The gnomes run around like headless chickens making it very tough not to accidentally target one. It took a few reloads to make that not happen, and I ended up not being able to use certain magic.
The gnomes are slaves, and lack agency. As an Eilistraeen priest it would've been nice to convert Nere, but all I could do was talk him down from murdering the slaves.
It's a weird encounter overall.
I do agree. It is frustrating. First time I played it, had to do it like a dozen times just because one gnome kept running into fire.
