Game Premise

[Kannon]

It is the year 10190 AG. Following the orbital terrorist attack at the opening of the Imperial Museum on the planet Otorio which have left almost 300 members of visiting nobility and their families and thousands of their retainers dead, the Empire is in upheaval. One Jaxson Aru, son of the CHOAM ur-Director Malina Aru, has been implicated. Allegedly, by this he wants to advance the cause of the Noble Commonwealth, an oligarchic challenge to 10-millennia-old Corrino Imperium. While Jaxson's mother publicly disowned her feral son before the Landsraad, the man remains at large.

Due to the punitive surtax imposed on spice imports by the Padishah Emperor to finance the damage, many worlds, organisations and their spice users are writhing under financial strain. Shaddam is also now seeking loyal nobles to replace his deceased vassals as planetary fief holders, and many houses scurry to aggrandise themselves by securing vacant planets for themselves, along with the corresponding Landsraad seats.

With CHOAM credentials in question and spice flow curtailed, instability of every kind may follow. Political pamphlets advocating for breaking up the Imperium have surfaced.

After a long period of predictability in spice flow owed to Harkonnen rule, Arrakis is again at the centre of a gathering storm. Imperial Spice Observer and Shaddam's closest ally, Count Hasimir Fenring, has recently returned from Kaitain to his planetary residence in the Arrakeen Palace. While no overt move has been made to challenge Harkonnen siridar-governorship of the planet, it is speculated they have incurred the Emperor's ire as Baron Vladimir for some reason didn't attend the fatal Otorio gala. Old rumours of malfeasance in reporting spice quotas and illegal spice hoarding by the Harkonnen may be given new traction. Perhaps the grand prize, Arrakis itself, is going to be included in the great fief reshuffle?

Under Count Fenring's supervision and CHOAM flag a fact-finding mission is being deployed on Arrakis. What particular interests does each of the 'delegates' represent is a different matter...