In reply to Eklo (msg # 164):

It's your fellow players you need to convince, not me. I'm merely pointing out the pros and cons of particular choices. I can always assign the numbers myself, if you all don't reach a consensus. ~_^

Hi all, I'm not online much at the moment as my special needs son is currently in the hospital with a respiratory infection. I'm happy to run with whatever folks agree on until my return, which will hopefully be soon. Thanks for your patience.

Don't worry about us, Vidad. Here's to your son's swift recovery.

8. Discipline
7. Understand
6. Communicate
5. Move
4. Battle

Where we are currently at in choosing House skills:

Eklo	Farok	Kwyna	Loyxo	Vidad
Discipline	Discipline	Understand	Understand	n/a	8
Understand	Understand	Move	Move	n/a	7
Battle	Communicate	Communicate	Communicate	n/a	6
Move	Move	Discipline	Discipline	n/a	5
Communicate	Battle	Battle	Battle	n/a	4

Kwyna:

I agree with Loyxo's assessment, actually.

I'm happy with Loxyo's ordering.

If we add values up, we get the totals below. Could argue for swapping Move and Communicate on the basis of Communicate having three votes at 6 what with Move being more a split decision.

Understand = 7 + 7 + 8 +8 = 30
Discipline = 8 + 8 + 5 + 5 = 26
Move = 7 + 7 + 5 + 5 = 24
Communicate = 4 + 6 + 6 + 6 = 22
Battle = 6 + 4 + 4 + 4 = 18

Well, this average looks fine to me.

Looks to me like Loyxo got three votes though, which would be the majority.

I didn't want to do a simple majority thing, since this is a bit more elaborate. This to me is more effective and collective, an amalgamation of everyone's contributions.

Loyxo has not checked in or contributed for more than two weeks. I have therefore removed them from the game.

Given how slow the discussion has become, is there any reason to continue? Interest seems to have totally waned.

I'm still totally invested.

I still am, and that's saying a lot since I've actually read the book and wasn't particularly impressed with the system XD

I'll be honest and say that I thought the reason we were taking so long to jump in is that you as the GM wanted to weed out the unreliable folk. Which I don't mind at all.

There frankly is no 'jumping in' with Dune apart from using Agents Of Dune and having the House and characters already established. The process of House creation is neither quick nor easy if you want a solid foundation for one's campaign. An original House requires time and effort to fit into the setting. Dune isn't generic science-fiction or space opera. You need to have a clear idea how one's House fits into the greater scheme of things. I've tried to give a sense of the collaboration we'd have in a face-to-face game, but it's easier to achieve consensus around a table than it is in play-by-post.

Don't really have a choice, though. None of the previous attempts at rules for a Dune roleplaying game were complete.

I'm definitely here and if I was slow it was due to my travel, not disinterest.

Oh I don't disagree at all, if anything it feels a lot faster (mechanics-wise) then ASOIAF and to be fair I did have a blast using those rules (though the end result was often pretty confusing- looking at you, castles and villages!).

Honestly I picked up the older Dune set at some point but didn't get to read it, will eventually get to that for my (never-ending...) research.

In reply to Kwyna (msg # 181):

The 'older Dune set' was Dune: Chronicles Of The Imperium. It used Decipher's CODA system, the same one as their Star Trek and Lord Of The Rings games.

Aaah yes, I had read some ST, which explains why it felt familiar.

Funny how ST and Dune seem to end up in the same systems, though they are diametrically opposed philosophy wise!

In reply to Kwyna (msg # 183):

Federation culture is certainly not at all like Imperial culture. Dune's setting has more in common with Star Trek's aliens and adversaries.

So, if that stuff was decided by averages, what is the next step?

Hello, I will be on vacation from tomorrow until Sunday, so I can post on Monday!

Next up is choosing two House traits. Traits are a type of Asset, akin to Aspects in FATE. Any member of a House can call upon its traits, as well as their own personal traits, to decrease the Difficulty of a task. Various examples: Atreides (Honorable, Popular), Corrino (Imperial, Wealthy), Harkonnen (Brutal, Cunning), Moritani (Independent, Vengeful).

Other possible traits: Ambitious, Amoral, Artistic, Competitive, Creative, Cruel, Cutthroat, Deceptive, Determined, Diligent, Discreet, Dogmatic, Expansionist, Faithful, Impartial, Industrious, Innovative, Just, Passionate, Pragmatic, Refined, Respected, Respectful, Resourceful, Righteous, Secretive, Subtle, Unthreatening. These are only a select few potential traits, the list is basically endless.

I like Industrious and Respected.

Ambitious could tie into our Science (Understanding) secondary domain as well as build a reputation for being an 'upstart House' as someone suggested previously.

Innovative could tie into our Industrial (Produce) primary domain and cement our reputation as the manufacturer of choice for consumer suspensor goods and a source of cutting-edge Holtzman Effect research.

Secretive would give us a reputation for keeping a tight lid on our proprietary knowledge and manufacturing processes, and implies effective defenses against industrial espionage and sabotage.

Determined and Pragmatic could both reflect the pioneering spirit of a House settled on a planet with the sort of climate that rivals Arrakis in its extremity. Heck, could call it Pioneering and apply it to research as well as lifestyle.