How to Get the Cleaver in Path of Exile: The Brutal One-Handed Axe

In Path of Exile, the journey to building the perfect character often involves tracking down specific weapon base types that complement your skill tree, playstyle, and build goals. Among the many deadly choices in the game's massive arsenal is the Cleaver—a brutal one-handed axe that offers a solid balance of speed and damage for players interested in melee-based or bleed-focused builds.

Whether you're early in your progression or building toward a crit-based slayer or berserker, the Cleaver can serve as a reliable weapon base that scales well with modifiers and crafting options. In this article, we'll cover everything you need to know about acquiring the Cleaver, its stats, and how to make the most of it in your build.

What Is the Cleaver?

The Cleaver is a one-handed axe base type that becomes available fairly early in the game. While not an endgame-tier base, it's a strong choice for mid-level characters looking for consistent physical damage output and critical strike opportunities.

Here are its base stats:

    Weapon Type: One-Handed Axe

    Physical Damage: 12-35

    Critical Strike Chance: 5.00%

    Attacks per Second: 1.30

    Weapon Range: 1.1 metres

    Required Level: 16

    Required Strength: 48

This places the Cleaver in a sweet spot between speed and raw damage. Its relatively high base physical DPS (30.6) makes it suitable for early crit or bleed builds, while the manageable stat requirement means you can equip it without sacrificing build flexibility.

How to Acquire the Cleaver

The Cleaver is a random drop item in Path of Exile, which means you'll need to rely on the game's loot system or vendor recipes to get one. Here's a breakdown of your options:

1. Natural Drops

    Drop Level: 16

    The Cleaver starts dropping naturally once you reach level 16 zones. This typically corresponds to Act 2, though it's possible to find one slightly earlier if you're over-leveled or pushing content aggressively.

    You can find it in:

        The Riverways

        The Western Forest

        The Weaver's Chambers

        Any other level 16+ area across the acts or maps

Given the randomness of item drops, you may need to farm a bit or keep an eye out during your campaign progression. Monsters, chests, strongboxes, and destructible containers in the appropriate level range can all potentially drop it.

2. Vendor Recipes (Crafting Option)

As of current game versions, there is no guaranteed vendor recipe to create a Cleaver specifically, but you can try vendor recipes that return magic or rare axes of appropriate item levels. Identifying these may lead you to a Cleaver.

3. Using Essences or Fossils

Once you have a Cleaver base, you can modify it using POE currency:

    Essences can add guaranteed modifiers (such as bleeding, attack speed, or critical chance)

    Fossil crafting (like Jagged Fossils) can skew toward physical damage, making the Cleaver even more powerful for certain builds

4. Buying from Other Players

If RNG isn't on your side, the Path of Exile trade system offers a reliable shortcut. Using the official trade site or third-party tools like Path of Exile Trade Macro, you can search for Cleavers with the right modifiers and purchase one directly from another player.

Cleaver Use Cases in Builds

The Cleaver's one-handed nature and balanced stats make it a versatile choice in several build archetypes, especially before you acquire high-tier bases like Royal Axes or Siege Axes.

Best-suited playstyles:

    Bleed Builds - Pair the Cleaver with modifiers that boost bleeding damage or duration. Its attack speed and physical base help stack bleeds quickly.

    Crit Melee Builds - A 5.00% crit base is solid early on, especially when paired with crit nodes from the passive tree.

    Dual-Wield Builds - Thanks to its manageable requirements, the Cleaver is often dual-wielded for builds focused on scaling physical or bleed damage.

    Leech-focused or Berserker Builds - Physical damage builds using Warcry synergies or Rage gain decent value from a fast-swinging Cleaver.

Optimizing Your Cleaver

To push your Cleaver to the next level, here are a few crafting and optimization tips:

    Upgrade to Rare - Use an Orb of Alchemy or Essences to convert it into a rare weapon with multiple modifiers.

    Target Key Affixes - Look for added physical damage, increased attack speed, chance to cause bleeding, or increased critical strike chance.

    Mastercrafting - Visit your hideout's crafting bench to add modifiers like "+1 to Melee Weapon Range" or "Attack Speed," if you've unlocked them.

    Corrupt It - Once you're satisfied with the base and mods, consider using a Vaal Orb for a powerful corruption. Just be aware that this adds risk.

    Link With Support Gems - Combine your Cleaver attack skill with support gems that multiply its effectiveness, such as Melee Physical Damage, Brutality, Multistrike, or Chance to Bleed.

Final Thoughts

The Cleaver may not be a top-tier weapon base in the late game, but for early and mid-game melee characters in Path of Exile, it's a reliable and flexible choice. Its solid damage, crit potential, and ease of acquisition make it a staple for players transitioning from leveling gear into more specialized builds.

Keep your eyes peeled starting in Act 2, and remember—you don't need a rare unique to deal serious damage. With the right crafting and modifiers, a humble Cleaver can carry you through much of Wraeclast.

MMOexp POE Team