Need Help With Questions Concerning Dune? Ask Here!

[TMA_1]

Well I set this page up with permission from Gob in order that we can build a growing FAQ for people that have questions concerning the Dune Universe. I only desire that answers to people's questions be handled in a mature fashion. Anybody can post here with a question about Dune and almost anything related to it. The most important thing to remember! No question is silly. You only build knowledge by asking questions. I know I needed a lot of help with understanding and friends of mine were awesome with answering my questions. Now I hope that this will build into a growing question and answer session, eventually turning into an FAQ, so that questions may be already answered before a person needs to post. Hope I or any other mature poster can help with questions concerning Dune. :)

[Duneguy]

Alright i got one....

??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ???

Ok Melange.. spice.. its a powder isnt it? because i was thinking if its like cinimon then its dry adn when u eat it it drys out your mouth and makes you really thirsty.. in the movies when paul eats it it looks more like a cake type stuff.. but when on the sand its powder.. cam someone explain that to me?

[Andrew]

ok, duneguy, by movies, d oyou mean the movie or miniseries? in the miniseries i beleive it was just spice mixed with food. or a spice icing.

[TMA_1]

Well from what I have studied, it actually begins as a liquid. When the little makers break from their bundling, a huge gush of prespice pushes itself to the surface. This fluidy substance then dries in the sun and becomes kinda brittle and crumbly to the consistancy of dust. many times miners will look for a vein of spice that is deep. Usually more refined spice is deeper underground. Spice isnt that potent in nature, but is synthesized and clensed. It can come to the point of being pure spice essence, what the Guild Navigators need to use. So to answer your question, melange is refined to a certain point for common humans. It is a grainy narcotic that can also be mixed in food and used in virtually any way.

[Dunenewt]

How did the Tuek family and become High Priests and Why is there a sietch named after Tuek?

[TMA_1]

because I believe the prequels that brian and kevin did kinda screwed up the tuek name. Granted they were... illegal in some of the things the family did.lol But they controlled the southern polar area. I really havent thought about that though. I will have to ask around. Geesh thats a good question. hehe :)

[Dunenewt]

actually for the Tuek's Sietch i have just remembered that he did something very brave for the Fremen

[Dunenewt]

Also, what are the names of the Tueks.There was the water dealer, the smuggler his son and the high priest.

[TMA_1]

Rondo was the water seller. I need to look in my copy of Dune for the Smuggler Tuek. In the mean time, can somebody help with this question? I completely forgot the name of the smuggler.

[Dunenewt]

One of them is called Esmar.

[TMA_1]

I am going to start answering some stuff that I have heard from people a lot on this site. It would be much help if others could do the same who really know what its all about with the question. Anyways here.

The Difference between a clone and a ghola:

While cloning is banned in the age after the Great Revolt, Cerain groups (Namely the Tleilaxu) tried to find ways past this. They came up with an ingenius devise; the Axolotl Tank. With this machine, human and animal flesh could be genetically altered, tampered, regrown, and repaired. A ghola is not a clone at all. It is a corpse that has had it's cellular structure revitalized and regenerated. A clone deals with taking a cell and growing up a genetic duplicate from birth. A ghola can be regrown at any age and with the whole body in tact. Many people consider the axolotl tank as a "ressurection machine". Instead of a carbon copy remade as a new human baby to eventual adulthood, the same body is recovered and revived. Even duplicated if needed. Many tests were done in order to revive memories from the partially erased brains of these corpses. It finally worked on Duncan Idaho by his extreme will power.

[Dunenewt]

Can I help?

Q)Why aren't Ordos in the Dune books

A)They are but they are only in the Dune Encyclopedia. They were put into the Dune RTS games by Westwood as they were looking for a 3rd house who would be different to the others. They couldn't use Corrino as they would be too strong so they used Ordos who are a sneaky wealthy side who are more interested in profit than anything else.

[TMA_1]

I hope this will help you guys out. Its a complete list of the cycles of worm growth and the spice. I added a picture I made for extra help. It explains the many changes that the worms and the spice must take in order to fully mature. It is from what I personally gleaned from what I have read of Frank's Universe. I hope it helps. :) If you wish to correct me, IM me and tell me about it so I may see if changes should be made. :)

Worm life Cycle:

1: Sandtrout grow from small multicelled sand plankton. They grow into a gel-like water rich creature. They are small and are highly attracted to water. Fremen children for ages have caught these little creatures for their water.

2: When they mature, the sand trout sludge themselves deep underground on arrakis in large groups in order to cluster. This cluster extracts water from their surrounding area. Through their growth they excrete "pre-spice".

3: When the pressure from the water inside the cluster of sand trout is so strong, the cluster bursts apart. The sand trout now have far matured by their growth with water infusion and chemical reactions within their simple structures. The explosion of the pressurized pre-spice kills many of the little creatures. Some survive though and continue to mature. They begin to grow ring structures on their body.

4: The creatures are beginning to look like their father, shui hulud. Their ring structure is very pronounced and have similar traits to their adult counterparts. This is a very vulnerable time though and many die because of lack of food or territorial disputes.

5: Only the very few of little makers actually survive and are able to grow to gargantuan levels. These are successful and have very little fear of their environment. These creatures are the picture of stability. Living for hundreds of years, the only thing they fear is water, which is ironic because of their past existence as sand trouts. These are the "old men of the desert" and are well respected. Deservingly so. When one of these beasts fate comes to an end, they desintigrate into hundreds of small sandtrout, continuing the cycle.

Spice Cycle:

I: When the cluster of sand trout explodes, the liquid excreted from the creatures as waste is shoved up close to the surface. It is only a matter of time before the pressure pushes the future spice to the surface.

II: The explosion of pre-spice is extremely volatile. The forces are great because of the immense pressure that has been built up around the fluid. The pre-spice finally settles onto the surface of the sand and then begins the next stage.

III: This is the final stage. This is when pre-spice chemically becomes raw, unrefined m

[TMA_1]

[attachment archived by Gobalopper]

[Andrew]

nice picture. sure bland and basic, but it gets the point across without mumbo jumbo.

this could turn into a FAQ when there is lots of info..try to think of some questions

Q - why didnt they use shields on arrakis?

Q - why didnt they exterminat worms on arrakis?(since they were pest to spice harvesters)

just some simple ones.

[TMA_1]

good man and thanks for the support. those are good questions and I will answer some more I have heard of.

Concerning the lack of shields on Arrakis:

The problem of using shields on the open desert of arrakis is the attraction of Sand Worms. These giant creatures have no visual, audial or scent senses. They are sensitive though to physical touch. The slightest movement can be felt deep in the sand -- far, far away from one of these beasts. The reason why they dont react to every sensation is simple. Their instincts only guide them to irregular or highly volitial touch sense. Anything that isnt ordinary on the surface can be felt. This brings into light the sheild problem. Holtzmen waves are extremely intense because of their short wavelengths. It takes hypersensitive organs to actually feel the resonence, but if felt, it is an extremely dangerous beacon on the dunes of arrakis. The sandworm senses the unnatural activity quickly and follows it. Sandworms that have matured have their own large area of desert as their land and are extremely protective of it. They search out and find the unnatural object and destroy it. In short, sheilds on arrakis are beacons of death because of the vibrations that attract the worms.

Why the sandworms of arrakis are not simply destroyed for the protection of spice mining purposes:

Now the reason why nobody has destroyed the sandworm as a species is twofold. Imperial ecologists and environmentalists have studied that the worms have a relationship to the spice. though nobody understood the exact relationship till the time of Usul, they were very weary of trying to exterminate the creatures.

Even though there was fear of what would of happened to the spice, men did try to find ways to destroy the worms. They found major problems though. Sandworms live in the deep desert, far below the 60 degree line of the northern and southern poles. This place was a true no man's land. Winds blew at hundreds of miles per hour and there was no way of real satellite communication. This made it in no uncertain terms an impossible task. Also, the scientists studying arrakis descovered that the number of large sandworms is immense. To kill thousands upon thousands of the huge beasts would be a work of insanity.

[Andrew]

Q - why did house harkonnen leave arrakis?

Q - Why did Atreides settle in Arrakeen instead of "Capital" Carthag? (i think it had to do somehting with assasins, or something....i dont know ??? )

Q - how could there be ice on the south adn north pole? i thought it was a desert planet?

more later if you enjoy these.

[TMA_1]

The reason for a feudal system in the Galactic Imperium:

When democracy and other forms of lawful government could no longer reach to the ends of the universe, planet-states had to be ruled in a very loose federation. The idea of a single monarchy or any other closely tied governmental system was just plain impossible to maintain stably. The ways of the classical ages rose again. Human nature never changed and a class system arose. Each planetary or inter planetary fiefdom was ruled by a continual line of powerful families. These families grew large and became powerful houses. To maintain this federation of houses, an emperor or king was needed in order to stabilize the pyramidal structure of a government system. The most powerful house at the time, House Corrino, took this place of power and an emperial line of leaders ruled over the smaller houses. Still though the structure of this government was loose. Many broken confederations and demi empires tried to break away from the main powerstructure in the universe. This all but failed though and for 10,000 years, this form of government stayed strong.

[TMA_1]

yes this is awesome. everybody can ask questions. :) I love it!

okay for the questions.

Q - why did house harkonnen leave arrakis?

Before the age of Paul Muad'dib and his new empire, and before the time when House Atreides held Arrakis as a quasi fief, House Harkonnen was in charge of spice production the planet. They gained great wealth for both themselves and for the empire. Later though, the Baron sent his nephew Rabban to control all spice mining and maintain order on arrakis. His secret plan was to inbitter the people so much that they would grow to hate the dictitorial ways of "the beast". The Baron would then send his other beloved nephew Fayd to arrakis as a savior, a man to heal the wounds of the people of arrakis. This all failed though because Rabban worked too well in his foolish ways of governing. The Emperor grew tired of the lacking profit that came from House Harkonnen and decided to strip them of their contracts of spice mining.

In secret though, there was also another even more sinister reason. The emperor wished to rid House Atreides. Duke Leto Atreides was growing more and more popular each day he was in office and became a true threat to his throne. He wished to send Leto to arrakis as a trap in order to destroy the him and his house. The Emperor called Baron Harkonnen to aid in secret because of the many benefits he would recieve. possibly a new contract to mine spice on Arrakis and if not, probably many other profit making projects. This is not what the Baron really strived for though. He would give all his wealth to rid his hated enemy, House Atreides. The emperor promised him five legions of his finest Sardaukar terror troops as well as supplies and provisions. The Sardaukar disguised themselves as Harkonnen troops to complete the evil masquerade. No other house in the galaxy would truly understand the emperors involvment in the scheme. They finally undertook the invasion. It was a complete success, or so they thought. Duke Paul Muad'dib would get his revenge.

Q - Why did Atreides settle in Arrakeen instead of "Capital" Carthag? (i think it had to do somehting with assasins, or something....i dont know.

The reason why House Atreides resided in Arrakeen was because it was the largest city on arrakis. It was close to all important political and economical hot points on the planet. It also had the protection of the Shield Wall. Supposedly unbreachable.

Q - how could there be ice on the south adn north pole? i thought it was a desert planet.

Arrakis' equator was exactly parallel to Canopus. This means the axis was vertical. The planet was known to originally be a lush planet with large oceans. The sandtrout, who's origins are a mystery, took all the water from the planet's surface. Only the poles were protected from these creatures. Since the poles are at freezing temperatures, the water is frozen and that is why there are little ice caps on the north and south pole of arrakis.

Hope that helps. :)

[Dunenewt]

Q - Why did Atreides settle in Arrakeen instead of "Capital" Carthag? (i think it had to do somehting with assasins, or something....i dont know ??? )

It is also to do with the fact that it was the Harkonnen capital which is what you thought , right?

[TMA_1]

This is the story of Ampiliros, the famed flying dutchman of space. It is in my account and my words. I hope you guys enjoy it. :) it is a bit sketchy but still pretty decent. Hope you like it too vanguard. :)

The Flying Dutchman

Part 1

Preparations

[Vanguard3000]

That's pretty good. It's a bit tough to read because of the paragraph structure, but it was a really good story. One thing though: When the airlock was malfunctioning, Saring could have just put on his suit to contain him. But I guess when you're panicking, stuff like that isn't your first instinct. ;)

[TMA_1]

if an airlock had a leak in it, it takes too long to put your suit on.lol remember a space suit isnt just a pair of jeans and a sweater.hehe thanks vanguard. I am glad ya liked it. :)

[TMA_1]

this is a little bit on Guild Navigators.

These creatures originated from human beings. Not much is known about them because of The Guild's Secrecy. What is known though is that they breathe pure spice gas that mutates them mentally and physically, and that they have a prophetic viewing of near future events. The first portion I will write is about the basic anatomy and physical nature of navigators and how they are made.

All navigators mutated from the basic human form. The Spice, a mind and body altering narcotic, is placed in a human with certain traits and qualities the guild looks for. It is done slowly in order to avoid overdosage. The levels of spice per weight and measurments of the person is small. It eventually is multiplied though and the dosages become larger. To accept these new chemicals that changed the body and mind so drastically, the brain grows in key areas. The guild injects into these people's bodies with millions of unaltered "stem cells" so that the unregenerative nerve cells can regrow and network themselves in a decent fashion. The frontal loabs particularly grow and expand as well as certain portions that have to do with the qualities of time and perception. Gills start grow around the neck of these altered humans in order to increase the intensity and amount of spice intake in the body. Fins grow in place of the hands and feet as well so that the future navigators may "swim" in their natural spice environment. These creatures live many human lifetimes and only grow in knowledge. The spice though cannot stop flowing. If so, extreme complications to their bodies occure.

The mental qualities of these creatures grow as well. The brain begins to grow in key areas in order to take in the complexities of certain geometrical and mathematic data. The portion of the brain that is involved in understanding time is altered in order that a higher level of thinking in time-space is changed. This is so they can understand the environment of the state quasi omnipresence. The perception of these beings change as well so that they can actually contemplate the many facets of time-space. The creatures mutate into one large brain. All the needs are placed in their thoughts and memories. These creatures grow in order to see into the future. The spice lets them do this. Their bodies are altered so that they may understand the new prescient universe that is around them.

[TMA_1]

The age of the Stalemate: War with shields.

Before Holtzmen, one of the greatest thinkers in duniverse history, men and women fought with many sorts of projectile and energy weapons. To us these were the futuristic clashes of Titans. Lands would be scorched and glazed over with glass from las gun beams. Men were shredded apart without mercy and all that was noble in war was long gone in the past. Rarely did people meet face to face in real combat.

Shields changed the universe. Lasers could not fire at them because of an amplification of light energy. Projectile weapons could not fire at them because such a fast moving object only bounced off the shield. The only kinds of projectile weapons that became possible to use were either throwing knifes,darts,stars and other sharp objects, and the stunner. The stunner could not always be useful though because the pellets used traveled so slow which made it's range very short. Hand held weapons came back to power.

Stilletos, Raipiers, flambergs, kindjals, bastards, daggers -- The list goes on. Bladed weapons controlled the tide of battle completely. Since infantry is the key in war, their weapons are the tools of warfare. Martial Arts and personal combat skills also came back into the arena of combat. No longer could simple men fight in these battles, and those who were conscripts faced certain death against those who were well trained. This age lasted close to 10000 years. The age of the stalemate. It was destroyed by Leto II and again nobility and honor were sucked away from the battle field.