Blade Staff



The Blade Staff is an aerial melee Hardmode summon weapon. When summoned, an Enchanted Dagger appears suspended above the player's head, attacking enemies within range by flying toward and through them repeatedly at a fast pace. Its attacks ignore 25 enemy defense, making it more effective than its damage stat would normally indicate (including the ignored enemy defense, the Blade Staff's effective base damage is around 18). It has a 1/35 (2.86%) chance of being dropped by Enchanted Swords.

Its best modifiers are Demonic, Deadly, Mystic, or Hurtful. Unlike most summon weapons, the Blade Staff has no knockback, so it cannot obtain the Ruthless modifier. Due to its low base damage, all damage-improving modifiers improve its damage by the same amount.

Tips

 * Along with the Sanguine Staff, the Blade Staff's summons are far less clunky than most flying summons, as the daggers are capable of flying through terrain to chase enemies, and always track their target perfectly without colliding into blocks. This makes them especially effective for a dodge-focused playstyle, as the minions will deal consistent damage at a safe distance.
 * The daggers will return to the user's side immediately after combat, removing a common issue of most minion weapons where they will tend to get stuck behind blocks, which would block the minion's view and leave the user vulnerable.
 * Thanks to its ability to ignore a portion of enemy defense, the Blade Staff is a great weapon for summoners in early-to-mid Hardmode, as it is available as soon as Hardmode is initiated. However, considering the Blade Staff's low drop rate, the Spider Staff may be a better option to obtain first.
 * Due to the Blade Staff's unique quirks, it is most effective in the hands of a character specializing in summoning, especially when summoned in large numbers. Conversely, it is ineffective as a side minion for non-summoners, as its damage will be incredibly low without specialization (compared to the Spider Staff, it does roughly around 1/3rd of the Spider Staff's DPS).
 * The weapon's damage output can be greatly improved against enemies with more than 25 defense by applying Ichor or equipping a Shark Tooth Necklace. Summon tag damage also drastically improves its damage output: Snapthorn is the best option before taking on Hardmode bosses. Firecracker is less useful due to the explosion damage being based on the Blade Staff's own damage, which is relatively low.
 * This makes the Blade Staff particularly effective against the Twins.
 * Because of its rapid attack rate, it is an effective summon for killing a Dungeon Guardian. Note that despite its defense-ignoring abilities, the knife will still do 1 damage per hit (as the Dungeon Guardian has 9999 defense, while the knives ignore only 25 defense).

Trivia

 * Despite being a Hardmode drop, the Blade Staff has the lowest base damage out of all summon weapons.
 * Along with the Stardust Dragon Staff, Desert Tiger Staff and Raven Staff, the Blade Staff is one of 4 summon weapons whose buff description is not "(Minion) will fight for you," instead being "Death by a thousand cuts."
 * "Death by a thousand cuts" was a torture and execution method used in Imperial China.