Warhammer 40K Space Marine 2 brings in more action than its predecessors. The missions in Space Marine 2 are all the more challenging, and you need to push back against the Tyranid enemies and save the Imperium. With all the new features and stats added in the game, while picking up a weapon, you might be wondering what is Cleaving Potential.
In this guide we will take a look at what exactly is Cleaving Potential in Space Marine 2, and how it impacts combat.
Space Marine 2 Cleaving Potential Explained
Cleaving Potential is basically the range and effectiveness of a melee weapon while hitting multiple enemies in one go. This stat affects how many enemies can be hit within the damage area made by a single swing of the melee weapon. The damage area is in proportion to the stat level of the weapon’s Cleaving Potential, so the higher the stat, the bigger the damage area. This stat is something to look into if you are dealing with hordes of enemies and need to cover a larger AoE. Cleaving Potential does not indicate the damage output, so any enemy that comes within your damage radar will take the same amount of damage if hit
Usually the damage AoE will be around you or in front of you, depending on the weapon you pick. A weapon’s movesets and speed determine the area of effectiveness, even if multiple weapons have the same Cleaving Potential. You can check whether a particular melee weapon is suited for groups or singular enemies by checking out the bar at the bottom of the weapon’s stats. So if two weapons share the same Cleaving Potential stat, the speed of the weapon and moveset varying between heavy and light attacks is what will differentiate the damage area of a melee weapon.
Weapons With The Best Cleaving Potential In Space Marine 2
Below are the Cleaving Potential stats of all melee weapons available in Space Marine 2
- Power Fist (Aggamedes’s Gift – Gamma): Cleaving Potential 7
- Power Sword (Warden Blade – Alpha): Cleaving Potential 7
- Thunder Hammer (Ophelian Liberation – Gamma): Cleaving Potential 6
- Chainsword: Cleaving Potential 4
- Combat Knife: Cleaving Potential 2
While the Chainsword has a low Cleaving Potential stat, it does have faster attacking speed. The Power Fist, on the other hand, can be harder to use because of its Blocking Defense stat. That means you need to rely more on blocking and dodging rather than parrying while using the Power Fist. The same applies to the Thunder Hammer, and also this weapon has a slow swing rate as its attack speed is quite low.
The Power Sword is the more balanced of all the weapons mentioned above, as it has high attack speed and high Cleaving Potential. The only thing you need to keep an eye out for is the Blocking defense stat. The Combat Knife has the worst Cleaving Potential of the lot, and you might have a hard time against groups or mobs. The weapon is made for taking out elite enemies and dishing high damage to bosses.
Does Cleaving Potential Matter In Space Marine 2?
In a nutshell, Cleaving Potential implies the damage AoE of a melee weapon, but does not track the damage output of said weapon. With that said, keeping Cleaving Potential in mind is important especially when playing Operations. Within this mode, you will always encounter hordes or mobs of enemies, so Cleaving Potential will play an important factor here.
But don’t let this stat limit you, as Operations isn’t the only mode where Cleaving Potential matters. If you face groups of enemies within Eternal War, then you will be lucky if you own a weapon with high Cleaving Potential stats. This is especially helpful if you participate within defense or zone related modes.
