Insect Head
| Insect Head | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Weapon |
| Type | Sword |
| Level | 6 |
| Damage | 20-30 |
| Crit Chance | 4% |
| Stats | Speed (+2); Crit. Chance (+2) |
| Location | Adventurer's Guild |
| Price | 10000g |
The Insect Head is a trophy before it is a weapon. Gil hands it over once eighty cave insects have been killed, and it is exactly what the name promises: the head of a bug, mounted on a handle, unpleasant to hold and strangely effective. It hits for 20 to 30 with two points of extra swing speed, and its critical chance is double what almost every other sword carries. Marlon keeps a second one on the shelf for 10,000g afterwards, which is a lot of money for a souvenir. Most farms earn it by accident, since the insects that count for it are the ones that swarm the early Mines anyway.
The in-game description reads: Not very pleasant to wield.
Location
The monster eradication list hangs on the wall to the right of Marlon's desk in the Adventurer's Guild, and the cave insect line asks for eighty kills. Bugs, Cave Flies, Grubs, Mutant Flies, Mutant Grubs and Armored Bugs all count, along with their dangerous versions. Gil sits by the fire and hands the reward over, so a free inventory slot is needed before talking to him.
The Mines supply most of the count on their own. Bugs appear from the first floors, Grubs and Cave Flies from around the eleventh, and the infested floors that spawn nothing but monsters are the fastest places to rack kills up.
The Mutant Bug Lair is quicker still for anyone who has been through the Dark Talisman quest for the Wizard. Krobus opens the passage in the north west corner of the Sewers, and the lair beyond is full of Mutant Grubs and Mutant Flies. Armored Bugs cannot be killed at all without the Bug Killer enchantment, so those are best left alone until a Prismatic Shard has gone into the Forge.
Once the goal is met the weapon can be bought again from Marlon at any time, which is how a sold or binned Insect Head comes back.
Stats
Critical hits are the whole argument. Nearly every sword in the game sits at two percent, and the Insect Head starts at four, with a further small boost built into its stats on top. Over a long fight that turns into noticeably more spikes of triple damage than a comparable blade produces.
The base damage is honest rather than impressive. Twenty to thirty matches the Bone Sword, which Marlon sells for a good deal less than the Insect Head's replacement price and which swings faster still. The two points of extra speed here keep the weapon pleasant, but they do not close that gap.
Knockback is the standard value, so monsters are nudged and stay within reach. For a weapon whose case rests on volume of hits, that is the right behaviour: a scattered crowd means fewer swings landing.
The sword's blocking stance works as it does on any blade, absorbing a hit and knocking flying monsters back, which is useful on the Cave Fly floors where the kill count is usually earned.
Notes
Bug Killer is the enchantment the weapon seems designed for, doubling damage against grubs, flies, bugs, spiders and rock crabs. Pairing it with the Insect Head is mostly a joke, but it is a genuinely strong combination for anyone grinding the Dust Sprite or insect goals.
For a serious critical build, Aquamarine at the Forge raises the chance further and Jade raises the damage each critical hit does. Three forges are allowed, and the Insect Head is one of the few mid-game swords where stacking Aquamarine makes real sense, because it starts from twice the usual base.
Level six also keeps the innate enchantments available, since those stop at level ten. A roll of extra critical power turns the sword's frequent crits into heavy ones, which is the cheapest way to make the trophy worth carrying past the Mines.
All Swords
Every entry in this group, with its key details.
| Name | Image | Type | Level | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bone Sword | 
|
Sword | 5 | 20-30 |
| Claymore | 
|
Sword | 5 | 20-32 |
| Cutlass | 
|
Sword | 3 | 9-17 |
| Dark Sword | 
|
Sword | 9 | 30-45 |
| Dragontooth Cutlass | 
|
Sword | 13 | 75-90 |
| Dwarf Sword | 
|
Sword | 13 | 65-75 |
| Forest Sword | 
|
Sword | 3 | 8-18 |
| Galaxy Sword | 
|
Sword | 13 | 60-80 |
| Haley's Iron | 
|
Sword | 6 | 30-45 |
| Holy Blade | 
|
Sword | 7 | 20-27 |
| Infinity Blade | 
|
Sword | 17 | 80-100 |
| Insect Head | 
|
Sword | 6 | 20-30 |
| Iron Edge | 
|
Sword | 3 | 12-25 |
| Lava Katana | 
|
Sword | 10 | 55-64 |
| Leah's Whittler | 
|
Sword | 6 | 30-45 |
| Meowmere | 
|
Sword | 4 | 20-20 |
| Neptune's Glaive | 
|
Sword | 5 | 18-35 |
| Obsidian Edge | 
|
Sword | 6 | 30-45 |
| Ossified Blade | 
|
Sword | 6 | 26-42 |
| Pirate's Sword | 
|
Sword | 2 | 8-14 |
| Rapier | 
|
Sword | 4 | 15-25 |
| Rusty Sword | 
|
Sword | 1 | 2-5 |
| Silver Saber | 
|
Sword | 2 | 8-15 |
| Steel Falchion | 
|
Sword | 8 | 28-46 |
| Steel Smallsword | 
|
Sword | 1 | 4-8 |
| Tempered Broadsword | 
|
Sword | 7 | 29-44 |
| Templar's Blade | 
|
Sword | 5 | 22-29 |
| Wooden Blade | 
|
Sword | 1 | 3-7 |
| Yeti Tooth | 
|
Sword | 7 | 26-42 |