At a recent campout we had a kid show up with a poncho bungeed to his ruck and he later built an A-frame shelter with it. What I found interesting though was he only staked 3 sides. On the other he left the poncho bungeed to the pack and used its weight as an anchor. At first I chalked it up to laziness, but I find it interesting because it's the first time I've seen a ruck used as an anchor for a tarp shelter and it gave me an idea.
Imagine needing to get under concealment in a hurry, so you drop your ruck that has the bungeed poncho/tarp. This ruck becomes your elevated anchor point and you quickly secure the 3 other corners. You now have a variation of plow point shelter that is very low profile, has good side and top concealment, and has a clear view to your front. Concealment could be enhanced further by hanging a veil in the front using alligator clips. I haven't tried it with my ruck, but I imagine the sleeping bag carrier could still be used as a rifle rest in this position. With a couple 2qt canteens or bladders in the exterior pouches you could stay in it for a good while if needed. Packing it up is just as fast. Just stand up, pull up the 3 anchor points as you do it, and secure the poncho to the ruck. I like to wrap the exterior of all of my rucks in bungee cord too. If you have to go quickly, shove everything through the bungee cord and run.
Maybe there's something there to consider? Ponchos have been used in hide construction forever, but I've never heard of anyone rigging one like that before. Probably a good reason for that, but I'm bored and figured you guys could tear the idea apart or improve on it.
P.S. What's the best way to add a bit of garnish to a poncho and still keep it waterproof? No walking bush look. I'm thinking just enough to break up the outline when used as a pack cover or shelter and as an attachment point for local vegetation. Shoe gooing it on directly might work, but I figure one heavy rain or poncho raft later it will become 20lbs of waterlogged canvas. Maybe a removable camo net attached to grommets?