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I plan to put some ruins I am building onto sheets of MDF, but I was not sure what type of glue would be best for making them stick to it permanently. What have you used that has worked well and held up over time? Thanks!

For terrain, I have had good luck with a product called Goop here in the USA. As the name implies, it is a thick but once it dries it is like a hard rubber. For terrain it works well as usually there is debris on the base etc to cover up the edging of goop. I have had poor luck with white pva. It takes longer to dry, and the MDF can soak up too much of it (usually soaking in helps, but for me, not so much). Gel style super glue works well with MDF as well for smaller things.

I don’t know if you have it (or an equivalent) in the US, but we have several clear, general purpose glues in the UK; Uhu is the most common brand, but I’ve used a Bostik equivalent to good effect.

I’ve also found it more effective on large resin components (e.g. Land Raider doors), where you can’t get good surface to surface contact with superglue. It can fill the gap to a certain degree.

You might want to consider magnetizing the bases and terrain you want to adhere, especially if you’re planning sub assemblies you could potentially rearrange.

I like that with forest clumps, so you can move them out of the way and put them back “in the right spot” as / after models need to move through them.

That way, you aren’t stuck with a given setup, if you have multi-part components. In general, I like Weldbond glue for terrain making. You put extra on the joins to the bases and then sprinkle on sand on the still-wet glue to help mask the join.

Also, magnetizing can make storage easier if you’re planning on something tall. That way you can lie down a tower for example, to store on a shelf.

Id use ether jb 2 part epoxy, or Wood Glue.
And then on top and around the joints would work (BakingSoda and woodglue or modge podge mixture) to make it permanent.

Use a mix of pva wood glue and superglue. Squirt the pva on to the mdf and then do the same with the superglue. Sets rock solid.

I have not had any difficulty affixing mdf to plastic (or other mdf pieces) using regular CA superglue.

Pin it through the MDF with superglue.

Lulz... you could screw through the MDF into the terrain too.

pin the base of the model to the mdf and apply a solid dose of pva/woodglue. takes about half a day to dry.

Really depends on what it is I'm gluing down.

Porous stuff? like card. foamcore or mdf terrain to mdf? PVA.
Lasercut stuff gets sanded on the cut edges if they are meant to be the ones glued down - to make it easier for the glue to penetrate in.

Thicker HIPS terrain (like GW gothic plastics or Pegasus gothic stuff?) Construction adhesive. Fast grab. It will not let go without damaging the mdf.