Rise of Ix Rivals

A rival's freighter advances until it reaches the second space, then recalls, always taking Dividends on the first; a rival also gains 1 Solari whenever someone takes Dividends. Rivals deploy dreadnoughts before troops whenever they can, and a rival that wins covers an opponent's control marker if possible, preferring Imperial Basin, then Arrakeen, then Carthag. In solo a rival takes the most expensive House Hagal-icon tile it can afford (ties: topmost stack); if none is face up, trash the top tile of the largest stack. It saves spice for tech and buys VP for 7 spice only during a Conflict III. Optional variants: churn the Imperium row with two dice after each Reveal turn, and Brutal Escalation (in Conflict III, add the swords of two House Hagal cards).