In this game, the Player Characters all serve the a single noble House on Caladan. So, before we create those characters, it is vital to determine a few details about the style, agenda, and attributes of the House they serve. The House is obviously of great importance to the players, as it determines what type of characters they can each create and what they might aspire to.

The House Creation process will walk the Players through making the following decisions with a majority-vote to settle disagreements (or GM vote in case of ties):

1. House Type
2. Domains and Areas of Expertise
3. Name, Banners, and Arms
4. House Traits
5. House History
6. Enemies
7. Player Character Roles

1. House Type

For the purpose of this game, the Player House will start as a House Minor, which is defined as: an established house that while it has not established itself beyond its home planet, is one of the most important vassals Houses that serve the same House Major. The House has a strong tradition or dedication of service to their patron. Their holdings will cover large portions of lands, a major industry, or a moon controlled by the House Major. However, they must constantly jockey for power among the other Minor Houses that also serve their House Major, which are rivals for its favor.

2. Domains and Areas of Expertise

Domains

As most Houses rely on mercantile power and CHOAM shares for their fortune, each House has developed a specialty in an area of business or produce that is important to the Imperium. These areas of acumen are called Domains. Your House may have several of these classified as either primary or secondary.

A primary domain is the area your House is most famous for because it is something they are one of the best in the universe at. This could be a unique product like spice or a common product your House is an unrivaled expert on. A primary domain need not be especially glamorous, but its power is unmistakable. While many of the Imperium’s elite sneer at the pundi rice of the Atreides, it is a staple food on hundreds of planets.

A secondary domain is an area that the House is known for, but it is not their main source of income. However, it is still lucrative, and the House is considered a serious contender in this arena of business but is far from holding a controlling monopoly. They vie with several other Houses in their attempts to make it a primary domain and the competition may be exceptionally fierce.

It is important to note that a House’s domains are not the only areas of business they are part of, but they can only excel at a few things given the powerful competition among the Houses. So, for most Houses, it makes business sense to play to your strengths and corner a particular area of the universal free market.

The Player House will start with one primary domain and one secondary domain.

Areas of Expertise

The various domains are grouped into areas of expertise for the sake of simplicity. They are further subdivided to help offer ideas for what precise domains might be found within each area of expertise. In some cases, you may choose domains from the same subsection. For example, a farming House might take three different types of crops produce for their primary and two secondary domains. This is also not a comprehensive list and there is nothing wrong with creating a new area of expertise if what you want to excel at is not listed below.

Each area of expertise is divided into the following sections:

- Machinery: any large-scale machinery or devices that might be created, either by the area of expertise or to help craft or maintain the area of expertise.
- Produce: something the area of expertise actually produces. Many areas of expertise offer several different types of produce.
- Expertise: your House excels at training or managing the people who lead the area of expertise.
- Workers: your House either trains or produces dedicated staff who are responsible for doing the actual work that makes the area of expertise flourish and are usually required in large numbers.
- Understanding: this is the theoretical part of the area of expertise and allows a House to develop secret new techniques or strategies they might share with others, for a price.

Domains and Areas of Expertise

Artistic Domain

Artistic domains may not be very powerful, but they grant the House both fame and respect across the universe. Those famed for their performers might also use the opportunity to put spies within a traveling company. The famous Face Dancer spies of the Bene Tleilax were originally designed as performers (officially at least).

Machinery: stage effects, scenery pieces, scenic art, lighting and sound systems
Produce: plays, poems, novels, comedy sketches, musical pieces
Expertise: playwrights, poets, composers, directors
Workers: actors, stage crews, musicians, speakers, traveling companies
Understanding: philosophy, literary criticism, theatrical performance style

Espionage Domain

Intelligence operations and secrets are the meat and drink of most Houses. As such, there are several who are renowned for supplying the mechanisms of the spy trade. A few even infiltrate other organizations to learn their secrets for themselves or to sell to others.

Machinery: surveillance devices, sensors, jamming technology
Produce: information and secrets from other Houses, likely from a particular specialty such as military secrets or blackmail
Expertise: spymasters and agent handlers
Workers: agents, spies, infiltrators
Understanding: particular forms of espionage and counterintelligence techniques

Farming Domain

Houses that rely on farming then to be pastoral and peaceful places. However, their power lies in creating something basic the other Houses may not realize how much they rely upon.

Machinery: tractors, harvesters, large-scale farming equipment
Produce: crops and animal products
Expertise: stewards, land managers
Workers: farm laborers, shepherds, herders
Understanding: new farming techniques to increase productivity

Industrial Domain

Industrial Houses tend to control planets full of factories and production facilities, but most do not let productivity destroy their home. Industrial items can range from filmbook readers to Guild Heighliners, although ay technical House must take care to follow Butlerian prescriptions on what they can develop.

Machinery: factory machines, spacecraft, large vehicles
Produce: mass-produced goods, refined alloys, toys
Expertise: supervisors, business managers
Workers: factory workers, craftsmen, mechanics
Understanding: new techniques for business management and factory operations

Kanly Domain

The next step forward from espionage is assassination. To avoid chaos, the Great Houses agreed on a set of rules for assassination to prevent a slaughter. These “forms of kanly” are designed to limit both assassinations and the inevitable responses and are ruthlessly enforced by all the Houses. As such, they are also a lucrative area of business.

Machinery: assassination weapons and traps such as hunter-seekers, mines, bombs, etc.
Produce: poisons
Expertise: assassin masters, operation planners, trainers
Workers: assassins, thugs, infiltration specialists
Understanding: means of assassination, infiltration techniques, deadly combat strikes

Military Domain

While war is rarer than assassination, no House wants another to see they have a weak military, as that may be considered an invitation to attack. Military actions are costly and logistically difficult, often requiring expensive Guild payments to move troops to another planet. But if you want to take land or facilities from another House, you may need soldiers to claim and occupy it.

Machinery: battlefield weapons, artillery, large-scale shields, tanks
Produce: ammunition, personal weapons, small arms
Expertise: tacticians, officers, strategists
Workers: soldiers, engineers, pilots, logistics personnel
Understanding: military strategies and new tactics

Political Domain

To some Houses, politics is their meat and drink. These social gadflies do not just play the complex games of the Landsraad for extra power they make these games their business. Such Houses are the ultimate courtiers and leaders in popular styles and etiquette. They know who is doing what to whom and how to get the ear of the most powerful figures. They also make good mediators, understanding the complexities of House politics.

Machinery: couture fashion, expensive trinkets, message services
Produce: information, secrets, favors
Expertise: political analysts, mediators, diplomats, fashionistas, social planners
Workers: courtiers, spies, administrators, servants, entourage
Understanding: diplomacy techniques, forms of etiquette

Religion Domain

Faith still plays a large part in the society of the Imperium and remains a force powerful enough to create leverage in business ventures and is even a service that can be sold. The trapping of religion are popular, and some Houses have found ways to monetize religion and package it for sale.

Machinery: churches, statues, prayer beads, religious symbols, religious books
Produce: prayers, hymns, religious and inspirational writings
Expertise: clergy, philosophers
Workers: choristers, altar servants, community managers
Understanding: new religious philosophies, new forms of faith

Science Domain

While the tenets of the Butlerian Jihad remain in force, it does not mean that humanity cannot research and develop new scientific ideas. Many Houses have a research and development department to advance their domains and keep ahead of the competition. This domain often couples with Industrial domains where a House might take full advantage of what they discover, rather than pass it along to others to exploit.

Machinery: laboratory equipment, quarantine areas, entire scientific facilities
Produce: chemical compounds, drugs, genetically-adapted humans and animals
Expertise: scientists and researchers
Workers: lab assistants and managers
Understanding: new scientific research

3. Name, Banners, and Arms

In addition to choosing a name for the House, the Players will create the coat of arms that they proudly emblazon on all their holdings to remind everyone of what is theirs. Most Houses have a banner made up of one or two colors and a crest, which might be an animal, object, or something relevant to the location or industry of the Houses' domains. Examples from the books are the green and black hawk crest of the Atreides, the gold and scarlet lion of the Corrino, etc.

4. House Traits

Traits are aspects that can be used by Player Characters that are recognized as members of the House and imply the reputation the House has within the Imperium. The Player House will begin with a trait for its primary domain that is the same as the areas of expertise for that domain, as well as a descriptive trait based on its reputation such as 'Honorable' for the Atreides or 'Brutal' for the Harkonnen. This Trait details the way the rest of the Imperium sees your House and expects its agents to behave. Other Traits may be gained or lost by the House during play, usually after an important event that changes their reputation in the Imperium.

5. House History

The history of the House can be as elaborate or simple as the Players decide and can be fleshed out through the course of Play, but there are some basic aspects that should be determined as they will be supporting materials for much of the other decisions that are made such as its origins of ennoblement, how it came to control the lands or industries that comprise its domains, what its relationship with its patron and enemies were/are, how did it earn its traits and reputation, and what are some key events and developments that the current generation have experienced (note: this will likely influence and be influenced by player character concepts and backstories.

6. Enemies

Even the most pleasant and honorable House will have someone that hates them. Luckily, such enemies need not be engaged in a multi-generational deadly kanly vendetta such as between that of the Atreides and Harkonnen. In fact, enemies and allies can change as the politics of the Imperium are fluid. A situation that makes two Houses enemies one year might see them making an alliance for mutual benefit when the situation changes the next year.

The Player House will start with at least 1 Minor House as an enemy and roll and define the nature and reason for their enemy's hatred.

7. Player Character Roles

Below is a list of high-level examples of roles that is not intended to be comprehensive that are available to the Player Characters that will be fleshed out as part of creation (note: the starting Ruler of the House will be an NPC):

- The Spouse of the Ruler
- The Consort of the Ruler
- The Heir to the Ruler
- Advisors
- Councilors
- Treasurer
- Physicians
- Envoys
- Marshal
- Scholar
- Spymaster
- Swordmaster
- Warmaster
- Etc.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:48, Sat 17 July 2021.

We have a couple of more potential players in the queue, which will get us to a starting Cast of seven. In addition to the creation of the Player House, we will also need their main competition, allies, adversaries, and nascent houses or organizations that serve them. This is a large undertaking that we can work in parallel, and all contribute to.

I am asking that each added or potential player send me via Private Message 1-3 high-level concepts for a House. This should include their geographic location, primary and secondary domains with areas of expertise, and a couple of sentences for context around the concept. I will consolidate all the proposals and we will do a ranked choice vote of the options, with the winner being the Player House and the others serving as the basis for the other major factions on Caladan.

As a resource, I recommend looking at the Caladan thread (particularly the environment and points of interest section) and then the Domain and Areas of Expertise section of the House Creation thread.
This message was last edited by the GM at 18:22, Sun 18 July 2021.

There were several duplicates of concepts that were combined, and so far we have 9 concepts with half of the cast submitting ideas. I have included them below so if there are any more submissions in the next day or so, there should be no duplicates before voting. Once that window to submit closes, each Player will rank-order vote for their three leading concepts, with the first selection receiving 3 votes, the second 2 votes, and the third 1.

Concept 1 - Native House on Southern Continent

Primary Domain: Farming
Secondary Domain: Politics

While the Southern Continent as a whole is known for its wine-growing and making, this House has the undisputed reputation as the finest on Caladan and thus one of the finest in the Imperium. As a result, they also have a reputation for fine taste and high culture, and their agents and trained sommeliers are welcome in many courts, where they have an opportunity to directly observe the complexities of the political landscape across broad swathes of the Imperium as they share back their observations, intelligence, and insights with the House who can use this where and when it will prove advantageous to do so.

Concept 2 - Native House on Western Continent

Primary Domain: Military
Secondary Domain: Espionage

This House was located close to the holdings of the Atreides and earned its wealth and influence by training and providing the Caladanian military forces with specialist soldiers, engineers, pilots, and supply and logistics personnel. As the respect for the competency of the Atreides forces grew, so too did the demand for the services of this House and they have an extensive network across the Imperium. Those of promise were also trained in the arts of spying and infiltration and could be embedded in the forces of a House seeking their services.

Concept 3 - Off-World House with Interest in Eastern Continent

Primary Domain: Industrial
Secondary Domain: Science

This House hails from a world that was all but destroyed during the Butlerian Jihad and which has spent generations suffering from civil war and environmental collapse in the aftermath. Much of the rebuilding of significant government and cultural sites and critical infrastructure was underground. They made their fortune mining for precious minerals in the lands they controlled and selling their trademark boring machines, pressurized work suits, tools, and general subterranean expertise.

Concept 4 - Off-World House with Interest in Western Continent

Primary Domain: Religion
Secondary Domain: Artistic

This House originated on a wet and warm world with lush temperate rainforests with toxic fungal blooms and voracious insect populations that were tamed over generations. The diversity of the natural ecosystem were a draw for religious organizations seeking peace and enlightenment and there are numerous temple complexes, monasteries, sacred groves, and education centers on their planet. Their most famed exports are their trained singers and musical accompaniment, which were first in vogue at the Corrino Court and now the Imperium at large.

Concept 5 - Off-World House with Interest in the Island Chains

Primary Domain: Military
Secondary Domain: Farming or Industry

This House was formed on a remote moon that became infamous as a haven for pirates, terrorists, and other belligerents to the older and larger Houses. Those that settled the moon organized into small, isolated communities that valued rugged self-sufficiency and fought constant low intensity conflicts between them until centuries ago this House unified the moon's factions through a remarkably brutal campaign. These days, their forces or "Free Companies" are the most sought after mercenaries in the Imperium. The settlements on the moon also grow nutrient dense foodstuffs and medications that are perfectly suited for packaging and use on the battlefield or by anyone who plans to spend time away from a settlement.

Concept 6 - Native House on Serena’s Necklace

Primary Domain: Farming
Secondary Domain: Kanly

This House started as a humble collection of fisherfolk that were ennobled by the Atreides in the distant past. They are now experts at harvesting resources from the sea, whether they be fish, seaweed, or the other gifts that the oceans can provide. This includes things like potent neurotoxins that can be extracted from rare breeds of fish.

Concept 7 – Native House on Western Continent

Primary Domain: Industrial
Secondary Domain: Kanly

This House was once an up-and-coming industrial one that converted its factories to the production of arms, and has become a powerhouse, albeit one with a shady reputation for their willingness to sell anything to anyone for the right price, to include the instruments of kanly, assassination, and traps. Recently, the manufacture of weapons has also turned into an opportunity to teach and export the men and women willing to use them.

Concept 8 – Off-World House

Primary Domain: Industrial
Secondary Domain: Science

This House is a Minor House on Ix that has gained considerable patronage through its capabilities in development of new technologies, many of which have never been made available on the open market, as they are immediately sold to the Guild. This exclusive partnerships with the Guild has given them tremendous influence in the Imperium despite their relatively small and non-threatening size.

Concept 9 – Native House on Western Continent

Primary Domain: Military
Secondary Domain: Farming

This House rose to power through the effectiveness of its military and has leverage this reputation to be the leading provider of mercenaries in the Imperium. Once ennobled and settled on Caladan, they have also made a profitable business out of large-scale whale hunting and the sale of the byproducts to the industries that welcome them, but do not want to get their hands dirty. Something this House has no problem doing.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:07, Tue 20 July 2021.

Concepts 7 and 8 have Areas Of Expertise erroneously listed as primary domains.

I personally like Concept 1 the best.

Of those, 2 sounds the most interesting to me.

Tough choices.

1 and 2 are both nice, but many seem interesting.

I have my own bias towards my top two of course (naturally, heh), but one thing I noted is that this is for our initial House that gets promoted. The other ideas we don't pick could end up being Minor Houses under us (much as some of these examples are referencing being a Minor House under the Atreides). I could easily see one or two of these ideas being implemented as existing Minor Houses on Caladan for us to interact with as time goes on - depending on if that's in the GM's plans at least.

I "vote" for 3 and 8.

I also vote for 1 and 2, in that order.

Fixed. Thanks for catching that.

Love the discussion! I think we have enough high-level concepts that we can move forward with the vote. Please each Player send me a Private Message with a rank-order vote of your first, second, and third preferred concepts.

Spot on. The plan was to use the concepts that weren't selected to flesh out other Minor Houses that were your competition for Great House status and/or current retainers of yours.
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:16, Tue 20 July 2021.

Awesome. Sent my votes in the Concept proposal PM (to keep it consolidated).


edit: Thought I'd add in a more public mention of my own votes; going for 1 and then 2 in that order - and give a quick 'why'.


I saw the first concept as very fitting with the setting right now from the description. The Atreides have been wiped out on Arrakis and the Emperor is now raising a House to control Caladan. We know (unless the meta in this universe is different) that he had concerns about the Atreides and was partially behind why they were eliminated. They were also very popular among the Landsraad. He can't merely give Caladan to someone unliked (ie. the Harkonnens) but he also fears potential reprisal or a continued sense of concern from Caladan. So he needs to make sure its effectively neutralized while also appearing 'neutral'.


Concept 1 fits that bill quite nicely as it promotes a local House into the roll, one that is respected and liked among the other Houses, but its specialties are benign. Farming? That's no threat. Sure, they have some political savvy to them, but it would take them quite some time to formulate any sort of real opposition to him. More than likely at least. Some of the other concepts fit this bill as well to a certain extent. Off-World Houses to come in would similarly neutralize Caladan as a threat, but depending on the nature of that House it could receive lack-luster reception by the locals (if not be viewed as a mere tool/puppet of the Emperor by the other Houses). Those concepts would fit well and likely have the Emperor's favor, but at the cost of the local population.

Concept 2 is also a good 'raised from the locals' idea, but would likely be one more heavily 'watched' by the Emperor. They're good at training armies, but lacked the social and political graces that Duke Leto held with the other Houses. The subtle workings of politics. Its more the combination of political and military strength that really worried the Emperor before, as it would take both to ultimately overthrow him. And with the weakened forces of the Atreides (the bulk of which likely went to Arrakis), this House would have a LOT of recruiting and training to conduct before its a real threat on that front. This would be a good pick for the Emperor to sort of proclaim to all the other Houses "I'm not worried. See? I'm promoting a military House to control Caladan. Watch your asses."
This message was last edited by the player at 12:21, Thu 22 July 2021.

I'll vote 2, then 1 in that order please.

We have one vote uncast, but it is mathematically impossible now for any concept but one to win. Drum roll please… the winner is House Concept 2!

Concept 2 - Native House on Western Continent

Primary Domain: Military (Workers)
Secondary Domain: Espionage (Workers)

This House was located close to the holdings of the Atreides and earned its wealth and influence by training and providing the Caladanian military forces with specialist soldiers, engineers, pilots, and supply and logistics personnel. As the respect for the competency of the Atreides forces grew, so too did the demand for the services of this House and they have an extensive network across the Imperium. Those of promise were also trained in the arts of spying and infiltration and could be embedded in the forces of a House seeking their services.

The next steps are to: develop a name, banner, and arms for our House; select a House Trait; and develop a history for the House. This thread is open for that discussion.

Thought I'd throw out a few ideas for consideration:


Name: (Undecided - no real preference on that here. Offhand, I'd think something of a Greek origin would be ideal given that's the source of the Atreides name as well - going back to Atreus).


Banner & Arms: While the Atreides (who have led Caladan for centuries) maintained the hawk as their symbol with red, green and black as the color, I thought it would be a good touch (if not established prior to their rise) for the House to have a similar (ish) styling. Rather than a full hawk, I was thinking a bird's talon. That would denote their focus on more military strength than the bird as a whole. Color wise, they could maybe do Red, Black and Blue? Red and Black for the military backing and history and blue rather than green for the seas of Caladan. Similar, recognizable, but distinct enough that it would be distinguished from the former Atreides banner but still close enough to inspire the connection.

House Trait: With our primary Domain being Military with a Workers focus, I think Battle or Discipline would be the best route for the trait. Perhaps Battle (Strategy) or Discipline (Command, Composure or Precision). Any of those could convey a good positive quality towards the House and its main Domain focus, though which is probably a matter of the specific direction we'd want to go with the House. Strategy? They'd be viewed as Strategic masterminds in the Empire, so someone who could step into the shoes of the Atreides quite easily in whatever aims they held before their demise. Discipline (all three) could convey the House as extremely level headed and deliberate. They won't act hastily, so provoking them would be hard - but when they strike, it'd be with laser focus. Two options at least!


History: As for the history of the House... the primary vote gives a good bit I think. The House is located close to Castle Caladan and the seat of the Atreides' power. They were in charge (most recently at least) of training its military forces and logistics personnel. Something like that doesn't happen overnight, so it'd make sense that they've been present and slowly mastering their skills for a couple centuries at least. The Dukes had entrusted this House with the training and equipment necessary to recruit and educate their armies, so they stood in some favor. They'd have had dealings with others around the Imperium to a point, likely training select people (by contract and most likely with the Atreides permission).

Lot of potential there for miscellaneous historical events that could have denoted the recruitment or rise of any of our players along the way too as advisors, counselors, envoys, Masters, etc.

My suggestion is that we were the military engineers who designed and constructed the Atreides fortifications in and around the capital: the castle, the city, the spaceport, et cetera. House personnel would be similarly adept at infiltrating and compromising fortifications. That pairs our primary and secondary domains pretty well.

Drawing from great dynasties not derived from classical Greece, how about Maccabees ('hammer' in Aramaic) for our House name? A related alternative would be Ha-Simeon or Hashmonai.

 ~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maccabees
 ~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasmonean_dynasty

Here: https://dune.fandom.com/wiki/House#Known_Houses there are quite a lot of names of great houses and a few of minor houses: we can take some inspiration from them.

In alternative, we can start by considering that the Atreides considered themselves to be descendants from Agamemnon (https://dune.fandom.com/wiki/House_Atreides) and take some name associated with Agamemnon, such as Palamedes, for example, that in the Odyssey was an envoy for Agamemnon.

In reply to Player 9 (msg # 20):

Why limit ourselves to classical Greek mythological references? It has been tens of thousands of years since Agamemnon.

I'd say for the same reasons that the Imperium is structured on more ancient government types: tradition and standing. It would follow that the minor Houses on Caladan would want to imitate their sponsor House as much as possible while retaining their own identity. The more beloved their patron is, the more they'd want to be a reflection of them. Standing out as unique would, of course, be a good way to identify themselves as different from the other minor Houses, but some universal aspects could be expected. if the origin of the Atreides House was from a more Greek oriented background, I could more easily see the minor houses founded under them adopting the same philosophy. Of course, it needn't be strictly from the time frame as the Atreides origin. While the Odyssey in relation to Agamemnon is a great reference (and I do like the Palamedes play - something turned from that perhaps. Plamend or Lamendes?), we could always go forward a bit as well. A more Aramaic influence to the name could work as well. I wouldn't use one directly though, but do a word play from that base even then. Macaben? Or Hasnean? Something just a little different from a direct repeat.

It has been a few years since I have read the original, although now this is an excellent reason to do so again.

I seem to recall that the Atreides troops in particular are loyal to the Duke at the time, more than mere professionals, that they are invested in their House and believers in the nobility of their rule.

I also seem to recall there were a fair number of Ornithoper pilots even among the ranks of the nobility? Could this be extrapolated to include the House as a whole in the production and piloting of the various Ornithopters?

It would certainly make sense to me given their native terrain.

In reply to Player 1 (msg # 22):

Maccabee is derived from the original Aramaic maqqaba (makebet in modern Hebrew). Less-Anglicized names perfectly suit the familiar-yet-foreign aspect of Dune.

With Atreides fallen and us standing in as a replacement, I'd suggest that being too closely tied to them would likely have resulted in our downfall along with them.

I like the idea of us being strategists = which plays into us having had a 'backup plan' that ensured that we didn't get painted with the Atreides colours, but at the same time our Espionage/Strategy ensured that we weren't simply seen as traitors anyway (even if some might still see us that way).

I'd probably look to the house bonus applying to the Espionage rather than the primary skill set if only to highlight that we pulled that ace out of the bag when we really needed it most!

As for the name... probably go with something suitably militaristic so that we 'say what's in the box' as its a good distraction from the espionage. :-)   I like Maccabee.

Name is fine by me. As for our house bonus - I 'think' it has to be from our Primary Domain? So while it'd be nice to have it from the Espionage, I think we're sort of stuck with it as the Military instead. But I do like the modest distancing of the House from the Atreides so we're not lumped in with their own fall. Nor seen as traitors. There would be a reason we got left behind when they went to Arrakis. Perhaps we were left behind to 'continue the regular training'.

A sort of default minor House left behind to see to the governing of Caladan (temporarily) as they got things on Arrakis settled. Eventually they'd appoint someone more permanent, but that fell through when they were destroyed. The Emperor stepping in to sort of make our "assuming rule" permanent was his way to honoring the apparent wishes of the former Duke. Our House was selected to watch over Caladan in their absence, so he let us assume full and permanent command. A 'benevolent gesture'.

I can see there is kind of a choice to be made between Maccabeans and Palamedes (I like them both, to be honest) and, if you are OK with this, we can cut the decision short and make a poll between them.

Works for me?

That would just leave the other big factors involved to decide:

House Name: Maccabeans or Palamedes (or whatever iteration of the two is desired)

Banner & Arms: Alternative to the talon crest? Different colors than Red, Black & Blue?

House Trait: Assuming it must be from the primary domain, that means some sort of Military based trait. Lots of options here.


History: Brief (general) blurb above on some of the general House history, though if we want to flesh out a detailed one we can work on that. Not sure how detailed we need to have it at this point.

I'll throw my vote in for Palamedes on the  name count.

I will vote for Maccabeans.

Maccabeans: Zensunni Before It Was Popular.

Love the direction the discussion is taking. Just adding a couple clarifications or thoughts of my own to keep it going.

As someone pointed out, Maccabee is derived from the Aramaic ‘maqqaba’ which means, “the hammer.” I could see that being an awesome crest for the House, as the hammer can be both a tool for producing useful goods and other weapons, but also wielded as one as well, seems to fit the martial aspects of the House and could be a part of their mission to “craft” warriors.

If the House is proud of its supposed lineage of descendance from the original Maccabees, I could see them potentially using naming conventions popular among the leaders such as: Judas, Judah, Herod, John, Jonathan, Aristobalus, Antignous, Hyrcanus, Mattathias, Alexander/Alexandra, Mariamne, etc.

For the House Traits, players will be able to spend 1 Momentum point to apply one of the Traits to their characters for the scene. The House will have 1 Trait linked to the same domain as all its primary domains, so in this case, Military. It will also have a descriptive Trait that represents its reputation, which could be associated with its secondary domain of Espionage.

For our House Traits, I suggest 'Disciplined' and 'Honorable'. The first ties to our primary domain, and the second ties us to House Atreides.

In reply to The Game Master (msg # 32):

I love the image of a sledgehammer or engineer's hammer as our House symbol.

Motto: "Forged through experience."

Alternatives:

• "Forged Through Adversity"
• "Forged Through Discipline"

If we go with Discipline as one of our Traits, I think 'Forged through Discipline' would fit in with that nicely. As well as the hammer for the icon.

Indeed. Another alternative: "Discipline Through Adversity". I think I like that best.

I think I'll go with the Maccabees and whatever else Player 1 suggested (I like the idea of using the term "forged" in the motto, as in my imagery it is more appropriate for the "hammer" symbol).
Moreover, if it's fine for everybody else, I'd take the name Herod. :)

Liking just about everything I am seeing so far.

I am partial to Hyrcanus myself.

As the Herodian dynasty is the one that succeeded the Hasmonean (founded by Simon, the youngest of Judah Maccabee's brothers), we shall expect (and curse!) your sudden but inevitable betrayal. ~_^


I hereby call dibs on Salome Alexandra, after the Hasmonean queen of the same name. ^_^

In reply to Player 6 (msg # 41):

I think I heard that Salome is a name that goes well with Herod as well... ;P
This message was last edited by the player at 20:52, Sun 25 July 2021.

Haha, if those are some of our primary options, I'd be inclined to go with Jonathan myself. Simple but significant.

Below is a recap of the conversation thus far with the proposed options. Let's move ahead to voting on them or suggesting additions for consideration. Also, let's progress to identifying your preferred roles within the House. Perhaps list a primary and secondary that you would consider and we can see where we land.

House Name (Proposed): Maccabeans or Palamedes

Holdings: Western Continent, holding types to be determined

Banner and Arms:

- Colors (Proposed): red, black, and blue (all or some combination thereof)
- Crest (Proposed): bird’s talon or hammer
- Motto (Proposed): “Forged Through Experience,” “Forged Through Adversity,” and “Forged Through Discipline”

House Traits (Proposed): Discipline and Honorable (my note: does this potentially conflict with secondary domain?)

Primary Domains: Military (Workers) – military specialists, pilots, engineers, supply and logistics personnel

Secondary Domains: Espionage (Workers) – agents, spies, and infiltrators

History and Overview:

Work in Progress

Player Roles:

To Be Determined

My 2 cents

House Name (Proposed): Maccabee

Holdings: Western Continent, holding types to be determined

Banner and Arms:

- Colors Blue and Gold or Blue and White
- Crest (Proposed): Hammer
- Motto (Proposed): “Forged Through Discipline”

House Traits (Proposed): Discipline and Honor

Primary Domains: Military (Workers) – military specialists, pilots, engineers, supply and logistics personnel

Secondary Domains: Espionage (Workers) – agents, spies, and infiltrators

History and Overview:

Work in Progress

Player Roles:

To Be Determined
</quote>

After all, I think there is more consensus around the Maccabees and the symbol (+colours) could be a silver (or bronze?) hammer on a dark red field. WRT to the motto, I think that "Forged through Discipline" is the most appropriate.

I like the way its shaping up as well so far.

House Name: Maccabee seems to be holding pretty strong overall and that works for me.

Holdings: Ditto.

Banner & Arms: The hammer is good. Possible to even have it held in a bird talon if we want to play off the Atreides Hawk motif, but a straight hammer alone works as well. Silver hammer either way on the background of red? Maybe with Gold and/or Blue trim around the outside? Motto of 'Forged through Discipline' sounds great.


Traits: Discipline & Honor work for me.

Domains are good. History is the work in progress of course and as for player roles.. I was holding off a bit to see what others are interested in to try filling any holes.

For myself, I'd hope to be involved in a lot of the goings-on for the plots (though sure there will be multiple plots for the numbers we have here) and can be pretty active in posting most of the time. To begin with, I'd say: Heir, Spymaster, Advisor or Warmaster in that order. Although, as said, I can shift to plug some holes if others had their hearts set on any of those. Personally would love to get into the more political planning and devious aspects of plotting and such, hence that order. :)

How about this for our banner and arms: Gules, un marteau argent en pale (red, a silver hammer centered).

Looks good to me.
...and properly described...

Looks like things are really coming together and we are coalescing around a few items very well. I think the House history will emerge as we develop character background and personal histories. So I have recapped where we seem to have landed thus far and encourage everyone now to start to submit your top few roles that you would like to play.

Below is a recap of the conversation thus far with the proposed options. Let's move ahead to voting on them or suggesting additions for consideration. Also, let's progress to identifying your preferred roles within the House. Perhaps list a primary and secondary that you would consider and we can see where we land.

House Maccabee

Holdings: Western Continent, holding types to be determined

Banner and Arms:

- Crest: a hammer
- Colors: red and silver
- Motto: “Forged Through Discipline”

House Traits: Discipline and Honorable

Primary Domains: Military (Workers) – military specialists, pilots, engineers, supply and logistics personnel

Secondary Domains: Espionage (Workers) – agents, spies, and infiltrators

History and Overview:

Work in Progress

Player Roles (In order of preference):

Player 1 – Heir, Spymaster, Advisor, Warmaster
Player 2 –
Player 3 –
Player 4 – Marshal, Warmaster, Swordmaster
Player 5 –
Player 6 – Ruler, Spouse, Consort, Scholar, Envoy
Player 7 – Treasurer, Councilor, Advisor, Scholar
Player 8 –
Player 9 –
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:39, Sat 31 July 2021.

I'm OK with any roles. Happy to pick up whatever other players don't.

I don't actually have a copy of the rules yet.  :(   What are the available roles?

Some of the primary roles were listed up above, but here they are for quick reference:

- The Spouse of the Ruler
- The Consort of the Ruler
- The Heir to the Ruler
- Advisors
- Councilors
- Treasurer
- Physicians
- Envoys
- Marshal
- Scholar
- Spymaster
- Swordmaster
- Warmaster
- Etc.

I imagine the 'etc' would fill in anything not above that someone comes up with if they had something unique in mind.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:34, Thu 29 July 2021.

Is Ruler an NPC role?

I believe so? At least I think I remember there being a mention of that.

Hyrcanus Maccabee

Preferred Roles: Marshall, Warmaster, Swordmaster

When I thought it was going to be 4-6 players, I was going to make the Ruler an NPC role, but with this large of a cast, if there isn't overwhelming competition for it, we can allow a PC Ruler.

I'd keep my class choices as they are (Heir, Spymaster, Advisor, Warmaster). If someone else wants to go in for the actual Ruler spot, have at it. I'd be more than happy to stick with (at best) the Heir spot. Let someone else have the heavy head wearing the crown as it were. Hehe.

Name: Salome Alexandra Maccabee

Roles: Ruler, Spouse, Consort, Scholar, Envoy

Some information on what the roles are and how they differ and work together on behalf of the Ruler:

The Ruler and Spouse of the Ruler

The leader of the House and its voting representative in the Landsraad. Every action performed by the House is done in the Ruler’s name, and so they make all the most important decisions regarding the House and appoints others to their roles. If they are wed, their Spouse also takes on their title of nobility, gains the ability to become the Ruler, and their children become the primary line of succession to become the next Ruler.

The Ruler has complete control over the House, and everyone must obey their commands. However, running the House takes all their time and if they fail in or ignore their duties, the House may quickly come apart.

Consort of the Ruler

The Consort is the unwed spouse, concubine, or companion of the Ruler, but either cannot or will not take on the role of Ruler themselves. In some cases, the relationship is purely a business one, but many Rulers and Consorts do love and care deeply for each other. The Consort can attend court and speak on the Ruler’s behalf when they are absent. The Bene Gesserit often place their agents (openly or clandestinely) in such a role. The Ruler will determine the Consort’s true standing within their household and by extension, their ability to speak for the House.

The Consort always has the ear of the Ruler and as such has incredible influence behind the throne. This can often lead to others attempting to manipulate them as a means by which to control the Ruler.

Heir

The Heir is usually the ruler’s eldest child, whether by blood or adoption. But some elder children can be passed over for a more competent or conniving younger sibling. A few have even been chosen from non-nobles who prove their worth and impress the Ruler. Only the Ruler may choose who the Heir is. Once nominated, an Heir’s time is mostly spent learning how to take on the responsibility of Rulership. As such, they may also handle some lesser duties on the Ruler’s behalf.

An Heir must keep themselves safe and be ready to lead the House should the Ruler fall. With assassins around every corner, this may be sooner than they think. An Heir is often a prime target for the enemies of a House, as without one, a House can fall to confusion or infighting in the Ruler’s demise. As such, some devious Rulers openly nominate an Heir they don’t like to provide a target while secretly priming another as their real Heir.

Advisors

There are many areas of expertise that a Ruler needs to be conversant with: politics, CHOAM business, finance, social etiquette, Imperial history, or a host of other subjects. While a single political advisor is most common, some Houses employ several Advisors in many ways to grant the Ruler the benefit of their experience. The relationship an Advisor has with a Ruler varies. Some Advisors cover a weakness in the Ruler’s education and abilities, other times they are simply a trusted sounding board for the Ruler’s ideas.

Each Advisor as a field of knowledge they are expected to be an expert in, and they are expected to keep up to date with any changes in that field of knowledge or new discoveries. When the Ruler asks for their understanding of a problem, they better have an answer.

Chief Physician

Most Houses have a sizeable medical staff, which requires coordination and management. However, as the most trusted doctor available, the Chief Physician also personally attends to the health of the ruling family. The larger the House, the larger the medical staff needs to be not only for the ruling family, but also for their staff, soldiers, servants, and guests. The Chief Physician also works closely with the Spymaster to ensure no biological weapons or poisons are used against the House. As such, they carefully monitor the health of everyone in the House and perform autopsies on enemy agents to make sure there are no further surprises, tricks, or traps. For reasons of security, Doctors of the Suk school are especially valuable given their conditioning against doing any form of harm to their charges. However, few Minor Houses can afford a Suk-trained doctor.

Councilor

The Councilor connects the Ruler to the people who serve the House, receiving and sorting through the requests of the citizenry to pass on to the Ruler, and then presenting the Ruler’s decisions to the people in ways they can understand. It is the Councilor’s responsibility to oversee the minutia of how the House is run, and to see that any problems that need to reach the Ruler’s attention get there. The Councilor has their ear to the ground in terms of the ordinary people of the House. They know and understand their needs and can help the ruler provide for them (or ignore them). They will also be able to determine the mod of the people and whether upset may be on the horizon.

Envoy

An Envoy is a diplomat responsible for the House’s foreign policy – that is, the peaceful interactions between the House and their rivals, CHOAM representatives, the Landsraad, or third parties like the Spacing Guild and the Bene Gesserit. They oversee a staff of diplomats, messengers, and ambassadors. It is their responsibility to represent the interests of the House and its Ruler to outsiders. An Envoy needs to have a keen grasp on the state of the universe outside the confines of their House. Imperial politics can shift quickly and the ability to predict those moods can be the key to the House’s survival.

Marshal

The Marshal ensures that the House’s laws are enforced, and that the House’s territories are orderly and secure. They often coordinate with others – such as the Councilor and Spymaster – on matters of security, but in the matters law and judgment, they answer only to the Ruler. To be an effective investigator, a Marshal must understand the criminal underworld, either knowing where to root out crime or being on first-name terms with gangsters, working to keep the peace. The Marshal is responsible for maintaining the rule of law within the holdings of the House. They might be a lone sheriff or chief of a large police force, depending on the size and stability of the House. A corrupt Marshal can seriously damage the productivity of a House, allowing smugglers and crime to funnel funds away from the Ruler.

Scholar

The Scholar is a representative of higher learning, handling matters of science and academia on the Ruler’s behalf and advising them on anything they are uninformed about. They are a form of expert Advisor, skilled not in theory and politics, but in science and academic discipline. They conduct research and gather information under the Ruler’s patronage, with the repositories of knowledge they cultivate advancing the House substantially with new innovations or discoveries. Most scholars are left to their own devices to simply work on their studies, only being called upon to report their advances or when their specialized knowledge is required. If the projects they are working on are vital to the House, they may be under immense pressure to deliver solutions quickly.

Spymaster

The Spymaster maintains a network of spies, assassins, and informants at home and elsewhere. It is their job to manage the clandestine espionage activities of the House in terms of intelligence-gathering and counterespionage. How underhanded they are about this depends on the needs of the House, but most Spymasters are devious in the extreme and extremely well-informed. Many even keep secrets from their Ruler to allow them to claim, “plausible deniability.” Some Spymasters focus more exclusively on protecting their House using assassins rather than spies and informants. In this case, one is called a Master of Assassins rather than a Spymaster, although the term is not derogatory in any way. Some Houses even employ both a Spymaster and a Master of Assassins.

Swordmaster

Also know as a “Weaponsmaster,” the title of Swordmaster is an ancient and honorable one. They are an expert in martial matters, serving as a military advisor, tactician, and bodyguard to the Ruler. Most also take a personal hand in training the House troops and instructing the Heir on how to protect themselves. The personal safety of the noble family is their direct responsibility. A Swordmaster is not only a lethal fighter, but a deadly tactician, often with experience honed on many battlefields. They need to be aware of the strategies an enemy might use against them and know how to ensure the Ruling family can be kept safe.

Warmaster

Where a Swordmaster is an expert in single combat, a Warmaster if the House general. It is their job to lead the House troops into battle, in whatever form that might take. They are the highest-ranking member of the House’s military, responsible for raising, maintaining, and commanding the House’s troops in both peacetime and during war. They may be a warrior themselves, or more of a leader and strategist, but matters of war are their province.

Treasurer

The Treasurer is the main financial officer of the House. They monitor the state of the House’s funds, oversee tax collection, and handle other financial matters that are part of running the House. A good Treasurer can see a lot of details in the accounts, as discrepancies will reveal corruption, poor management, and a host of other problems. They are also good at ensuring the right investments improve the House’s financial portfolio. Many work hand-in-hand with CHOAM advisors to maintain te House’s position within the Landsraad.

Great, those descriptions are very helpful.

I'm looking at Treasurer, Councilor, Advisor, or Scholar myself.

We still have about half the cast to indicate their role preferences. Please get your choices in so we can lock-in who will play what role and begin character creation!

We currently stand at:

Player 1 – Heir, Spymaster, Advisor, Warmaster
Player 2 – Marshal, Spymaster, Swordmaster, Warmaster
Player 3 – Swordmaster, Warmaster, Marshal
Player 4 – Marshal, Warmaster, Swordmaster
Player 5 – Chief Physician, Heir, Weaponmaster
Player 6 – Ruler, Spouse, Consort, Scholar, Envoy
Player 7 – Treasurer, Councilor, Advisor, Scholar
Player 8 – Spymaster, Warmaster, Treasurer, Scholar
Player 9 – Councilor, Marshal, Swordmaster
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:51, Mon 02 Aug 2021.

Councillor, Marshal, Swordmaster... and anything that can be useful to plug a gap for the game master ;)
This message was last edited by the player at 00:55, Sun 01 Aug 2021.

Chief Physician, Heir, Weaponmaster

Spymaster, Warmaster, Treasurer, Scholar

I'm playing using the quick start guide, so I will need some guidance for the character creation aspects that are not there.

I broke and bought the full PDF off one of the websites. Almost tempted to buy a printed version (though I like to collect everything Dune related, heh).

Once we get going, I'll try to toss out as much help as I can manage as a first time player of the system. :)

I was an early backer of the project and got the full collector's set, so in addition to PDF versions of all their published materials, I have four hardcover versions of the Core Rulebook not realizing that it was the same book just with the banner of the Atreides, Harkonnen, and Corrino on the front cover.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:58, Mon 02 Aug 2021.

My impression is that the ruleset (according to recent fashion) is way too big and way too long to read and I want to try it first with the quick start guide before investing (money and, above all, time to read) in the full ruleset... and this game looks perfect to me!

Roles: Swordmaster, Warmaster, Marshal
This message was last edited by the player at 18:18, Mon 02 Aug 2021.

Anything that will involve action. Marshal, Spymaster, Swordmaster, Warmaster.

We have locked in and most players were able to get their top preference, so it looks like our cast will include the following:

Player 1 – Heir
Player 2 – Swordmaster
Player 3 – Warmaster
Player 4 – Marshal
Player 5 – Chief Physician
Player 6 – Ruler
Player 7 – Treasurer
Player 8 – Spymaster
Player 9 – Councilor

I will make each of you a private thread for character creation discussions and working through the process. Publicly available information or conversations about backstory and ties will be done in the main Character Creation thread.

I like to think of House Maccabee's ultimate, secret agenda as preparation for Kralizec, the apocalyptic final battle between good and evil (the Orange Catholic equivalent to Armageddon or Al-Malhama Al-Kubra). Under Salome's late husbands, Antigonus and Alexander, the House focused on military development. Under Salome, intelligence gathering and other espionage operations have taken on increasing importance, and the post of warmaster (due in part to that player's departure) left vacant.

 ~ https://dune.fandom.com/wiki/Kralizec/XD
 ~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armageddon
 ~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Malhama_Al-Kubra

Hi everyone, your beloved Spymaster is here.
I'm plowing through char creation, and would be happy to establish relationship with the existing cast before I put the final touches in.

Let me know if any of the below can serve as a potential hook:

1. Jannaeus is a Mentat, in his mid-late thirties. Possibly older if it works out better.
2. Known to be cold, ruthless and efficient.  And that's in comparison to other Mentats.
3. Believes Humanity can only grow via conflict and pain, and that he has a duty to facilitate that evolution (he's sort of religious)
4. Has some sort of (yet to be determined) ties to the Bene Gesserit, and has bought into their philosophy.  His understanding of their grand plan is somewhat flawed (see point 3), but he has been told enough to be a useful tool.
5. Still haven't thought of his lineage, but I wouldn't be adverse of him being related to the main family (uncle to the Heir. Either side would be OK), if that suits you.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:41, Mon 16 Aug 2021.

Words cannot express how much I love this. I think it helps set a context for the background and history of the House as well.

I wanted to provide a preview of the immediate context for the start of play that will drive the opening scenes and activities: the question of which House Minor will be raised to Great House is unanswered, with the two leading candidates widely believed to be Maccabee and Havar. The representative of Count Fenring has stated that the decision will be made deliberatively and in consultation with the Spacing Guild, the Rice Growers Cooperative, and naturally, the nobles themselves.

Sounds interesting! Should make for a fun start to say the least.

In reply to The Game Master (msg # 75):

I'll second that.

Very fertile ground for a great story.