Sword vs war axe vs mace + shield

[Hone Harawira]

I'm quite new to this game and my character is two handed based but if I were to use a one handed weapon what should I use? And are there any difference between sword waraxe and mace thanks

[Wii remote gaming]

Attack speed and damage, sword swing the fastest but has the lowest damage and mace has the slowest swing but most damage.

[78pac7]

No real difference. Swords swing fastest but deal least damage, maces swing slowest but deal the most damage, and Axes are in the middle. Use whatever you get your hands on, the DPS is more or less the same.

[Belanos]

It pretty much boils down to whatever you think looks the best on your character. Personally I prefer swords.

[𝕊𝕋𝕌ℝ𝕄-𝕂𝔸𝕋]

there are no right or wrong choices, so long as your perks match the weapon you use. Eventually, you can perk up all the weapons anyway.

This particular playthrough, I like the maces and warhammers. Last time it was greatswords and swords. Never really been keen on the axes tho.

[Quevik]

I'm personally a fan of waraxes. Swords can require extra hits and maces sometimes are overkill, especially with power attacks. War axes I feel take the least amount of time when you factor in number of attacks required to kill, swing time...etc.

That said, we're talking marginal min-maxing. Realistically, use whatever better-tier weapon you get (steel mace over iron sword..etc.) Keeping perks in mind. Bethesda did a good job at making them all reasonable compared to each other so you can play how you want.

[Omen]

I prefer swords because they swing faster so you have to wait less time to block after attacking

[𝕊𝕋𝕌ℝ𝕄-𝕂𝔸𝕋]

Might put a spoiler here about Thu'um (shouts):
There's a shout that can make your weapon swings faster, regardless of weapon
But you're right, Frodzero :) To put it another way; If youlike fast attack, particularly dual weilding, then Swords are a good choice. If you like smashy smashy heavy attacking, with a big brute of a character, then Hammers or even hefty Axes are a great choice there :D

[GnuBradZoid]

The sheild perk at 100 is awesome! Sprint with your sheild up and send enemies flying!

[alexander_dougherty]

Originally posted by Belanos:

It pretty much boils down to whatever you think looks the best on your character. Personally I prefer swords.

Agreed, I prefer swords early on, then axes or swords, I tend to avoid maces, but that's just my personal taste.

[Жора]

Actually, best build is just a shield. Get yourself a "deadly bash" perk and stun lock everything to death. It is a weapon and a good defence: up to 80% of physical and up to 50% magical damage reduction with just a couple of perks. It is really cheap, and uses only one skill - Block. I actually completed a playthrough wearing only Shield of Solitude and a monk robe.

[Solomon Hawk]

An integral part of your offensive capability also depends on your ability to be effective with blocking. Otherwise, it won't matter much what weapon you use.

[MartFassage]

A sword swings the fastest, but not as fast as a dagger. An axe swings slightly slower than a sword, and a mace swings much slower. However, there is a substantial damage output difference and the perks can make the trade-off of speed worth it.

With axes, you can inflict bleeding damage.

With maces, you can ignore a percentage of armor.

With swords, you can deal critical damage.

Daggers have no such perk but can get x16 sneak damage under the sneak tree.