What is Glaive?:
Reeeeel basic: It's a roleplaying system.
Not so basic: The Glaive system is a variant of AD&D, made up by Glenn Butcher and Dave Chinnery. (Glenn and Dave = Glaive). Glaive is designed to increase the number of options available at character creation but not significantly increase complexity during play. It involves a rework of the Players Option books (Skills and Powers, Spells and Magic) into what we feel is a more realistic way of handling things. For example, clerics are not as overpowered as they are in skills and powers. These are modifications to those books, which are still essential to play.
What Glaive isn't:
Glaive is not designed as a replacement for AD&D, nor a complete roleplaying system in itself. We specifically dealt with character creation only, and fairly much left the rest. This means in play mechanics are almost identical. Those of you with other modifications to AD&D could thus combine the two.
How to make a character:
Each character starts with 4 class slots and a variable amount of Glaive points. The amount of Glaive points given depends on the power level the DM wishes, but 150 is about the same as the Player's handbook, and is recommended. The player must also choose a race. Each race has it's own list of abilities, but this comes in the Advanced options.
Class slots
The player must spend all four slots on one of the five character groups (warrior, rogue, priest, psionicist, wizard). Psionicist is optional, depending on the campaign. They may all be allocated to the same group, or to different groups, as the player desires. Read on to see why you do this.
Glaive points:
The player constructs the character from the given number of glaive points, allocating them into abilties. These abilities are in tables marked Class, on the left. Each class slot spent on a group reduces the cost of abilties purchased in that group ( See table access cost). For instance, 2% magic resistance per level costs 18 points, and is red. By table 1, red is access level 4. Thus it costs 18 points if, and only if, the player has spent all four class slots on the warrior group. If the player had spent 3 class slots on warrior, it would be 20% more expensive. If they had spent two, it would be 40% more expensive, all the way up to 80% for none. It is wise to place your class slots in classes you intend to use a lot of abilities from, or to revise your initial choice after seeing the cost.
After you have added all of the costs together, it should equal the value selected by the DM, generally 150. If it is over, either drop some abilities, delay them in level, or give the character an experience penalty. If it is under, add more abilities. This is the time of tough decisions. :)
Things to note in particular is that you may take an experience penalty to cover the cost of any extra abilities you want, to a maxmimum of 100% penalty. This is given in General abilities. Also, make sure you have a few minimums like decent hit points, THAC0 etc. Non-weapon proficiencies or CP's are the same for everyone (ie: 4 prof's or 8CP's).
Abilities which are based on previous abilities (progressions, hit dice, AR, etc) are costed slightly differently. If the higher value (eg: d10 hit dice) is at a high class slot level than the lower level (eg: d8 hit dice), the extra cost is based on the difference. By way of example, d8 hit dice is 15, (and 1 slot, green). d10 is 22, (and 2 slots, yellow). If the character has 1 slot in warrior (green), they only pay 8 points for d8. They do not pay (22*1.4) for d10. They pay 15+((22-15)*1.2), as only the part from d8 to d10 is 1 slot too high. This prevents large jumps in cost for things slightly out of reach.
Try going through it. It's not as hard as it looks. After you have done that, look at the other tables accessed from the links on the left or top.
Go through this after you have made a character for the first time.
Races
The DM designs each race and subrace, as appropriate for their game world. Each race starts with 20 points. Powerful races, like Elves, will generally cost more than 20 points, which means they will have to take an experience penalty. Level limits are removed, as the experience penalty covers this.
The DM should allow each character some leeway with race creation. While all elves of (eg) Alfheim have infravision, not all will be specially trained in the use of the bow. The DM should discuss options with the player, and allow them to choose non-genetic abilities, like bow bonus. The player should not be allowed to create the race from scratch.
Normally racial abilities would be selected before the class abilities. Also note that humans receive racial points as well. If they don't spend them on any particular abilities, they may carry them over to class. This makes humans as powerful in comparision.
Spell progressions
The spell progressions are modified to suit the change in experience
required. The costs for various progressions for each class depends on
this experience table to be balanced. Please use the Glaive experience
table, on the left or top.
And thats it.
Glenn Butcher / knight