Editing Cloaker (section)

==AD&D 1e==
[[File:Cloaker 1e.jpg|right|200px]]
[[File:Cloaker A2.png|left|200px]]
In the adventure Secret of the Slavers' Stockade, a cloaker (or "Tenebra Complexor") first appears as the guardian of a holding room in which the Slave Lords keep their newly acquired slaves to make them docile. The cloaker clings to a wall, hiding among actual cloaks and blankets, resembling a semi-circular cape with a long mace-like tail, and has two claws at the ends of the "cape". Numerous round black, button-like eye spots help complete the illusion; when the cloaker conceals its tail and claws it is hard to distinguish it from a real cloak. A cloaker has no head, but in the middle of its belly is a mouth and two red, glowing eyespots; its rear eyespots make it so that a cloaker has no effective rear to attack. This cloaker will allow characters to enter the room and approach within the range of its moaning ability.

The module notes that the cloaker is a "rare and exotic creature that typically lives far underground", and that "How the slavers managed to obtain the services of this bizarre creature is unknown, but the beast is believed to be intelligent." As part of this encounter, the module also describes the abilities of a cloaker. A cloaker regularly emits a subsonic moaning, which can cause any of several different effects as the monster pleases by varying the moan's intensity. The lowest level, which it uses on the slaves appearing in the encounter, causes nervousness and unease and numbs the minds of those who listen for too long. The slaves have been exposed long enough that they will not react to other characters in any way. The second level of intensity causes fear in characters, the third level causes nausea and retching, and the final intensity can cause a single character to be held motionless.

The scenario describes how a cloaker will fly at a character which it has subdued with its moaning, and envelop its victim in its folds, pinning the victim's arms to his side and biting the victim. Any characters trying to help the victim will be attacked by the cloaker's tail, and any character harming a cloaker wrapped around a victim is likely to harm the victim as well. A cloaker also has the power to manipulate shadows, and can use them to cover a character's face or surround itself with shadow to hide; a cloaker can also create images out of shadows, including doubles of itself to misdirect opponents.

A full description of the monster, including game statistics, appears at the back of the module to complete the creature's depiction. This section notes that a cloaker is chaotic neutral in alignment, and describes a cloaker as "a shadow-dwelling, unearthly creature. They are normally only encountered in deep, dark caverns, far beneath the earth. Though they are highly intelligent, their thought processes are alien to most races and usually only magic-users are able to communicate with them."

A variant called a sea cloaker appeared first in the ''[[Lankhmar]]: City Of Adventure'' set (1985). [[Douglas Niles]] had cloakers inhabit crannies of the lower Deepearth of ''[[Dungeoneers Survival Guide]]'' - a clear afterthought to the worldbuilding.