Need some RPG recs [lvl 2]

Open world with turn based combat? Good luck finding anything that isn't an MMORPG, and even those are few and far between.
Now if you just want good recommendations for RPGs, give Earthlock a try.
Earthlock just might be what you're looking for, or close to it.

oldies: baldurs gate saga (including icewind dale and neverwinter nights)

Divinity: Original Sin will keep you busy for a long time. It meets your requirements and I can say having played it that it is a great game. I also played Pillars of Eternity, but did not finish, only making it halfway through. I enjoyed it, then I got very sick and I never returned to it as other games came out. I may go back one of these days. I play a lot of games though and there just isn't enough time for them all. :)

Edit: I'm not sure how strict your "open world" rules are, but I felt the two recommendations were open enough if that makes sense.

I can't remember a single open world with TBC tbh. The last good RPG that I've played was Tyranny, and I highly recommend it. It's not open world, but it's a great rpg and you can play as a mage. The combat is a strange kind of turn-based mixed with real time. If you played PoE you might know what I'm talking about.

Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale, and Planescape are the classics every RPG'er should play (and start with IMHO).
They're not exactly open-world, but they've stood the test of time for a reason.

Drakensang series fit all the bills.

The River of Time is generally regarded as the better one and it's technically a prequel, so I'd recommend to play it first. It's based on The Dark Eye tabletop and leveling system can be confusing at first but it's actually pretty straightforvard once you get a hang of it. There's an emphasis on balancing your party so you can't be anything at once.

Lots of starting origins and classes to pick from, useful social skills and you actually get a different starting quest depending on who you play as in The River. Although it's not as story focused as, say, Dragon Age and feels a lot like Baldurs gate or NWN with lighter setting.

Its equipment system is also some of the best I've seen in RPGs if your friend is into that.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magic Obscura is the only one that can fit all of those, and even there, the open-world aspect is poorly implemented. Other contestants that fit most and weren't mentioned yet (and were made in the past years and not a decade ago) are:

• The Age of Decadence
• Ember
• Serpent in the Staglands
• Tyranny
• Torment: Tides of Numenera
• The Shadowrun trilogy by Harebrained Schemes (Returns, Dragonfall, Hong Kong)—yes, it actually has magic in it, along with elves, orks, and whatever low fantasy tropes you want
• Pretty much any fantasy ARPG out there, if you want the focus more on the combat; they usually have open-world aspects, but lack turn-based combat and favour a hack & slash type approach or Diablo-like clickclickclick a zillion times per second to win gameplay instead.
  On the plus side, there are literally hundreds of them to choose from, as for some time everybody and their mother is trying their hand at some ARPG sooner or later.
  Skyrim is a good example of this category, especially for the open-world part.
  Or the Witcher series, if you can live with either one of the worst combat systems in history or with starting a series at the last part (on the plus side, a big-ass part that is probably larger than the previous ones put together).

While it's based on guns rather then magic you may consider wasteland 2 as it meets most of your criteria.

Arcanum

Final Fantasy
Blackguards 1
Planescape Torment
maybe Lords of Xulima
Might & Magic X
Pillars of Eternity
Realms of Arkania: Blade of Destiny
Wizardry 8

without magic:
Dead State
Expedition: Conquistador
Fallout 1&2
Jagged Alliance 2
Silent Storm

I've just started exploring this genre as well. From what I've seen so far, I'd advise Shadowrun games (Returns is pretty generic story-wise, Hong Kong has real-time stealth elements, so I'd start with Dragonfall). They are everything you've written about except for open world. Pillars of Eternity and Tyranny offer some awesome writing, but they are neither turn based, nor open world. And that's all I can tell for now, I'm interested in recommendations as well :)

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If they're new to RPGs, be careful with what you recommend. A lot of games recommended here are very good... but not very beginner's friendly. The Ultimas for an example are great, but I would never recommend them to someone new to the genre. Baldur's Gate is also an iffy choice, because of how easy it is to shoot yourself in the foot when making your character, due to lack of understanding of the AD&D ruleset. Go with games that are relatively easy to understand and get into, and that moves at a good pace, so a really grindy game like Lords of Xulima or Wizardry should not be played by someone new to the genre. And don't go with overly hard ones either. Blackguards is nice... but might end up frustrating your friend to the point where he won't want to play any more games.

Some people might go "well, I played those when I was young". Well, gaming has changed, and you're (probably) an adult now, so your priorities on how you can spend your time will also have changed.

So with that in mind, some good, yet still beginner's friendly games:
The Shadowrun series: These are all pretty straight forward, and easy to get into. The rules are easy to understand, and making some mistakes early on won't make the game nigh unwinnable.
Fallout New Vegas & Elder Scrolls Skyrim: I don't need to introduce these, do I? They're quite approachable, and while only one has magic, they're both solid games. I found New Vegas to be better. Might also be a good starting point for someone who wants to get into modding.
Skyborn Straight forward JRPG with a nice story & setting. Not too hard, but not a pushover either.
Knights of the Old Republic 1 & 2 Really good CRPGs that are also easy to get into.
Mass Effect 1-3 Relatively light CRPGs, leaning towards shooter territory, but with a well fleshed out world and charismatic characters.
Dragon Age: Origins I actually think this game shows its age far more than it should... Yet it might be a good introduction to party based CRPGs like Baldur's Gate

And some weaker recommendations (either because they're worse beginner's games, or stray further from the RPG-genre):
Legend of Grimrock 1-2 really good games, but they can also be quite challenging. They're neither turnbased, nor open world, but I really enjoyed them.
XCom 1 & 2 (the recent ones): Very good turnbased tactics games with RPG elements. Might be a tad bit frustrating at times, but still fun.
Dungeons of Dredmor Want an introduction to rougelikes? This is a good starting point.
Pillars of eternity: Not a great first game, but it's more approachable than the old infinity engine games, due to the rule system not punishing you so hard for making small mistakes. My game of the year 2015

Edited because I read the OP completely before recommending Warband:P

I'm trying to avoid mentioning the ones that always and deservedly get mentioned as the best in the genre because most of them are for seasoned rpgers.
A few below that fit the criteria and aren't daunting on first view though:

Thea The Awakening Only played a little bit myself but it is both open world and TBS although perhaps not great as a first game.
Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is very rpg-newb friendly.
Elder Scrolls:Morrowind. For open world rpgs with magic, etc you can't really go wrong.

King's Bounty series

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Gothic and Gothic 2. Open world, magic, no MMORPG, but not turn-based. Great story, great world, really some of the best RPGs around.

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《Arx Fatalis》?

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