Post by Junk Angel on Dec 26, 2007 17:44:24 GMT -5
A Dune RP
The player characters are supposed to be the crew of a harvester on the planet Arrakis. One of these, should have either once been a swordmaster of Ginaz, or a Sardaukar.
The players should not be Fremen. These will be the two Gamemasters (me and mando). The aim, is to at first integrate the crew into the destroyed remains of a sietch,
We aim to get about 3-4 characters. More wouldn't matter at all.
The fact, that most of the PC's will be "ignorant" offworlders means, that the players will not have to know too much about the lore of the Dune universe and Arrakis in general.
Sand nothing but sand.
Blown by large sandstorms, lying everywhere.
In the sand, spice, the wonder drug. They were wars led over this substance, over this planet of nothing but sand and spice. Generations toiled, generations died. Generations fought, generation submitted, all under the eyes of the sisterhood of the Bene Gesserit. The empire, in it's brutal feudal way, was build with the help of this single world, it's produce meager, yet the most important in the galaxy. This planet had no natural resource like any other, it was the world of the worms, the world of spice.
A world wich the Ampoliros never neared, a world almsot bereft of life, a world of desert, of worms.
Ruled by the Padishah Emperor Shaddam iv Corrino, given as a feudum to the brutal and cruel Baron Vladimir Harkonnen.
The antive population is being followed, the fremen, yet they fight back, their numbers are hidden their strenghts as well. They are the tamers of the makers, the Shai-Huluds, the worms of Arrakis.
Deep in the desert Harvesters suck up the spice, most are of the house Harkonnen, yet here and there those of smugglers and chief among them those of house Ordos dot the ground. Each crew fears the worm, yet they must work.
House Harkonnen must pay it's tithes tp the emperor, the house Hrdos pays it's taxes of Arrakis as well.
The Sisterhood watches, the sisterhood deceives, the Sisterhood controls from beyond the shodow. The Landsraat, is in it's sway without knowing the truth.
Yet this is unimportant to the people of Arrakis, housed in the city of Arrakeen, the palace in it that towers over all.
Deep in the desert, the sand falls.
A harvesters speeds in search of the valuable spice, it's crew, on the lookout for the worms. A carryall close, to make a needed lift necessary.
The sand falls, the wind rises.
a map for those interested
and a few terms
Technology of Dune
Holtzman Field- an field which changes the ambient energy of subatomic particles, It allows the use of defensive shields and of Instantaneous space travel.
Holtzman shield- Changes the subatomic particles around the user creating a skin tight shield that can withstand almost any projectile weapon. It does however have allow objects moving at slow speed to pass through (usually less then 6 centimeters a second) also the use of a lasgun on a Holtzman shield starts a subatomic chain reaction that creates a nuclear explosion
Holtzman Drive- folds space at a quantum level allowing for instantaneous travel. While traveling the ship can be destroyed by passing through any large gravity fields it can also be destroyed of when to reverts the space it is in has debris in it. Becouse of this it is impossible for a normal human to fly a Holtzman drive ship. There for the Spacing guild has a monopoly on space travel because they are the only ones who can pilot the ships. The do so by exposing them self to massive quantities fo spice allowing them a limited prescience.
Lasgun- A directed energy weapon that focuses subatomic energy in a continuous beam, can be fired as long as a energy source is available. Even though the weapon is very effective it is rarely used due to the fact that when fired into a Holtzman shield it causes a subatomic chain reaction resulting in a massive nuclear explosion
Stillsuit- A water saving device used by the Fremen it covers all of the body and catches any waste products (sweat, urine, etc) and converts them into drinkable water
Death Still- extracts all liquids from a dead body and converts it into drinkable water, seen as barbaric by outsiders it is an everyday part of Fremen life
Crysknife- made from the tooth Shai-Hulud (Sandworm) The Crysknife is long and very sharp; it is milky colored and must be kept close to the skin other wise it slowly dissolves.
Gom Jabbar- a small ring it has a point on it which is covered in cyanide. It is used be the Bene gesserits.
Ghola- Made by the Bene Teilaxu. The Ghola are a perfect clone of a individual, The only thing they lack our the persons memories. Though some say that these might be buried deep within the Gholas brain.
Projectile Weapons- There are a large variety of projectile weapons. Ranging from rockets and explosive launched projectiles, to magnetically accelerated weapons.
Baradye Pistol- A static-charge dust gun developed on Arrakis (Dune) for lying down large dye markers on the sand
Mentat- A human machine, the mentats were developed after the butlerian Jihad to replace the now banned computers. There genes have been modified and there brains shaped from a young age to make there thoughts controlled by logic instead of human emotions. They have a vastly increased mental capacity and can perform high level mathematics easily.
Atomics- used as a catch all phrase for all atomic and sub atomic fission and fusion weapons. They are strictly outlawed, and they have not been used in millennia. However most houses keep a stock pile of heirloom atomics.
Spice- naturally occurring on Arrakis spice is a miracle drug, and has never been duplicated and has never been successfully transplanted and grown. It ahs many benefits including Increased mental and physical prowess, Longer life span, and prescience (in large quantities) If how ever to much is taken it begins to change the human form resulting in a near human being (this is what the Spacing Guild navigators are). It si highly addictive, and withdrawal is usually deadly. Addiction is readily apparent because a heavy Spice users Eyes turn a bright shade of blue (the entire eye even the whites)
All things Fremen
Fremen attire and items
THUMPER short stake with spring-driven clapper at one end. the purpose: to be driven into the sand and set "thumping" to summon shai-hulud. (See Maker hooks.)
STILLSUIT body-enclosed garment invented on Arrakis. Its fabric is a micro-sandwich performing functions of heat dissipation and filter for bodily wastes. Reclaiming moisture is made available by tube from catchpockets.
STILLTENT small, sealable enclosure of micro-sandwich fabric designed to reclaim as potable water the ambient moisture discharged within it by the breath of its occupants.
FILT-PLUG a nose filter unit worn with a stillsuit to capture moisture from exhaled breath.
FREMKIT desert survival kit of Fremen manufacture.
DEW PRECIPITATORS not to be confused with dew gatherers. Collectors or precipitators are egg-shaped devices about four centimeters on the long axis. They are made of chromoplastic that turns a reflecting white when subjected to light, and reverts to transparency in darkness. The collector forms a markedly cold surface upon which dawn dew will precipitate. They are used by Fremen to line concave planting depressions where they provide a small but reliable source of water.
BOURKA insulated mantle worn by Fremen in the open desert.
RECATHS body-function tubes linking the human waste disposal system to the cycling filters of a stillsuit.
CATCHPOCKET any stillsuit pocket where filtered water is caught and stored
ABA loose robe worn by Fremen women; usually black
JUBBA CLOAK the all-purpose cloak (it can be set to reflect or admit radiant heat, converts to a hammock or shelter) commonly worn over a stillsuit on Arrakis.
LIBAN Fremen liban is a spice water infused with yucca flour. Originally a sour milk drink
MAKER HOOKS the hooks used for capturing, mounting, and steering a sandworm of Arrakis.
Fremen quotes
BI-LA KAIFA Amen. (Literally: "Nothing further need be explained.")
GEYRAT straight ahead; a worm steersmans call.
HAIIIII-YOH! command to action; worm steersmans call.
HAL YAWM "Now! At last!" a Fremen exclamation.
KULL WAHAD! "I am profoundly stirred!" A sincere exclamation of surprise common in the Imperium. Strict interpretation depends on context. (It is said of Muad-Dib that once he watched a desert hawk chick emerge from its shell and whispered: "Kull wahad!")
MU ZEIN WALLAH! Mu zein literally means "nothing good," and wallah is a reflexive terminal exclamation. In this traditional opening for a Fremen curse against and enemy, Wallah turns the emphasis back upon the words Mu zein, producing the meaning: "Nothing good, never good, good for nothing."
LA, LA, LA Fremen cry of grief. (La translates as ultimate denial, a "no" from which you cannot appeal.)
SHADOUT well-dipper, a Fremen honorific.
SOO-SOO SOOK! water-sellers cry on Arrakis. Sook is a market place. (See Ikhut-eigh!)
YA HYA CHOUHADA "Long live the fighters!" The Fedaykin battle cry. Ya (now) in this cry is augmented by the hya form (the ever-extended now). Chouhada (fighters) carries this added meaning of fighters against injustice. There is a distinctionin in this word that specifies the fighters are not struggling for anything, but are consecrated against a specific thing--that alone.
YA! YA! YAWM! Fremen chanting cadence used in time of deep ritual significance. Ya carries the root meaning of "Now pay attention!" The yawm form is a modified term calling for urgent immediacy. The chant is usually translated as "Now, hear this!"
SUBAKH UL KUHAR "Are you well?"; a Fremen greeting.
SUBAKH UN NAR "I am well. And you?": traditional reply.
Religion
BAKKA in Fremen legend, the weeper who mourns for all mankind.
AULIYA In the Zensunni Wanderers religion, the female at the left hand of God; Gods handmaiden
KISWA any figure or design from Fremen mythology.
FIQH knowledge, religious law; one of the half-legendary origins of the Zensunni Wanderers religion
KHALA traditional invocation to still the angry spirits of a place whose name you mention.
RUH-SPIRIT in Fremen belief, that part of the individual which is always rooted in (and capable of sensing) the metaphysical world. (See Alam al-Mithal.)
SHAH-NAMA the half-legendary First Book of the Zensunni Wanderers.
SHAI-HULUD Sandworm of Arrakis, the "Old Man of the Desert," "Old Father Eternity," and "Grandfather of the Desert." Significantly, this name, when referred to in a certain tone or written with capital letters, designates the earth deity of Fremen hearth superstitions. Sandworms grow to enormous size (specimens longer than 400 meters have been seen in the deep desert) and live to great age unless slain by one of their fellows or drowned in water, which is poisonous to them. Most of the sand on Arrakis is credited to sandworm action. (See Little Maker.)
SHAITAN Satan.
LISAN AL-GAIB "The Voice from the Outer World." In Fremen messianic legends, an off-world prophet. Sometimes translated as "Giver of Water." (See Mahdi.)
MAHDI in the Fremen messianic legend, "The One Who Will Lead Us to Paradise."
MAKER see Shai-hulud.
SAYYADINA feminine acolyte in the Fremen religious hierarchy.
RAMADHAN ancient religious period marked by fasting and prayer; traditionally, the ninth month of the solar-lunar calendar. Fremen mark the observance according to the ninth meridian-crossing cycle of the first moon.
IBN QIRTAIBA "Thus go the hold words. . . ." Formal beginning to Fremen religious incantation (derived from panoplia propheticus).
Arrakis
FAI the water tribute, chief specie of tax on Arrakis.
HARJ desert journey, migration
KITAB AL-IBAR the combined survival handbook-religious manual developed by the Fremen on Arrakis.
MUAD-DIB the adapted kangaroo mouse of Arrakis, a creature associated in Fremen earth-spirit mythology with a design visible on the planets second moon. This creature is admired by Fremen for its ability to survive in the open desert.
QANAT an open canal for carrying irrigation water under controlled conditions through a desert.
BLED flat, open desert.
ARRAKEEN first settlement on Arrakis; long-time seat of planetary government.
CIELAGO any modified Chiroptera of Arrakis adapted to carry distrans messages.
CORIOLIS STORM any major sandstorm on Arrakis where winds across the open flatlands are amplified by the planets own revolutionary motion to reach speeds up to 700 kilometers per hour.
DEW GATHERERS workers who reap dew from the plants of Arrakis, using a scythelike dew reaper.
DRUM SAND impaction of sand in such a waythat any sudden blow against its surface produces a distant drum sound.
EL-SAYAL the "rain of sand." A fall of dust which has been carried to medium altitude (around 2,000 meters) by a coriolis storm. El-sayals frequently bring moisture to ground level.
SANDTIDE idiomatic for a dust tide: the variation in level within certain dust-filled basins on Arrakis due to gravitational effects of sun and satellites. (See Tidal Dust Basin.)
SARDAUKAR the soldier-fanatics of the Padishah Emperor. They were men from an environmental background of such ferocity that it killed six out of thirteen persons before the age of eleven. Their military training emphasized ruthlessness and a near-suicidal disregard for personal safety. They were taught from infancy to use cruelty as a standard weapon, weakening opponents with terror. At the apex of their sway over the affairs of the Universe, their swordsmanship was said to match that of the Ginaz tenth level and their cunning abilities at in-fighting were reputed to approach those of a Bene Gesserit adept. Any one of them was rated a match for any ten ordinary Landsraad military conscripts. By the time of Shaddam IV, while they were still formidable, their strength had been sapped by over-confidence, and the sustaining mystique of their warrior religion had been deeply undermined by cynicism.
SHIELD WALL a mountainous geographic feature in the northern reaches of Arrakis which protects a small area from the full force of the planets coriolis storms.
TIDAL DUST BASIN any of the extensive depressions in the surface of Arrakis which have been filled with dust over the centuries and in which actual dust tides (see Sandtides) have been measured.
FRemen misc
WATER BURDEN Fremen: a mortal obligation.
MIHNA the season for testing Fremen youths who wish admittance to manhood.
MUDIR NAHYA the Fremen name for Beast Rabban (Count Rabban of Lankiveil), the Harkonnen cousin who was siridar governor on Arrakis for many years. The name is often translated as "Demon Ruler."
NAIB one who has sworn never to be taken alive by the enemy; traditional oath of a Fremen leader.
TAHADDI CHALLENGE Fremen challenge to mortal combat, usually to test some primal issue.
WALI an untried Fremen youth.
WATER DISCIPLINE that harsh training which fits the inhabitants of Arrakis for existence there without wasting moisture.
WATER OF LIFE an "illuminating" poison (see Reverend Mother). Specifically, that liquid exhalation of a sandworm (see Shai-hulud) produced at the moment of its death from drowning which is changed within the body of a Reverend Mother to become the narcotic used in the sietch tau orgy. An "awareness spectrum" narcotic.
WATERCOUNTERS metal rings of different size, each designating a specific amount of water payable out of Fremen stores. Watercounters have profound significance (far beyond the idea of money) especially in birth, death, and courtship ritual.
YALI a Fremens personal quarters within the sietch.
ICHWAN BEDWINE the brotherhood of all Fremen on Arrakis.
The character sheet template.
//rough
Name:
Age:
Expertise:
Family alliance/or house: (For instance, subject family of house Atreides) none possible //Fremen not allowed (due to story line)
posesions:
- Issued:
- 1 Stilsuit
- 1 normal knife
- 1 litre of water
- Possible
- 1-2 small miscelenous items
- One laspistol for the group
Bio: Please keep in mind, that the pc will come from a spice harvester, thus there should only be one sardaukar/swordmaster of ginaz.
But it is possible that some of the characters might be in fact spies for some house or powergroup.
lostcats character
Name: Sheira
Age: 17
Expertise//Fremen
Affiliation//Fremen
Possession
Issued:
* 1 Stillsuit
* 1 crysknife - bonded
* 1 liter of water
* 1 waterrings
* group:Deathstill
Bio:
Daughter of the Sayyadina Bailra of sietch Rirbesh, Sheira grew up in the household of a wisewoman. She was often a
helper during the rituals of the fremen, chief among these the sietch orgy, where she helped her mother administer
the water of life.
Yet she never felt much interest towards the path of the seer, being a warrior at hearth. Yet it took her some time before she fully decided to become a scout. Once as a child, she and some others were waylaid by harkonnen harvesters. The men were truly of the house, killing a few of the children using the fabled inkvines of geidi prime. The children were found minutes after the attack, the harvesters water extracted by the warriors of the fremen. Yet two children died, and Sheira, carried a mark. A whip of the inkvine over her cheek. She can feel it even this day at times.
Though, after seeing the warriors, she decided to be like them, and soon she walked the dunes by their side. She rode her first worm when she was fifteen.
Her mother did not like her chosen path, but remained silent. Sheira's life was Sheira's life and no one else's.
She often joined scout parties, going on paths many thumpers away from the sietch Rirbesh, now known as sietch Bushalo.
Mando's character
Name: Morn
Age: 25
Expertise: Fremen
Affilition: Fremen
Possesions
Issued:
1 Stillsuit
1 crysknife- bonded
1 liter of water
1 water rings
1 Hooks
1 Projectile Rifle
Group:
1 Thumper
1 Stilltent
Bio:
His family was killed when he was but three years old leaveing him a orphan child he was taken in by a low ranking family who had barely a liter of water.
he was treated harshly by the rest of the seitch and was blamed for anything thatthe other children did. When he turned 14 he was blamed for the theft of food and was beaten brutally and left in the desert to either die or return a true fremen.
Two years later he returned to the seitch a much older and more hardend warrior. He defeated one of the seitches top knife fighters and was accepted back in.
Since then he has lead many parties against the harkkonens and to steal from the smuggelers. He is one of the few Fremen to weild a projectile rifle and he is a great shot.
