Cloak of displacement

A cloak of displacement, also known as a minor cloak of displacement when contrasted with the more potent major cloak of displacement, was a magical cloak that slightly altered the location its wearer appeared to occupy.

Description
These black leather cloaks were fashioned out of the hide of displacer beasts and its fabric parts were interwoven with strands of sinew of the beasts' tentacles. This left the cloth of the cloak distorting and wrapping light that hit its surface.

Variants included the coat of displacing, which could be worn by familiars, and the breechcloth of displacement, which was known to be worn on Athas.

Powers
When this cloak was worn, it did not move the wearer but rather caused them to appear as if they were a slightly different location up to away. This subtle shift in appearance benefited the wearer in combat situations, protecting them from all forms of attack, including ranged missiles and magical projectiles.

This ability only worked while the attuned wearer was conscious. If hit by an attack, the cloak lost its illusory abilities for a few seconds.

The more potent major cloak of displacement had a higher degree of success at avoiding attacks, but its powers could only be used for up to a minute and a half per day. When active, this cloak had a distorting effect on light waves.

When mage armor was cast using the hide of a displacer beast, the recipient of the spell temporarily gained the benefits of wearing a cloak of displacement.

History
Due to the dangers inherent to poaching displacer beasts, some wizards of the Moonsea have experimented with making cloaks of displacement out of the similarly powered but far less formidable Zhentish sewer rats, seemingly to no avail but the creation of mundane cloaks made up of stitched-together rat hides.

Reputation
Similarly to their hatred of displacer beasts, blink dogs were known to viciously attack anyone draped with a cloak of displacement.

Notable Wearers

 * The Waterdhavian swashbuckler Artemus Dimartius wore a cloak of displacement which, on top of its typical powers, also attracted all electricity-based spells in the manner of a lightning rod.
 * Chantos Graybeard
 * Cyric, the mortal thief, before his ascension to godhood.
 * Edie Savage, former apprentice and lover of Ioulaum, was gifted a unique variant of the cloak of displacement which grew in power with age by her teacher.
 * Graz'zt, demon lord of Azzagrat, sometimes wore a major cloak of displacement.
 * Both Bahamut and Tiamat, gods of the metallic and chromatic dragons respectively, wore cloaks of displacement.
 * Admiral Marianon Silmara, ambassador of the elves to the Rock of Bral, wore a cloak of displacement.

Appearances

 * Card Games
 * AD&D Trading Cards
 * Novels
 * Shadowdale
 * Video Games
 * Baldur's Gate • Icewind Dale • Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn • Neverwinter Nights series (Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide • Neverwinter Nights: Darkness over Daggerford) • Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms