Cloaker — Dread of the Lightless Deep
A living cloak-shaped predator that waits motionless in darkness, then wraps around prey while its subsonic moan breaks everyone nearby.
The cloaker is a broad, leathery aberration shaped like a black manta ray or ragged cloak. When folded flat against stone it can pass for hanging fabric, a dark drape or an irregular patch of shadow. Unfurled, the disguise becomes a winged body with a tooth-lined underside, a whiplike tail and a disturbing intelligence behind its eyes.
At a Glance
Run It Tonight
Do not announce the cloaker as a monster. Describe a torn black hanging, folded hide or strip of leathery fabric on a cavern wall. Let characters walk underneath it. When the attack starts, the cloaker should attach to one target immediately while its moan forces everyone else to react under pressure.
Rules by Edition
Cloaker
Large Aberration, Chaotic Neutral
AC 14; Initiative +5 (15)
HP 91 (14d10 + 14)
Speed 10 ft., Fly 40 ft.
17 (+3)
15 (+2)
12 (+1)
13 (+1)
14 (+2)
7 (−2)
Skills Stealth +5
Immunities Frightened
Senses Darkvision 120 ft.; Passive Perception 12
Languages Deep Speech, Undercommon
CR 8 (3,900 XP); PB +3
Traits
Light Sensitivity. While in Bright Light, the cloaker has Disadvantage on attack rolls.
Actions
Multiattack. The cloaker makes one Attach attack and two Tail attacks.
Attach. Melee Attack Roll: +6, reach 5 ft. Hit: 13 (3d6 + 3) Piercing damage. A Large or smaller target becomes attached. While attached, the target has the Blinded condition, and the cloaker cannot use Attach against another target. The cloaker halves damage it takes, and the attached target takes the same amount. The cloaker can detach by spending 5 feet of movement; the target or an adjacent creature can detach it with a DC 14 Strength (Athletics) check.
Tail. Melee Attack Roll: +6, reach 10 ft. Hit: 8 (1d10 + 3) Slashing damage.
Bonus Actions
Moan. Each creature in a 60-foot Emanation makes a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, it has the Frightened condition until the end of the cloaker’s next turn. On a success, it is immune to that cloaker’s Moan for 24 hours.
Phantasms (Recharge after a Short or Long Rest). The cloaker casts mirror image without components, using Wisdom. The spell ends early if the cloaker starts or ends its turn in Bright Light.
Cloaker
Large aberration, chaotic neutral
Armor Class 14 (natural armor)
Hit Points 78 (12d10 + 12)
Speed 10 ft., fly 40 ft.
17 (+3)
15 (+2)
12 (+1)
13 (+1)
12 (+1)
14 (+2)
Skills Stealth +5
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages Deep Speech, Undercommon
Challenge 8 (3,900 XP)
Traits
Damage Transfer. While attached to a creature, the cloaker takes half the damage dealt to it, and the attached creature takes the other half.
False Appearance. While motionless without its underside exposed, the cloaker is indistinguishable from a dark leather cloak.
Light Sensitivity. While in bright light, the cloaker has disadvantage on attack rolls and Wisdom (Perception) checks relying on sight.
Actions
Multiattack. The cloaker makes one Bite and one Tail attack.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 10 (2d6 + 3) piercing damage. A Large or smaller creature becomes attached. If the cloaker had advantage on the attack, it attaches over the head, blinding the target and preventing it from breathing until detached.
Tail. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one creature. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) slashing damage.
Moan. Creatures within 60 feet that can hear the cloaker and are not aberrations must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or become frightened until the end of the cloaker’s next turn.
Phantasms (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). In dim light or darkness, the cloaker creates three illusory duplicates that function as defensive decoys until destroyed or exposed to bright light.
Cloaker CR 5
XP 1,600
CN Large aberration
Init +7; Senses darkvision 60 ft.; Perception +14
Defense
AC 19, touch 12, flat-footed 16 (+3 Dex, +7 natural, −1 size)
hp 51 (6d8+24)
Fort +6, Ref +5, Will +7
Defensive Abilities shadow shift
Offense
Speed 10 ft., fly 40 ft. (average)
Melee bite +8 (1d6+5), tail slap +3 (1d8+2)
Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. (5 ft. with bite)
Special Attacks engulf, moan
Statistics
Str 21, Dex 16, Con 19, Int 14, Wis 15, Cha 14
Base Atk +4; CMB +10; CMD 23 (can’t be tripped)
Feats Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative, Skill Focus (Perception)
Skills Disguise +8 (+16 as cloak), Fly +10, Knowledge (religion) +11, Perception +14, Sense Motive +8, Stealth +8
Languages Undercommon
Special Abilities
Engulf (Ex). The cloaker can wrap a Medium or smaller creature in its body with a grapple. While engulfing, it gains a +4 bonus on bite attacks against the victim and can still attack others with its tail. Attacks that hit the cloaker deal half their damage to the cloaker and half to the trapped creature.
Moan (Ex). The cloaker’s infrasonic moan can cause fear, nausea, stupor or long-term unnerving penalties. Save DCs are 15.
Shadow Shift (Su). In dim light, the cloaker can create blur-like concealment, mirror images or a silent image.
Ecology
Environment underground
Organization solitary, pair, mob (3–6) or flock (7–12)
Treasure standard
Cloaker
Large Aberration
Hit Dice 6d8+18 (45 hp)
Initiative +7
Speed 10 ft. (2 squares), fly 40 ft. (average)
Armor Class 19 (−1 size, +3 Dex, +7 natural), touch 12, flat-footed 16
Base Attack/Grapple +4/+13
Attack tail slap +8 melee (1d6+5)
Full Attack tail slap +8 melee (1d6+5) and bite +3 melee (1d4+2)
Space/Reach 10 ft./10 ft. (5 ft. with bite)
Special Attacks moan, engulf
Special Qualities darkvision 60 ft., shadow shift
Saves Fort +5, Ref +5, Will +7
Abilities Str 21, Dex 16, Con 17, Int 14, Wis 15, Cha 15
Skills Hide +8, Listen +13, Move Silently +12, Spot +13
Feats Alertness, Combat Reflexes, Improved Initiative
Environment underground
Organization solitary, mob (3–6) or flock (7–12)
Challenge Rating 5
Treasure standard
Alignment usually chaotic neutral
Moan (Ex)
The cloaker can change the frequency of its subsonic moan to cause unnerve, fear, nausea or stupor. Save DCs are 15 and Charisma-based.
Engulf (Ex)
A cloaker can wrap a Medium or smaller creature with a grapple. Once attached, attacks that hit the cloaker split their damage evenly between it and the trapped victim.
Shadow Shift (Su)
In shadowy illumination, the cloaker can gain concealment, create mirror images or produce a silent image.
Behaviour
Cloakers survive by being overlooked. They remain motionless for long periods, listen to passing creatures and choose isolated prey whenever possible. A single cloaker that thinks it has been recognised often relocates rather than fight on unfavourable terms.
They are intelligent enough to make bargains and occasionally travel with other underground creatures, but trust comes poorly to them. Even groups of cloakers tend to cooperate around a specific opportunity rather than stable loyalty.
Signs Before Initiative
- A dark “cloak” hangs where no hook, nail or owner can be found.
- Dust lies everywhere except beneath one strip of ceiling or wall.
- Victims have bite wounds around the head and shoulders rather than ordinary predation marks.
- Echoes in a cavern contain a low tone that is felt in the chest more than heard.
- Travelers report panic, nausea or momentary paralysis without seeing an attacker.
- Several identical dark shapes seem to move when viewed from the corner of the eye.
If Violence Starts
The cloaker’s best attack is attachment. It chooses one target, turns that creature into cover and forces everyone else to decide whether attacking the monster will also hurt their ally. Against a group, its moan or phantasms should happen before or immediately after the attach attempt.
Bright light is a strong fifth-edition counter because it interferes with the cloaker’s stealth and phantasmal defence. In the older editions, dim light instead empowers Shadow Shift, so controlling illumination remains important even though the exact rule changes.
Counterplay
Inspect suspicious hanging material from a distance and bring strong light into unexplored caverns. Once a cloaker attaches, pulling it free may be more important than damaging it, especially in editions where damage transfer sends part of each hit into the victim.
Sonic or fear protection can reduce the impact of its moan, while senses that do not rely on sight make its illusion effects much less effective.
Homes and Flocks
Cloakers favour deep caves, abandoned underground halls and vertical spaces with ledges or ceilings that let them hang above traffic. Flocks become possible where prey is abundant, but their paranoia makes large communities unstable.
Using a Cloaker in an Encounter
The abandoned cloakroom. A ruined fortress still contains dozens of black cloaks hanging from pegs. Only one is alive.
The silent passenger. A traveller has unknowingly carried a motionless cloaker through several guarded checkpoints.
The moaning shaft. Miners abandon a new tunnel after workers begin panicking and vomiting without seeing any creature.
The flock above. A cavern ceiling that appears draped in mineral sheets is actually occupied by an entire cloaker flock.
Related Creatures
Compare the cloaker with the Lurking Ray, or browse other underground predators in the Aberration Bestiary.
Rules Sources and Licensing
The 5.5e/2024 Cloaker is from SRD 5.2.1, released under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International. The 5e/2014 Cloaker is from SRD 5.1, also available under CC BY 4.0.
The Pathfinder 1e statistics derive from the open Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary. The D&D 3.5e statistics are Open Game Content from the Revised d20 System Reference Document.
Keep this reference growing
If this page helped with your reading or game, you can support its upkeep or explore the curated books.
Explore the Bookshop — epics, classics and stories behind imagined worlds.