Time to solve the mystery - it turns out the bag was full of the "crawlies" for which this cave was named.  Specifically, scorpions, each about a foot long.  As the bag opens they come tumbling out, claws and tails flailing, and scatter around you.  Since Lucius had cut the bag before impact, more of the scorpions land on the ground than Cuthbert had intended, but a few do still land on Lazarus.

Lazarus - roll+Con.  10+ you're okay, 7-9 you take 1d3 damage, 6- you take damage and also you become Shaky from the poison.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:02, Sun 01 Dec 2019.

Istvan has had enough of this: it's smiting time.

Istvan is tempted to smite the scorpions, but decides that the guy who's the leader of the opposition is the bigger threat. The scorpions are a serious short-term threat, but take out the brains and leadership of the enemy, Istvan reasons, and this'll all be easier in the long-term.

(Prayer-Cast Magic Missile at Cuthbert: 08:42, Today: Istvan Vanoson rolled 10 using 2d6+2 with rolls of 6,2.

08:43, Today: Istvan Vanoson rolled 6 using 2d4 with rolls of 3,3.)

13:46, Today: Lazarus Steel rolled 11 using 2d6.  Con roll vs scorpion shower.
Sweet, he's okay!

Lazarus winced as the bag flew in his direction, then outright yelped when it was cut open by Lucius and revealed the scorpions within. The wizard clenched his eyes and recoiled as he awaited the inevitable shower of over-sized scorpions. He felt a plop aganst his shoulder and one leg, but that was it. Apparently Lucius's slash had caused most to miss their intended target. And the ones that did hit were too disoriented from flying through the air to know where to sting.

Immediately Lazarus's mind was doing calculations and he knew he had to act immediately before he missed his chance. Like lightning, Lazarus's hands shot out toward each scorpion to grab it at the base of the stinger. The wizard then spun around and used his momentum to chuck the bugs back at their original captor. "Take this, Cuthbert!" he yelled, even as Istvan was casting his magic at the same target.

---

Defying Danger with Dex to throw a couple scorpions back at Cuthbert.
13:56, Today: Lazarus Steel rolled 9 using 2d6+1.  Cashing in scorpion gift receipt.
Partial success, unless he receives Aid.

Cuthbert is just starting to get up when Istvan's bolt knocks him back down again.  For a brief moment it looks like this might be enough to intimidate the other slavers into backing off, but when Lazarus throws a scorpion back at their leader, this insult seems to push them to fight back instead.  Two men advance at you with knives drawn, while the third picks up a burning piece of wood from the ground where the barn still stands, but clearly not for much longer.

The oxen, for their part, are standing in the field a short distance away and seem to be unfazed by these latest developments.

And what do you all do?

The nimble little mouse scampers up to the top of the bag, finding herself briefly twisted up in the fabric as it's cut in half.  The scorpions fly out everywhere, but she rides the softer cushioning of the burlap to the ground, landing safely.

Crawling out, she studies the scorpions.

OOC: Spending her Hold to safely escape, leaving two.  And this round, she will contemplate the essence of the Scorpions.  I think that's just a thing that takes a moment?  It doesn't look like there's a die roll for it.

Even though he took the sacred Vow of Honor, which forbids cowardice, Lucius couldn't get himself to charge forward, even though he was fairly certain of the men's misdeeds.

He gripped the sword tighter and raised his shield, bracing himself for the attack.

Lucius will continue defending Lazarus. I have 2 more hold so I don't think another roll is necessary.

Standing guard in front of a person who can't defend themselves too well is hardly "cowardice."  Lucius feels fairly confident that the Order of the Sun would agree with his choice to hold his position.  Especially when two of the three men (one with a knife, and the one with the makeshift torch) come swinging.  The third advances on Istvan instead.

The scorpions, now free from their bag, skitter away from the fire.  They move in various directions, with a couple of them heading toward the oxen.  Thistle watches carefully to see how the coordinate all those legs with the heavy claws at the front and the tail hovering at the back.

Lucius - Lazarus is about to take 1d6+1 damage.  I assume you're intervening, but since you have a few options for how to do that I will wait for you to specify.

Istvan - you have a few seconds to act before the third guy reaches you.  He is wielding a knife and does not appear to have any armor on.

There's a split second where Istvan is tempted to pray for a smiting, but he can't help but feel he'd better not waste the smites. Noric might get tired of Istvan if Istvan doesn't try to take care of himself now and then.

So Istvan rears back and whacks the guy with his mace.

Istvan's mace, I mean, not the guy's mace. The guy didn't have a mace. Just a knife. Except that he has a mace now, in his face.

(17:37, Today: Istvan Vanoson rolled 9 using 2d6+1 ((4,4)). Sigh. Should've gone with the smite, but who knew? Not me. Felt like I was due for a bad roll.

17:42, Today: Istvan Vanoson rolled 1 using 1d6 ((1)). And there it is.)

Lazarus kept one eye on Cuthbert, but ducked further behind Lucius as the other two opponents advanced. "You got this buddy," Lazarus encouraged Lucius. "And if not, well, I do know a bit of healing magic... If your guts get spilled, I'll mop them up for you!" That was definitely an exaggeration of his healing capabilities.

Just then, he noticed Istvan getting into a scuffle with a knife-wielder. It looked like there was another who might end up needing some healing too.

Lucius gulped as the men approached. Lazarus' attempt at encouragement didn't help. He focused back on his combat training and braced his shield to take the brunt of the blows while taking a wide swing from the side at the men.

I take the hit on the chin. 1 hold remaining.

23:25, Today: Lucius rolled 9 using 2d6+1.  Hack and Slash.

23:28, Today: Lucius rolled 2 using 1d10+1.  Damage.

If possible, he aims to disable/incapacitate rather than kill. But I understand that in a combat situation this would be difficult.

Cuthbert shows no sign of movement.

Istvan's pontificating about the right move to make means that when he finally does attack, he's slow.  This allows the thug to duck aside and slide in with his knife.  The mace does clonk him (lightly) on the head, but momentum carries him forward with a hard stab.

GM rolled 6 using 1d6.  damage to Istvan.

Lucius stands firm and takes the hits that were meant for Lazarus.  His shield and mail absorb most of the impact, but he still loses his balance for a moment.  He tries to compensate as he lines up his counterattack, and though he does give the knife-wielder a good cut, he stumbles as he swings and creates a little more of a gap between himself and Lazarus.  The torch-wielding thug takes advantage of this and is about to reach the wizard...

GM rolled 3 using 1d6+1.  damage to Lucius.

Seeing the torch-wielder targeting him, Lazarus acted fast. "Watch me work my magic!" he taunted. With a flair of his robes, Lazarus spun in place, sinking low as he turned to deliver a surprise leg sweep on the man with the torch. He hoped to knock the guy prone so that they could deal with him more easily in the near future. And with any luck, maybe he would land on one of those scuttling scorpions...

---

My intent is for Lazarus to trip up the guy using his dex (acting fast).
14:50, Today: Lazarus Steel rolled 8 using 2d6+1.  Defy Danger with dex - trip.

Lucius can't split himself in two, that much is clear. Trying to interfere with both foes, he first puts his foot forward to trip the torch thug, then rushes with his shield raised at the other man, trying to knock him away for now.

Last hold used to give +1 forward against the torch guy.

Not sure what to roll here.

In the meantime, although Istvan was hoping one of his comrades would happen to do something spectacular that would at least distract his opponent, he quickly saw that that wasn't about to happen, so Istvan just tried attacking again himself...

(10:18, Today: Istvan Vanoson rolled 11 using 2d6+1 ((4,6)).

Damage: 10:19, Today: Istvan Vanoson rolled 4 using 1d6 ((4)).)

And it worked!

Better than last time, anyway...

Lazarus and Lucius both work together to trip the one guy.  With their combined efforts they do succeed, but he hits hard against Lazarus's shin, so that hurts like hell for a bit.

Unfortunately, this maneuver means that Lucius isn't paying enough attention to the attacker on the other side of him.  As the paladin turns to start his next maneuver, the man has already grabbed the edge of your shield, and he now uses it as a lever to control your arm.  It's uncomfortable already, and if you don't find a way out quickly it's going to hurt a lot more pretty soon.

Things are going better for Istvan, however, and he scores a good hit on the side of his opponent's head and knocks him right out.

------------
Lazarus - no mechanical effect for your shin right now, but it might count against you depending on what happens in the next minute or two.

Lucius - I'm not going to pretend I know how intricate shield straps are, so I'll say one turn will be sufficient to extricate yourself - you lose your shield, but you also nullify the immediate threat.  You could also try to wrench free with another Str-based DD, or any other ideas you might have.  If you allow the arm bar to happen, it will do 1d4 damage (minus armor, since it will interfere with how much he can move you or dig the shield into your arm), and you will have a -1 penalty on all rolls involving physical movement until you can get free.

No amount of training can replace experience. Lucius found himself in an unexpected position. Panicking, he reared his head back to strike with it at the thug's nose. While the attempt was good, the execution... Not so much.

For some reason copying text from the roller on this new phone is a massive chore. So I'll just let you know I rolled a big fat 5 on my Hack and Slash.

This message was deleted by the player at 08:17, Tue 07 Jan 2020.

With his target down on the ground now, Lazarus loomed over him threateningly with his dagger in one hand and magical sparks flaring in his other. "If you know what is good for you, you'll do away with your torch and surrender. Otherwise you might not get out of here with all of your pieces still attached..." Lazarus hoped the threat would convince the man to stay down so that he didn't have to make good on his threat.

---

I believe this would be a parley, with the leverage being the choice between getting smacked around with blade and magic, or surrendering and staying in one piece.
13:20, Today: Lazarus Steel rolled 8 using 2d6+1.  Parley.
On a 7–9, they will do what you ask, but need some concrete assurance of your promise, right now.

The mouse scampers over towards Lucius, where she finally lets go of her mouse form, returning to her natural shape right behind the man holding the Paladin's shield.  Without a word, she swings her shillelagh, aiming right for his knees.  The stout wood connects with a solid crunch, and she's ready to move out of the way in case he falls backwards towards her.


OOC: Hack and Slash actually rolled a 12, for 5 damage!

The one that was fighting Lazarus takes a breath and slowly says "Okay now, you just put down your knife, fair's fair like, and I'll put down the torch, right?"

A few feet away, Lucius tries to fight back, but the thug has too much of an advantage.  He steps to the side and pulls hard on your shield, digging the rim into your tricep and locking your arm in place.  Just as it is starting to really hurt, Thistle suddenly pops up beside him and hits him so hard on the side of the knee that you're pretty sure it's broken.  He instantly screams, lets go of you, and drops to the ground, writhing in pain.

GM rolled 2 using 1d4.  Damage to Lucius.

Lazarus kept his eyes locked on the man he was fighting, but nodded to him and threw his dagger blade-first into the dirt. But he kept the magic crackling between his fingers intimidatingly. "Looks like you're the last man standing," he said as the other conscious enemy fell to the ground with a broken leg. "I would suggest not backing out of your side of our deal. I dropped my weapon, now you drop yours."

Lucius grunts in pain, but the armor on his arm prevents the armlock from doing any significant damage. He stretches and relaxes the injured shield arm for a while, looking down at the beaten thug. "Whew... what a mess..."

Unnerved at the sight of blood on his blade, he wipes it clean and sheathes it afterwards, approaching the last man standing besides Lazarus, letting the mage do the talking.

Thistle grins at her success, and stands over her fallen foe, cudgel raised up intimidatingly in case he decides to try anything else.

Istvan wanders over to his comrades, keeping an eye out for any other surprises from deeper in the mine, but also keeping an eye out on the floor for any other scorpions or bugs that might be crawling around...

Shaking, the last of the thugs drops his burning brand.  There is a faraway look in his eyes, and for at least the next minute or so he seems not to register when anyone tries to talk to him.

With the battle over, you all take a moment to survey the scene, collect your thoughts, and decide on your next course of action...

END OF SESSION 1