Sir Niall Dementia,
the requirement of flying higher than 1000 ft above terrain (2000 ft in mountainous areas) when not having sight of the surface is also there to ensure that obstacles are not hanging around at altitude.
Grid MORA are there exactly for that purpose.
However, personally, I tend to think that NVFR is there for leisure flights performed in calm clear skies, with the moon providing an eerie lighting.
And for a journey from A to B, at night, the flight should be IFR.
And if an IFR flight can't be made safely under prevailing meteorological conditions, then the flight should be made through an airline.