Thanks for looking into it, Neil. On my system, the "even numbers" on the numpad do work -- 2 4 6 8 -- but not the odd ones. So I can use the numpad like the arrow keys, to move straight up or down, or left or right, but not diagonally -- and half the time I want to move diagonally!
I wonder if this issue relates to the varying keyboard layouts people have. Laptops, for example, might share numpad keys with other keys (like delete/insert), if they have a numpad at all. Me, I've got a big ol ergonomic keyboard with a separate numpad that I normally use in games like Civ and GalCiv2.
Anyway, this remains my #1 issue with Elemental, which I otherwise find quite fun. Heading back to play more...