It is suggested that the Shadow Maul will gradually regain its durability when it is not in a state of starvation, and it will only decrease by one level when it is scrapped

[Pig and beefalo]

I think more people will like this weapon after such a change.

[Baark0]

I think that either maul hunger drain should stop at max level, or the maul's level should be maintained when the weapon breaks. Currently, you can easily lose multiple seasons to a year's worth of work just by forgetting to repair your weapon mid combat, which is really antithetical to the whole design of planar equipment (being repairable).

[NotGabriel]

I love the idea behind the Maul but I can understand the community’s frustrations with its punishing mechanics. I think the only way it could be remedied is by separating the starvation mechanic from the durability entirely, so if it breaks in combat scenarios you aren’t massively punished by its levels resetting. Having the axe immediately reset when it starts starving is a fair way to balance it imo. You can preserve its hunger with bundling wrap and killing even the most basic monster will get you 50 hunger. I don’t think it’s that difficult to keep your axe fed.

[YouKnowWho142]

this is probably my least favorite weapon in the game just on account of how punishing it is to use if you're not constantly micromanaging it, especially in longer worlds or worlds where you're not always constantly fighting. I would definitely like to see this weapon receive a little quality of life, losing several season's worth of level buildup because you accidentally hit something one more time than you were supposed to or didn't want to fight with it nonstop doesn't really feel fair or fun.

I don't really like having to bundle my weapon whenever I'm not using it either, at that point i'd much prefer to use a different weapon.

Edited April 7 by YouKnowWho142

[Sofy Happy]

By the time you obtain this weapon and max it out, it’s already extremely late‑game. Most players either wrap up the save around then or just build and relax casually.

Maintaining this axe isn’t hard, but in the slow, relaxed late‑game, combat is rare — you might not even fight once an entire season. Players are busy building and can easily miss when the axe starves to zero in the background.

I think just removing the level reset on durability depletion would be enough. If needed, it could consume one repair kit per use instead — late‑game players have more than enough materials for that anyway.

[Kacpert25]

I think a good solution would be if shadow maul hunger drain only work when it's being used.
So, for example, normally, the maul wouldn't lose hunger when it's not being used.
But after hitting something or chopping a tree, its hunger drain would activate.
And after 30 seconds of not using shadow maul in these actions, its hunger drain would pause.

[Pig and beefalo]

I refined my idea:

when the durability is full, it doesn't consume hunger points. When the durability is insufficient, it consumes hunger points to restore durability.

At the same time, when the durability is low, it issues a warning similar to low hunger points. After damage, it can be repaired within a certain period of time without reducing the level.Meanwhile, it constantly urges the player to save its life. These warnings and urges will vary as its level changes.

I think after such changes, this weapon will be both practical and fun, and at the same time, it will solve its design flaws. If there is any flaw, it is that this guy will be more talkative than before🤫

@V2C

Edited April 9 by Pig and beefalo