Dune Board Games: deck-building game
Dune: Imperium Board Game: How a Round Plays Out
Released in 2020, the Dune Imperium board game is a worker-placement and deck-building game for 1 to 4 players, set on the desert planet Arrakis. It’s a good fit for groups who enjoy medium-weight strategy and a fight for spice, influence and victory points.
- 2020
- 1-4 players
- 60-120 minutes
- Ages 14+
- deck-building game
- Dire Wolf (with Gale Force Nine)
Designers: Paul Dennen
Agents out, cards down, spice flowing. Here’s how a round goes.
First, get a feel for the game’s rhythm: draw five cards, take turns sending agents out, then reveal the rest of your hand. Each round follows the same steps, and the nine bullets below cover them in order. Know the Dune setting already? Skip to the Dune board games overview for the other options.
New to the series? Uprising is standalone, so the base game isn’t needed.
A quick guide to one round of Dune: Imperium
A round has five phases. Most decisions happen in the second one.
Check the film connection line on each card. Dune games draw from the book, the 1984 film or the new films.
- Step 1:
Round start: flip a conflict card, then draw five cards from your own deck.
- Step 2:
Play proceeds clockwise. On your turn, take an agent turn or a reveal turn.
- Step 3:
Agent turn: play one card and send an agent to an empty board space with a matching icon.
- Step 4:
Pay the space’s cost, if any, then take its effect and the effect in the card’s agent box. Faction spaces also raise your influence with that faction by one.
- Step 5:
Reveal turn: show the rest of your hand. Reveal boxes give persuasion to buy cards and swords for combat strength. Then your round is over.
- Step 6:
Use persuasion to buy cards from the Imperium Row or the Reserve. Bought cards go to your discard pile; any persuasion left over is lost.
- 7Step 7:
Combat: players with troops in the conflict may play combat intrigue cards. The strongest force takes the first reward.
- 8Step 8:
Makers: each maker space without an agent earns 1 spice.
- 9Step 9:
Recall: agents return home, the first player marker passes on, and the game ends if someone has 10 or more victory points.
The round summary leaves out setup, costs and scoring, which are common stumbling blocks for new players. Next, we cover setup, the two kinds of turn and rules that can trip up a first game. Choosing between boxes? Compare it with Dune: Imperium Uprising.
Dune: Imperium rules, explained
Setup
Stack the conflict deck with one tier I card on top, five tier II cards next, and four tier III cards at the bottom.
Deal five Imperium cards face up to make the Imperium Row, then set out the Reserve stacks.
Place the Mentat token and alliance tokens on the board.
Each player takes a leader, a 10-card starter deck, one water, three agents and 16 cubes. Put two agents on the leader; hold back the third as the Swordmaster.
Place three troops in each garrison and one cube at the bottom of each faction influence track.
Choose the first player at random. Solo and two-player games also use House Hagal cards.
Turn by turn
Agent turn
Play one card from your hand with an agent icon, then place an unoccupied agent on an empty space with a matching icon. Pay any cost first. Take the space’s effect and the card’s agent box. You can’t play a card this way if it has no agent icon.
Reveal turn
Reveal your remaining hand and resolve each reveal box. Spend persuasion to acquire cards. Then figure out your combat strength: 2 per troop you have in the conflict and 1 per revealed sword. Without at least one troop in the conflict, you have no strength.
Troops and deployment
Recruited troops wait in your garrison. When you send an agent to a combat space, you may deploy troops recruited that turn, plus up to two from your garrison. Troops left in the conflict fight when combat is resolved.
Intrigue cards
Gain these from spaces such as Carthag, Conspire and Secrets. Keep them hidden. Play plot cards on your turns, combat cards during combat, and endgame cards at the end of the game.
Combat and rewards
Players with troops in the conflict may play combat intrigue cards until everyone passes in a row. The player with the highest strength takes the first reward; second place takes the second. In four-player games, third place gets a third reward. Ties push rewards down a tier.
Makers and recall
Each Maker space without an agent collects 1 bonus spice. Then agents return to leaders, the Mentat token goes back to the board, the first player marker passes clockwise, and the endgame check happens.
End of the game and scoring
Earn victory points through influence, alliances, conflict wins and some cards. The game ends after a round when a player has 10 or more points, or when the conflict deck runs out. Players then play any endgame intrigue cards. Most points wins. Ties break on spice, then Solari, then water, then garrisoned troops.
Key rules
Influence and alliances
Reach 2 influence with a faction to score 1 point; drop below 2 and you lose it. At 4 influence, you unlock that track’s bonus. The first player to reach 4 takes the alliance token and its point. A rival who passes them steals both.
The Mentat
A board space that costs 2 Solari lets you draw a card and take the Mentat token to your leader. It acts as an extra agent for that round, then returns to the board during recall.
Foldspace
The Spacing Guild space gives you one Spacing Guild influence and lets you take a Foldspace card from the Reserve.
Control markers
Win a control reward and place a control marker on that space. After that, it pays a bonus whenever anyone sends an agent there.
Tips for your first game
- A reveal turn ends your turns for the round, so use your agents first.
- Persuasion left unspent on a reveal turn is lost, so count it before you reveal.
- Swords alone don’t give combat strength. Get at least one troop into the conflict first.
- Cards without an agent icon can only be used on reveal turns, so check the icons when you buy.
Rise of Ix and Immortality both need the original Dune: Imperium box.
The rules explain how the game works, but the story gives it that Dune feel. Next, we cover who made the game, when it came out and which parts of the story it draws on. We also distinguish the novel from the 2021 film, since the art takes its cues from the film. The standalone spin-off Dune: Imperium Uprising draws on the sequel.
The game and the Dune story behind it
Out of print doesn’t mean unplayable. Check the print status on each card.
The game
Design and release
Paul Dennen designed Dune: Imperium for Dire Wolf, working with Gale Force Nine. It came out in November 2020, ahead of the 2021 film. Dire Wolf’s designer says the studio was approached about a Dune game on the day Gale Force Nine announced its tabletop license at Gen Con in 2018.
Editions and reprints
Rise of Ix (2021) and Immortality (2022) expanded the base box, while the Deluxe Upgrade Pack (2022) replaced wooden pieces with miniatures. Uprising (2023) is a standalone spin-off. Bloodlines (2025) works with both the base game and Uprising.
The film or series it covers
Frank Herbert’s novel Dune, with character art based on Denis Villeneuve’s 2021 film. It doesn’t retell the plot of one film.
The board lays out the Imperium’s four power blocs: the Emperor, the Spacing Guild, the Bene Gesserit and the Fremen. Spice, Arrakis, Conflict cards and Landsraad-style politics all come from the novel’s setting. The leaders and art take their look from the 2021 film.
Scenes and story beats in the game
- 1
The Spacing Guild space points to the Guild’s control of foldspace travel, represented by the Foldspace card.
- 2
The Mentat token gives you an extra agent, a nod to the human computers of the Dune universe.
- 3
Maker spaces pay out spice, the resource at the heart of the novel’s story.
- 4
The Emperor, Shaddam IV of House Corrino, is one of the four power blocs you can court for influence.
Inside the Dune: Imperium box
- 1 game board
- 67 Imperium cards
- 24 Reserve cards (Arrakis Liaison, The Spice Must Flow and Foldspace)
- 18 conflict cards across three tiers
- 40 intrigue cards
- Tokens for Solari, spice and water
- For each player: a 10-card starter deck, a leader, 3 agents, 16 cubes, plus score, combat and control markers
- House Hagal cards for solo and two-player games
The base box is only the start, because Dire Wolf has added expansions, a cosmetic upgrade and a standalone spin-off since 2021. Each item below says what it adds and whether it needs this game. You can also see how the line fits together on the Dune board games page.
New to the series? Uprising is standalone, so the base game isn’t needed.
Dune Imperium expansions and upgrades
Rise of Ix 2021
The first expansion for Dune: Imperium. It adds an Ix board and a CHOAM board overlay, 18 tech tiles, two dreadnoughts, a freighter token, six leaders, infiltrators and an Epic game mode.
Immortality 2022
Requires Dune: Imperium and supports 1 to 4 players. It adds a Bene Tleilax board, genetic specimens, research, grafting cards, a Research Station overlay and more than 75 cards.
Deluxe Upgrade Pack 2022
A cosmetic upgrade, not a new game. Miniatures replace the wooden agents, Mentat, troops and alliance tokens, and the pack adds trays for storage.
Uprising 2023
A standalone spin-off with a new board, nine new leaders, spies, sandworms and contracts. You do not need the base game.
Bloodlines 2025
Adds Sardaukar Commanders, tech tiles, leaders, contracts and cards. It needs either Dune: Imperium or Uprising.
Dune: Imperium FAQ
How do you play Dune: Imperium?
Each round, draw five cards. On your turn, send an agent to a board space by playing a matching card. Once you reveal the rest of your hand, you gain persuasion and swords, buy cards and fight for conflict rewards.
How many players can play Dune: Imperium?
The base game plays 1 to 4 players in 60 to 120 minutes, ages 14+. Solo and two-player games use House Hagal cards.
How do you win Dune: Imperium?
Score the most victory points. The game ends after a round when someone has 10 or more points or the conflict deck runs out. Ties go to the player with the most spice, Solari, water and garrisoned troops.
What do the dune imperium expansions add?
Rise of Ix adds an Ix board and tech tiles; Immortality brings in Bene Tleilax research and grafting. The Deluxe Upgrade Pack is cosmetic. Bloodlines works with Imperium or Uprising.
Do I need Dune: Imperium for dune imperium immortality?
Yes. Dire Wolf says Immortality requires the Dune: Imperium base game.
Is Dune: Imperium based on the book or the movie?
Both. The factions and setting come from Frank Herbert’s novel, while the character art is based on the 2021 film.
Check the film connection line on each card. Dune games draw from the book, the 1984 film or the new films.
Rise of Ix and Immortality both need the original Dune: Imperium box.
Sources
- Dire Wolf: Dune: Imperium direwolfdigital.com
- Dire Wolf: Rise of Ix shop.direwolfdigital.com
- Dire Wolf: Immortality shop.direwolfdigital.com
- Dire Wolf: Deluxe Upgrade Pack shop.direwolfdigital.com
- Dire Wolf news: Bloodlines news.direwolfdigital.com
- Denver Post: Imperium and Uprising denverpost.com