Dune (card game)

Collectible card game

DuneEye of the Storm

Cardback of the Dune CCG

Designers|

* Owen Seyler
* Matthew Colville

Publishers|

* Five Rings Publishing Group
* Wizards of the Coast

Players| 2–8
Playing time| ~ 1 hour
Chance| Some
Skills|

* Card playing
* Arithmetic
* Basic reading ability

Dune is an out-of-print collectible card game produced by Last Unicorn Games and Five Rings Publishing Group, and later Wizards of the Coast. Set in the Dune universe based on the books written by Frank Herbert,[1] the game pits two or more players against each other, each in control of a minor house vying for entry in the Landsraad.[2]

## Publishing history

[edit]

Originally released in 1997 as Dune: Eye of the Storm by a partnership of Five Rings Publishing Group (FRPG) and Last Unicorn Games.[3]: 23 The license negotiated with the Herbert Estate and Universal Studios[4] was for intellectual property based on the 1984 film Dune directed by David Lynch.[5] By December 1997, the license covered all of the Dune novels by Frank Herbert, and the game was based on the first three novels (Dune, Dune Messiah, and Children of Dune).[6]

It was designed by Owen Seyler,[3]: 23 and featured painted card art instead of screen captures from the film.[5] The set included 301 cards available in 60-card starter decks and 15-card booster packs.[3]: 23 There were six starter decks, one for each of the political factions in the game, half of which were fixed for the deck and the other half randomized.[7]

Although Ally and Homeworld cards were only available in starter boxes, not all Ally cards were included in a given starter (e.g. Piter de Vries, Liscia Theirese), giving rise to the collectable/tradable game element. A small number of promotional cards were also released to people requesting additional information about the game prior to Eye of the Storm's initial release. All of these cards have "Preview" on the left-hand side of the card face.

FRPG intended on releasing expansion sets quarterly.[5] The first one, the 152-card set Judge of the Change, was released in December 1997.[8] It was sold in 60-card half-fixed starter decks and 15-card booster packs.[8] The set added the factions 'Spice Miners Guild' and 'Water Peddlers Union' and the type 'decrees'.[8]

When Wizards of the Coast purchased Five Rings later that year, Dune: Eye of the Storm underwent a major shift.[9] In a program called Rolling Thunder, small expansions of the game, called "Chapters", were released every two months. While intended to keep the pace of collecting exciting, it resulted in high duplicate rates in booster packs and a competitive landscape constantly in flux.[citation needed]

In 1998, Wizards of the Coast released two more complete sets,[10] Dune: Judge of the Change (183 cards, covering the arrival of House Atreides on Arrakis)[11] and Dune: Thunder at Twilight (178 cards, covering the reclaiming of Arrakis by House Harkonnen), but the challenging gameplay proved too difficult for younger players. This ultimately led to the collapse of the Dune CCG.[citation needed]

Two more expansions, Dune: Second Moon Rising (the rise of Paul Atreides) and Dune: Fall of the Padishah (the defeat of Padishah Emperor Shaddam IV), were planned for release in 1998. However, the game was canceled before they were printed.[12]

## Gameplay

[edit]

Players take the role of minor houses vying for entry into the Landsraad. They are sponsored in this effort by one of six Great Houses/Factions (House Atreides, Bene Gesserit Sisterhood, House Corrino, the Fremen, House Harkonnen, and the Spacing Guild), and must choose one Homeworld, as well as a number of unique Allies and Holdings to make up their Imperial Deck. Players also have a House Deck containing non-unique cards that represent their Aides, Personnel, Equipment, Plans and Tactics (random Event cards may also be included in the House Deck).[4]

The Judge of the Change expansion introduced three new Factions (the Spice Miner's Guild, the Water Seller's Union, and the Dune Smugglers),[13] and the Thunder at Twilight expansion contained modified House Atreides, House Corrino and House Harkonnen starter sets (reflecting the period in the Dune novel when House Atreides took possession of Arrakis from the Harkonnen).[13] Thunder at Twilight also added the 'program ventures' and 'nexus events' card types.[13]

Each player begins the game with a homeworld and small amount of solaris, the currency of the Imperium.[14] Players compete over Imperial Deck Allies and Holdings through an auction-style mechanic, while House Deck resources are paid for and deployed from a player's hand.

Players attack one another through Intrigue, Battle, Arbitration, and Dueling Rites to gain political standing and wealth. Allies and Aides can only participate in a particular Rite if they have the Talent for it (displayed on their card). When a player uses a deployed Ally or Aide to attack or defend, they must Tap that card and it cannot be used again until the next turn. This may leave the player open to an attack from another player, so it becomes important to have multiple elements of attack and defense deployed at all times. Also, Tactic cards make it possible for one player to interfere with an attack occurring between two other players and influence the outcome without using any of the interfering player's Allies or Aides. Allies and Aides that are defeated in an attack are usually not removed from play but are turned face down, and may be resurrected after a few turns.

The mystical elements of Prophecy and Bene Gesserit Weirding ways can also be utilized to significantly further one's agenda. Victory can be gained once a player's House accumulates 10 or more spice units and 10 or more Favor points.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Varney, Allen (December 1997), "Inside the Industry", The Duelist, no. #20, p. 90
2. ^ Miller, John Jackson (2003). Scrye Collectible Card Game Checklist & Price Guide (2nd ed.). pp. 168–172.
3. ^ a b c Swan, Rick (July 1997). "Into the Eye of the Storm". InQuest Gamer. No. 27\. Wizard Entertainment. pp. 22–26.
4. ^ a b Dancey, Ryan S. (December 1997). "Dune: The Sleeper Awakes". The Duelist. No. 20\. Wizards of the Coast. pp. 108–110.
5. ^ a b c Varney, Allen (August 1997). "Game news & updates". The Duelist. No. 18\. Wizards of the Coast. p. 83.
6. ^ Varney, Allen (December 1997). "Game news & updates". The Duelist. No. 20\. Wizards of the Coast. p. 90.
7. ^ Varney, Allen (October 1997). "Game news & updates". The Duelist. No. 19\. Wizards of the Coast. p. 77.
8. ^ a b c Varney, Allen (January 1998). "Game news & update". The Duelist. No. 21\. Wizards of the Coast. p. 86.
9. ^ "Wizards of the Coast News", The Duelist, no. #19, p. 17, October 1997
10. ^ "Dune Classic CCG by Steven Baumrucker MD". 3 May 2004. Archived from the original on 3 May 2004.
11. ^ "Game News & Updates", The Duelist, no. #21, p. 86, January 1998
12. ^ "CCG - Collectors of Dune". duneinfo.com.
13. ^ a b c Zdunich, S. Micah (February 1999). "Daze of thunder". The Duelist. No. 34\. Wizards of the Coast. pp. 78–79.
14. ^ Seyler, Owen (March 1998), "Dune: The Taming of Arrakis", The Duelist, no. #23, pp. 80–81

## Further reading

[edit]

* Monsieur Piche (July–August 1997). "Dune: Eye of the Storm". Backstab (in French). No. 4\. p. 52.
* Barth, Rachel (February 1998). "Basic training". InQuest. No. 34\. Wizard Entertainment. pp. 66–69.
* Zdunich, Micah (July 1998). "Judgment call". The Duelist. No. 27\. Wizards of the Coast. pp. 77–80.

## External links

[edit]

* Baumrucker, MD, Steven (May 2003). "Dune: Classic CCG". Scrye. Internet Archive. Archived from the original on May 3, 2004. Retrieved May 3, 2004.
* Dune Collectible Card Game at BoardGameGeek
* Dune (card game) on Dunepedia the Dune Encyclopedia
* Dune Collectible Card Game overview on BoardGameGeek

* v
* t
* e

Frank Herbert's Dune

* Brian Herbert
* Kevin J. Anderson

Frank Herbert|

* Dune (1965)
* Dune Messiah (1969)
* Children of Dune (1976)
* God Emperor of Dune (1981)
* Heretics of Dune (1984)
* Chapterhouse: Dune (1985)

Brian Herbert
Kevin J. Anderson|

| Prequels|

| Prelude|

* House Atreides (1999)
* House Harkonnen (2000)
* House Corrino (2001)

|

Legends|

* The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
* The Machine Crusade (2003)
* The Battle of Corrin (2004)

Heroes|

* Paul of Dune (2008)
* The Winds of Dune (2009)

Great Schools|

* Sisterhood of Dune (2012)
* Mentats of Dune (2014)
* Navigators of Dune (2016)

Caladan|

* The Duke of Caladan (2020)
* The Lady of Caladan (2021)
* The Heir of Caladan (2022)

Sequels|

* Hunters of Dune (2006)
* Sandworms of Dune (2007)

Films|

* Dune (1984)
* soundtrack
* Dune (2021)
* soundtracks
* accolades
* Part Two (2024)
* soundtrack
* accolades
* Part Three (2026)

Television|

* Frank Herbert's Dune (2000)
* Frank Herbert's Children of Dune (2003)
* Prophecy (2024)

Games|

| Video games|

* Dune
* Dune II
* Dune 2000
* Emperor: Battle for Dune
* Frank Herbert's Dune
* Spice Wars
* Awakening

|

Tabletop games|

* Board game
* Imperium
* Card game
* Chronicles of the Imperium

Other|

* The Dune Encyclopedia (1984)
* National Lampoon's Doon (1984)
* Short stories (1985–2022)
* Songs of Muad'Dib (1992)
* Dreamer of Dune (2003)
* The Road to Dune (2005)
* The Science of Dune (2007)
* Jodorowsky's Dune (2013)
* Head-Space (2016)
* Lego Dune (2024–present)

Universe|

| Organizations|

* Bene Gesserit
* Fremen
* Spacing Guild

|

Characters|

* Alia Atreides
* Leto II Atreides
* Paul Atreides
* Chani
* Count Fenring
* Margot Fenring
* Feyd-Rautha
* Gurney Halleck
* Valya Harkonnen
* Vladimir Harkonnen
* Duncan Idaho
* Princess Irulan
* Lady Jessica
* Gaius Helen Mohiam
* Prophecy characters

Elements|

* Arrakis
* Spice
* Sandworm
* Technology
* Glossary

* Category

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