Draft:Cloak of displacement

Omega 0.90.4

Cloak of displacement}TypeCloakBase value (Au)2000Item level6Weight30Unidentified appearanceRandom cloak appearanceCursed nameCloak of vulnerability

A cloak of displacement is a cloak that makes half of qualifying monster melee damage calls miss while worn noncursed. It is an additional defense beyond the normal hit check, but does not cancel every consequence of a melee attack. Its cursed name is cloak of vulnerability.

Generation

This repeatable item-level-6 cloak can occur in random loot, monster possessions, pawn-shop stock and acquirement. Ordinary copies are +0, with the common cloak blessing roll and random appearance.

Description

A noncursed cloak supplies displacement that normally persists while worn. For monster attacks reaching the shared melee damage routine, displacement gives a separate 50% chance to skip that damage call. It does not raise the displayed Def or Arm; more enchantment and positive blessing do not improve the 50%. Removal subtracts the cloak's contribution from the shared displacement status.

Secondary effects can still follow. A spirit attack, for example, calls life drain after the melee damage routine regardless of whether displacement skipped its ordinary damage. A bolt uses a separate damage path without this displacement check. The cloak therefore cannot replace negative-energy immunity for repeated undead touches or deflection against qualifying bolts.

A cursed cloak grants vulnerability rather than displacement. It makes the nearby night gaunt's special abduction condition succeed when that power runs; it does not multiply all incoming damage. It becomes stuck under ordinary curse rules. Displacement supplied elsewhere is not cleared merely by equipping this cursed cloak.

Strategy

Displacement is useful against repeated ordinary melee damage, including large blows that would overwhelm a modest absorption score. It stacks in purpose with defense and body armor: the attack must first hit, displacement may then skip the damage call, and any surviving ordinary damage still encounters Arm.

Against life drain, paralysis or other follow-up effects, choose protection for the actual threat rather than expecting the missed-damage message to cancel the entire attack. Extra pluses can help absorb item damage but do not improve displacement itself, so preserving an identified noncursed copy is generally more relevant than enchanting it for a stronger dodge.