In JJK how can Kenjaku force the culling game rules on people?

In ep 3 of this season they go through the rules of the culling game. I don’t get how come Kenjaku is able to force people to participate in the first place? Was it something from season 2? I’m lost 😮‍💨 this ep was confusing.

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ActualRound76992026-01-16 17:12

* Use Idle Transfiguration to awaken latent cursed techniques in people
* If people enter a colony in the Culling Game they have 19 days to register whether they want to or not…or they die

chum-guzzling-shark2026-01-16 20:55

and we all know a colony is.....

Shad0w_malfoy2026-01-16 23:57

I understood that a colony is a large barrier that covers a large area of japan that serves to know who has entered the culling game and to not have all of the players in the same place

Local_Pickle_47172026-01-16 17:12

Ironically this was the only thing they didn't explain.

SnooCats20652026-01-19 00:43

no one is forced to participate. you have to enter the barrier willingly to be apart of the game. If you’re already inside the barrier, you have a chance to leave or to enter into the game

King_Merlin2026-01-16 17:14

He said it was 8 binding vows that dictate the rules of the culling games.

Edit: [video explaining the rules I found](https://youtu.be/OJ5o8QZYjMM?si=jqYEFIDZDjpjg8zy)

jmdg0072026-01-16 17:16

But how did he actually set the games up, could any sorcerer at any time have set them up using Binding Vows?

myworkthrowaway872026-01-16 17:19

No it was basically part of him awakening their powers. It was an exchange ie, I'm giving you these powers and in return you have to abide by these vows.

jmdg0072026-01-16 17:20

But don't the rules apply to everyone in the game area rather than just the chosen participants?

myworkthrowaway872026-01-16 17:32

Everyone in the game area who is a non-cursed technique user has one chance to leave before they're considered part of the game, so this at least gives the concept of free will for anyone who chooses to stay.

The people who gained curse techniques from kenjaku are forced to participate or they get their curse techniques removed, which in turn kills them.

The sorcerers that are resurrected because their cursed objects were implanted/swallowed by vessels and then unleashed by kenjaku are forced to participate in return for kenjaku reviving them

jmdg0072026-01-16 17:54

So in theory the games could be set up by anyone but Kenjaku has used his ability to force players to participate, otherwise you'd have to rely on players volunteering?

myworkthrowaway872026-01-16 18:00

It would need to be set up by someone incredibly powerful in order for all the binding vows to work, and all of the barriers are Kenjaku's doing as well. So yes but also no? Someone like Gojo or Sukuna may have been able to set up something similar but Kenjaku was working on setting this up for ages.

King_Merlin2026-01-16 18:28

binding vows arent a cursed technique, its like a key foundation of sorcery.

Its the same thing as nen vows in HxH, Gon didnt practice learning how to use nen vows, it was inherent when he learned how to use nen. Which is why he was able to use a contract to fight Pitou, the one difference here is that Kenjaku has had 1000 years to test the rules he wanted to implement, and create countermeasures so the drawbacks wouldn't be as detrimental to him as would a normal binding vow.

King_Merlin2026-01-16 17:33

They apply to everyone, but people without cursed energy have one chance to leave, otherwise they will be scored as non sorcerers which is 1 point per kill.

Zerogates2026-01-16 17:34

If you don't awaken as a sorcerer then you're a normal person, otherwise they wouldn't need a point value of 1 for normal people. Normal people inside when it starts also get a chance to leave and not return or be affected by the game as they explained.

King_Merlin2026-01-16 17:33

Not exactly, awakening them pretty much made them sorcerers. The one guy from season 1 who was the first idle transfiguration victim was a normal human being who had 0 influence from curses until he met Mahito, someone like that would be subject to the rules of the culling games, where as a regular human wouldnt.

The ultimate goal is to merge humanity with tengen to evolve everyone.

th5virtuos02026-01-16 18:12

No, because otherwise external participants wouldn't have been subjected to these rules, but they are.

myworkthrowaway872026-01-16 18:24

External participants agree to the rules by choosing to participate. There was nothing forcing people like Yuta and Megumi to participate. They all choose to in order to both save Megumis sister and stop Kenjaku.

King_Merlin2026-01-16 18:30

External participants agree to the rules when they enter. Participants already there have no choice but to participate. If everyone decided to stay at Tengens, Kenjaku would just free farm cursed energy at the culling game, and force merge Tengen.

King_Merlin2026-01-16 17:23

Any sorcerer can make a binding vow, the vows he used are interwoven with each other which make the game. The area of the game is dictated in the rules, as well as the participants, the rewards/ penalties for playing, and the win condition.

Actually_Godlike2026-01-16 17:43

Not any sorcerer could have. It's a fair assumption that pretty much only Kenjaku could've done this and probabably Tengen. Handling the amount of Binding Vows required for something like the Culling Games is insanely complex, to the point even Kenjaku has doubts about how he was able to weave it together.

Totaliss2026-01-16 17:16

all the people playing are people he awoke at the end of season 2 and are subject to the rules i.e. they play or they die

Ok_Expert49892026-01-18 13:19

then why are our main characters entering.. they had cursed powers before season 2.. it still makes no sense

Totaliss2026-01-18 16:46

other people are allowed to participate and be subject to the rules, those awakened had the rules forced them, its not that complex

SnooCats20652026-01-19 00:44

+ the ones who are awakened are mostly (as mentioned by Kenjaku at the end of s2 I believe) sorcerers from before who he made a pact/binding wow with, so they want to participate

lokalforeiner2026-01-19 04:58

From what I understand:-
Rule #1 states upon awakening a cursed technique (non-sorcerers marked by Kenjaku and reincarnated sorcerers), a player must declare their participation within 19 days at the colony of their choice, otherwise they are subject to cursed technique removal.

The people marked by Kenjaku to awaken a cursed technique includes Tsumiki (megumi’s sister). So essentially these people are forced to participate due to this rule or else they will have their cursed technique removed which insinuates death. Megumi of course wants to save Tsumiki, and feels that unsealing Gojo can end the game and fix everything. Obviously he can’t do this alone so he gathers his companions for help.

TL;DR Megumi and friends just want to save Tsumiki that’s why the main casts are participating.

Side note: since Yuji being Sukuna’s vessel technically makes him a reincarnated sorcerer, I guess he is also forced to participate

ThoughtseizeScoop2026-01-16 17:29

it's all made up

Angriest_Stranger2026-01-16 17:30

JJK's power system is absolutely bonkers. Just turn your brain off and enjoy the flashy lights.

ActualRound76992026-01-16 18:02

I always joke with my friend that if you really wanna understand the JJK power system, you need to make a pretty detailed spreadsheet 😂

Top-Beyond-49802026-01-16 17:37

[removed]

GallowDude2026-01-16 20:50

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KMAVegas2026-01-16 17:48

So confusing! Thanks for asking. I was a bit lost. Hoping it all becomes clearer as it goes on.

AashyLarry2026-01-16 17:51

JJK is so bad at explaining things.

I still enjoy the show, but the lack of good explanation has been pretty consistent, sadly.

PriclessSami2026-01-16 18:01

they absorbed Mojito, after strategically pitting him against yuji to weaken him, the scanning the ability of idol transfiguration, combined with their other powers, and tengens guns deepening evolution over the past 12 years, was able to affect all of the people within those areas.

Geez, did you even watch episode 3 16 times to be able to digest this information

th5virtuos02026-01-16 18:10

Most likely due to his barriers. Mofo is said to be one of the best barrier user so I'm not surprised if the answer is that he somehow imbued the binding vows into the barrier itself cause the act of entering the barrier is enough to subject you to the rules.

AbelK12026-01-16 18:22

At the end of Season 2 Kenjaku used idle transfiguration to activate the cursed techniques in people that he marked ( like Megumi's sister) changing their brain and are now considered sorcerers. He is able to force people to participate because if they don't, the ones who became sorcerers via Kenjaku will be stripped of their cursed Technique which would kill them.

sogbudin2026-01-16 21:18

I didn't even realize that these were the questions I had. Episode 3 was a lot
[https://youtu.be/fOVyeCDlHGA?si=9ESHEDxe48myqcot](https://youtu.be/fOVyeCDlHGA?si=9ESHEDxe48myqcot)

Shad0w_malfoy2026-01-17 00:02

In general, it’s a binding vow that after using Idle Transfiguration to grant powers to all awakened sorcerers, they are forced to participate in the Culling Games. Otherwise, their cursed techniques will be removed. Since cursed techniques are stored in the brain, this removal results in death