Jacob Lewis
Ye Olde GM
It's basic math. A Megadungeon is a million dungeons, and a Gigadungeon is a billion dungeons. We don't have the technology to create Terradungeons yet, but soon...
Number of game sessions your are stuck in it. Over 4, it is certainly a mega dungeon.
Multiple Characteristic Areas - not just levels, but different themes. You should be able to realize you're in a different place.
Multiple Factions - Many dungeons are lairs. Like the Steading of the Hill Giant Chief, there's one organized force (though often with a few rogue elements). A megadungeon is different in that it is multipolar. A megadungeon has its own _politics_. Factions have grudges and alliances and different interests. You can befriend some, betray others, enlist the help of one against another, and so forth.
Exploration is an end to itself - there's more to being there than just killing things. There are wonders in the depths. Temples to Forgotten Gods, Talking Statues, underground oceans, weird portals.
Room to maneuver - partially due to multiple factions and also due to size, the explorers can find paths to other areas and are not limited to linear paths (room 1, then room 2, etc.) so they can choose which part of the dungeon to interact with. Many dungeons are effectively linear, and a megadungeon is very non-linear.
It's alive - perhaps not literally (like Eyes of the Stone Thief), but metaphorically. It changes. Empty rooms get repopulated. Other rooms become empty. The inhabitants are not static, nor are they mere re-spawns.
Not just one boss monster - levels and sections may have bosses, but just as there are multiple factions, there is more than one boss monster (usually at least.)
A always thought a Megadungeon was just a dungeon where they were cranking Megadeth through the speakers the whole time.
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A always thought a Megadungeon was just a dungeon where they were cranking Megadeth through the speakers the whole time.
If it's just Peace Sells, So Far So Good, and Rust In Peace, I'd be ok with it.