T? Thinking Machines? Titans?
Probably unlikely to refer any character with T in their name, like Esmar Tuek or Miles Teg. There’s House Thorvald but this guess isn’t even worth the time i’m spending typing this Locations with T, like Tuek’s Sietch, seem unlikely, though Tupile might be a special case.
Not much new regarding Dune products as the preorder for Masters of Dune was released was snuck out just beforehand. Esrimated shipping date late October/Early December.
Modiphius did win a golden Ennie for Best Writing on Dune: Adventures in the Imperium. So congratulations all round there.
My various agents did acquire the second letter of the clue however: ‘A’
(Danny and I are definitely in Architect mode as we are both several thousand miles away)
So we have T & A. (I should probably rephrase that… )
My current thoughts are Sietch TAbr.
The next phase will move eras and Sietch Tabr is a key element in Messiah & Children. An adventure based around the sietch is very possible.
Ah but are T and A sequential? Titans, Thinking Machines… Just sayin’.
Kinda figure Messiah/Children era doesn’t quite seem entirely like era of its own. Though the rulebook does have The Ascension of Muad’Dib as an era of play.
The reason I was thinking of Messiah & Children is that they are better known than BH/KJA eras and most of the House rules in the core book are still valid.
Oh for sure, continuing from Dune is most logical and easiest. But Sietch Tabr is also involved in Imperium era, being a major Fremen sietch, so as hints go that seems a bit of a stretch.
What about Mentats? T and A there. Unless the clue is specifically about a new era.
Mentats really aren’t a faction, though - they (like the Suks) are more like a character class. My memory may be faulty but I don’t recall any Mentat in the books having any particular loyalty or obligation to the Mentat School, or the school having any special agenda or goals.
not all are mentats trained at the schools, either. Both Paul and many Duncan-gholas are trained as mentats without the school. The implication being that Waff isn’t hiring powindah mentats, but instead the Tleilaxu have/make their own.
Yup, thats another one we can blame the Lynch movie for, declaring that the tleilaxu train all the mentats.
They train their own particular twisted ones, certainly, but not mentats as a whole.
There is potential for several different schools, which could potentially have new twists of training.
We refer to mentats as faction characters in the game mainly as they are ‘characters with special abilities’ but while they might have a loyalty to their training school, unlike the Guild or Bene Gesserit, it wouldn’t override their loyalty to their House.
It was mostly that the Mentats and Suks are listed as Faction Characters that gave me the idea that they may get books which had a focus on them. Though not the main focus of the book itself.
In the same way I see Sand and Dust as being the ‘Fremen’ book I could see Houses of the Landsraad, dor example, having more details on Mentat or Suk characters.
It is a way to boost the options available to those characters.
I’m not expecting a pure ‘Mentat’ book, just for them to get a highlight in a book that is relevant.
I’m (probably) not giving too much away by saying we’re shying away from the ‘splatbook’ approach. Popular though they are, they are only really useful for very specific characters and we want the books to appeal to a wide audience each time.
But, each faction will get a bit more love as we go along (as well as some new ones!).
Ah, i can’t recall Lynch film being the reason but Dune notes Tleilaxu as a training center for mentats.
EDIT Bizarrely, doing search through Dune ebook, it looks like Tleilaxu are mentioned only in the glossary. Herbert was probably laying ground work for the future. Granted Tleilaxu were specifically a “renegade training center”.
Ah, its in the ‘secret report from within the Guild’ preamble.
“Planet Tleilax training ground of the Mentats. You shall know a mentat by their red stained lips.” No mention of face dancers, criminal.
Locations with T, like Tuek’s Sietch, seem unlikely, though Tupile might be a special case.
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