SypherPK exposes new “pay-to-win” Bash Burner pickaxe in Fortnite

In his latest YouTube video, SypherPK exposed Fortnite’s new “pay to win” Bash Burner pickaxe that swings at a faster rate, giving players a competitive edge.

Ali ‘SypherPK’ Hassan is known for making videos about anything and everything within Fortnite. However, some of them involve in-depth discussions about items, weapons, and other elements of the game.

His interest was piqued by one thing recently though: a new pay-to-win item. The Bash Burner pickaxe is a wooden baseball bat that is burnt two-thirds of the way. It also has two small branches sticking out, one of which has a flame.

It might not look like the most ravishing pickaxe, but don’t let its simple appearance fool you. The Bash Burner pickaxe is currently the most overpowered harvesting tool in the game. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, there is a new pickaxe called the Bash Burner Pickaxe,” said SypherPK, while showing it off in-game. “It is faster than the other pickaxes. This has been tested and proved.”

He then showcases a collage of six other pickaxe animations for a side-by-side comparison. The Bash Burner Pickaxe clearly moves faster than the rest.

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Its advantage does appear to fade over time. However, SypherPK explains that if you use it in a certain way, it won’t be an issue.

“It does end up balancing out if you keep swinging,” he said. “However, if you’re just doing it for short bursts of swings, it’s actually the fastest pickaxe.”

SypherPK obliterates a number of opponents with his phenomenal aim and composure. Then, he dusts himself off like it was nothing, and casually hops back into discussing the pickaxe. He admits it’s not the most broken item ever, but it’s small advantages like these that add up.

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“This isn’t even the most over-powered item that we’ve seen as a pickaxe that’s pay-to-win,” he said. “We’ve seen more overpowered things in the past.”

SypherPK was referring to the infamous Star Wand, which used to deal 56 damage each swing and made players move faster when holding it. However, it only lasted a day or two before being removed from the game.

Fortunately, the Bash Burner pickaxe isn’t as broken as that. Still, SypherPK doesn’t want to be responsible for encouraging people to buy it, because there’s always a chance it could get nerfed or removed too.

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But until that happens, it does have a competitive edge when used in short bursts. It’s probably not a bad idea to pick it up if you have the cash to spare. 

It does raise concerns about pay-to-win items being added to the game though, and it’s not something many players would be willing to embrace.