Yes, I figure the key thing with having real-time battle in MMORPGs is just that time can't be stopped. That alone can be worked around as people have posted. What I figure the main problem to be, is that each battle will take very different amounts of time to complete, depending on how quickly the players chose to execute their turns. If you're into gathering experience points by fighting other players, an opponent being very slow at hitting their "end turn button" can lead to frustration. Of course one would have to put time limits in, but it can make for a slow game overall. But I guess if the majority or all fighting in the game is against NPCs, then I guess it doesn't matter if the player is a slow player. He'll just be gathering experience points slower at no one else's expense.

That's the dead end I always reach in thinking up a turn based multiplayer game. If the game is to be truly turnbased, each player should have a good amount of time to execute their moves and strategies. That's why I feel that a truly multiplayer game in an ongoing world doesn't seem like a good idea. That's why games like Lasersquad are played via email. But even there they have rankings, which in the end is based on how many battles you can play at once and how quickly. There's just not much fun to be had sitting around waiting for the other players to finish their turn.

Going for something hybrid can work as suggested here. Personally though, I prefer either having true turned based battles, or fully real-time ones.

Well, the big reasons for avoiding turn-based combat is that when it comes time to balance weapons, it's almost impossible to do it realistically. Everyone will be choosing either the best 1h weapon so they can use a shield or (more likely) a big 2-handed weapon. Daggers, rapiers and other 'fast' 1 handed weapons would fall to the wayside.

Weapon balance needs to be taken into account. Allowing someone with a big 2-handed axe the same number of attacks as someone with a rapier, which can usually attack several times before the 2-handed axe wielder can make a single attack and recover (that's a lot of mass to swing and get back to where you can start your attack again) is nothing if not unfair and unrealistic.

While you could just allow faster weapons more attacks per round, it's easier to just put the weapons on timers, where they get to attack every x number of pulses (usually tenths of a second or something similar).

anyone played Lufia 2: Raise of the sinitrals?
That was the first turn based RPG that Ive ever played, and I was sooo addicted to that game :P

I realy liked it's combat, just say if you want to do a normal atk, use a spell, an item, defend or run away etc. Just select it for all you're party members. Than your party members attack 1 by 1, the person/monsters with the highest speed first..

I always loved to see that in a rpg but never saw it :(
Ofcourse you can't make it 100% the same becuase otherwise you're gonna have ppl that are just not selecting a move and the other will need to wait.. but for this you should add a timer: nothing selected? Than you'll defend automaticly (you get less damage from his atk).

When fighting with someone you're just standing still, and other ppl will see you two stand next to eachother with a fighting icon on it, tand they should be able to join the fight, they can choose wich side.

If I'm ever able to create 2d mmorpgs I'm gonna make one with what I described above. Don't care if others like it, only make it to play it myself :P