The Glaive looks like a safe weapon for controlling the battlefield from a distance. Stay back, swing wide, never get touched. That instinct will get you killed. The Glaive’s real strength lives at close range, where its sweeping arcs hit multiple enemies at once, build falter faster than any other primary form, and set up the execution loop that keeps you alive. This is not a defensive weapon. It is a pressure weapon. Play it like one.
1. Stop Hanging Back — Use the Range to Hit Behind You
The Glaive’s long reach lets you hit enemies that are flanking you without repositioning. Stand in the middle of a group and swing. The wide arc catches enemies on both sides and behind. This isn’t about keeping distance; it’s about making every swing count against multiple targets. The moment you back away, you lose that advantage.
It is a pressure weapon.
2. Master the Dodge-to-Combo Timing
Glaive’s combo takes roughly one second longer to reach the finisher than Strike’s. That extra time matters. You cannot spam attacks. Instead, attack twice, dodge through an enemy’s swing, then resume the combo from where you left off. The trick: after dodging, wait a quarter-second before pressing attack again. Tap too soon and you’ll do a dodge attack instead, resetting your chain. That quarter-second delay keeps your combo alive.
3. Build Falter on Clusters, Not Single Targets
The yellow falter gauge fills faster when you hit multiple enemies with each swing. One Glaive swing hitting three enemies builds three times the falter. Use this to fill the gauge on grunts quickly, then execute one to trigger dominance. That 100% damage boost for primary and combo finishers lasts 8 seconds and turns Glaive’s already high damage into absurd damage.
4. Pair with Wide Edge or Spin Edge for Maximum AoE
Both combo finishers scale with the number of enemies you hit during your primary combo. Wide Edge delivers one massive raw damage swing. Spin Edge hits three times for even more falter and damage if you land all hits. Glaive’s wide primary swings ensure you tag every enemy nearby before the finisher. Unlock these combo finishers first; they are cheap at one living shard each and boost your aberrant strength by 5 points per unlock.
5. Use Switch Attacks to Cover Damage Types
Glaive deals raw damage only. That leaves you weak against armor (blunt-resistant) and shields (sharp-resistant). The solution: after your third Glaive hit, press your secondary attack button to perform a switch attack. This uses your secondary weapon’s damage type without ending your combo. Equip Crush (blunt) or Drill (sharp) as your secondary, and you can break armor or shields mid-combo without swapping weapons.
6. Unlock the Skill That Boosts Combo Finisher Damage Against Statused Enemies
The Glaive tree has a node that increases combo finisher damage by a percentage against enemies afflicted with burn, poison, or astral. This is the single most important upgrade for Glaive. Pick combat abilities like Ignite (fire) or Growth (infected) to apply those statuses, then finish with a combo finisher for massive damage. Without this synergy, Glaive’s finisher is good but not great.
7. Buffer Heavy Attacks During Your Combo Recovery
Glaive’s swings have noticeable recovery frames. Instead of waiting for them to end, start charging your secondary weapon during the recovery. For example, after a three-hit Glaive combo, immediately hold the secondary attack button. The Crush hammer will start charging while Glaive finishes its animation. Release right after for a seamless follow-up that catches enemies off guard.
8. Don’t Neglect the Dodge Attack — It Hits Harder Than You Think
Glaive’s dodge attack does not launch enemies like Cleave’s does, but it does deal significantly more damage than a standard light attack. Use it to close distance and apply instant pressure. The dodge attack also counts toward your combo chain’s hit count for the purpose of health element drops if you have the Sustained Assault talent. It is not a waste; it is a speed tool.
9. Pick Uppercut Surge as Your First Combo Finisher
Yes, Wide Edge fits Glaive’s AoE theme better on paper. But Uppercut Surge lifts enemies, applying the Lifted status. Hitting Lifted enemies restores power, and the Glaive’s long combos give you plenty of opportunities to land it. More power means more combat abilities, which means more status effects, which feeds back into the Glaive’s status-boosting finisher upgrade. It is a loop that pays off every encounter.
10. Respec to Try Different Status Combos — You Have Enough Reset Items
You get a reset item from every resonant boss fight, plus some from vending machines and arcade machines. Do not hoard them. Try Ignite + Growth to apply burn and infected simultaneously, triggering an explosion. If that does not fit your style, swap to Spore Burst for ranged infected application. Each respec costs one reset item and can be tested in the Gap arena before you lock it in. Use that freedom.
