We were able to save our file from complete disaster through the perseverance of my fiancé. After 2 hours of restarting our single save file, we got lucky. This required the Ox to miss its fatal shot at the blacksmith. Then we did an Ice knife on the Ooze, and knocked it prone. After many times of the Ooze not getting pulled into initiative, it finally happened. The Ooze was third after our Barbarian and Bard. The Bard did Thunderwave to the Ox, while the Barbarian shot it with arrows. They both had their turns before the blacksmith as well. They blocked his path to the stable by standing in front of it. The blacksmith proceeded to take the long way around. By the time he arrived to try to be an Adventurer, the Ox safely dead. Our file is intact, all we lost was the Ox.
