Welcome to the May Edition Eternal TTRPG Jam! 

This is a game jam for TTRPG designers to test ideas, experiment with concepts, and maybe find their next big idea! Every month there will be a new Jam with new themes and challenges. 

Hosted by Rowan Sender

Come join the Discord!!

There's also the Reddit if you're so inclined.

Follow the Jam's Tumblr

Theme: Void, Empty Space

This theme is interesting. I'm very curious how people will interpret this one.  For me, it draws to mind absences, impossibilities, and perfect nothingness. This can go in a lot of different directions depending on what level you decide to introduce this into your game. It could be nonexistent rules that are referenced, but not explained. It could be tables with options that are impossible to roll with the dice proscribed. It could be games about loss, loneliness, peace. You could ask the player to sit alone, with no instruction beyond existing when there is nothing else. 

It's all about the design you don't make.

Challenge: Ritual Play

Rituals and Games have a strange amount of overlap. Perhaps even more so with Rituals and TTRPGs. There are roles to take on, an unreality to reinforce through will, and special implements that are kept holy by exclusion from everyday use. There is an aspect of cyclicity, of repetition and procedure.  How you interpret this one is up to you.

Inspired by Bez's  Yearly Transition Ritual from the March Jam.

Rules

• Your project should be made within the time of the jam. Ideas from before are fine, and it's totally okay to develop after the end, but the bulk of the work should be done during the jam time.
• Keep it short! The point is to not kill yourself on this one project. Loosen up, follow your creativity, and maybe you’ll land somewhere you wouldn’t have otherwise.
• No previously published works. Make something fresh!
• No AI generation of any kind. Text, images, ideation. None of it. You’re better than that. What are we doing here?
• Charge what you like! I encourage pay-what-you-want, but it’s your call!
• Label adult, NSFW, and violent content appropriately. 

FAQ (Presumably)

What is the Eternal Jam?

This jam is a continuous series of jams that run until the heat death of the universe (aspirational). Every month has a new theme and an extra challenge for designers. The idea is that it’s always here, so even if you don’t have time or aren’t interested in the theme of the month, you can pick it up on the next one!

What is the point?

The Eternal Jam is meant to be an outlet for experimentation within the TTRPG space. These projects are supposed to be tiny, quick, and creative. Most probably won’t be fully fleshed out. But every so often, the spark of an idea will catch and a new project will be born from the breeding ground of the Eternal Jam.

What kind of content is allowed?

Anything, in theory. Explicit content should be tagged appropriately, but other than that: games, settings, waxing prose masquerading as playable content. Really anything goes.

Format?

One pagers, micro-zines, booklets, a loose collection of notes. It really doesn’t matter. It should be small ideally. The original idea was handmade zines, so it should fall somewhere around there. Check out Electric Zine Maker if you want a cool tool!

Art?

I don’t know. I think it’s art, but who am I to say? 

Draw it yourself. Use creative commons images. I don’t know, make a collage? Are crayons still a thing? You’ll figure it out, I believe in you.