DUNE

[PK Games]

Has anyone done anything with DUNE for a RPG setting? Ever?

How would you handle the setting? What special rules if any would you need? Would the wierding way be psionic or super power in nature? Would you need to develope in depth weapon listings, or is it a setting where light blaster, medium blaster, heavy blaster work just fine?

Do they even use blasters or are they all projectiles?

Basically what elements from the books (or films if you prefer) would you think would need to be adapted to game mechanics to allow the settings flavor through?

[rust]

There was a Dune RPG developed by Last Unicorn Games and published by
Wizards of the Coast in 1997.
According to what I have been told, this RPG probably was quite good, but
it is now very difficult to get a legal copy of it.

[PK Games]

Originally Posted by rust

There was a Dune RPG developed by Last Unicorn Games and published by
Wizards of the Coast in 1997.
According to what I have been told, this RPG probably was quite good, but
it is now very difficult to get a legal copy of it.

Found it. Well since I dont have $275 to blow on a game with a questionable system and no sourcebooks and so on and so forth, my other questions are still posted.

Could be a good setting, but how do you do it in BRP?

[rust]

I do not know of anyone working on a BRP version of Dune, but you might
find some useful background material on the "Duniverse" on this forum:

DuneRPG - Index - Strategy/Role-playing Game - Free Message Board Hosting by FreePowerBoards.com

[PK Games]

Originally Posted by rust

I do not know of anyone working on a BRP version of Dune, but you might
find some useful background material on the "Duniverse" on this forum:

DuneRPG - Index - Strategy/Role-playing Game - Free Message Board Hosting by FreePowerBoards.com

Just another thing to add to my list of things that I want to do and will never get around to. Stupid real life jobs.

[Merak Gren]

There is a setting book/ pdf for Burning Wheel called Jihad, based on the Dune milieu. You can download the pdf free from the buning wheel website. Here: http://www.burningwheel.org/wiki/images/0/08/Jihad.pdf

Might be helpful for what you want.

[Pete Nash]

Originally Posted by PK Games

Has anyone done anything with DUNE for a RPG setting? Ever?

I have been seriously thinking about writing a BRP Dune setting. However, since the licence is out of reach, I was considering doing it as a free download for fans.

Originally Posted by PK Games

Basically what elements from the books (or films if you prefer) would you think would need to be adapted to game mechanics to allow the settings flavor through?

I was considering making the Wierding Way, Mentat recall, etc. a group of separate skills, only available to those of a particular guild/social group.

For Prescience, I'd use a simple rule of spend an extra power point, roll an extra set of dice for the skill check. Thus if you spent 2pp on a skill attempt you'd roll three sets of % dice, and then choose the best temporal 'path' by selecting the roll you preferred. Simple and elegant.

Most everything else is simply background, character professions and equipment; and the game itself should focus more on intrigue and politics, over gratuitous combat. (Crysknives, lasguns and poisons should make the already deadly BRP combat, more lethal still, encouraging more cerebral problem solving.)

[NickMiddleton]

Pretty much all the "magic powers" in Dune are actually just phenomenally well trained and integrated skills. The "weirding way" is a superstitious Fremen description for Bene Gesserit prana-bindu based martial arts, "the Voice" is clearly described as a technique of vocal modulation and pitching aimed at a specific individual. Even the truth saying thing is IIRC a matter of reading body language and vocal nuances. The only thing that's not a matter of training alone is the actual pre-gog.

So I'd say Pete's correct that most of it could be handled by some setting specific skills, an dother wise there would be no "powers" at all. Appropriate equipment descriptions would be key - no energy weapons (apart from the banned lasguns...), eprsonal shields etc. The officially NOT cannon Dune Encyclopedia would make a good reference, especially if one were aiming at the "classic" setting of the original three novels.

Cheers,

Nick Middleton

[Pete Nash]

I wish I could find a cheap copy of the Dune Encyclopedia...

[tal]

perhaps the "magic powers" could be something similair to Ki skills in Land of the Ninja. There would have to some add to the list of skills.