Cloak of Invisibility DnD 5e Guide: How To Move Unseen

Last Updated on January 22, 2023

Welcome to our magic item gear guide to the Cloak of Invisibility. In this guide, we’ll outline how this legendary magical item works in Dungeons & Dragons 5e and which character classes can make the best use of this item as well as answer some frequently asked questions. 

What Is the Cloak of Invisibility?

The Cloak of Invisibility is a legendary wondrous item that — once attuned — allows the wearer to become invisible for up to two hours at a time. Becoming invisible is a matter of using an action to raise the cloak’s hood. 

Once the cloak has been activated for two hours, it requires 12 hours without being used to regain an hour of charge and a full 24 hours to be fully restored. Also, even though in combat you could theoretically activate the cloak for a single round (about 6 seconds) and then remove it again, time spent invisible is counted in 1-minute intervals, minimum. 

The Best Classes for Using the Cloak of Invisibility

With its powers being so obviously geared toward stealth, the Cloak of Invisibility is a natural fit for stealthier character classes like the Rogue, Ranger, or even the Bard (Expertise is a powerful thing). Any character with proficiency in Dexterity (Stealth) is going to have their ability to move unseen enhanced even further. 

Any character with a decent Stealth bonus and not wearing heavy armor (or especially loud jewelry, I guess) is a solid fit for a Cloak of Invisibility, but Rogues are probably still the best bet as being invisible will almost always allow them to attack from hidden — guaranteeing advantage and Sneak Attack damage. 

How Good Is the Cloak of Invisibility?

Obviously, as a legendary item, the Cloak of Invisibility is a powerful piece of adventuring gear typically worn by only the most powerful and experienced heroes (or villains). To get an idea of just how good it is, let’s look at how being Invisible works in D&D 5e and how the invisibility granted by the cloak compares to other ways of becoming magically unseen. 

First of all, this cloak virtually guarantees that you can move around undetected except for the sound you make and the tracks you leave behind. As an aside, you can counteract these issues and move completely silently, unseen, leaving no tracks with an additional +10 Stealth bonus by also acquiring a pair of Boots of Elvenkind and casting (or have someone else cast) Pass Without Trace on you. 

Even if you’re not completely silent, the Cloak of Invisibility is still an immensely powerful item in combat. With two hours of use time every other day, it’s probably quite rare you’ll ever not be able to spend the entirety of a fight invisible. This is not only a huge boost to your weapon (or spell) attacks’ effectiveness, but it is also going to hugely increase your survivability; enemies are much more likely to attack things they can see.  

(You also need to leave it alone to recharge for at least a full 12 hours, which means you can charge it overnight with a few extra hours before and after bed to effectively have a 1-hour duration cloak you can use every day). 

You can also use the Cloak of Invisibility for all manner of other applications, from ambushing, eavesdropping on, following, and stealing from enemies to convincing a gaggle of gullible peasants or goblins that you’re a ghost. It’s also a great way to hide important items in the middle of a chaotic scene as anything you’re carrying also turns invisible. Put the cloak on an especially strong character (like a Goliath, which counts as size large when determining carrying capacity) and have them carry the entire party past enemy guards. 

Cloak of Invisibility vs. Invisibility, Greater Invisibility, and Ring of Invisibility 

There are plenty of other ways to turn yourself and other people invisible in D&D 5e with the Cloak of Invisibility being one of the rarest and most expensive. So let’s see how it stacks up against… 

Invisibility: A 2nd-level illusion spell that renders the caster or a creature they touch invisible for up to an hour (or until they end the spell or break concentration). If the invisible creature attacks or casts a spell, the effect ends. This is probably the first means of turning invisible that a character in D&D will get access to, and while it’s an effective way to spy on enemies, set up an ambush, and get advantage on the first attack of the fight, its effectiveness is short-lived. 

Greater Invisibility: A 4th-level illusion spell that turns the target invisible for up to a minute unless the caster’s concentration is broken. This works more or less the same as the cloak but with the cost of a spell slot and a much shorter duration. 

Ring of Invisibility: Another legendary magic item that, like the cloak, turns the wearer invisible with an action. However, the invisibility functions more like the Invisibility spell than Greater Invisibility and ends whenever the wearer attacks or casts a spell. However, there is no limit to how many times the wearer can then reactivate the ring. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Attacking in a Cloak of Invisibility End the Invisibility?

No. A Cloak of Invisibility only stops working when you remove the hood from your head, the cloak’s two-hour duration ends, or the cloak is placed within an antimagic field. 

How Much Does a Cloak of Invisibility Cost? 

As a legendary magic item, a Cloak of Invisibility could cost anything over 50,001 gold pieces, with our suggested price being around 90,000 gp. That’s assuming you can find someone willing to sell one, of course.