Infectious Smile Hatchet Location, Stats, and Grab Escape Guide
Infectious Smile hatchet is a four-use thrown weapon found across rotating maps that deals 25 to 30 damage, stuns targets, blinds enemies on headshots, and frees humans from both regular Smiler grabs and Giant grabs.
Infectious Smile hatchet is a four-use thrown weapon found across rotating maps that deals 25 to 30 damage, stuns targets, blinds enemies on headshots, and frees humans from both regular Smiler grabs and Giant grabs.
Hatchet Stats and Core Mechanics
The hatchet features a light gray blade mounted on a brown pole with a red string. Unlike standard melee gear, clicking while holding the hatchet throws the axe directly toward the mouse cursor. Each throw expends one point of durability, giving the weapon four uses in total before breaking. Because the axe travels as a projectile rather than hitting instantly, landing attacks requires leading moving targets. Clicking into empty air still consumes durability.
Each successful hit inflicts between 25 and 30 damage, producing up to 120 total damage if all four throws connect. A landed strike stuns a target Smiler for 0.2 seconds. Additionally, landing a direct throw on a Smiler's head turns the victim's screen pitch black for a short duration, disorienting them in combat. The hatchet also lodges visually into the target's body upon impact.
Grab Escapes and Giant Encounters
The hatchet functions as an emergency escape tool when caught by enemies. While a knife frees humans exclusively from standard Smilers, the hatchet allows players to escape the grasp of a Giant. Escaping with the hatchet consumes 50 percent of its total durability, which equals two charges. If the tool only has 25 percent durability remaining, using it while caught expends that final charge to break the hold.
Escaping a grab triggers a temporary cooldown across your inventory before you can swing or throw another weapon. Compared to firing all ammunition with a handgun or timing a blast with a shotgun, the hatchet provides an immediate single-action release. However, due to its small collision box and camera angle shifts during grab animations, the player must keep the Smiler centered in the crosshair to ensure the escape registers properly.
Escape Weapon Comparison
| Weapon | Escapes Giants | Durability Cost per Escape | Secondary Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hatchet | Yes | 50% (2 charges) | Stuns for 0.2s and blinds on headshots |
| Knife | No | 4 durability | Applies high immediate damage |
| Shotgun | Yes | 1 to 2 shells | Knocks down target on contact |
Map Spawns and Badge Requirements
Because the hatchet cannot be selected as a permanent lobby loadout item, players must collect it inside rotating stages. In the two-story house map, the hatchet rests on an indoor table, located in the same structure that houses the white invisibility bottle among the map's potions. In the Desolate Shelter map, update adjustments placed the hatchet inside an obstacle course section.
Collecting the hatchet within a single round is mandatory for unlocking the all weapons badge, officially titled "Obtained All Weapons In One Life." To finish this challenge without dying, players must hold the hatchet alongside the handgun, shotgun, knife, bat, bottle, ice potion, and invisibility potion simultaneously. Surviving each map rotation while holding the hatchet requires cautious movement, as losing your life forces a full inventory reset.