[3.5] DMing-Narration: Smell

[Shadowbane]

This is a thought I wanted to discuss with other DMs. I'm slowly coming to believe that, strangely enough, the description of what the PCs smell is what really immerses the players.

This is something a few of the DMs I've played under haven't done. Recently, I began to describe the smells, as well as the sights, and I found it added a great deal of realism to the campaign.

Do you, when you are DMing, bother with smells? Do you agree with me? Disagree? Thoughts? :D

[NorseItalian]

Smells can be very useful, and I describe them whenever I remember to. I've found that a great way to come up with very descriptive smells is to watch a lot of cooking shows. They describe tastes, but the uses are largely interchangeable, and in the same way that their description of tastes can make your mouth water, borrowing their adjectives for odors can bring out better emotions than "fragrant" or "pungent" can.

[Thatguyoverther]

Using smells is great. It's fun to watch the party react the first time you introduce a "Coppery sort of salty smell, that's familiar but you can't quite place."