Everyone Has an Axe to Grind

Melvia Siebel doesn’t look the part, but she’s an experienced adventurer with immense strength. In addition to her absurdly large axe, she carries a cheerful attitude with her wherever she goes. Mel is able to dispatch monsters with ease and takes a lax approach to battle. Despite her dangerous line of work, she loves to joke around and never misses the opportunity to lighten the mood with a well-placed comedic remark. Mel was born with incredible power and the idea of physical weakness is a foreign concept to her. She’s reckless, lazy, cocky, and undisciplined, but she legitimately wants to protect others and has the ability to do so. Mel stands out on a list that’s dominated by giant warriors and saturated with masculinity, but her freakish strength would allow her to stand toe to toe with anyone.

It’s highly unusual for a dainty high school student to arm themselves with a giant battle axe, but Labrys is no ordinary girl. In truth, she’s an experimental test android who was designed with the capacity to grow both mentally and emotionally. She desires to be a normal schoolgirl and believes herself to be the president of the student council, but her daily routine mostly consists of combat exercises that pit her against similar androids. The mechanical maiden was known as Unit #031 by the researchers, and her proficiency with her axe is well documented. Whether she’s sending her enemies flying into the air or devastating them with unblockable swings, Labrys’ strength should not be taken lightly. Her axe is also equipped with thrusters which allow her to fly and add even more momentum to her swings.

Broxigar the Red is an orc warrior who played an important role in the War of the Ancients. A veteran of the First, Second, and Third Wars, Brox gained notoriety for defending a vital mountain pass against hordes of demon invaders. Brox was the only orc left standing when the battle was over, and his comrades had all fallen to the enemy. After forming an unlikely bond with the night elves, Brox was bestowed with an axe made from wood with the sharpness and density of a diamond. In Brox’s hands, this new axe was the instrument of death for thousands of unfortunate demons. Although Brox was honored by his people, he sought a noble and glorious death in battle. Brox eventually went down in a blaze of glory after using his magical axe to injure the giant Sargeras en route to stopping another demon invasion.

Deego’s life spiraled out of control after a mission went awry. During an assignment to eliminate smugglers, Deego killed many innocent people and his targets ended up being children on a civilian vessel. His right arm was torn off in the midst of the chaos, but it was his psyche that took the most damage. Following the incident, the once strong-willed soldier became full of cowardice and began drinking his life away. Deego was content to stay at the bar forever, but he had no other option but to leave since his friend kept getting himself into trouble. Deego arms himself with portable cannons and other guns, but his primary weapon is the massive axe he wields with his cybernetic arm. The oversized weapon symbolizes the heavy burdens that Deego has, and both are carried on his back for the world to see… or maybe he just likes to wreck shit.

Before ultimately taking the title of Axe, Mogul Khan he was a lowly grunt in the Army of Red Mist. His violent acts of carnage helped distinguish him from his comrades, and his rise through the ranks was further accelerated by his willingness to decapitate his superiors. By the time he declared himself the new Red Mist General, there were no troops left to support him. This was no concern to him, and he was happy to proceed as a one-man army. Axe is a bloodthirsty warrior who lives for battle and thrives on chaos. He often taunts his opponents and provokes them into launching an attack because he knows he’s capable of disabling, damaging, and completely decimating entire groups of enemies single-handedly. Those foolish enough to engage Axe are likely to find themselves on the receiving end of his culling blade.

While most of his contemporaries are refined swordsmen, Hector is the first and only Lord in the Fire Emblem series that arms himself with axes. Axes are not the most elegant weapons, and this is especially apparent with Hector’s self-taught style. His techniques are rash and even a little dangerous at times, but his raw power and physical durability is almost unmatched. He’s extremely confident in his abilities, and proudly proclaims that “a little too much” is just enough for him. Although he’s not adverse to diplomacy, Hector is more than happy to settle things on the battlefield. He happily leaps into the air to deliver devastating blows and has enough strength to throw his axes around like boomerangs. Other Fire Emblem characters were considered for this list, but Hector best exemplifies what being an axe wielder is all about.

After he was orphaned as a child, Darius had to fight to survive. He had developed the strength and discipline of a veteran soldier before he even joined the military, and his service career was defined by his refusal to give up under any circumstances. When he was ordered by his superiors to stand down in a crucial battle, an exhausted Darius beheaded his commander with one clean swing of his giant axe. His comrades were equally terrified and inspired, but Darius led them to a grueling victory against the enemy forces. Darius is known to injure his opponents with crippling strikes and decimate entire groups by swinging his axe in a wide circle. He also uses his blade as a makeshift guillotine when the situation calls for it. The battle-hardened warrior is Noxian’s greatest champion, and there is no better symbol for his nation’s might.

As a seasoned roadie and a wannabe rock star, the “axes” used by Eddie Riggs were usually guitars. After being whisked away to a world inspired by heavy metal album art, Eddie found himself in need of a literal axe. Eddie arms himself with a double-sided battle axe called the Separator. The axe was being worshiped by druids when he found it in a temple, but he took it as a weapon in the name of self defense. He defended his decision to take the axe by explaining that “It was just sitting there.” The Separator is an effective melee weapon that lends itself well to combination attacks. It can also be augmented in different ways and infused with fire or lightning. In addition to its effectiveness in battle, the Separator also earns extra style points for having “Hot Rod”-esque flames on the flat surfaces of the blade.

The golem Astaroth was forged in hellish fires by the god of war, Ares. He was ultimately tasked to find a demonic sword called the Soul Edge to help Ares in his bid to overthrow Zeus. Astaroth had little use for the blade himself, however, given how effective he was with his oversized axe. As his size would suggest, Astaroth is one of the most powerful characters in the SoulCalibur universe. His incredible mass slows him down somewhat, but he makes up for it with long range attacks and devastating strength. A behind-the-scenes power struggle led to different entities possessing Astaroth at different times, but he left destruction in his path regardless of who was pulling his strings. The hard-hitting giant is sometimes seen as a crutch for mediocre players, but there’s no denying that Astaroth is among the most iconic characters in the series.

It was pretty much a given that someone from Sega’s seminal hack ‘n slash series would make their way onto this list. After all, its entire premise revolves around a legendary axe which is said to grant great power to those that wield it. The dwarf Gilius Thunderhead is armed with an axe during the games (and a golden one, at that) but it’s not the axe referenced in the game’s title. The eponymous Golden Axe actually belongs to the villainous Death Adder. A monstrous figure hidden behind a horrifying mask, Death Adder is the embodiment of evil. With the power of the Golden Axe, Death Adder imprisoned the king and his daughter before unleashing an army of minions to enslave the entire country. Death Adder is one of the most memorable villains of his era, and the long range of his axe makes him a dangerous rival.