Buff the axe, because its damage is fairly low for its weight, in one of two ways:

• Treat the axe as a normal wood-chopping axe, and reduce its weight.
• Treat the axe as a designed weapon, and keep its weight but raise its damage.

A chaotic artifact axe (or battle-axe, not specified) The Executioner’s Axe: has a small chance of beheading on every successful hit like Vorpal Blade.

Archeologists should have a skill cap of at least Basic in axe.

Applying an axe or pick-axe, and then specifying a direction where there is a monster, makes you swing the implement through the air, because applying tools is not intended for attacking, and it helps avoid weaponless conduct breaking.

Alternatively, when autodig is off and a digging tool wielded, you must use F to attack monsters.