Conspiracy X – Unbound Publishing

[Secret Society] The Ferouk Institute

On March 15, 2026

A Conspiracy X 1st Edition Society by Angus McNicholl

The conspiracy is real, yet it remains hidden from those blinded by their desire for safety and security…

First drafted in the early years of Conspiracy X 1st edition, this article explores one of the many organisations complicit in the ongoing conspiracy against humanity, the Ferouk Institute. This Russian hospital hides dark secrets behind its faded, crumbling walls, with some claiming it still serves as a training centre for Directorate X (the now-disavowed enforcement arm of Project Rasputin).

So just what is the truth? Well, read on and find out more about this secret society…

Note: Permission for hosting this article was kindly granted by Angus and forms part of the material he drafted for Conspiracy X in the early 2000s.

[Opinion] Out of Time: Setting Con X in the 1990s

By Marcus Bone

On March 30, 2025

In Conspiracy X, Opinion

A Conspiracy X Opinion Piece by Marcus Bone

Having lived through two editions of Conspiracy X, I have some specific – not always logical – thoughts on how and when I like set my Con X scenarios. This opinion piece outlines my thoughts on setting Con X in the 1990s, the benefits of doing so and the challenges than come with trying to run a game in a decade which began over 30 years ago.

Note: This is planned to be the first of several articles on Conspiracy X, it’s background, mechanics and game play, that I hope to write. These will be collected here on unboundbook.org as they are released.

[Review] Sub Rosa – 1st Edition

By Marcus Bone

On September 30, 2024

In Conspiracy X, Review

“Three may keep a secret… if two of them are dead.”
– Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard’s Almanack

While Conspiracy X is best known for its setting focused on humanity’s ongoing struggle against aliens, monsters, and the supernatural, perhaps its most intriguing notion – its diamond hidden in the rough, so to speak – is its exploration into the very concept of ‘conspiracy’ itself. Sub Rosa: The Conspiracy Creation Sourcebook, is the game’s deep dive into this very subject, a supplement that aims to present a theoretical examination of how conspiracies come about, how they are run, and most importantly how they are created within the Conspiracy X ruleset.

But just how well does it succeed in this task? Do we get nothing more than a shallow look at the same old tired conspiracies we see in so many other game lines, or will it break the shackles and truly deliver a sourcebook that allows Game Masters to build brand new layers of intrigue into their existing campaigns? Well, dear reader, read on and we shall find out…

[Review] The Hand Unseen – 1st Edition

By Marcus Bone

On February 9, 2024

In Conspiracy X, Review

Let me tell you again, AEGIS nothing more than a cult and we, I’m afraid to say, have been lied to for far too long…

From its release in early 1996, Conspiracy X had always operated under one simple premise – the player’s characters, as members of a secret conspiracy known as AEGIS – are humanity’s last hope, the final protectors of mankind… the so-called ‘bodyguard of lies’. This book, The Hand Unseen, whips away that veil of half-truths and rumours and simply asks – What if AEGIS aren’t the ‘good guys’ we all believed them to be? What if their approach to the existential threat of extraterrestrial invasion and the rise of supernatural dangerous phenomenon as nothing more than closed-eyed, fear mongering? And if that is all true, then who will stand as the champions all of humanity?

That, my dear reader, is why this book exists, to tell you that there is another way, and that a programme for humanity’s salvation is already underway… whether you like it or not!

[Review] Nemesis: The Grey Sourcebook – 1st Edition

By Marcus Bone

On February 27, 2023

In Conspiracy X, Review

Watch the Skies! For they are ‘The Grey’ and they mean us great harm…

With the successful launch of the Conspiracy X roleplaying game in early 1996, New Millennium Enterprises (the original publishers of game line and the precursors to Eden Studios) quickly realised they were on a winner and had captured an audience wanting to know more of the setting’s mythology and background. Either anticipating this interest or responding rapidly to its demand, Nemesis – The Grey Sourcebook was released a few months later.

This review continues my series of looking back on the various books, supplements and publications that have been released for Conspiracy X over the years, and in the processes looking at what insights this – once extremely popular – roleplaying game might reveal to us here in the 2020s.

[Review] Conspiracy X Second Edition Introductory Kit

By Marcus Bone

On August 30, 2022

In Conspiracy X, Review

Project Bluebook lied to you. They are among us, and they have been here for some time.

Those are the first words to greet the reader of the Conspiracy X (Second Edition) Introductory Game Kit; two short sentences that I suspect convey the core conceit of Eden Studio’s popular roleplaying game of modern-day conspiracy and alien invasion more concisely than perhaps a hundred more paragraphs ever could. They invite the reader into a world of mystery, of lies and intrigue, and hint that maybe… just maybe… they can do something about it.

But does the Conspiracy X Second Edition Introductory Game Kit (hereafter noted as simply the Intro Kit) live up to this tempting summons? Does it deliver as a ‘taster’ of things to come, or does it simply leave a foul tang on the tongue? Well, let’s read on and find out…

[Interview] M. Alexander Jurkat – Founding Owner of Eden Studios

By Marcus Bone

On April 20, 2022

In Conspiracy X, Interviews

One of the pleasures I have as an ‘archivist’ of some pretty cool – albeit it out-of-print – roleplaying games (such as www.stormbringerrpg.com & www.darkconspiracytherpg.info) is the opportunity to interview the creative forces behind the products that now lie on my (overburdened) shelves. In this role I’ve interviewed dozens of creatives, all of whom have graciously given their time to chat with me about the history of various games and roleplaying products, however, few has given me as much pleasure as this interview with Alex Jurkat – one of Eden’s Studio’s founding editors.

So, read on to hear about how Eden rose rose to become one of the leading lights of tabletop gaming industry in the late 90s and how they went from saving Conspiracy X from a false start, through to the arrival of the Unisystem mechanics and the publication of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer RPG….

[Review] Game Master’s Screen – 1st Edition

By Marcus Bone

On September 27, 2021

In Conspiracy X, Review

It seems quite odd to be reviewing a Game Master’s Screen, but the reality is that I’m not so much reviewing the screen, rather than the 48-page booklet that is bundled within this package. To compound this confusion, the fact the core part of the package is a scenario that focused on the paranormal, rather than the Extra-terrestrial aspects (which I normally prefer), of the Conspiracy X setting, it initially worried me that I wouldn’t do this supplement the justice it deserves.

So, did I like the screen, the scenario and everything else that came with the Conspiracy X 1st Edition Game Master’s supplement? Read on, dear friend, and you will find out!

Please note, this review is written with the assumption that the reader is already familiar with the setting of the Conspiracy X RPG (or Con X as it is often abbreviated). For those of you reading this review who may not be so familiar with the themes of this game, the one sentence summary would be – in Con X the players take on the roles of agents within Aegis, a clandestine organization tasked with hiding the truth of aliens, monsters and the supernatural from the fragile minds of humanity. Yes, yes, think X-Files, but an X-Files where you are the Smoking Man rather than Fox or Mulder.

This review continues my series of looking back on the various books, supplements and publications that have been released for Conspiracy X over the years, and in the processes looking at what insights this – once extremely popular – roleplaying game might reveal to us here in the 2020s.

Category: Conspiracy X Page 1 of 2