HotB Dune

[wunderworks]

I just finished playing through a mod for Civilization 4 called Dune Wars. It is possibly the best Dune video game I've ever played, and it has inspired me to work on a Houses of Dune game. I'm thinking of running just such a game when my current HotB game ends very soon.

I think most things will be able to stay the same with a few additions and slight tweaks.

I'm of two minds right now regarding the +1 Bonus to aspects - either you get it based off of your House or your Caste. I think I'm leaning towards the idea that each Family name (including any Fremen name) is an aspect. So the Harkonnen get an aggressive aspect that also tags them for their legendary short-tempers. Thus, the +1 Aspect Bonus is based upon your Caste. Bene-Gesserit/Nobles have Cunning, Fedaykin/Saddukar/etc. have Prowess, Fremen Scouts/Smugglers/Liet Kienes and his folk have Courage, Mentats/Guilders have Wisdom, Gladiators/Deep Desert Fremen have Strength, and Imperials/Consorts have Beauty.

There won't be artifacts anymore, but there will be Technologies. Much like Artifacts Technologies will give special bonuses, many will stay the same, but others will change. Examples include, Stillsuits, Thumpers, Hunter-Killers and The Juice of Saffo. Possibly also flying vehicles...we shall see.

Devotions will also change. You will chose an ideal. The Landsraad (Duke Leto I), Shai'Hu'lud (Early Fremen/Stilgar), The Quizate (Gaius Helena Mohan/Leto II), The Ma'haud'i (Paul Atreidies/Alia), The Technocracy (The Spacing Guild/Ix/Tilaxia), Kanly (Baron Harkonnen) and last but not least The Imperium (House Corrino). Devotion to this ideal will give you bonus dice when supporting this ideal directly or possibly special Devotions that give you situation specific devotions (The Weirding Way, etc.).

And almost as importantly Dueling will be updated. Knives are important as are shields. I have an idea, an idea I was already considering for regular HotB duels - to use cards based on a duelist's Maneuvers that they can play back and forth quickly. Also, a few new man. will be modded/added to account for the use of shields, and perhaps grant each character with the Duelist Aspect a number of free Maneuvers equal to their Prowess.

Finally, Season Actions will be updated to fit the technology and situation.

What does everyone think? Any thoughts?

[CatsEye Yellow]

anything happened with this? I am currently thinking of SF version of HoTB.

[wunderworks]

Yes! I am reworking Devotions as one of the primary pivot points in the game and will post what I have soon. I've been under deadlines at work up until yesterday so I've been kind of silent and need to spend a week cleaning up my work, but I will post it here soon.


Btw, do you have any ideas regarding Personal Shield Mechanics and Laser guns and projectile guns and how they intersect with shields? I have some basic ideas, but nothing that seems to really leap out at me.

[CatsEye Yellow]

Je ne sais pas

I would suggest checking that Burning Jihad supplement for Burning Wheel game. It is free and basically it is Dune.

[wunderworks]

Je ne sais pas

I would suggest checking that Burning Jihad supplement for Burning Wheel game. It is free and basically it is Dune.

I have. The problem with that game is that you're playing during the Jihad as either Imperialists or Jihadists. I want to run/play a game that is more in line with the first novel where great men and women die because devoted men and women betray them.

[dogmirian]

what i got from the first book was that no one used rifles but a few freemen rocket launchers, which made me very disappointed in the movie with only some melee combat
system wise i would do it with little to no ranged weapons but still have them so that you can assassinate people on dune but remember what happens when a bullet hits a shield and that dune worms are atracked to the shields

[weaverchilde]

Actually, bullets hitting a shield would just be deflected away. Only the slow blade passes through the shield (or specialized seekers). I think you are thinking lasguns which basically explode. AFAIK the reason that they don't use a lot of range weapons is due to the Great Convention, much like thinking machines its all about cultural views that prevent them from maximizing their technological advantages.


BTW, how is this going?

[wunderworks]

Actually, bullets hitting a shield would just be deflected away. Only the slow blade passes through the shield (or specialized seekers). I think you are thinking lasguns which basically explode. AFAIK the reason that they don't use a lot of range weapons is due to the Great Convention, much like thinking machines its all about cultural views that prevent them from maximizing their technological advantages.


BTW, how is this going?

Slowly but surely. The feeling I got when I just re-read the books was that Frank Herbert never got the concept to work correctly in his head. Shields are not used on Dune except around the main house inside the Shield Wall because the vibrations of shields calls worms. Lasguns also supposedly mess horribly with shields causing them to explode, sometimes. BUT, the Harkonnen Mentat, whatshisnameIhaveaheadacheandcan'tthinkstraightatthemoment, was according to everyone else, a genius for using projectile artillery against the Atreides on Dune since it was so ancient and backwards.

I'm working on a system for this, but basically lasers are going to be available, they do kill a shielded target, BUT lasers are more like WWI type Machine Guns - big, heavy, and need a special suit to carry and charge. Basically, they're rare, and getting shot with one is as if you don't have a shield and getting shot with a projectile weapon. It is mentioned several times that the Fremen warriors carried ancient style projectile guns to be used against unshielded targets.

[dogmirian]

how is the modification going