Sam Hollon – Medium

Sam Hollon

Published in
The Ugly Monster

Creating Monsters: The Three Ingredients of Great Bestiaries

Monster as actor, monster as story, monster as art piece

Dec 8, 2023

“The Tartaro” from A Folklore Bestiary, a one-eyed giant shining light from its eye toward a bird

Dec 8, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

The Art of Mystery in RPGs

Five principles for better investigation adventures

Nov 14, 2023

noir-style photograph of a figure descending a staircase

Nov 14, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

Worlds Live Between Story and Genre

How audiences suspend their disbelief

Oct 27, 2023

A painting of Sadler’s Wells Theatre

Oct 27, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

How Zine Quest Could Remake the Tabletop RPG Landscape

Insights from food trucks and Kickstarter data

Oct 20, 2023

painting of three faceless figures

Oct 20, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

The One Hard Rule for Creating Good RPG Characters

The what, why, and how of character motivations

Oct 9, 2023

The One Hard Rule for Creating Good RPG Characters

Oct 9, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

Tabletop RPGs Have a Design Debt to Pay

How bad design haunts us

Oct 1, 2023

an image from Old School Essentials

Oct 1, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

3 Better Ways to Roll Ability Scores in D&D

Randomness doesn’t have to be unbalanced

Sep 18, 2023

amber-colored dice on a black background

Sep 18, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

Worldbuilding at the Intersections

How interacting perspectives draw us in

Sep 7, 2023

colorful Venn Diagram

Sep 7, 2023

Published in
The Ugly Monster

The Most Overlooked Rules in D&D: Why the Dungeon Master Survives

Game design, power dynamics, and culture at the gaming table.

Sep 16, 2022

The Most Overlooked Rules in D&D:
Why the Dungeon Master Survives

Sep 16, 2022

Published in
UX Collective

Tabletop game UX: 6 types of damage mechanics

Mapping how damage mechanics shape a game’s focus and play experience

Sep 7, 2022

Five improv performers strike bold poses on a dark stage.

Sep 7, 2022

Sam Hollon

Sam Hollon

Worldbuilder. Design thinker. Improv performer. Computational social scientist. Writes on creativity, storytelling, and tabletop game design.

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