Over on Reddit, I noticed someone (JusticeGuard78) has found something in the game UI that states that certain monsters' skills must be charged before they can be used in battle.
This is an interesting development, as it means that you wont be able to use your monsters' best deny skills at the start of battle (so no AOE control, etc.).
Will real time friendly battles finally see the end of the importance of the speed rune? I hope so!