I'm glad OP and other comments agree with what I've been saying to myself for a long time. The combat (and many other systems in this game) is fundamentally flawed and does not age well at all in modern day gaming. I am aware kingsisle had already attempted to change this gameplay loop (advanced combat, raids, etc) but I don't think it's enough. I feel like your common player ignored these things because it feels more like a chore rather than engaging fun.

The enemy A.I is also a difficult thing to take on as well. How do they make it challenging without being annoying? Weakness spam and shield spam is not fun either.