Why Minecraft players don't need to worry about the mace being overpowered

While Minecraft's new mace weapon has a potent one-hit kill ability thanks to its smash attack, players who are concerned may want to pump the brakes a bit. Sure, the smash attack has a ton of potential to kill fully-geared players or even the Warden, but realizing the full potential of the mace is easier in theory than it may be in practice.

The mace's base damage in Minecraft is relatively comparable to a diamond sword when the smash attack isn't utilized, so simply having a mace in battle isn't exactly as overpowered as it may seem. When it comes down to it, the mace is only as strong as the player using it and how well they can execute the smash attack.

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Why Minecraft's mace isn't as overpowered as it seems

Minecraft's mace smash attack is tougher to land than it appears (Image via Mojang)

When used effectively, the mace in Minecraft may be in the running for the strongest melee weapon seen in the game so far. The smash attack, utilized while falling, gains 1.75 points of damage for each block a player has fallen. Moreover, a successful smash attack resets the fall damage counter, preventing players from taking too much fall damage after completing the attack.

Theoretically, falling 15 blocks before landing a smash attack is enough to kill a Minecraft player wearing a full suit of netherite armor enchanted with Protection IV. Meanwhile, falling 97 blocks is enough to kill the Warden in a single strike. Players can even build mace damage when using Elytra, and while this may make the case for the mace being overpowered, a lot has to go right to land a smash attack.

Since you can't change your direction well in the air without Elytra in Minecraft, landing even a simple smash attack can be foiled by the target simply taking a few steps in any direction. Moreover, the timing of landing a smash attack can be tricky and requires practice. Apart from this, those who miss the attack will take fall damage as well, putting them at a disadvantage in the ensuing combat on the ground.

The mace's standard attack is comparable to a diamond sword (Image via Mojang)

The thing is, without plenty of setup and timing practice, the mace isn't that different from a diamond sword. If the player isn't utilizing the smash attack effectively, a mace can easily be outclassed in ground combat by an enchanted diamond sword or even a base netherite sword, making the game's latest weapon far from threatening in a face-to-face battle.

Battle calculus changes when a player with a mace has access to Elytra or the ability to jump from a certain height and use the smash attack. However, given the practice needed to land smash attacks consistently and the fact that targets can easily sidestep an incoming smash attack, the mace likely won't be as overpowered as initially thought. All in all, it's a high-risk/high-reward weapon in Minecraft.