This is a revision of my Traveller hack for use with Dune.  It's a bit rough and unfinished and I'm undecided on the core mechanic.

Dune

Character Creation
   Throw 2d6 for each of the following attributes: Strength, Dexterity, Endurance, Intelligence, Education, and Social Standing.

Career Experiences
   Select a career and throw under the listed characteristic for Admission, Success, Survival, and Continue on 2d6.  Admission is only rolled for the first term.  If the Admission roll is successful the character obtains one level in the appropriate skill for their career and continues rolling for Success, Survival, and Continuing.   If the character fails to enter their chosen career, the player may either have them submit to the draft, attend school, or live as a citizen.  Remedial Education and Advanced Education are treated as careers but provide no mustering out benefits as tuition and living expenses consume all available resources.
   Each 4 year term allows one skill to be improved by one level.  Making a Success roll provides a promotion, an additional skill, and an additional Mustering Out Benefit roll.  A failed survival roll requires a roll on the Hazard Table resulting in permanent loss of attribute points.  If an attribute falls below 0 the character dies.  The skills obtained, must be rolled for on the Personal Development, Career, or Advanced Education tables as chosen by the player.

Aging
   Characters begin their careers at 18, fresh out of primary school and by 34 they are starting to slow down.  Each term, after the third, the player must roll over Strength, Dexterity, and Endurance on two dice minus the number of terms served or lose one point from the characteristic being rolled against.  As always, falling below 0 indicates that the character has died.  The geriatric spice can be taken to avoid this but doing so costs the character one mustering out benefit.

   A successful Continue roll allows the character to remain in their career for another four years.  A failed roll means they must attempt to enter a new career or muster out immediately.  If the second career roll fails they must muster out immediately.

Hazard Table (roll on failed survival)
1   -2 Strength
2   -2 Dexterity
3   -2 Endurance
4   -1 Strength and Dexterity
5   -1 Strength and Endurance
6   -1 Dexterity and Endurance

Mustering Out Table
1   1000 Credits
2   Blade
3   10000 Credits
4   Worker or Fighter Ally
5   100000 Credits
6   Doctor or Scientist Ally
7   Skill Appropriate Vehicle
8   Mystic or Merchant Ally
9   1000000 Credits   
10   Noble or Assassin Ally

+0 Mystic, Outlander
+1 Fighter, Worker
+2 Doctor, Scientist
+3 Noble, Merchant
+1 Rank 5 or 6
   
Skills
Automatic
   Blade - 0
   Wheeled Vehicle - 0

Personal Development
1   +1 Strength
2   +1 Dexterity
3   +1 Endurance
4   +1 Intelligence
5   +1 Education
6   Brawling

Remedial Education
Admission Education 7- & Social Standing 7+
Success: Intelligence
Survival: Automatic
Continue: Education 7-)
   +1 Education

Advanced Education
Admission: Education 8+
Success: Intelligence
Survival: Automatic
Continue: Education

1   Medicine
2   Computation
3   Biology
4   Chemistry
5   Physics
6   Sociology

Administrator
   The vast resources of noble houses require incredible numbers of administrators.
   Admission: Education
   Success: Education
   Survival: Education +2
   Continue: Intelligence

   Career Skill: Administration
   1   Computation
   2   Administration
   3   Bribery
   4   Streetwise
   5   Steward
   6   Wheeled Driver

Assassin
   Assassination is a popular and acceptable legal tool in the empire.  Professional assassins are considered a valuable resource by even the most upright houses.

   Admission: Dexterity
   Success: Intelligence
   Survival: Intelligence - 2
   Continue: Dexterity

   Career Skill: Stealth
   1   Blade
   2   Remote Operator
   3   Poison
   4   Streetwise
   5   Bribery
   6   Stealth

Fighter
   With shields rendering projectile weapons irrelevant on the battlefield, professional swordsmen are the military of the age.
   Admission: Strength
   Success: Dexterity
   Survival: Endurance
   Continue: Endurance

   Career Skill: Blade
   1   Blade
   2   Sword
   3   Crawler Driver
   4   Ornithopter Pilot
   5   Leadership
   6   Tactics
   

Mystic
   A mystic might be a witch, navigator, shape changer or even belong to some other esoteric order.  In order to play a mystic an additional characteristic, "Talent" must be rolled, this characteristic is actually specific to the arts taught by the character's specific school.  The canonical schools are witches, navigators, and imitators.

   Admission: Talent 2d6 8+
   Success: Talent -2
   Survival: Endurance
   Continue: Intelligence

   Career Skill: Talent
   1   Administration
   2   Brawling
   3   Talent
   4   Streetwise
   5   Leadership
   6   Steward

Merchant
   Admission: Intelligence
   Success: Intelligence
   Survival: Education
   Continue: Education

   Career Skill: Merchant
   1   Merchant
   2   Administration
   3   Wheeled Driver
   4   Lighter Pilot
   5   Bribery
   6   Streetwise

Noble
   The scions of noble houses form the elite and governing body of the empire.  Nobles must be brilliant strategists, master manipulators, and students of the complex laws of inter-house warfare just to stay alive.
   Admission: Social Standing
   Success: Intelligence
   Survival: Intelligence
   Continue: Intelligence

   Career Skill: Leadership
   1   Sword
   2   Blade
   3   Administration
   4   Tactics
   5   Leadership
   6   Ornithopter Pilot

Outsider
   There are many fringe, wilderness areas where those who prefer freedom to the rigid caste structure dwell.  These people are not particularly primitive but their societies do tend to be very self sufficient.

   Admission: Social Standing +
   Success: Endurance
   Survival: Intelligence
   Continue: Endurance

   Career Skill: Survival
   1   Survival   
   2   Blade
   3   Projectile Weapon
   4   Stealth
   5   Mechanic
   6   Leadership

Scientist
   While technological development has been stagnant for millennia, there are always new things to research and study.  The noble houses often sponsor the work of scientists as they seek any possible advantage over their rivals.

   Admission: Intelligence - 2
   Success: Education
   Survival: Education + 2
   Continue: Intelligence

   Career Skill:
   1   Biology
   2   Chemistry
   3   Physics
   4   Administration
   5   Sensors
   6   Computation

 Worker
   In the stratified society of the empire, in the absence of automation, the work is still done by workers.  A skilled worker is valued by their superiors.

   Admission: Strength
   Success: Education
   Survival: Endurance
   Continue: Endurance

   Career Skill: Mechanic
   1   Mechanic
   2   Electronics
   3   Wheeled Driver
   4   Crawler Driver
   5   Streetwise
   6   Steward


"Talent"
   This broad catchall covers the various special abilities learned in mystical schools.  Each school has its specialities which are learned therein.

Immitators
   The mystic can contort their body and face to imitate others with startling accuracy.

Navigator
   Navigators scan the strands of the future for danger in order to guide starships through hyperspace.  This ability affords them a monopoly on interstellar travel.

Witch
   Witches study the smallest twitches and inflections to nearly read minds.

Detection and Thus Encounter Range
Terrain   Range   
Urban       Short
Plains       Very Long
Mountains    Long
Hills       Medium
Woods    Short
Jungle    Short
Swamp    Medium

Lay Ambush 8+
   requires detecting enemy first
   -4 Enemy Has Infrared Sensors
   + Stealth Skill
   +2 Camouflage
   + 2 Dexterity > Final Target Number
Laying a successful ambush allows the attackers to choose the starting range for the encounter and make a full round of attacks without facing return fire.

Success Rolls
   Actions are resolved by rolling 2d6 and adding any skill level and the appropriate attribute.  If the character does not have the necessary skill only half the attribute is added.  If the total exceeds 15 the action succeeds.

Combat
   Impenetrable force shields change combat dramatically.  No longer is the hardest hitting weapon the key to victory.  Finesse and personal skill are required to penetrate a shield slowly enough to cause the target harm.  In the future the blade has returned to the battlefield.

   Each combatant selects a target and rolls an attack roll using the skill appropriate to the weapon they use, they can all do this at the same time.  If the attack roll is successful, they hit their target and inflict the damage appropriate to their weapon.  Damage is applied simultaneously, however, ambushed parties do not get to attack in the first turn.

Sequential Exceptions
   Those with shorter ranged weapons must close the range to attack and will often need to move in order to get into range, meaning they will not attack for a number of rounds.  At Long range or less they can charge into combat in a single round but will attack after all shooting and attacks by those with longer melee weapons have taken their turn.

Movement
   It is possible to move between close, short, and medium ranges while making an attack.  Moving to or from Long range to any other range takes a full turn during which no attacks can be made.  Moving from Very Long range to Long range takes a full turn as well.

   Disengaging and Chases
   At times, one side will want to open the distance while the other wants to close. It is a simple matter when speeds and terrain are relatively equal as the range stays the same. If one side is significantly faster than the other they get to choose the range as such, supersonic aircraft have the advantage over subsonic aircraft which have the advantage over hovercraft and wing in ground craft which have the advantage over ground vehicles which have the advantage over mounted troops which have the advantage over the poor bloody infantry. Pursuit and evasion can be handled with a task roll for either side, usually the player characters.

Pursue or Evade 8+
Active Party's Vehicle Skill
-2 to evade over open ground
+2 to pursue over open ground
+2 faster-2 to pursue through dense terrain
+2 to evade through dense terrain
-2 target has higher Dexterity
+2 Dexterity > Final Target Number

Ammunition and Reloading
   It is safe to say that semiautomatic weapons will not run out of ammunition under normal circumstances.  Rapid and Very Rapid fire weapons and single shot weapons are another matter.  If ammunition is in short supply, matters are worse.  For the sake of avoiding book keeping any natural attack roll less than the number listed on the table below indicates the weapon is out of ammo.  The second number is used if the unit is out of supply and short on ammo.  In the long term, an out of supply unit cannot use weapons that run out of ammo until they are re-supplied.

Out of Ammo Roll / Out of Supply
Single Shot 8 / 10   
Normal 2 / 4
Rapid Fire 4 / 6
Very Rapid Fire 6 / 8

Ranged Attack 8+
   Requires Line of Sight and In Range
   +2 Dexterity > Final Target Number
   + Small Arms, Bow, or Heavy Weapons Skill
   -2 Maximum Range Band
   -2 Darkness (unless electronic sights)
   +/- Target Size
   +2 Telescopic Sight
   Rapid Fire +2 or Attack Close Group
   Very Rapid Fire +2 and Attack Close Group

Melee Attack 8+
   Requires Close Range
   +2 Strength > Final Target Number
   -2 Target's Dexterity > Attacker's Dexterity
   + Melee Weapon Skill or Brawling
   - Target's Melee Weapon Skill or Brawling
   -2 Darkness

Critical Hits
   A natural attack roll of 12 inflicts +1 damage per die.

Group Hits
   Some weapons spray an area with bullets, beams, or fragments.  In such a case roll an attack against anything within the specified range from the target.

Shields
   Shields are completely impenetrable to kinetic energy beyond their threshold.  Personal shields are generally set to allow walking and the passage of air and to save on power and thus can be penetrated by melee weapons.  Larger generators and power supplies are needed to protect larger installations.  The shield is largely a conceit of the setting used to force combat back to swords and knives, they are given a complete impenetrability setting here to prevent players from using chemical warfare to win every battle.

Melee Weapons
Brawling    0.5d    Short Reach
Dagger    1d6    Short Reach
Blade       1.5d
Spear     2.5d    Long Reach
Sword    2d
Broad Sword    3d
Halberd    3d    Long Reach

Claws       1d    2 Attacks    Short Reach
Teeth       2d     Short Reach
Horns       3d    
Thrasher    3d    Short Reach

Needle Pistol   1d   Short Range

   The social and political game is a major part of Herbert's setting.
Schools
Fiefs
Major House
Minor House
   Allies
   Enemies
Shields

Vehicles
Frigate
Factory Crawler
Ornithopter

Here are some thoughts on travel, houses, and worlds

Space Travel
   Interstellar travel is mysterious and expensive.  The shipping guild tightly controls access to information, providing destinations and itineries but never routes.  Only the shipping guild and referee get to see the map or know the constraints of interstellar travel.  It is strongly suggested that the referee select a paradigm and not share it with the players.

Simple and Linear
   Routes can be shown on a hex grid, with each hex treated as a week’s travel.

Linear and Random
   Routes are shown on a hex grid with each hex treated as 1d6 day’s travel to be rolled when the ship jumps.

Random and Unreliable
   The distance to any point is 3d6 days of travel.  It might be best to produce a list in advance or the players will catch on.  At the very least the distance between a house’s worlds should be fixed at 2d6 and 1d6 added due to immediate circumstances like launch windows, and unforeseen delays.

Houses and Schools
   The resources of a house are reflected by the worlds they hold in fief and the proprietary products they control.  The resources a world generates are primarily a factor of the difference between their capacity to sustain life and their population.

Traits
   Each house has its own internal culture and ideology.  Roll d6-d6 to generate a modifier for Ambition / Contentment, Morality / Corruption, and Confidence / Paranoia.  This modifier is applied to tasks that appeal to the motivations in question.  The modifier is multiplied by negative one when appealing to the opposite trait.
   Contentment d6-d6 Ambition
   Morality d6-d6 Corruption
   Confidence d6-d6 Paranoia

Population + Hydrosphere + Atmosphere.
 
Minor Houses
2d6 worlds

Major Houses
4d6 worlds

Base Mineral Extraction
Base Agricultural Production
Base Industrial Production
Base Pharmaceutical Production
Specialized Mineral Extraction
Specialized Agricultural Production
Specialized Industrial Production
Specialized Pharmaceutical Production
Exotic Mineral Extraction
Exotic Agricultural Production
Exotic Industrial Production
Exotic Pharmaceutical Production

Agricultural Products
Algae
Plankton
Grains
Nuts
Livestock
Fruit
Vegetables
Herbs
Narcotics
Seeds
Meat
Fiber
Spices
Medicine
Wood

Mineral Products
Oil
Coal
Gas
Gems
Lead
Iron
Tin
Copper
Titanium
Iridium
Gold
Silver
Uranium

Industrial Products
Building Materials
Weapons
Tools
Vehicles
Machinery
Toys
Furniture
Clothing
Containers
Processed Foods


Worlds Beyond Your Ken
   This universe should not reflect standard science fiction tropes.  Every world should be baroque, obscure, and bizarre.  This is best managed by considering how cultural and environmental conditions might influence a population.  In most places, humans try hard to enjoy a normal range of temperature, gravity, diet, and access to water.

Generating Worlds
   Every star has a variety of debris, micro meteors, asteroids, and planetoids floating around it.  Older stars and larger stars gravity fields will sweep out more of them but there will always be plenty of stray navigational hazards.  In the main adventurers will be interested in rocks that are large enough to have sufficient gravity to hold an atmosphere down and are sitting in the “goldilocks zone” where liquid water exists.  With a little luck there will be some life forms to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen and produce a breathable atmosphere and some more advanced life forms to trade with.  For these reasons, only inhabited worlds need to be generated and these rules favour habitable worlds.

Size      2d6 - 2 (x 1.6 Kilometres diameter)
Atmosphere   Size + 2d6 - 7 (lower is thinner, higher denser)
Water      Atmosphere + 2d6 - 7 (percentage of surface)
Population   2d6-2 (10 to the power of Population roll people)
Government   Population + 2d6 - 7 Imperial Worlds Are Always 5
Law      Government +2d6 - 7

Size indicates the diameter of the world.  Multiply it by 1600 to find the diameter in kilometers.  Size also indicates the world’s gravity with 7 being 1G and each point away from that reducing it by 10%.

Atmosphere primarily indicates density with 7 being average.  Odd numbers contain taints, pollutants, and at high levels actual toxins that make it unbreathable.

Water indicates the percentage of the planet’s surface that is covered in water.

Population levels indicate increases by factors of ten.  A second 2d6-2 roll can be used to find a multiplier if more detail is desired but is not reference in the game mechanics.

Government indicates the complexity and repressiveness of the social order with higher rolls indicating a more oppressive and unmanageable government.  A world’s Government rating acts as the target number for Administration tasks like getting an exit visa while a ship is berthed there.   While it is possible to assign terms like “democracy” and “dictatorship” to governments these are vague labels at best.

Law Level indicates what weapons can be carried and how restrictive legal barriers to trade are.

The base Resource value of a world is its Population - 1 per point of atmosphere away from 7, -1 per point water is below Population.  Each resource point is an order of magnitude greater than the previous one.   A resource point is roughly a million credits.

0   No Restrictions
1   Large Group Attack Weapons
2   Medium Group Attack Weapons
3   Very Rapid Fire Weapons
4   Short Group Attack Weapons
5   Rapid Fire Weapons
6   Pistols
7   Rifles
8   Long Melee Weapons
9   Medium Melee Weapons
10   Short Weapons
11   All Weapons

Star Port
   The quality of facilities can be determined by rolling 2d6 on the following table

2   No Facilities
3   Cleared Area
4   Landing Strip
5   Landing Strip and Fuel
6   Landing Strip, Fuel, and Hangers
7   Landing Pads, Fuel, Hangers, and Hotels
8   Docking Station and Down Port
9   Orbital Port and Shuttle Service, One Down Port
10   Orbital Port,City, and Shuttle Service, 2d6 Down Ports
12   Ship Yards, Orbital City, and Shuttle service, 3d6 Down Ports
   
Tech Level
   After ten thousand years technology in the imperium is relatively uniform with worlds and houses holding a few specialized technologies in advance of their peers.  The average Tech Level in the imperium is 12.  If a variable Tech Level is desired roll 1d6 + Star Port - 3, +1 for any other characteristic below 2 or over 10, as they would make life without high technology unsustainable.

Tech Levels determine the availability of equipment and ships systems.

0   Stone Tools and Weapons, Agriculture, Domestic Animals
1   Bronze Tools and Weapons, Stone Buildings
2   Steel Tools and Weapons, Water Wheel Power
3   Black Powder Firearms
4   Cartridge Repeaters, Steam Engines   
5   Machine Guns, Internal Combustion Engines, Aeroplanes
6   Radar, Pressurized Aeroplane Cabins
7   Early Computers, Satellites, Guided Missiles, Fission Power
8   World Wide Computer Networks, Stealth Aircraft
9   Laser Weapons, Anti Gravity, Jump Drive 1
10   Thrusters, Grav Plates, Fusion Power
11   Jump Drive 2
12   Jump Drive 3
13   Inertial Dampers, Jump Drive 4
14   Jump Drive 5
15   Jump Drive 6

so this is more Traveller with a light sprinkling of Dune?  I'm not criticizing, but I don't see much Dune going on, though it does remind me I've got a few additional points to add to my baby monster in the other forum

Well, sort of the serial numbers filed off.  I wrote the Traveller rules a few months ago when I was stuck at home due to a snow storm and it all just kinda came pouring out.  The technology and the esoteric schools are big things and I haven't really tackled them yet beyond labeling them as mystics from esoteric schools with specialized talents.  Similarly mentats have high Intelligence, Education, and Computation school rather than being a specific school because that's really how they are in the books, you've got two mentat assassins who are pointed out as rare and exceptional killer mentats.  Most I would imagine are administrators or scientists.

Actually, this is a good opportunity to discuss my philosophy on this kind of project.  I don't own Dune or Traveller.  To my mind this limits this work to a discussion of the integration of the two.  Personally, I've got a strong preference for the core sources of a setting like Dune or Lord of the Rings.  Why produce a massive regurgitation of the encyclopedia entries and appendix when they already exist?  Why make up new material that people will reject as not fitting the setting when you can give them tools to create their own additions?  So, expect a variant of Traveller's rules that fits the setting requirements of Dune.  Expect broad mechanical representations of poisoning rather than specific poison descriptions.

That makes sense. I'm sort of regretting getting too deep into the encyclopedia weeds on my big thread.

I know what you mean, sometimes I write huge blocks of text in a frenzy just because they've been building up in the back of my mind.  It just didn't happen on this one.