House Harkonnen in Dune: Spice Wars offers a powerful and aggressive playstyle centered around oppression, espionage, and overwhelming military force. If you enjoy economic manipulation, high-risk, high-reward tactics, and punishing your enemies with sheer brutality, this guide is for you.

Key Mechanics: Understanding Oppression

The Harkonnen oppression mechanic allows you to temporarily double a village’s resource production, at the cost of potential rebellions once the oppression ends. Managing this properly can lead to immense economic and military benefits.

How Oppression Works:

• Oppression is manually activated on Harkonnen-controlled villages.
• Villages under oppression produce 100% more resources.
• When oppression ends, there’s a 20% daily chance of rebellion.
• Rebel uprisings stop all production until quelled.

How to Manage Oppression Effectively:

• Unlock Marshall Economy early, which adds an extra militia slot and unlocks the Office of Order.
• Build the Office of Order in high-value villages (especially spice villages) to automatically trigger oppression and suppress rebellions.
• Use manual oppression sparingly unless you have a strong army ready to put down revolts.
• Pair this with Rabban’s ability to gain 50 Solari per defeated rebel, effectively turning oppression into an economic advantage.

Best Counselors for Harkonnen

1. Rabban Harkonnen (Best pick) – Increases militia slots and generates Solari per defeated rebel.
2. Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen – Allows corruption of Landsraad resolutions and grants bonus influence and agent recruitment speed when oppression is active.
3. Captain Iakin Nefud – Improves military unit efficiency but doesn’t align as well with Harkonnen’s economic strengths.
4. Piter de Vries (Situational) – Enhances espionage and assassination strategies but requires a different playstyle.

Early Game Strategy: Economy and Military Setup

1. Early Expansion and Priorities

• Scout your nearest spice field with an Ornithopter.
• Build a Trooper and a Gunner to capture the spice village quickly.
• Establish a Refinery and set your Harvester to auto-recall.
• Prioritize a Plascrete Factory for infrastructure expansion.

2. Research Priorities

1. Work Ethics – Boosts Plascrete and Manpower production.
2. Local Dialect Studies – Reduces Authority costs for annexation.
3. Marshall Economy – Unlocks Office of Order and extra militia slots.
4. Filtration Systems – Provides stable water production.

3. Military and Oppression Management

• Build militia in every village to benefit from the 5% production bonus per militia unit.
• Balance manpower between military units and village oppression.
• Use early oppression manually while setting up Office of Order in priority villages.
• If you capture an enemy village, consider pillaging it to gain 50 Intel per village and slow down enemy expansion.

Espionage and Agent Sacrifices

Harkonnen has unique espionage mechanics, including sacrificing agents to instantly complete missions at reduced costs.

How to Use Agent Sacrifices Effectively:

• Assign agents to Espionage and sacrifice them for 30% reduced Solari and Intel costs and instant mission completion.
• Prioritize toxic vapors, assassinations, and counter-intelligence to weaken enemy factions.
• Gain bonus agents by defeating non-mechanical enemy units, which fuels continued espionage efforts.

Mid to Late Game Strategy: Expanding and Conquering

1. Expanding Through Conquest and Oppression

• Use oppression aggressively to maintain maximum resource output.
• Keep militia-filled villages heavily fortified, as they contribute to economy and stability.
• Utilize Rabban’s ability to profit from rebel uprisings, converting revolts into extra Solari.
• Focus on military development, especially Executioners and Overlords for late-game dominance.

2. Nukes: Devastation and Strategy

Harkonnen excels in military conquest, and nuclear strikes can accelerate that goal.

How Nukes Work:

• You must construct a Nuclear Silo in a village to prepare a launch.
• Nukes cost 5,000 Solari and require a fuel cell upkeep.
• Nukes devastate enemy main bases or spice-producing regions.
• Landing a nuke reduces Landsraad standing to zero, triggering regular attacks from the Landsraad Guard.

When to Use Nukes:

• Against enemy main bases to cripple their defenses.
• On key economic zones (spice fields, refineries, etc.).
• When transitioning into full military conquest, since nukes reduce diplomatic influence.

3. Endgame Victory Conditions

1. Hegemony Victory – Natural for Harkonnen due to their strong economy, military, and espionage abilities.
2. Domination Victory – Achievable through constant military pressure and nukes.
3. CHOAM Shares Victory (Situational) – Possible if you control and trade enough Solari, though political instability may make it difficult.

Final Thoughts: Why Play House Harkonnen?

House Harkonnen offers an intense and rewarding playstyle, combining economic oppression with military dominance. By managing rebellions, leveraging espionage, and using nukes strategically, you can crush your enemies while maintaining an iron grip on Arrakis.

If you enjoy a brutal and methodical approach to conquest, House Harkonnen is one of the most satisfying factions to master.

Good luck, and may your oppression lead to victory!