Short Blades

Short Blades are knives, daggers and shivs. The group runs from the Hunting Knife and the Kitchen Knife to cutlery, scissors and stone knives. Every one of them trains the Short Blade skill. Many short blades are also the sharp knives that crafting and butchering need. The best occupations for short blades are the Burger Flipper, the Chef and the Doctor. Each starts with the same Short Blade skill.

All Weapons Categories

Best Short Blades

The top pick for each role, by the game's own figures.

For	Name	Image	Stats	Spawn ID
Hardest hitter	Fighting Knife		1.2 damage	/additem Base.FightingKnife
Longest reach	Bread Knife		1 range	/additem Base.BreadKnife
Best crit chance	Fighting Knife		50 crit chance	/additem Base.FightingKnife
Most durable	Sushi Knife		15 condition	/additem Base.KnifeSushi
Lightest to carry	Blunt Bone Knife		0.25 weight	/additem Base.DullBoneKnife

Skill and Leveling

The Short Blade skill covers every weapon in this group. Its in-game text says it increases attack speed and damage and reduces muscle strain. A higher level also raises the critical chance. It helps the character push off a zombie that grabs from the front.

Short Blade experience comes from hitting enemies with a short blade. Level 1 needs 75 XP. Level 10 needs 9,000 XP. Fast Learner raises the XP rate to 130 percent. Slow Learner lowers it to 70 percent, and Reluctant Fighter lowers it to 75 percent.

The skill adds flat bonuses at set levels. Level 3 adds 10 percent damage. Level 7 raises the damage bonus to 20 percent and adds 20 percent range. From level 8, each swing costs 10 percent less endurance.

Several starts give the skill a head start. The Burger Flipper, the Chef and the Doctor each begin with Short Blade 1. The Hunter trait adds Short Blade 1 as well.

Short blades have one special move, the jaw stab. A jaw stab kills a zombie in a single blow. Only short blades with a stabbing attack can do it. A higher Short Blade skill raises the chance of a jaw stab.

Damage and Reach

Short blades deal low damage and have short reach. The Hunting Knife, the Fighting Knife and the Handguard Dagger each deal 0.6 to 1.2 damage. All three have a 50 percent critical chance and reach 0.9. The Long Simple Metal Knife matches those numbers.

The Large Knife and the Machete Blade Knife each deal 0.6 to 1.1. The Long Stone Knife deals 0.7 to 1.1. The Kitchen Knife deals 0.3 to 0.7 with a 25 percent critical chance. Pocket knives, switchblades and butterfly knives each deal 0.3 to 0.6.

Cutlery barely counts as a weapon. Forks and spoons deal 0.1 damage. The Butter Knife deals 0.1 to 0.4. The Smashed Bottle deals 0.2 to 0.5 and breaks very fast.

Tools and Other Uses

Most short blades are tools as well as weapons. The Hunting Knife, the Kitchen Knife, the Large Knife and the Pocket Knife all count as sharp knives. Sharp knives cut plants, butcher animals and fill many crafting recipes. Carving wood and assembling tools both ask for one.

Some blades carry extra tools. The Multitool works as a can opener, a screwdriver and pliers. It can also remove bullets and glass from wounds. The Handiknife works as a can opener, a corkscrew, a screwdriver and an awl. The Ice Pick counts as an awl.

Knives also become spear heads. Bind Spear Head ties a knife to a Long Stick or a Sapling with Twine, Leather Strips or Zip Ties. The Hunting Knife, the Kitchen Knife, the Steak Knife and the Scissors all work. The spear then trains the Spear skill instead.

The Scalpel belongs to the first aid group, and it can be sharpened. Scissors and Crude Scissors cut fabric for tailoring. The Gardening Trowel and the Hand Fork dig furrows, and both can dig up worms.

Durability and Repair

Short blades vary a lot in condition. The Hunting Knife has 10 condition and a base 1 in 15 chance to lose a point per hit. The Kitchen Knife has 10 condition but only a 1 in 2 chance. It wears out after a few fights. The Railroad Spike Knife has 10 condition and a 1 in 15 chance.

Most metal knives are sharpenable. Sharpen Blade uses a Whetstone. Sharpen Blade Poorly with File uses a File. Sharpen Blade with Grindstone needs the Grindstone workstation. The Maintenance skill also lowers the chance of losing condition.

Crafting

The easiest blades need almost nothing. Make Shiv turns scrap metal or a piece of cutlery into a Shiv. Make Glass Shiv binds broken glass into a Glass Shiv. Make Toothbrush Shiv shapes a Toothbrush with a lighter and a file. All three need Maintenance 1. The Burglar occupation knows them from the start.

Stone and bone knives come from the wild. Knap Stone Blade turns a Sharp Flint Flake into a Stone Blade at Knapping 1. Knap Long Stone Blade needs Knapping 6. Assemble Crude Knife then fits the blade onto a Small Handle. Sharpen Long Bone makes a Long Sharp Bone at Carving 2.

Forged knives are the best. Forge Small Knife needs only Blacksmithing 1. Forge Large Knife Blade and Forge Kitchen Knife Blade need Blacksmithing 4. Forge Hunting Knife Blade needs Blacksmithing 5 and an Advanced Forge. Forge Handguard Dagger needs Blacksmithing 6. Make Scrap Metal Knife makes a Scrap Metal Large Knife with Welding 2.

Bone gives a quiet backup. Carve Blunt Bone Knife shapes a Sharp Bone Fragment into a Blunt Bone Knife at Carving 1. Forge Fine Butter Knives makes two Butter Knife items at Blacksmithing 2. Every forge recipe must be learned first, and the Blacksmith occupation knows most of them.

Locations

Kitchen Knives fill knife factories, knife stores, butcher shops and restaurant kitchens. Hunting Knives come from camping stores, gun store knife cases, army surplus stores and trapper cabins. Large Knives turn up in butcher shops, camping stores and hiker packs.

Switchblades sit in pawn shops, police evidence rooms and burglar tool bags. Butterfly knives turn up in the same pawn shops and evidence rooms. The Scalpel comes from medical storage, morgues and doctors' tools. The Handguard Dagger sits in medieval weapon displays. The Fighting Knife is rare in any loot.

Notes

• The Hunting Knife pairs top short blade damage with every sharp knife use.
• Each sharpening recipe gives 5 Maintenance XP.
• The Doctor occupation pairs First Aid 6 with Short Blade 1.

All Short Blades