Starting a Dune campaign with the Cypher system

Dune in the Cypher System

How it begins:

After playing Numenera for 2 years as a player. and a horror one shot with the cypher system as GM, i found myself in the spot of wanting to run a campaign with this easy to play system. I asked around my gaming group, which setting they would want to play and out of the several options, most of them wanted to play in the Dune Universe. With Dune being one of my favorite books of all time, i started to lay the groundwork for a new Chapter in Frank Herberts Universe.

Setting the Basics - Character Generation:

One of the most outstanding features of the cypher system is its character creation, which is fast, but gives the player also lot of options to create almost every character you can imagine. But first lets take a look at the Types, and which kind of character they could represent.

Warriors:

Warriors are all around the universe. The are the bounty hunters, fighting slaves, assassins, guards, soldiers, noble fighters and bodyguards of the Galaxy. Their skills are perfectly fine for Dune characters, and with a suiting Focus, players can create sword masters, fremen, sharpshooters or Heroes of the Fighting Pits. Warriors with a stealth flavor are renamed to "Assassin", with a Skill and Knowledge Flavor they are named "Strategist".

Adepts:

Adepts don't quite fit in the Dune Setting, the magic skills of them don't fit in this world, where magic doesn't exist. Some of the skills are useful of the player wants to play a Bene Geserit, but some Foci also do this very well. As a consequence player characters can't be Adepts.

Explorers:

Explorers are the Backbone of the Galaxy, they work on spice harvester, spies, pilot Aircrafts, create great handwork or sometimes just get something done. Players who don't want to play pure fighters, Explorers are they way to create thieves, mechanics, fremen, outlaws, master of arms, smugglers and pilots. Explorer with stealth flavor are named "Thieves", with a Skill and Knowledge flavor they are named "Specialists". 

Speakers:

Speakers make great diplomats, teachers, mentats, suk-doctors and nobles. A lot of their skills amplify other characters, so it also fits Bene Geserit quiet nicely. The speaker abilities  sometimes feel very much like magic, but theres always a way to make it work with the setting, by modifying them on the fly, or changing some aspects.

Flavors:

As there are no computers, and no magic in the Dune Universe, characters cant take a Magic or Technology Flavor. One of the players choose a speaker with the skills and knowledge flavor, to build a Mentat, a warrior with stealth flavor became the spy master, explorers with stealth flavor make good smugglers or criminals, explorers with skill and knowledge make good scientists or doctors.

Descriptors:

The only Descriptor i deem not suitable for a dune game is "Mystikal". All other Descriptors are fine.

Foci:

I allowed the following Foci for a Dune campaign: 

• Awakens Dreams
• Calculates the Incalculable
• Carries a Quiver
• Commands Mental Powers
• Controls Beasts
• Crafts Unique Objects
• Defends the Weak
• Doesn't do much
• Entertains
• Explores Dark Places
• Fights Dirty
• Fights with Panache
• Hunts Outcasts (Harkonnen)
• Hunts with great skill
• Infiltrates
• Leads
• Lives in the wilderness(desert)
• Looks for Trouble
• Masters Defense
• Masters Weopanry
• Metes out justice
• Moves like a Cat
• Moves like the Wind
• Murders
• Needs no Weapons
• Never says Die
• Performs Feat of Strength
• Rages
• Sees Beyond
• Separates Mind from Body
• Solves Mysteries
• Stand Like a Bastion
• Throws With Deadly Accuracy
• Wields Two Weapons at Once
• Works Miracles
• Works the Back Alley
• Would rather be reading

Some of this Foci have supernatural abilities, but the people in Dune have evolved for thousands of years, and most likely the players have been part of the Bene Geserit Breeding Program in at least one generation, so some of the abilities could be exceptional use of the more evolved bodys. Someone who seperates Mind from Body or Sees Beyond may have a high spice input, someone who works miracles cures wounds with his advanced medic skills and so on. Calculates the Incalculabe is perfect for a Mentat, who learned to use his mind like a computer, Bene Geserit could Command Mental powers to make use of the Voice, or Awaken Dreams for a more mystikal approach. As always in the Cypher System,  what works for your game is the way to go, so let players choose other Foci or let them think up their own, as long as it fits the setting, players should play the character they want, not the character they are forced to create.

Setting up the House:

With the Basics set, the players would need some starting point for the story. After we found the setting, i asked every player 3 questions, what he, as a player, wants in this campaign, and to get answers quickly, i promised them that they start with 1 XP if they answer them!

• I always wanted to...(kill someone with a Gom Jabar, ride a Sandworm, visit other planets, etc.)
• Do you want to have minor or major influence on the Events in the first book?
• What do you want to do as a player? (diplomacy, intrigues, full on fights, etc.)

All of them wanted to play during the area of the First Dune Book, and follow and influence the story around Paul "Mua'Dib" Atreides. They all wanted a little bit of diplomacy and fights. Some of them already had some plan about the characters they could play, and with a feel for what my players want to do over the campaign i set out to write the backstory of their house.

House Shabeel:

They players are member of House Shabeel (the players choose the name "Shabeel" and House words "Survival begins with strength from within"). The House had control over a planet called "Asaban" but through mismanagement, they were forced to move to Arrakis, and work under the Rule of the Harkonnen. Some years after this, the Harkonnen killed the old Lord, Swordmaster and Mentat, but his Wife, the players and some minor workers could escape to a secret base in the Desert, which the old Lord built with money made from spice smuggling. The house has been hiding for some years, but the spy master heard, that the Harkonnen are leaving Arrakis, and soon Leto Atreides would have control over the planet, a good moment to come out of hiding.
I set up a Google Document, which would act as logbook for the campaign, wrote down the backstory, the major NPC's that live in there secret base, and a section about there Characters.
One player wanted to be the House Ruler and Mentat, the son of the old Duke. He became the Vengeful Speaker with Skills and Knowledge Flavor who Calculates The Incalculable. Another wanted to play a spice addict Fremen and became the Perceptive Explorer who Sees Beyond, the next wanted to play the spymaster and became a Sharp Eyed Warrior with Stealth Flavor who works the back Alley. We also have a swordmaster the Sharp Eyed Warrior who masters Weaponry and a Suk-Doctor, the Charming Speaker who works Miracles.

I didn't set up a itemlist, but one of my players wrote one for the campaign-log, with items and weapons from the Dune setting. Before we finished the characters, i told every player that they could choose to have a dark secret, which would grant an XP advance of 4 points, but would a somepoint become a major disadvantage.

Now with the Groundwork done, we are ready to play.
The next time we'll take a closer look at how we fit Cypher's and Artefact's to go smoothly with the Dune System and what we can do to give the players the feeling of a House in hiding, no money and no income.