

With crit factored in, Pickaxe Axe puts out 312.0 DPS against 206.7 for Cutlass — about 51% more damage per second. Base hits are Cutlass 53 vs Pickaxe Axe 35, so the gap comes as much from attack speed and crit as from raw damage.
Pickaxe Axe swings faster at a 7-tick use time versus 16, so it lands on-hit debuffs like ichor, procs set bonuses, and reapplies knockback more often — an edge the flat DPS figure understates.
For crowd control, Pickaxe Axe hits with more knockback (4.75 vs 4), keeping enemies at range while you reposition.
Both are Melee weapons, so the same armor set and class accessories buff either one — you can swap between them without rebuilding your loadout.
| Stat | Cutlass | Pickaxe Axe |
|---|---|---|
| Damage | 53 | 35 |
| Use time | 16 ticks | 7 ticks |
| Crit chance | 4% | 4% |
| Knockback | 4 | 4.75 |
| Defense | 0 | 0 |
| Mana cost | 0 | 0 |
| Shoot speed | 0 | 0 |
| Sells for | 3 60 | 4 40 |
Cutlass averages 206.7 DPS with crit. Pickaxe Axe averages 312.0 DPS with crit. Pickaxe Axe is ahead by 105.3 DPS.
Pickaxe Axe has the shorter 7-tick use time, so it attacks faster than Cutlass at 16 ticks.
Yes — both are Melee weapons and share the same armor and accessory bonuses.
Yes — both belong to the early-hardmode tier.