>>327279They're nice as a cheapish solution, and better than most people in this thread make it sound like; they act like anyone interested in cloaks could only be a retard that watched the Lord of the Rings, but then ironically, it's their own reference point on the matter as most have never tried a cloak.
It's a piece of wool, and if wrapped up properly, it's as warm as a wool coat can be, but then most people don't wrap it correctly. Forget the stupid picture painted by movies with cloaks being opened on a fourth at the front: a cloak should cover you from all sides, leaving no opening, just like you wouldn't leave your coat open when it's cold. It should obviously just close on its own with the ends overlaping on a large length because of the way it's folded, still allowing you to open it, but able to remain closed without you having to hold it with your hands.
They're of course versatile, as a cloak can turn into a handy wool cover, or even a ground cloth. I myself used to go on hikes with a rain poncho and a wool cloak, and each night, the poncho turned into a tarp, and the cloak into a cover; a great way to avoid carrying redundant gear. If you want to go further into that, you could look into down ponchos that also serve as sleeping bags, pic related.
The downsides are that opening it will let out quite a lot of heat, so obviously don't bring one to the north pole, or at best have holes in it just to let your arms out without opening it entirely, and then you'll look like an idiot wearing one.
