Strength is the melee-only scaling stat in Windrose, driving damage on maces, clubs, halberds, and a small number of greatswords and one-handed swords designed around heavy hits. It has no ranged option, so any build leaning on Strength stays in close combat and relies on reach, posture pressure, and special attacks rather than perfect blocks.
Quick answer: The Strength-scaling weapons currently in Windrose are the Plague Halberd, Sturdy Halberd, Arboris Saber (one-handed sword that scales with Strength), Soul Eater, Executioner, Bonebreaker, Smasher, Crusher, and Sturdy Mace. The Plague Halberd is the strongest pick, and the Sturdy Halberd is the most reliable mid-tier option.
How Strength scaling works in Windrose
Each weapon in Windrose has a scaling letter from D to S tied to a single stat. For Strength weapons, that scaling applies to base attack damage and to several special effects, most notably the Plague Halberd's special [F] attack, which gains a significant damage boost from high Strength.
Strength weapons trade speed and parry quality for raw damage and reach. Most maces and clubs cannot perform a meaningful Perfect Block, halberds can parry only the weakest attacks, and the moveset relies on heavy swings, backdash punishes, and special attacks. Diminishing returns kick in past roughly 20 points of Strength, but stacking further still increases damage on both swings and the special hit.
All Strength-scaling weapons in Windrose
The table below lists every weapon that scales with Strength, its weapon type, tier, primary source, and the key Rare and Epic passive effects. Bolded effects are the Epic-tier abilities unlocked by ascending the weapon with Tumbaga Ingots.
| Weapon | Type | Tier | Source | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plague Halberd | 2H Halberd | S | Crypts and Ruins (Cursed Swamps) | Damage builds Plague Echoes stacks; at 5 stacks the special [F] attack unlocks. Using the special attack restores 35% of maximum Health. |
| Arboris Saber | 1H Sword | A | Drops in the Cursed Swamps region | Damage builds Plague Echoes stacks; special [F] attack at 5 stacks. Deals Crude damage, scales with Strength, and converts Temporal Health into Health more efficiently. |
| Soul Eater | 2H Sword | A | World drop | Special [F] attack drains Health from nearby enemies (2 minute cooldown). Special attack damage also scales with Vitality. |
| Sturdy Halberd | 2H Halberd | C | Coastal Jungle and Foothills POIs | +10% Critical Hit Chance. Base damage increased by 15. |
| Executioner | 2H Sword | C | World drop | Kills grant Decimation stacks (+10% Crit Chance each, up to 30%). While Decimation is active, gain Apathy for 10% Damage Resistance. |
| Bonebreaker | 1H Mace | C | Coastal Jungle and Foothills POIs | The more current Stamina you have, the more damage the weapon deals. +10% Critical Hit Chance. |
| Smasher | 1H Mace | D | Fishing | Hits have a small chance to knock enemies down; chance scales with Strength. Cannot be ascended to Epic. |
| Crusher | 1H Mace | D | Ancient Grave POI | Hits have a small chance to knock enemies down; chance scales with Strength. +10% damage to pirates, outlaws, and cutthroats. |
| Sturdy Mace | 1H Mace | D | Coastal Jungle and Foothills POIs | +1 Posture Point. Attacks consume 15% less Stamina. |
Best Strength weapons right now
The Plague Halberd is the strongest two-handed weapon a Strength build can equip. Its heavy attack cleaves through groups, and the special [F] attack at 5 Plague Echoes stacks both deals heavy AoE damage that scales with Strength and restores 35% of maximum Health. That single passive replaces most reliance on potions in extended fights.
The Sturdy Halberd is the best mid-tier choice while you hunt for the Plague version. It has S-tier Strength scaling, +10% crit chance, and +15 base damage at Epic, giving consistent reach damage without the Plague mechanics. The trade-off is no Perfect Block and no built-in sustain.
The Arboris Saber is the only viable one-handed Strength weapon. It pairs naturally with a pistol off-hand and benefits the most from talents and rings that boost one-handed weapon damage, but its single-target burst is lower than rapier or saber alternatives.
The Executioner suits a survival-oriented Strength build. The Decimation effect rewards killing chains with crit chance, and Apathy adds 10% damage resistance while the effect is active, which helps when you cannot rely on parries.
Where Strength weapons fall short
Strength weapons do not scale any ranged weapon, so a pure Strength build cannot fall back on a musket, pistol, or blunderbuss for damage. If you want a hybrid that still scales properly, Agility (saber and blunderbuss) or Precision (rapier and pistol or musket) are the only options.
Maces and clubs cannot Perfect Block at all, and halberds can only parry the weakest attacks without losing posture shields. Combat with Strength weapons therefore revolves around spacing, backdash punishes (especially with halberds, which allow a two-hit, backdash, third-hit pattern), and landing the special attack window rather than reactive defense.
The Plague Halberd's special attack cannot crit, so critical hit chance, critical damage, and the Major Cutthroat Ring add nothing to it. Stack two-handed weapon damage talents (Berserk, Dominating Presence, Momentum) and raw Strength instead, since both the swing damage and the explosion scale from those.
How to ascend a Strength weapon to Epic
Only Rare weapons can be ascended to Epic, which unlocks the second passive line shown in bold in the table. Common and Uncommon Strength weapons (including the Smasher) cannot be upgraded past their base form and should be replaced once a Rare drops.
Step 1: Acquire a Rare version of the weapon you want to upgrade. Plague weapons drop from Crypts and Ruins in the Cursed Swamps, while Sturdy and starter variants come from Coastal Jungle and Foothills points of interest.
Step 2: Collect Tumbaga Ingots from Ruins, which begin appearing reliably from the Foothills region onward. These are the ascension material for all Rare-to-Epic upgrades.
Step 3: Ascend the weapon at a crafting station. The weapon's rarity icon changes to Epic, and the second passive line becomes active. You can confirm the upgrade by checking the weapon tooltip, which now lists both abilities and an improved scaling letter.
Stat priority for a Strength build
Strength is the only stat that needs to be pushed past 20 for a damage build, since both regular swings and the Plague Halberd's special attack continue to scale beyond the soft cap. After Strength, put points into Vitality for survivability (Soul Eater's special attack also scales with Vitality) and Endurance to sustain heavy-weapon stamina costs.
Mastery is not a priority because the strongest Strength weapon, the Plague Halberd, cannot crit on its core damage source. For one-handed Strength play with the Arboris Saber, Mastery becomes worthwhile because that weapon can crit and benefits from rings and necklaces that boost critical hit chance.
For gear, the Pikeman set is the standard pairing for two-handed Strength weapons because its bonus increases two-handed weapon damage, which also boosts the Plague Halberd's special explosion. The Major Ring of Bravery adds melee weapon damage and is preferred over the Cutthroat ring for halberds, since crit damage does not apply to the special hit.
Strength remains the niche pick in the current Windrose meta, weaker overall than Agility and Precision options, but the Plague Halberd alone keeps it competitive thanks to its damage, reach, and built-in healing. Build around that weapon, and the rest of the Strength lineup becomes useful as situational backup rather than the foundation of your run.