This is purely a vanity project. This project can dovetail nicely with the
After 30+ years of playing tabletop RPGs (and plenty of computer RPGs too), I have the hubris to believe I have something worthwhile to contribute.
I would like to write a megadungeon. The value of the attempt is questionable, as these adventures are probably the most often attempted to author but least played in the hobby.
But I have fond memories of playing in such adventures (e.g. B4 The Lost City and T2 Temple of Elemental Evil), and even now participate in the Scarlet Citadel for 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons and a homebrew Castle Greyhawk.
A good resource to plan such an adventure is Angry DM’s Megadungeon Monday series. Though incomplete, he provides a good overview of the planning that should go on in creating such an adventure.
Also, megadungeons are the sort of adventure where design collaboration is quite possible. Given the segregated nature of the dungeon levels, it’s possible to divide design duties among different people. The caveat with such a division is that the dungeon can feel disjointed and inconsistent, so basic design guidelines have to be established.
Possibly the trickiest decision is just deciding why the dungeon exists in the first place. Is it a natural occurrence, or the malevolent consequence of some mad design? The first reason is more plausible, but the latter is often more fun. 😈
Roguelike Considerations
As mentioned above, the roguelike project could be co-designed with this project. The setting and scenario could be the same, with the roguelike being randomly generated.
But what if the megadungeon were randomly generated too? Specifically, there would be set pieces that the players would have to move beyond to get to successive levels, but the in between elements could be determined randomly from tables that provide.
What if the dungeon layout itself could be randomly generated as in the rougelike? My first thought would be to use geomorphs similar (if not actual) to Dyson Logos’.