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The Planetologist skill tree inDune: Awakeningoffers a number of active and passive abilities that are all about exploration and efficiency. It’s one of the best secondary skill trees players can spec into, especially in the late game where every resource counts.
Unlikeother classes inDune: Awakening, the Planetologist class cannot be chosen during character creation. It is strictly an in-game unlock, and in order to get all the skills this class has to offer, players will need to put in a lot of effort. This guide covers all the Planetologist quests you need to complete to fully unlock this class' skill tree.
The last few Planetologist quests will take place further up the northern part of Hagga Basin. Do not neglect regular progression through the tech tree as you’re doing these.
How to Get All Planetologist Skills in Dune: Awakening
In order to fully unlock the Planetologist tree, players will need to complete nine quests, most (if not all) of which are unmarked. Normally, you’ll need to thoroughly explore the myriad of POIs in the map just to get to these quests, but if you know where to go, you can make a beeline straight for them. Here’s a breakdown of the entire Planetologist questline:
Quest #1: Minimic Film Recovery
The first quest in the chainunlocks basic Planetologist skills. Go to Derek’s camp justnorth of Imperial Testing Station 02 in Hagga Basin South, then agree to help him find Minimic Film in the station below. The film is behind a door disguised as a bookshelf — reach the end of the dungeon, then look for a bookshelf with a glowing yellow book. Grab the film, then go back to Derek.
Quest #2: Buried Archives
In this quest, you need to go toImperial Testing Station 197 in Western Vermillius Gap, but before you can reach it, you’ll need to build a Sandbike first. Once you’re there, drop down into the large pit, then speak with Derek at the bottom. Enter Imperial Testing Station 197, find the Minimic Film, then return to Derek.
Quest #3: Adhering to Hierarchy
After the last quest,go to Arrakeen via Ornithopter. You can use your own if you have one, or you can pay 2500 Solaris to the Thopter Taxi NPC in any of the tradeposts. Once you arrive, go to thesecond floor of the Salusan Bull bar, then look for a nobleman namedCyprian Io. After talking to him, go back to Derek’s camp and tell him what happened.
Quest #4: Science Unlocked
Derek will tell you to leave him alone for a while after the Cyprian Io incident. Leave him in his camp, then go to Imperial Testing Station 76 in Jabal Eifrit Al-janub, which is just north of Vermillius Gap. Explore the facility, andyou’ll find Derek in a cage near the first pentashield from the entrance. If you go down the spiral staircase, then you’ve already missed him.
Speak with Derek, and he’ll tell you get yetanother set of Minemic Films as well as the keys to his cage. The keys are on a table just past the spiral staircase, and the Minemic Film is behind another bookshelf door (If you may’t pick up the cage keys, give Derek the Minemic Films first). Deliver both items to Derek, then meet him at his camp after.
Don’t forget to track your active quests so you can see objective locations on your compass.
Quest #5: The Search for Kynes
After talking to Derek at his camp, he’ll tell you togo back to Arrakeen to find Thufir Awat. You can find him all the way up the stairs from the marketplace. Talk to him, and he’ll ask you to go toSietch Tarl in the O’odham, which is just past Mysa Tarill. The entrance to the Sietch is along a cliff wall, similar to the one in the Eighth Trial of Aql. Grab the note, then go back to Derek’s camp.
If you have an Ornithopter, you can head straight to the northern or western edge of the map to enter the World Map. From here, circle around Hagga Basin and re-enter from the south side. This will load you back into Hagga Basin South.
Quest #6: A Reasonable Routine
Nothing much to say here. Go toImperial Testing Station 29 in north side of the Hagga Rift, then speak with Derek at the entrance to the facility. Find the Minemic Film inside, and give it back to Derek. Look for another bookshelf door to find the film set.
The entrance to the testing station is at the bottom of the Rift. You can reach this by driving along the bottom level orby jumping down from a holeon the surface above.
Quest #7: Clues From The Past
Next up isImperial Testing Station 71, which is also in the O’odham region. Derek will once again be by the facility’s entrance, but this time, he’ll ask you to find both Minemic Films and Research Notes. The station is fairly small, so the items should be easy to find.
The Minemic Film set is behind a bookshelf door in the same room as the Identification Band for the pentashields. Meanwhile, theResearch Notes are in a bookshelfin a room next to what looks like a ritual sacrifice site.
Quest #8: The Planetologist Report
After returning to Derek’s camp, he’ll tell you to visit Arrakeen toonce again find Cyprian Io. Speak with him, then return to Derek’s camp.Once you arrive, Derek will be gone, and you’ll be tasked to eliminate two sniper teams that have set up nearby. Get rid of them, then read Derek’s note on a nearby table.
Quest #9: The Final Piece
The last part of this quest will have you visiting one final facility:Imperial Testing Station 163,which is northeast of Imperial Testing Station 71from Clues From The Past. Like the previous testing station, this one is fairly small, but it is also packed with Maas Kharet cultists. Their ranged troopers use poison bombs and darts, while their melee fighters use Prana attacks to stagger you into submission. verify to be properly prepared with good gear and at least a Mk3 shield and power pack.
Kynes' recording is a purple Solido Projection at the end of the testing station. Grab it and go back to Derek at the entrance to retrieve a Unique Stillsuit as a reward. Then, go back to his camp and finish all of his lessons to unlock the entire Planetologist skill tree.
