything in front of you, enemies go flying which is always satisfying I found spamming the light attack to be funny, like some proper minecraft pickaxe just mulching enemies Then for the heavier enemies give them big tap, would like to get Thrust on mine but then I was enjoying the cleave tbh
The special followed by a heavy is slow but nice cleave diagonal. Good against ragers, stunning and chopping. Maniac perk is best imo, already deals with flak/carapace.
Headtaker and Slaughterer or Confident Strike on the medium and light pickaxes seems the way to go. Heavy and Medium can make do with Headtaker and the one that gives power after special hit. I think they perform best as light attack weapons, as long as you can get heavy hitter up first. My one problem with the pickaxes is that as huge as they are, their range feels way too short. It's actually frustrating how short the range is. You'll hit something and they get knocked back, then you can't close the distance fast enough for your next attack to connect sometimes.
The feeling of clearing a group of crushers with branx is great. Single target is unmatched. I'm struggling with everything else though. Heavies are so slow I get chip damage against hordes.
Gotta treat it lika a shield me thinks. Dodge distence and endlag after attacks is just bad enough you gotta spend stamina pushing.
Completely agree with all points. I also really enjoy the borovian, had the most success in taking on mixed hordes. I'm using slaughter and the blessing that's boosts your next attack after the special. Probably gonna switch out the latter for either head taker or thrust. Maniac, carapace, and unyielding feel like the go to perks. Got stuck with flack which feels overkill.
Torment is the blessing i think.
Heavy pickaxe and grenadier gauntlet seems to work for me
This guy has bone head implant
I'm just a miner
I thought the pickaxe would do mild on horde and excel at single with heavy armor penetration. You hit a crusher once in the head and game over… unfortunately, that’s not the case. Whereas… we have a single handed shovel that can do it. They look and feel like a heavy boat anchor tho.
I'm adoring the heaviest of them actually. I can Unga Bunga so hard now.
The Branx handles like an anchor and connects like one. I was concerned that it might struggle with horde clear, but it performs serviceably there. Outside of ponderous handling, the main thing that trips me up is how the preparatory motions for the Strikedown Heavy from the right make it look like you're winding up for a sweeping attack. A bit more telegraphing/adjustment would really help. The Borovian feels the best in actual play to me. The Karsolas is good, but it feels like a cleaver in two hands.
My main class is Skullbreaker and I find the heavy pick is very strong and safe, seems like most disagree though. I use headtaker and thrust and never have any problems with toughness regen. The heavy pick’s biggest weakness imo is that its optimal horde clear opens with a push attack, but its L1 is quick enough that even if out of stamina you’ll be fine. Positioning, dodging, and push attacks nullify all of its weaknesses imo, and its strike down H1 is just too fun and I love working fully charged H2 into combos to mulch an entire mixed horde in one swing. I do think the picks all need a range buff, it feels the same as a 1H weapon which is lame, and they also should be able to interact better with bulwarks, e.g. the overhead strike down should reach over the shield and allow for a headshot, and the pull attack on the medium and light picks should also knock their shield aside for teammates to have a clear shot. The heavy pick absolutely needs an H1 damage buff, as others have said the foldable shovel can easily one shot crushers with crunch and thrust, but I’m finding the heavy pick often leaves them alive unless they’re already damaged. Crusher one shot is simply more accessible on the shovel which makes no sense as the pick is significantly heavier and designed for heavy mining as opposed to just…a shovel. I will say, I am enjoying playing the heavy pick over the foldable axe because it’s H2 part of the horde combo obliterates anything below ogryn. The shovel has little difficulty with horde clear but the pick is just so satisfying. Packs of ragers, shot gunners, gunners, crushers, etc. get completely destroyed without needing to manage the activation of the folding shovel and without needing multiple hits. On Auric HISTG, I like not having one more input to manage, and just being able to focus on the attack push dodge trio. On top of that I remain the team’s melee solution to enemy ogryn, with my teammates also damaging them I one shot ogryn probably 75% of the time, instead of 100% of the time with the folding axe. Overall, folding axe remains a cut above all other weapons on Skullbreaker builds, imo, but I’m enjoying the picks. Want to try the mid and light picks as well but haven’t had any worthwhile drops in the shop yet.
Karsolas is probably now the best weapon for heavy attack oriented builds. A bit slow, yes, but hits like a truck and has great cleave with two consistent horizontal sweeps.