Cannot create new characters

New problem.  If I make a new game, send link to players and they log in, they simply cannot create new characters.  I join using a full dummy account (so not Join as Player) and find the same = clicking +Character does absolutely nothing.  Try this with an old game and all works exactly as expected. (ALL JG) Posted a bug report before Crimbo along similar lines - new game, players had logged in to a sandpit game I had created just as an easy place for players to create their characters from now on.  They created new characters but I could not transmog them into the right game - keep getting some message about not linked to Demiplane account yet none of us use Demiplane in any way.  Haven't heard back from Roll20 yet about that. Tried going into another new game and making a duplicate of the character and transmogging that - same result.  Players have tried this new game too and can't make anything.  Checked game settings, all same as any other game I have made.  Compendium shared just for good measure, but that shouldn't affect character creation. Looks at this point as if I can no longer make a new game and have the players make characters in it, which is sliding backwards on the thin ice of modern life.  Anyone else seeing this or have any ideas what I can do to fix? EDIT: Transmogged a character from an older JG in and all went well.  Tried Chrome Private window - that seemed to work, though still can't transmog, but could at least create.  Player logged out of Firefox and went back in and could then create, as could I when I tried Chrome standard rather than Private (?????whyyyyyyyy) but we retain the Demiplane problem that prevents transmog of any new characters created.  I can work around by using Characters and Import/ Export but that's not the point

I can see there's a lot of issues with / since, an aspect of this website, called "Roll20 Characters".  Anyway, not a full answer to your question, but simply my tip or advice or workflow is: As GM, go into Journal and add a bunch of Characters yourself. Then press EDIT on each Character and assign it to either "All Players", or to a specific player in your group. Then they will be able to claim and fill-in those Characters' sheets.

Thanks Gold - your reponse is much appreciated :) this is what we used to do, but it's extra work for the GM.  I don't get what's changed - players were able to make characters up until v recently and now can't or if they can I can't transmog them because of this crazy Demiplane nonsense that R20 aren't coming back to me on.  I'm good with not being able to do something, but if we get the ability to do something and then lose it, it really grits.  I have had an unusually high demand on my DMing time this past few weeks and the workarounds are really frustrating when initiating new users to Roll20 - it reflects really badly on the platform as it seems like amateur night

Hey Simon! What is the sheet being used by the game, and if a demiplane sheet is active, is this a dual sheet game? I want to create a report, but need more info. Not sure if this is an actual bug or a need by Roll20 to better document the expected process.

Hiya Keith, hope you're well : ) The sheet is D&D 5e 2014 by User Collaboration Team, same sheet we have always used.  We don't use 2024 sheets and it is not a dual sheet game.  None of us have any connection to Demiplane, so we really don't get why that is suddenly appearing.  On transmog the green progress bar gets about 95% across before popping up the error message in this image EDIT: this seems to relate only to new games - older JG games are still fine.  Happy to DM you a link and promote to GM if that'd help

I think there maybe more than 1 layer of issue here. I see you have a Demiplane related glitch, I have no idea what's going on there. Hopefully Roll20 Help Center will answer you on that one.  But, there has been another usability issue ever since "Roll20 Characters" feature came out.  If you let your Players use +Add Character button under Journals, their character will not be able to be Transmogrified anyway. It will be a Roll20 Characters character that is owned by that Player. It will not be able to be transmog (or even deleted?) by the GM because you will not be the owner of that Character even-though it is in the Journal in your game.  Correct me if I'm wrong (keithcurtis, Roll20, anyone).  That's why I think nowadays the best-practices is for the GM to create all of the Characters (character sheets in the Journal) and assign them to Players so that the players can do their edits. This will retain the powers of the GM to be the owner of that character and be able to transmog. 

Hi Gold - I don't get why older JG games work as desired though since there is no opting in to Roll20 Characters, so presumably whatever goes on to make Roll20 Characters work applies across all games as a system wide thing? Just spoken to one of my players to confrim and the have stated the most I ever did was make a set of tokens that were controleld by all, they would log in, claim a token and then create character, changing the token art as desired.   With regard to deletion - just to say as GM I can delete the characters, no matter who created them and in whatever game

Gold said: If you let your Players use +Add Character button under Journals, their character will not be able to be Transmogrified anyway. It will be a Roll20 Characters character that is owned by that Player. It will not be able to be transmog (or even deleted?) by the GM because you will not be the owner of that Character even-though it is in the Journal in your game.  Correct me if I'm wrong (keithcurtis, Roll20, anyone).  This is correct, to my best knowledge. I also have disabled Roll20Characters for my home games for just this reason. If you are a Pro/Eilte user, there are some script options, but the best option if you want to avoid this sort of stickiness is to do it the "old fashioned way" and create blank new character sheets for your players, as Gold describes.

Thanks both, we've not encountered this problem before, so am disappointed that a R20 feature has to be avoided in order to make things work.  I have several newish games running and can't be sure of when those were created to be certain, but one of them was a birthday surprise for a player and so I know it was created in September 2025.  I and my players all feel it was done by just creating tokens with vision open to all players and they logged in and created their characters without me making blank sheets.  Those characters behave exactly as desired, JG game and it must be after Roll20characters became a thing.  We also have the Demiplane weirdness... Roll20 response to the contrary not withstanding, I will follow your advice, but would posit that players being able to create characters in game without such GM intervention, that the GM can then move to other games is the way it should work