Overview

Dune: Imperium is a deck-building worker-placement game set in the Dune universe. Players lead Great Houses, sending Agents to board spaces, acquiring cards to strengthen their decks, deploying troops for Combat, and building Influence with four Factions (Emperor, Spacing Guild, Bene Gesserit, Fremen). The first player to reach 10+ Victory Points (or the player with the most when the Conflict Deck empties) wins.

Components

• Game board
• 8 Leaders (2 per House)
• Per player: 3 Agents, 10-card starting deck, 16 cubes (troops), 2 discs, 1 Score marker, 1 Councilor token, 3 Control markers, 1 Combat marker
• 67 Imperium Deck cards, 40 Intrigue cards, 18 Conflict cards (I/II/III)
• 24 Reserve cards (Arrakis Liaison, The Spice Must Flow, Foldspace)
• Solari, spice, and water tokens
• First Player marker, Mentat, 4 Alliance tokens
• House Hagal cards (for solo/2-player)

Setup

1. Place game board; place Alliance tokens on Faction Influence tracks.
2. Build Conflict Deck: 4 Conflict III (all) on bottom, 5 random Conflict II in middle, 1 random Conflict I on top (10 cards total).
3. Shuffle Intrigue Deck and Imperium Deck; deal 5 Imperium cards face up as the Imperium Row; place 3 Reserve stacks.
4. Each player: choose Leader, take all components in one color, shuffle starting deck, draw 5 cards, place 2 Agents on Leader, Swordmaster aside, cubes (3 in garrison, rest in supply), 1 water. Place Score marker (4-player: start at 1; otherwise: 0).

Turn Structure

Each round has 5 phases:

Phase 1: Round Start

• Reveal top Conflict card.
• Each player draws 5 cards from their deck.

Phase 2: Player Turns

Starting with first player, clockwise, each player takes one turn at a time. On your turn, take either an Agent turn or a Reveal turn.

Agent Turn: Play 1 card from hand, send an Agent to a matching unoccupied board space. Gain the board space effect + card’s Agent box effect. Pay any board space costs.

Reveal Turn: Reveal all remaining cards in hand. Gain their Reveal box effects (typically Persuasion to buy cards, and swords for Combat strength). Deploy troops from garrison to Combat. You may buy cards from the Imperium Row or Reserve using Persuasion.

Once you take a Reveal turn, skip remaining turns this phase. Phase ends when all players have Revealed.

Phase 3: Combat

If any player has troops in Combat, resolve the current Conflict. Players may play Combat Intrigue cards. Rank players by total Combat strength (troops + sword icons + Combat Intrigue cards). Rewards from the Conflict card go to 1st, 2nd, and sometimes 3rd place.

Phase 4: Makers

Place spice bonus tokens on unoccupied Maker board spaces for future rounds.

Phase 5: Recall

Return all Agents to Leaders. Return surviving troops to garrisons. Pass First Player marker left. Check for game end.

Actions

Agent Icons (7 types)

| Icon | Board Spaces | |—|—| | Emperor | Conspire (costs 4 spice), Wealth | | Spacing Guild | Heighliner (costs 6 spice), Foldspace | | Bene Gesserit | Selective Breeding, Secrets | | Fremen | Desert, Sietch Tabr (requires 2+ Fremen Influence) | | Landsraad | High Council, Hall of Oratory, Mentat, Swordmaster, Rally Troops | | City | Arrakeen, Carthag, Research Station | | Spice Trade | Imperial Basin, Hagga Basin, The Great Flat |

Acquiring Cards

During Reveal turn, spend Persuasion to acquire cards from the Imperium Row (cost shown on card) or Reserve stacks. Acquired cards go to discard pile.

Trashing Cards

Some effects let you trash (permanently remove) cards from your deck.

Scoring / Victory Conditions

Game End: At the end of a round, if any player has 10+ VP or the Conflict Deck is empty, the game ends. Players may play Endgame Intrigue cards. Most VP wins; ties broken by most spice, then most Solari, then most water, then most troops in supply.

VP Sources:

• Conflict card rewards (1st/2nd/3rd place)
• Faction Influence: 1 VP at 2 Influence, Alliance token VP at 4 Influence
• Control bonuses from winning specific Conflicts
• Certain Imperium cards with VP
• Intrigue cards (Plot, Combat, Endgame types)

Special Rules & Edge Cases

• Mentat: A freelance Agent any player can hire for one round by sending an Agent to the Mentat space. Returns at end of round.
• Swordmaster: Your 3rd Agent, gained by sending an Agent to the Swordmaster board space.
• Alliance tokens: First player to reach 4 Influence with a Faction gains the Alliance. If another player surpasses them, they take the Alliance token (and its VP).
• Control markers: Winning certain Conflicts gives control of Arrakeen (1 Solari bonus), Carthag (1 Solari), or Imperial Basin (1 spice) whenever any player uses that space.
• Faction Influence: Gaining 2 = 1 VP; losing below 2 = lose that VP. Reaching 4 = bonus shown on track.
• Intrigue cards: Plot (play anytime on your turn), Combat (only during Combat phase), Endgame (only at game end).
• Sietch Tabr requires 2+ Fremen Influence to send an Agent there.

Player Reference

Round Phases:

1. Round Start (reveal Conflict, draw 5 cards)
2. Player Turns (Agent or Reveal)
3. Combat (resolve Conflict card)
4. Makers (add spice to empty Maker spaces)
5. Recall (return Agents, pass First Player)

Agent Turn: Play 1 card -> Send Agent -> Gain effects Reveal Turn: Reveal remaining hand -> Gain Persuasion/Swords -> Deploy troops -> Buy cards

Starting Deck (10 cards): Convincing Argument x2, Dagger x2, Dune the Desert Planet x2, Diplomacy, Reconnaissance, Seek Allies, Signet Ring

Victory: 10+ VP at round end (or most VP when Conflict Deck empties)