I haven't played L1 yet; its in a looooong line
Okay, stuff I liked about combat from Nahlakh...
- Wide variety of spells that were not only distinct and individually useful, but could also be combined in multiple ways.
- A strong emphasis on buffs and debuffs, not just a slug-fest. Careful management was required to prevent your party from being overwhelmed in almost every fight.
- The importance of facing. It could be used to create/exploit weaknesses in enemies without you really having to micromanage your own.
- Knockback/collisions. Okay, probably not a particularly strong feature, but nothing was more satisfying than belting someone across the map, having them slam into another enemy and causing them both to be knocked unconcious.
- The guard function; such a practical time saver.
Agreed that fights could drag on, but given that Nahlakh didn't really have anything else happening, to be expected. Exploration is probably my favourite passtime in an RPG and it didn't really scratch that itch at all.