X-Files-like Modern RPG

[Roscoe The Blade]

OK, simple question: Is there any conspiracy-FBI-CIA-alien-Xfiles-like D20 Modern RPG out there or in the makings? It's been a while since I've looked at the product lists (or RPGs as a whole for that matter ) and I have no idea what's currently out there.

Thanks!

 

[JPL]

Dark Matter, a setting for WotC's defunct Alternity line, is da bomb.

A Polyhedron minigame revival is in the works...but the setting book itself is full of creamy goodness, and with a very little conversion work you could run a d20 Modern Dark Matter game.

[You might think about dialing down the Massive Damage threshhold for a d20 Modern Dark Matter game, if you want less Buffy and more Scully.]

 

[Morgenstern]

The Archer Foundation chamber books is Spycraft's X-files/urban myth/not-of-this-Earth conspiracy genre guide. You might find a lot of elements there easily adapted to a modern d20 game. The Slueth or Fringewalker classes could be easily adapted to advanced classes. The Fringe feats and environment rules are all about invoking that slightly off-kilter creepiness when you've crossed the line between what you expect, and what's really going on in the shadows.

Hope this helps,

 

[Aryoche]

Well, it's not D20, but the best sourcebooks I've found has been Conspiracy X, by Eden studios. If you have AFMBE with the conversion notes, you shouldn't have too much difficulty converting things over to D20. Of course, it would be nice if Eden would make a version that is based off of D20, or D20 Modern...

 

[Kesh]

Call of Cthulu d20 fits X-Files a lot better than d20 Modern. How many times did Mulder & Sculley actually manage to kill something with their handgun?

(Note that there's a drinking game for the show which includes taking a drink every time an agent loses their gun. )

You might ease up on the Sanity rules, but the overall flow of the game seems to fit CoC better. d20M has a much more 'adventurous' feel, more like Men in Black or Aliens than XF.

 

[trancejeremy]

I don't know if it's going to be d20 Modern or not, but there will apparently be a d20 version of Bureau 13 in a few months.

Bureau 13, aka "Stalking the Night Fantastic" was probably the first game in this vein first showing up in the early 80s. The players worked for a super-secret government agency which covered up paranormal incidents (because paranormal incidents tend to cause others when they get widely reported, which can cause problems, like the Monkeyman of India a couple years ago).

When I first heard about the show the X-files, I thought it was a rip-off of Bureau 13 (especially since B13 actually had the term 'X-file' in it, although with a different meaning).

Not quite, but there are a lot of similarities. B13 is also one of the few games that can be really funny at times, like the X-files would occasionally be funny.

The author also really knew a lot about the paranormal. Most of the later games are written by poseurs or skeptics, and that loses quite a bit of the mood. Sort of like John Tesh singing a rap song.

There's also going to be a d20 version of Chill, which was another early horror game. No conspiracies, really, it's more like Poltergeist: The Legacy. But worth mentioning.

 

[Roscoe The Blade]

Cool. Thanks for the feedback so far, guys. Especially B13 seems interesting. I currently don't have the time to convert other systems to D20 (although I have Conspiracy-X lying around, and I started converting it to the White-Wolf dot-system once), so a ready-to-play D20 conspiracy game would be excellent.

 

[decion]

You should have a look at Delta Green. It's a subset of CoC modern and while it uses the CoC rules, it should be easily converted using D20 modern and/or D20 CoC as a guideline.

 

[jonrog1]

DarkMatter, regardless of what you think of the Alternity system, is a must buy. I have all the above titles, and that's the one I keep going back to.

 

[jonrog1]

By the way. Morgenstern, you know me as lover of all that is SPYCRAFT, and I used the system for my Pulp game and story hour. Got some questions aboout some materials I'm going to do on my website and some general fanboying to do. Could you drop me a line at the e-mail address in my profile or just ell me how to get a hold of you even roundabout? Thanks.