Describing a Room (wwyd?)

[roguemetal]

How do you describe a room?
This may seem lengthy, but it's a legitimate question.

Most DMs fall into a relatively niche playstyle sometime throughout their time running campaigns that players either like, or don't. Better DMs are flexible, able to run a campaign based on the expectations of those running it, with excellent acting skills, quick reactions, and an impeccable ability to rewrite their entire campaign in an instant if something doesn't go as expected. The only thing that seems to stay relatively true for all DMs, is that they describe a room the same way each time. I hope that with a little help from the community we can pinpoint an ideal method or I can abolish the idea entirely.

Sometimes it's an obvious method, starting with architecture, moving to people, then describing the small things. Others begin with each of the senses, move to describing the space, and then points of interest. I've also played with a few who only describe the immediately relevant features of a room until prompted, which is rather annoying in my opinion. There are also patterns of explanation, such as leaving the most integral details last, or third to last in a sequence, which is easy for metagamers to exploit. More complicated DMs I've had have used the Fibonacci sequence to determine the order the room is described in using the encounter level before it as a base, just so she didn't need to worry about falling into an obvious pattern. Context is of course important, but I find I definitely fall into a pattern of describing walls and the space before the encounter itself unless the encounter was continued from the last room.

My rooms are usually something like this:
You're hit by a salty smell like that of brine, but there's something foul, maybe rotted in its stench. You see a stone hallway peppered with holes, wide and dimly lit by torches to reveal iron cages built into the wall, four on each side across from one another with the torches hanging on the wall between them. As you step inside across the cold cobblestones, something in one of the cages to the east wrapped in skins seems to move. From further down the hall in complete darkness you can hear the echo of a tap-tap-tapping sound and feel a slight breeze.

I start with smells, move to structure, adress movement based on location, then add ambient information. The rest is per request.

So the question is, how do you describe a room? Is there a prefferred method? Are you aware of any pattern you might have, intentional or not?

[Story]

If you're really worried about people metagaming based on the order you describe things, just randomize the order.

[nedz]

I use floor plans / figures / etc. to show the layout and terrain.

I then give a brief description of what they first see/hear/etc.

If the PCs charge into combat/run through the room/etc. then they get the detailed description later (It does happen :smallsigh:)

If they hold back and look around then I will give more information.
I will try to do this conversationally because the old flavour text style is boring.

Basically I try to reflect the PC's experience. I have been known to add more detail even in the middle of a fight, if I thought that the player was receptive, and the PC was taking a look around — or had even just moved. If you see some threatening monster in the room, then you are not going to worry about the décor — unless the character is like that, of course.

I try and layer the information, focus on what the PC's are actually focussed on and engage the player in the description rather than dump a wall of text on them.

[Acanous]

I usually describe rooms by their dimensions, then function unless something specifically seems out of place in that room, or the players take intrest in what's all there.

IE: "You walk into a 30 foot by 20 foot kitchen. There's a weapons rack in the south corner of the room.".

There's also an assortment of drawers and cabinets, a cooking pot, and a wood-burning stove, but those all make sense to be in a kitchen, and the PC's would probably overlook them being there, so I don't call attention to them.

If a combat happens, then I'll set out on the map where the fixtures of the room are.

For unusual ROOMS, I'll go into detail.

[Madara]

It depends on the value of the room. If its a simple dungeon crawl, and we have limited time, I'll even stoop to size and features of note unless on request. If its a room dealing with an important plot character or important battle, I'll give a lengthy description. Although, I usually describe NPCs in more detail than structures and rooms.

[Lord_Gareth]

Generally speaking I tend to start with whatever is most obvious in a room. When my players entered Undermountain from the Yawning Portal Inn, this is what they got:

Your breath starts fogging as the platform descends the well, and your lantern flickers and gutters in the frigid air, disturbed by the breeze that blows up from below. When it settles onto the stone floor with a dull thud, the first thing its wan light reveals is the graffiti that coats the walls - dozens of different languages, hundreds of different writers, and almost none of it comforting or friendly. A thin coat of sand covers the floor, stained dark colors in a few places, and disturbed in many more others in a fashion that suggests that this area sees heavy foot traffic.

[Coidzor]

If there's any real notable features I basically go from the most attention-grabbing and visceral detail (like a salvo of arrows landing in front of them or the roaring, pressing sound of the waterfall they're standing over) and then launch into a visual description starting with the rough lay of the land and then going into who and what is in the room peppered with olfactory and aural details before going into whatever other details are left after that.

Otherwise, basically, rough layout of the room, dominating features, obvious life-forms, furnishings and that level of object, and so on down to finer details. I've only really written out room descriptions though, as I never did complete the plans for making a module to introduce my group to the campaign setting I was working on. Partially because I never really finished the campaign setting in any real sense. Twelve Gods, over 3 years (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/archive/index.php/index.php?t-116955.html) and I still haven't finished it or completely destroyed it.

[Longstrider]

I agree with those who are using active verbs. Look at the way Tolkien does it: he doesn't even have encounters in 90% of his rooms and they are still exciting.