>two players like low power, low fantasy, low magic, realistic, grim
>two players like high power, high fantasy, high magic, pulpy, upbeat
Is there any way to please all four players, without kludging the game into a bland paste of "compromise" that leaves nobody happy?
No? Seems like you've got two incompatible likes, unless there's a middle ground you can reach of tangent and convergent likes, like do they have similar preferences when it comes to scifi games?
Maybe try and find a setting and system that they all like and would agree to play regardless of previous personal preference?
When in doubt, just ask
"What would Kentaro Miura do?"
And that would be having a low power, low fantasy world go through the disasters and wonders of a higher dimension impacting upon it and ultimately melding with it.
Grim players get to go through the grim drama of their world being taken from them while dealing with the horrors of monsters that put their own mundane means into perspective, while high fantasy players get to experience the excitement of a dawning dimension of magic and excitement.
Two worlds colliding with each other is way, waaaaay into the high fantasy, high magic, pulpy side.
Overlayed on top of a low fantasy, low magic world.
You've still got mortals dealing with mortal problems, while occasionally having to deal with problems from a higher dimension more and more frequently.
>Overlayed on top of a low fantasy, low magic world.
Yeah, no, that's still way into the high fantasy, high magic, pulpy side.
It's impossible to both have and not have high fantasy simultaneously. Your only option to satisfy both at once is to find a good way to blend it together, and that means accepting there'll be some high magic.
What about The Witcher? It's pretty high magic, but it seems to be low magic and gritty because the fantasy part is half exterminated.
>"What would Kentaro Miura do?"
...play Idolmaster?
Haou Taikei Ryuu Knight
youtube.com
Fantasy Military Mecha Pilots
Fantasy Mecha Pilot Adventurers
The mecha have pulpy upbeat fields that help them work.
Giant piloted robots give high power and high magic.
Government quest(s) give high fantasy, pulpy, upbeat (government backup and takes care of things for you).
Low power, low fantasy, low magic, realistic, grim is their private lives, personal gear and time off from the government quests.
The US has $5 million tanks. Fantasy governments would have Contingency pilot suits, raise dead built into the contract, etc.
Realistic and grim is what happens when you crush villagers in a fight.
Just good old boys (low power, low fantasy, low magic, realistic, grim). Can get low power minimecha for adventuring for mid power, mid fantasy (go where the mecha level threats are to pay for maintenance and repairs, or store the mecha at the local military outpost for minor jobs). The high fantasy comes from getting called on by the government and loaned government level full size mecha for the high stuff due to their skills. They keep going from low to mid to high. (Test a pulpy, upbeat field generator on the minimecha by having it be a stolen government prototype that they need to hand over and be given more prototypes to test. Full size versions are fitted on the full size mecha.)
A sensible answer to all life's problems.
...
Washboard acceptance is overrated.
Magic Knight Rayearth
youtube.com
They can be the ones to find the full sized mecha, but have to turn them over to the government to keep kingdoms and nobles from chasing after them with armies; or bandits, pirates, other adventurers, etc. with smaller forces.
The highest rank the nobles would want to give would be non-hereditary knight so they could give the mecha to people they trust. Realistic and grim pushes for small rewards. Combined with pulpy and upbeat they should get tiny rewards with mid-size virtual rewards for big achievements (like turning over the full sized mecha to the kingdom.) Turn over the mecha: get a small reward, but will be called on to use it later. To continue the realism and grim, after years of work they can become non-hereditary knights who have to take care of their fiefs. They have to hand over their sons at 7 to be hostages and pages if they want them to become hereditary knights.
Make them do some awesome things and get realistic rewards with long term virtual rewards (like every noble knowing what you've done, so you have to be rewarded in the future, because they'll be concerned about what will happen if you aren't rewarded, but them not wanting to give up anything major themselves. A fief(s) with troubles is a good reward because it takes care of the trouble the noble was having. A knights lands are a responsibility and to pay for everything.)
>low fantasy
>mecha
>I've got players that like black
>I've got players that like white
Is there any way to mix these two together?
>Grey
>Grey
>Grey
>Grey
>Grey
>THAT ISN'T STRICTLY BLACK OR WHITE!
OP doesn't want help, they just want to bitch.
Make magic incredibly rare. Like 'only 100 wizards on the planet' rare. Then let the two players play wizards.
Maybe, depending on the players.
My initial thought is to set them up as two perspectives on the same world. The two upbeat people do right and are done right by others in return, and the grims use cunning to force their desires through.
The goal would be to create a game with the subtext of two groups trying to prove ideologies to each other, in friendly competition.
If the players would push back on that, shit. I don't know.
The low fantasy is the personal combat.
The mid & high fantasy is the mecha fights.
Make the mecha more realistic in maintenance required, so you don't do everything in the mecha.
>>two players like low power, low fantasy, low magic, realistic, grim
>>two players like high power, high fantasy, high magic, pulpy, upbeat
>Is there any way to please all four players, without kludging the game into a bland paste of "compromise" that leaves nobody happy?
Tanks get carried around on railroad cars or tank carriers because they wear out way to soon. The mecha should be carried on horse drawn carts.
New aircraft take 6 hours maintenance per flight hour, old 40-60 hours per flight hour; warships 1 year maintenance for 6 months of operation. Tanks need to be guarded while being repaired in the field. The US stayed with a four man crew for the maintenance required.
Any old mecha they find shouldn't have anyone who knows how to fix it so it has a limited amount it can be used until it breaks down (or already doesn't work), but everyone major wants it anyway, because they'll be able to learn how to make it work later. The PCs will get more done by leaving their minimecha will a local garrison to work on it while they go off and make money to pay for the maintenance and lessons on how to repair and maintain them.
Play shadowrun.
>mfw I'm low power, high fantasy, medium magic, pulpy, varied
>low power
>low fantasy
>high magic
>realistic
>upbeat
ora
More importantly, what is the image from? The filename intrigues me.
It's from "Kill Yourself 2: Electric Boogaloo."
I can't find that on IMDB, Crunchyroll, OR TV Tropes!
iqdb.org
For all your anime picture needs
Low fantasy is you're a commoner. No saving the world for you; you're not special or strong enough. With mecha around you are very small.
Samurai 7 gives an idea of what it would be like being a peasant in a fantasy mecha setting.
youtube.com
I was thinking magic mecha like golems and other things.
Dream Pod 9's Mecha Compendium has three examples of fantasy mecha settings. It's for D20 and their own system (Sil or Silcore, can't remember).
The full size preview has the full paragraph for fantasy mecha campaigns and their rationale.
drivethrurpg.com
It's 2 fantasy settings:
Fantasy: Custom iron golem controlled from the inside, et al.
Settings: Guardians of Divinity, Golemsuit Warriors