Roguelike Megadungeon

Roguelike Megadungeon is a system neutral toolbox for generating a sandbox campaign setting centered around a sprawling megadungeon, Itchfunding for Zine Month 2025. The core idea is a set of analog rogue-like map generators using two generation methods, one using a worksheet, the other using a dice drop method. "Dice drop" means that you drop dice on a blank sheet and draw rooms where the dice land, using the die results to determine the contents of rooms. The worksheets are available below free to download. These worksheets are all you really need to get going generating dungeons, the procedure can be found in the free Roguelike Dungeon Basic Edition. The zine just contains ideas, advice and tables with content designed for the worksheet and dice drop methods. 

Roguelike Megadungeon is based on a simplified version of the way that roguelike computer games generate and populate their infinite random dungeons. Wield the power of procedural dungeon generation using this intuitive TTRPG tool! 

Whether you are an experienced Game Master, a beginner planning your first campaign, or just want to spend the evening rolling up some dungeon maps, this tool will fuel your creativity and has unlimited reuse and hacking potential. 

Roguelike Megadungeon is a GM tool that can be used to prepare for a game session in 15 minutes, or to solo game on your own. It's designed to be fun and easy to use. 

The megadungeon itself is generated using 12 sets of tables called dungeon themes, with writing from multiple contributors including myself, Sam Mui, BJ Recio and Roque Romero. These dungeon themes span a wide range to keep the megadungeon interesting for many, many levels! They are Haunted Ruins, Uncanny Valley, Goblin Warrens, Caves of Conjecture, Caves of Ice-Time, Decomposition Kingdom, Sky Fortress, Astral Plane, Forest of the Gods, Deathlands, Abyss and Hell. Together they create a rich underworld and full planar cosmology.

These map generators are quite flexible, and the zine includes tables to map not only dungeons, but the overland world, settlements, buildings and street corners, and relationships. Inside you'll find tables and instructions for all these.

Roguelike Megadungeon originally funded in Zine Month 2022 supported by the sale of the original version of the game, Roguelike Dungeon. Since that time the project has seen many challenges and setbacks while it also expanded in scope considerably. New additions to the game are: the second map generation method using dice drop, dungeon theme descriptions, and generators for overland, settlement, street level and relationship maps. Through this growth, I have gone into the red and I am launching this second Itchfunder for Zine Month 2025 to try and break even. In addition, the stretch goals are ideas that I've had for a while, and would love to fund and make a reality.

Method 1 Demo

Method 2 Demo

$1500 Roguelike Megadungeon! I've broken even with this game, thank you! This money goes to reimburse me for paying for extra art, layout, editing and writing.

$2500 Zine Workbook! If this project reaches its first stretch goal, Tony Jaguar will create an additional zine workbook to use with Roguelike Megadungeon. This workbook will contain expanded versions of the worksheets and be a template for generating an entire campaign setting and megadungeon. 

$3000 Full color cover art! Cover art for workbook and alternate full color cover art for Roguelike Megadungeon by Roque Romero

$4500 Cairn compatible edition! This version will contain extra descriptions for all creatures, traps and items from Roguelike Megadungeon and statted out for Cairn. This will pay for layout for 20 pages by Tony, creative editing by Sam and copyediting by Seth. This info will be made available as a separate pdf with original artwork, and as a special Cairn compatible edition of the zine also available to backers as a print on demand physical zine. 

$5000 More internal art! Filler art for Cairn compatible section also by Roque, and for 4 extra pages of layout by Tony to fit the art in. 

$6666 Help kickstart our next project! I will pay myself for writing Roguelike Megadungeon and the Cairn expansion. This money will in all likelihood go towards the production of a sci-fi version of this game called Roguelike Megastructure. 

Digital mock up of the zine

As soon as this crowdfunding campaign ends, I will provide at-cost, print on demand codes for Lulu.com for Roguelike Megadungeon. This will be an additional $4.98 plus shipping and handling. This is an optional purchase, but something you will receive access to for backing this project. These at-cost copies will be available for a limited time after links are sent out. I realize that having to buy copies from Lulu.com is a bit of an inconvenience, but I have a new baby and don't think I have the bandwidth to do fulfillment. I hope this isn't too different from having to pay for shipping after a campaign has finished, I appreciate your understanding on this matter. 

Backers who back at the Vendor and Superfan tier have permission to print as many copies as they like and sell them. There is nothing stopping you from doing this if you back at the regular tier, but I would really appreciate your support!

If stretch goals are achieved, we will immediately begin putting them together. Both the workbook and Cairn compatible book can be completed within a few months. At-cost print on demand editions of the stretch goal zines will be made available when complete. If the covers fund, they will be made available when the workbook and Cairn compatible book are made.

I am David Jackson (he/him), creator of Roguelike Megadungeon. I am a game designer, wastewater plant operator, union organizer and active in my local mutual aid scene. 

Creative editing and writing is by Samuel Clarice Mui Shen Ern (any pronouns). Sam is a play therapist, game designer, and writer currently based in London whose practice focuses on developing playful spaces and practices for emotional wellbeing and collaborative storytelling.

Art for Roguelike Megadungeon is by Roque Romero (he/him). He is a Spanish artist specialized in art zines and all kinds of creepy and fantastic graphic distillations, working in the fields of wonder for the last three decades.

Layout is by Tony Jaguar (he/him). Tony is a Graphic Designer and Illustrator from Brazil. He loves Death Grips, Kurt Vonnegut and One Piece.

Writing for some dungeon themes is by BJ Recio (he/siya). Working as an actuary by day, he spends his free time as Buko Juice Games, preparing, designing, and playing RPGs for fun and profit. 

Copyediting is by Seth Ian (he/any). Seth writes and edits RPGs.  He is at the eternal whims of dopamine and cortisol.

The game is already completed! We are working out a few final wrinkles with printing from Lulu.com. You will receive access to the print on demand zine shortly after the Itchfunder ends. 

Tony works quickly and there is no writing to do for the workbook so I imagine it being done within a matter of weeks. 

The Cairn adaptation of the zine is unfinished and will be the slowest part of the project moving forwards if it funds. I will do the writing myself and hold myself to a strict schedule, and most importantly I will not expand the scope of the project in any way. This last stretch goal will take some time, but I am committed and have my sights set on completing this project.