Tom commented on my post Only two or three things that they felt that this approach (or at least my examples) were over-compressed, and it got me thinking. Like, obviously I disagree, but I think there’s a little more nuance to it.

Firstly, yes, you can write one paragraph per thing. But, in my opinion, why write a paragraph when you could write a sentence? Why write a sentence when you could write a clause? Additional words, in my opinion, should be justified. I write for myself, and to be honest, I want to be able to quickly read and adapt, and I can’t do that with a four paragraph description. That’s why my writing feels over-compressed.

Is there a place for four paragraph descriptions? Yes. I think great examples are puzzles and traps; they benefit from additional words for clarity and to allow the GM to adapt to alternative approaches. In my recent review of Aberrant Reflections I commented on this approach being appropriate, and the traditions of traps and puzzles in elfgames mean that allowances should be made for this.

But that’s not what I usually see in four paragraph encounters, or four paragraph characters, or four paragraph descriptions. I usually see paragraphs that could be communicated in a sentence or even with a few words. I use the word “overwritten” a lot when writing bathtub reviews for this reason.

Why do I think they’re overwritten? Probably because I don’t need every detail of a room, character or encounter described if I’m running a game. I want just enough that I can run it, no more. Much of the detail can be implied, I can imagine the rest. This does vary depending on what we’re describing though.

So for dungeons, maps are extra necessary detail. Puzzles and traps might deserve a paragraph to themselves. But for everything (these things included), for me, less is more.

11th June, 2023

Idle Cartulary