You got it.  Adds to your armor by making sure the family jewels are safe.

Sandy

do you know to what degree it does raise the defense??

Actually, I've been trying hard to resist trying to find out the answer to that question... which is not easy for me.  I think it's about 5%, but don't quote me on that.  Whatever the case, it's well worth the 20 silvers price tag since it tends to last hundreds of clicks.

Sandy

haha ya i've been curious too... i've heard that's it's somehow related to your level, but i'm not sure.  but yes, it is a great bargain.

Okay, there's another half hour of my life gone.  The protection you get from the magic hull is calculated using the following formula:  int(level/5)*2.  Divide your current level by 5, discard the fraction, multiply by 2.

Also of interest to notice is that if you go up from one level of magic hull protection to the next (ie from character level 4 to 5, from 9 to 10, from 14 to 15, etc) your protection is automatically adjusted, you don't have to put on a new magic hull to get the increased protection.

[PRE]

     	Magic Hull

Level	Protection Bonus

1	0
2	0
3	0
4	0
5	2
6	2
7	2
8	2
9	2
10	4
11	4
12	4
13	4
14	4
15	6
16	6
17	6
18	6
19	6
20	8
21	8
22	8
23	8
24	8
25	10
26	10
27	10
28	10
29	10
30	12
31	12
32	12
33	12
34	12
35	14
36	14
37	14
38	14
39	14
40	16
41	16
42	16
43	16
44	16
45	18
46	18
47	18
48	18
49	18
50	20
51	20
52	20
53	20
54	20
55	22
56	22
57	22
58	22
59	22
60	24
61	24
62	24
63	24
64	24
65	26
66	26
67	26
68	26
69	26
70	28
71	28
72	28
73	28
74	28
75	30
76	30
77	30
78	30
79	30
80	32
81	32
82	32
83	32
84	32
85	34
86	34
87	34
88	34
89	34
90	36
91	36
92	36
93	36
94	36
95	38
96	38
97	38
98	38
99	38
100	40
[/PRE]

Sandy

wow for 20 silver im getting an additional 10 protection :) well worth it!

Sandy, thanks for getting to the bottom of this.  A while back I thought the protection bonus was not solely dependent on level, but with the truncation, it's plain to see that levelling up does not always increase the bonus.

Now, on to a corollary question:  exactly how does protection factor into combat?  I don't believe it's simply a deduction of the damage done in each round by the opponent.  Sometimes, I've met very low level monsters who get lucky and do a point or two of damage...

thanks for all your help sandy... i appreciate it.