Strength potions were nerfed in 1.9 to do +3 damage per level.I would go for the axe life but that is only if you are comfortable with it and have completely stopped spam clicking. If you are still wanting to click fast, go for the sword as the swing speed is quite fast. But if you are PvPing, beware of the sharpness 5 diamond axe with a strength 2 potion. It does 55.9 damage. A good strategy with the axe is to swing and block while it gets recharged. Then swing again and then block with the shield. Like this you will do a lot of damage and take less in return.
Agreed. Choose your own weapon.I prefer the axe because it makes a lot of damage, but the sword is faster but does not do much as the axe
also it depends on your skill in pvp 1.9
Completely agreed. It depends on the situation.All depends on the situation :p
Swords for combos
Axes for spaced out high damage attacks
I try and space out the use between the two
I don't believe either is superior over the other