Thermoblade vs. Survival Knife: Damage Comparison Posted on In the ongoing argument over just how much damage a Thermoblade does compared to a regular in Subnautica, several viewpoints highlight differing experiences and interpretations of game mechanics.
Damage Output Analysis
The wiki says the survival knife does 25 damage points But some players question whether that number is a bit misleading, based on how the game functions and can play in normal testing conditions12.
Thermoblade: The Thermoblade is said to deal 20 damage points but in experiments not only has the blade taken fewer swings to kill some creatures than with a Survival Knife.Thermoblade (ad) Optional implementation:ie that it takes ‘less hits’ to kill the Rabbit Ray and Gasopod with he Thermoblade than a Survival Knife1, according to player testing.
Mechanic Insights
Heat Damage: A theory as to why the Thermoblade is just so effective would be its possible heat damage aspect. This extra heat damage might mean it can ultimately do more total harm despite having a lower base harm figure1. Also, the fact that it can cook fish once you hit them with this thing adds a metric fuckton to its function utilization in your game2.
Player Experiences
Data Analysis: Although some in game player tests have shown the Survival Knife to be higher damage per hit, many practical creature applications clearly show that (a) despite what is reported by F8 The current ThermoBlade has most certainly a greater effect on various daily creatures but also more importantly (b) comparative effects between this price in contrast with usual tools are not of top priority. One interesting thing I noticed in numbers is that some people think the Thermoblade1 takes down Stalkers/Lava Leeches much more quickly than it actually does.
So while the official numbers say that the Survival Knife can output more damage, real world performance would suggest otherwise for a lot of practical uses due to mechanics and strike requirements as mentioned in previous paragraphs.