Eldritch Glaive RAW vs. RAI

[Chaosvii7]

What even is an Eldritch Glaive? Is it still considered an Eldritch Blast for all intents and purposes? Does SR still apply? Is it a glaive or a ray? Is it both? Can I apply Weapon Focus with one or both of those weapons to it? It says it looks like a glaive, but does that mean it's 100% a glaive? Is it one-handed or two-handed? Weapon Finesse? Slippers of Battledancing?

I've got an evil campaign coming up on the horizon and I am interested in playing a Warlock(I absolutely hate chaos as an alignment paradigm so I'd really only be able or interested to play a Warlock in an evil setting like this), and I am considering perhaps playing a Glaivelock, if not a full-on caster Warlock. I want high CHA, and if I can justify taking Weapon Finesse with the Glaive that'd be spectacular, but I don't need to go overboard on the optimization(especially so considering that I'm the only person at the table who knows how to optimize.)

Any fair interpretations? I figure that it's basically just a Glaive that does better damage, but I want to see how well I can stretch and skew it to my whim.

EDIT: Forgot about the ruling on Weapon Finesse and Touch Attacks, so I'm good for a DEX-based Warlock if I want.

[malonkey1]

It's not a glaive, and is thus ineligible for glaive-based feats. It's simply your eldritch blast taking a glaive-like shape. As a touch spell, it's technically "one-handed", but that doesn't really matter, as you're not adding Str to damage.

[Crake]

It's worth noting that eldritch glaive is a full round action, regardless of whether or not you get iterative attacks or not, so until you hit bab +6, the only thing you're getting out of it is the ability to perform attacks of opportunity, at the cost of a move action. Worth it? You decide, though if your DM permits, it may be worth picking up later via retraining, but ignoring for the first few levels.

[malonkey1]

It's worth noting that eldritch glaive is a full round action, regardless of whether or not you get iterative attacks or not, so until you hit bab +6, the only thing you're getting out of it is the ability to perform attacks of opportunity, at the cost of a move action. Worth it? You decide, though if your DM permits, it may be worth picking up later via retraining, but ignoring for the first few levels.

Or you could get it on a Rod of Eldritch Power (lightsabers, woo!)

[Bundin]

Don't forget to take Weapon Finesse for your EB though, if you plan on a melee build (Claw or Glaive). Even if it's touch attack, you're not likely to have a decent Str mod. This works because it's a weapon-like ability. No power attack for you though.

[Red Fel]

According to the definitive guide to melee Warlocks (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?159708-Shinken-s-Guide-to-Melee-Warlocks):
Because I've already said 'eldritch blast is not a weapon' far too many times on other threads!
I have seen a lot of confusion because of eldritch glaive and that is what inspired me to make this handbook, let me say this soon - eldritch glaive is not a weapon. Common belief is that it works as a glaive, some people even claiming the text of eldritch glaive says you can apply glaive feats to it. The text has nothing of the sort; eldritch glaive is a touch-attack magic effect, as defined in Complete Arcane, a weapon-like spell effect.
Weapon-like effects don't benefit from all weapon feats; they only benefit from Improved Critical, Improved Unarmed Strike, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Stunning Fist, Weapon Finesse and Weapon Focus. We'll discuss the usefulness of each of those feats later on.
Weapon-like effects threaten critical hits on a 20 and are subject to sneak attack.
Now, the bad news. Complete Arcane states that when you have multiple attacks from the same weapon-like effect, you only add bonus damage (from sneak attack, for example) once. This would apply to eldritch glaive (but not claw or grapple, since creating the claws is a free action and then you attack normally and grappling blast blast is part of the grapple action). I think Rules Compendium clarifies this issue to a point where you just can't do this in 'volley' attacks, and they are defined as being made at the same attack bonus, but I need to get my hands on a copy of Rules Compendium so I can clarify this.
WARNING:I've had a little debate about wheter or not eldritch glaive qualifies as a weapon-like touch effect. It has no Range: Touch entry, for example. Eldritch Blast also is not stated like a spell (because it's not a spell, dang it), but Complete Arcane obviously treats it as a ranged weapon-like effect, applying Point Blank Shot to it and the like. This makes it pretty obvious for me that eldritch glaive should work like a touch weapon-like. If you disagree, you should also stop giving warlock's PBS bonus on eldritch blast, sneak attack damage or basically just about any bonus ever given to warlocks. It's either they are weapon-likes that actually get a few things or they are something else that gets absolutely nothing.

[Sorc]

What even is an Eldritch Glaive? Is it still considered an Eldritch Blast for all intents and purposes? Does SR still apply? Is it a glaive or a ray? Is it both? Can I apply Weapon Focus with one or both of those weapons to it? It says it looks like a glaive, but does that mean it's 100% a glaive? Is it one-handed or two-handed? Weapon Finesse? Slippers of Battledancing?

I've got an evil campaign coming up on the horizon and I am interested in playing a Warlock(I absolutely hate chaos as an alignment paradigm so I'd really only be able or interested to play a Warlock in an evil setting like this), and I am considering perhaps playing a Glaivelock, if not a full-on caster Warlock. I want high CHA, and if I can justify taking Weapon Finesse with the Glaive that'd be spectacular, but I don't need to go overboard on the optimization(especially so considering that I'm the only person at the table who knows how to optimize.)

Any fair interpretations? I figure that it's basically just a Glaive that does better damage, but I want to see how well I can stretch and skew it to my whim.

EDIT: Forgot about the ruling on Weapon Finesse and Touch Attacks, so I'm good for a DEX-based Warlock if I want.

If you can optimize, optimize.

[Chaosvii7]

It's not a glaive, and is thus ineligible for glaive-based feats. It's simply your eldritch blast taking a glaive-like shape. As a touch spell, it's technically "one-handed", but that doesn't really matter, as you're not adding Str to damage.

The handedness of the weapon would matter if I wanted to use Slippers of Battledancing; They add CHA to hit and damage(so basically I'd only be using it for the to-hit) with one-handed and light weapons only. If the Glaive is one-handed, I could even be a SAD Warlock. If it couldn't, I'd be a sad Warlock.

But thank you for your interpretations, everybody! I think I've gotten a fair enough amount of rulings to come to the conclusion; The Eldritch Glaive is an augmented Eldritch Blast that carries all traits and caveats of the Eldritch Blast but is simply a reach weapon instead of a 60-foot ray attack. As a full-round action, until +6 BAB(level 9 ugh) it's simply worth making AoOs. All feats applicable to the blast apply to the glaive, but feats that apply to glaives do not apply. Weapon Finesse okay because every touch-type spell is considered to be finesse-able attacks.

[Segev]

It may be worth remembering that, as a Warlock, you can be very good with UMD. Divine Power can be put in a wand or staff and gives you full BAB.

[Chaosvii7]

It may be worth remembering that, as a Warlock, you can be very good with UMD. Divine Power can be put in a wand or staff and gives you full BAB.

I know, I've got myself a checklist for ways to get Divine Power, Righteous Might, and Haste as I need them. I figure that it's every man for himself so I don't want to have to rely on allies for all of my spell support. But a Finesse Glaivelock is definitely on the horizon for me.

[Donny_Green]

As a slightly different option have you though of doing Glaivelock / rogue. the Eldritch glaive could be great for sneak attacking, and 4 levels of warlock will give you 3 least invocation, detect magic at will, and THE ABILITY TO TAKE A 10 ON UMD CHECKS... that's alot of room for a rogue character to grow in 4 levels.

[malonkey1]

As far as Haste, that can go on an eternal wand. As for Righteous Might, with a bit of cheese, (Specifcally, using a loose reading of the Extra Spell to nab it off the Runescarred Berserker list so it can go on a wand) you can get that on an eternal wand as well, although a normal wand may suffice.