Herein we shall iron out expectations and important details unrelated to House and character creation. Most published material for Dune: Adventures In The Imperium centers on Arrakis, detailed in the sourcebook Sand And Dust. Campaign settings Agents Of Dune, Masters Of Dune, and Fall Of The Imperium all take place in large part on Arrakis.

In addition to choosing whether to set our game on Arrakis or choose some wider scope, we also must decide on which era we wish to play. The Butlerian Jihad, as detailed in the Legends Of Dune trilogy, takes place more than 10,000 years prior to the original novels. The Reconstruction, as detailed in the Schools Of Dune trilogy, takes place just under a century after the end of the Jihad. Neither of these eras strike me as suitable periods for conducting a game.

Prelude To Dune takes place roughly a generation before the original novels and is a reasonable period for play. The Dune rules roughly default to this era. There is however a 10,000-year gap between the events of Schools Of Dune and Prelude To Dune and that gives us much latitude to build an original campaign without overly concerning ourselves with canon. Agents Of Dune and Masters Of Dune could easily be set in this period or in the Prelude default. Things change after Muad'Dib, and the God Emperor's rule changes everything.

I would agree that starting in the Prelude To Dune era sets us a nice familiar table to work with, without having to worry about the later galactic upheaval. But it would still allow us to have intrigues and adventures. A lot of what would cement this decision is the creation of our original House, though. Because who they are, their culture, location, power, resources, exports, etc all dictate the direction the game will take, no?

A House Major and a House Minor will have very different...spheres of influence, and paths to walk, for instance.

Dune: Adventures In The Imperium is the sort of game that screams for characters who are competent and compelling, so it is my intent that players will create theirs to be on a par with those from the Dune saga (whose game-related stats may be found in Chapter 9 of the core rulebook). Likewise, the players' House will be on a comparable level with those from the saga (in game and setting terms, the characters serve and belong to a House Major). All options presented in the game line as of this writing will be available to players.

Prelude To Dune essentially chronicles the rise of Shaddam IV to the Golden Lion Throne in 10,156 AG. We could opt for a prelude to Prelude and set our campaign sometime after Shaddam's father Elrood IX succeeds his own father Fondil III as Emperor in 10,018 AG. A game set during the reign of Fondil III would likely be very interesting*, as Fondil's reputation was formidable after quelling many revolts — through both military force, cunning, and subterfuge. Nothing of Fondil's reign is described in detail, that I'm aware, so we would have a great deal of wiggle room.

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* — As in the ancient Jewish curse, "May you live in interesting times".

How about setting it during the reign of Vutier II? Even less is written about him, so that would imply a time of some political stability, meaning we'd have more leeway to maneuver. Also, I like the idea of having an Emperor who's a patron of the arts rather than being known for murder or intrigues or hunting.

Vutier Corrino II was the 78th Emperor of the known universe, and father to the 79th Emperor Fondil III. Little is known about Vutier II, though in Dune: House Atreides Shaddam IV remarks that Vutier was a great patron of the arts.

It gives me an idea for a character who communicates coded messages via syndicated, illustrated stories. Certain words, the position of figures in a panel, and colors hide encrypted clues that can be deciphered by those who know the secret language. Everyone else is just reading a comic book.

Don't we want a time of murder and intrigues? For challenges in-game?

[GM EDIT: Not yet time for House discussions and that will have its own thread.]
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:05, Tue 02 Apr.

Sure, murder & intrigue! I'm just saying having an emperor who also supports artists and musicians might be a nice change of pace. :)

A quote from Fondil III sheds some light on his personality: "History is a tool to be used, a weapon to be wielded. The past must conform to the needs of the Imperium, otherwise an Emperor has failed in his duty." The present also must conform to the needs of the Emperor, so it is possible Fondil's reputation is entirely the result of carefully-crafted propaganda. As for Vutier II, his reputation is almost certainly the result of propaganda, cover-up, or the systematic destruction of records — in my Dune universe.

Honestly, at the end of the day I'm down with whatever you'd like to run, but if you're trying to make me want to work in the employ of Emperor Vutier II and shape that narrative, I kind of do.

Another quote from Fondil III: "Is the life of a king worth more than that of a peasant or thief? Is your own life worth more than that of a person of lower station? Such valuations can be used to determine whether actions are heroic, or cowardly."

Question: Would you rather be aligned with House Corrino or against it? With the Imperium or against it? With any specific factions from the novels or against them? Loyalty and rebellion are important themes in the setting. Duke Leto's loyalty was used to trap and destroy him.

If our House was to ever rebel, I would want it to be because of events that occurred in-game. Starting off rebellious seems to lack the...gut emotion that a rebellious spirit calls for.

So, to start I'd like to be loyal to the throne and the Imperium, if that is okay with everyone?

It's always fun to hate on mega-corporations, so why not have CHOAM as House enemies?

I'm on board with both of Eklo's suggestions.

I'm fine with whatever the people want to play, as I'm not *that* versed in Dune history (I've read the first two novels, watched the movies and read some wiki entries randomly).

Personally I'd be interested in playing the Swordmaster of the house, if people are ok with that.

CHOAM would be a serious House enemy. They operate behind the scenes. They control the economy absolutely. Fight for every scrap of wealth.

"CHOAM. The Combine Honnete was much more than House Atreides, much more than Dune, much more than the Priesthood or melange. It was inkvines, whale fur, shigawire, Ixian artifacts and entertainers, trade in people and places, the Hajj, those products which came from the borderline legality of Tleilaxu technology; it was addictive drugs and medical techniques; it was transportation (the Guild) and all of the supercomplex commerce of an empire which encompassed thousands of known planets plus some which fed secretly at the fringes, permitted there for services rendered. When Idaho said CHOAM, he spoke of a constant ferment, intrigue within intrigue, a play of powers where the shift of one duodecimal point in interest payments could change the ownership of an entire planet." — Alia Atreides

Awesome. Big enemies are fun, whether they are rival Major Houses, the Emperor, the Guild, etc.

@Kwyna: Sure.I don't have a problem with that.

These are the House roles I am interested in, no particular order:

-Master of Assassins
-Warmaster
-Swordmaster
-Ruler
-Heir

One thing at a time, please. Let's not get ahead of ourselves by discussing characters before we've even settled on an era in which to play and the sort of House we want at the heart of our stories. With CHOAM as your chief adversary, an economics strategist versed in illicit trade might prove more central than a Master Of Assassins.

Fair enough, I blame the enthusiasm :D

What would you be most comfortable with you, GM?

I understand the enthusiasm, believe me. At the moment I am torn between Vutier and Fondil as our choice for Emperor. One thought I had is that Fondil might have earned his reputation during Vutier's reign, acting on his behalf. Or we could just take what limited information we have about the pair at face value.

"A world is supported by four things: the learning of the wise, the justice of the great, the prayers of the righteous, and the valour of the brave. But all of these are as nothing, without a ruler who knows the art of ruling." ― Reverend Mother Gaius Helen Mohiam

My vote is for Fondil.

Given what we know about Fondil - that he was a philosophically-motivated manipulator of history - I do not trust even the little that is written of Vutier.

I'm down with Fondil. He gives us a little bit more to grab ahold of as a character.

I think it makes sense to be outwardly aligned with House Corrino, though our true motivations may put us at odds.

If CHOAM were to be our house enemy: CHOAM is vast in scope and many houses count themselves shareholders; what would our conflict with CHOAM arise from?

The conflict would probably arise over money, trade agreements or even failed endeavors.

It depends. I think we would need to know what kinds of resources our planet or planets have, and what kinds of activities we specialize in, before we could craft the specific conflict.

Hi all.

I suspect we don't all have to have the same house enemies?  Surely one can't be a straight up enemy of CHOAM and still travel in space but certainly some of us that have better relationships with them, and some that are loyal to the emperor out of love versus loyal based on what power you can get from that.  And allegiances/rivalries with other houses.

Plus the relationship with non house factions like the Bene Gesserit, Bene Tleilax, the Fremen, the various underworld/smuggling groups on Arrakis (or other planets)

I would like most of the campaign to take place on Arrakis as that's where most of the lore is but the occasional aside to a house stronghold or the imperial palace might be good for a change of pace.

Most if not all of the rest of us agreed in my initial GM's Wanted thread that the campaign would take place away from Arrakis, and believe that's the direction the game is going.

If we have issues with CHOAM, it may not even be CHOAM's fault necessarily. Ships might be getting diverted out of our house's shipping lanes, leaving us short on supplies and leading to the kind of revolt that Fondil was known for quelling. Maybe we need to do something about that, maybe we're responsible? It's early days yet!
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 16:55, Thu 04 Apr.

Yeah, we wanted to stay away from simply being a retread of the events of the novels.

That's not a bad idea Vidad. If CHOAM found a more profitable, or cost effective, shipping lane, that diverted them from using the shipping lanes controlled by our House, leading to financial hardships, which caused people to rebel or riot on our world(s), leading to a censure from the Emperor before we got things under control, might leave us with a deep grudge against CHOAM. Both because we took a financial hit, and we lost face to the wider Imperium by being castigated by the Emperor.

Is that more or less what you were thinking?

I wasn't part of the original thread, but I am inclined to agree that the house and the setting should be located off of Arrakis (at least at the onset).

Being an enemy of CHOAM in its entirety is daunting and perhaps impractical. To directly oppose CHOAM is to directly oppose the essential economic forces of the known universe. The scope is vast, and open opposition seems tantamount to exiting the imperial economy.

I like where this shipping lane intrigue is headed. Surely CHOAM did not produce a more cost-effective shipping lane from thin air; who stands to benefit from this turn of events?
This message was last edited by the player at 21:51, Wed 03 Apr.

Probably another House.

Though, which one depends on what overlap they would have with our House for trade and resources.

There are two monopolies in the Imperium. The first is the Spacing Guild's monopoly on interstellar travel. They can refuse to transport your troops, disrupting your military operations. They can refuse to transport your negotiators, disrupting your political operations. The second is CHOAM's monopoly on interstellar trade. They can refuse to export your primary source of income, or import resources essential for your House's survival and that of your House's vassal populace. They can place sanctions on you to limit your trade opportunities or an embargo to stop all trade flowing to and from your House. CHOAM cannot disrupt the flow of spice without repercussions, however.

Now I'm curious about what our primary exports and/or imports are. Are our exports being disrupted, or our imports? Both?

Maybe we are a mineral exporter, shipping out valuable raw resources. Or, a mineral refiner fabricating specialty materials?

Or maybe we are higher up the industrial food chain, producing entertainment devices or military equipment.

I'm assuming for the moment that we are likely to be a house minor (though it's not a certainty). If that's the case, would it be correct to assume that we don't have a whole planet of our own?

In reply to Loyxo (msg # 30):

All that will be fleshed out when we get to House creation. And as stated previously, your House will be a Major one.

In reply to Shai Hulud (msg # 31):

Ah, thanks for pointing that out (I somehow missed it). I guess it is my turn to bashfully admit to my excitement...

To quote another famous emperor, "All creatures will make merry under pain of death".

The existence of a conspiracy, said to have arisen early in Fondil III's reign, is alluded to in The Caladan Trilogy. The purpose of said conspiracy was to overthrow the Imperium in favor of more democratic rule by a galactic republic* called the 'Noble Commonwealth'. This reminds me of the so-called Conspiracy Of Equals and the anarcho-capitalist political and economic philosophy, and could be a fabulous underpinning for our game. I think this will be the essential conflict at the heart of our story. What say you all?

* — basically the opposite of what happens in the Star Wars prequel films.

Sounds like a noble goal to strive for (and die for). I'm in.

In reply to Shai Hulud (msg # 34):

I love that idea.

Opposition to or alliance with the conspirators surely ought to keep our little House busy, to say the very least.

Yeah, I like that.