WELCOME TO YOJAMBO!

One challenge we've noticed in our quest to introduce D&D players to new systems is that many newcomers to indie TTRPGs rely on pre-written adventure materials. The goal in creating YoJambo is to help introduce new players to indie games by creating scenarios using Kurosawa's classic film "Yojimbo" as inspiration.

The intentions of this game jam are in itself simple:

• Participants choose a tabletop RPG system (or make their own if they’re ambitious)
• Write a module/adventure inspired by the film "Yojimbo" by Akira Kurosawa in the month of June.
• If desired, participate in the feedback swap to give and receive feedback on your module.

What constitutes a module inspired by Yojimbo?

There are many plot elements of Yojimbo that make it what it is, but we won't be imposing any litmus test beyond "it has a Yojimbo vibe." What does that mean?  No one specific element necessarily has to exist, but the combined elements must be enough that most people would recognize a Yojimbo-like quality to the adventure. Your module should not follow Yojimbo beat-for-beat. That is plagiarism — and even worse, boring! Finally, a Tokugawa setting is not considered a necessary part of YoJambo.

In the spirit of the jam, we encourage you to roll 1d13 on the below list to stay unpredictable and find in-theme inspiration. You may also remove your least favorite criteria and use a classic d12.

1. Two warring factions;
2. Locals are distrustful of the protagonists;
3. The daughter of one of the local families has been abducted;
4. One of the factions keeps captive, abused, and/or illegal workers;
5. One of the factions are known as ruthless criminals;
6. The factions combined control most businesses in the city;
7. The protagonists are outsiders from where the module takes place;
8. The only ones willing to help the protagonists are themselves outsiders;
9. A member of one of the warring factions has an extremely advanced weapon that they have a near fetishistic relationship with;
10. The individual members of the warring factions are incompetent and despicable, the real danger comes from their numbers;
11. The warring factions can be played against each other;
12. When one of the warring factions finds out what the protagonist is up to, they capture them, triggering an escape attempt in a broken and bruised state;
13. The protagonists are seen as unstoppable badasses;

Additionally:

14. You can use a Tokugawa era Japan setting. If you choose to set your module in Tokugawa era Japan, make sure to do your research and avoid orientalist tropes. If you plan to charge money for your scenario, consider hiring a sensitivity consultant.

These are all things that make the movie what it is, but in your module you can push things around as you see fit, as long as it still feels Yojimbo-ish. For example, you could use a different number of warring factions, it could be one faction in a succession crisis, or the advanced weapon could be much more central to your plot.

When you're done with your module, put this seal somewhere in your submission to make it YoJambo official: