New to Roll20 or RPGs? Need Guidance? Click Here. (Read the OP First)

First, Welcome to Roll20! We hope you enjoy your stay here. We have two video series that are at your disposal for help getting started. 1) If you're absolutely brand new to RPGs and want to know the general idea of how they are played, which game to choose and then find a group of fellow gamers: Check out our Introduction to Tabletop RPGs series . 2) If you've played tabletop RPGs before and just want to get a understanding of how Roll20 can be used: Check out our Roll20 Crash Course . This is a step-by-step overview for creating your very first Roll20 campaign. This tutorial uses the Pathfinder RPG to frame itself, but it's not a system specific tutorial and you should be able to follow along without knowing one single thing about Pathfinder. You can also review the last New to Roll20 thread to see what other new users have been asking. Hopefully this will make acclimating to RPGs and Roll20 a lot easier. Happy Gaming!

Question - Handouts Is it possible to implement a "Duplicate" function for the Handouts? I only see "Archive Handout" and "Delete Handout" at the bottom of the sheet.

@John: That's more of a suggestion than a question. From a technical standpoint, I'm sure it would be possible. There are a few ways you could do this now: use the Transmogrifier (a Mentor feature) to copy the handout to another campaign, rename it, and copy it back; use the API (a Mentor feature) to create a new handout with the same contents. If a direct copy is something you're interested in, you should open a Suggestion in the Suggestions and Ideas Forum.

The Aaron said: @John: That's more of a suggestion than a question. From a technical standpoint, I'm sure it would be possible. There are a few ways you could do this now: use the Transmogrifier (a Mentor feature) to copy the handout to another campaign, rename it, and copy it back; use the API (a Mentor feature) to create a new handout with the same contents. If a direct copy is something you're interested in, you should open a Suggestion in the Suggestions and Ideas Forum. Bless you adventurer, many thanks!

No worries! :)

Do I need to purchase things like player handbooks separately?

Hi Alim L. Roll20 is not the game, just the virtual table top to play it on. If you were going to play Dungeons and Dragons on it, you'd need to go get the books. You can think of Roll20 as computer based version of the gaming mat you put your figures on, a collection of those figures, a place the GM can put the character sheets and handouts and a dice set. Roll20 is gaming system agnostic, so you can play any RPG you like on it.

To add on to what Aaron mentioned about books. There are systems out there that are pay what you like (fate is one), have an SRD (free rules online) like 3.5e or Pathfinder (D&D versions), or OGL (totally free) systems like the one I like (Basic Fantasy RPG). Find a game in the Looking for Group forum or the Looking for Group campaign listing (look in blue banner above) that interest you and post a request to join. Be polite and let them know you are willing to learn and see where it goes. Good luck and happy gaming.

Thanks guys. I haven't had time to play in so long. I'm excited to get going!

Hello, I am brand new to this whole thing...and i have no idea what to do..i watched the videos and everything. But even more lost :P

Hi Chris. Welcome aboard. I would recommend creating a campaign and start experimenting using the crash course videos and the Wiki as a guide. As things come up that you can't seem to figure out, post back to the forums asking for help with a specific question(s) and you will get all the help you need. Guaranteed. Have fun.

Hi, I'm new to the site, and I have a question about the Quantum Roll system. I figured I could post here without making a full topic post. Is there a setting as to whether or not you are using the Quantum Roll system, or is there a reason that it might not be used for rolls? I ask because there is no indicator as described on the Quantum Roll reference page when I make rolls.

It cannot be turned off. Can you post the command you used to make the roll? If it's an inline roll like: I rolled [[1d20]] You will need to point to the roll to see the Quantum Roll symbol.

I used the Dice Roll GUI and the standard roll command '/r 1d20' Is the little atomic symbol in the bottom left here just not used anymore? Because that is the only difference between what is on the Quantum Roll wiki page (the picture above), and what I see when I roll. I assume it would probably tell me otherwise if it weren't working. (Also I'm using the latest version of Google Chrome, if that helps any)

If you roll using /r 1d20 or the dice gui, etc., you should see the results in chat including the atomic graphic. If you make an inline roll [[1d20]], you only see the total in chat, but if you hover over the total, you will see the "math" of the inline elements and the atomic symbol.

I tried all three ways and I'm seeing the atomic symbol fine. It's very strange that you aren't seeing it. Does this graphic load for you: --------8<----------------------- --------8<-----------------------

Hi can you put a campain in an archive?

Dennis M. said: Hi can you put a campain in an archive? Hi Dennis. I don't think so since the archiving function exists within a campaign. You can archive handouts and journal pages. This might make a good suggestion. Why do you ask?

Because I have a lot of games and when I go to look for them I have to go to the campain list a couple ot times to do it. At the moment it takes 2 times. Also some games I paln on useing in the future so I don't want to deleate them.

I juggle a handful of campaigns as well, which can be a pain. Luckily, your campaigngs will be presented in the order they were last accessed, with the most recent being at the top. Maybe change the name of the campaigns and tag them with keywords. Use the search bar from the "View All My Campaigns" page to locate your campaigns by their name/tags. Some subscription level options; at Supporter level you have the Character Vault and Mentor level has the Transmogrifier (and wiki info ) which allows you to easily copy assets between campaigns. Hope this helps. Have fun.

Hi Folks, am currently DMing a Dnd3.5 adventure and we are in part 2 (Sinister Spire) of a 3 part series .. by any chance do these published adventures exist anywhere to import the campaigns? If not then I presume I'd need to recreate their published landscapes myself. There seems to be a lot of features here, so many its initially overwhelming .. so am wondering if initially I can use it just to show the various rooms in the adventure as they discover them (by using my smart TV browser or laptop output) and handle the game interactions the old fashioned way ...

Hello all!. probably a stupid question, I've recently subscribed, and tonight i hoped onto the marketplace to pick up some tile packs. When i tried to purchase them it only allowed the use of the card i used to subscribe with. Can i attach another card, such as a prepay, to my account and buy marketplace items with it? id rather not use a cc for basically micro-transactions, those add up fast lol.

Saunders S. said: Hello all!. probably a stupid question, I've recently subscribed, and tonight i hoped onto the marketplace to pick up some tile packs. When i tried to purchase them it only allowed the use of the card i used to subscribe with. Can i attach another card, such as a prepay, to my account and buy marketplace items with it? id rather not use a cc for basically micro-transactions, those add up fast lol. Def, not a stupid question! The goal of this thread is for you to feel comfortable reaching out, no worries. :) You can change your credit card information to another card, by visiting Your Subscription page. There you can to update payment information, view previous invoices, or upgrade your supporter level. Please note, this will change your payment method for your subscription as well, so you may want to change it back after you make your marketplace purchases. If you run into any troubles, please make sure to email us at <a href="mailto:team@roll20.net" rel="nofollow">team@roll20.net</a> for more help.

Sir Loin said: Hi Folks, am currently DMing a Dnd3.5 adventure and we are in part 2 (Sinister Spire) of a 3 part series .. by any chance do these published adventures exist anywhere to import the campaigns? If not then I presume I'd need to recreate their published landscapes myself. There seems to be a lot of features here, so many its initially overwhelming .. so am wondering if initially I can use it just to show the various rooms in the adventure as they discover them (by using my smart TV browser or laptop output) and handle the game interactions the old fashioned way ... Roll20 does have some modules for purchase on our Marketplace . However copyright law/ the OGL prevents the specific published adventures you are looking for from being mass produced on our site. The beauty of Roll20 is that you can recreate them in your game if you would like to use them for yourself. We do have the Transmogrifier tool and the duplicate tool to help you when you do start creating. You might also check out our crash course to learn more.

[M]Avacyn said: Sir Loin said: Hi Folks, am currently DMing a Dnd3.5 adventure and we are in part 2 (Sinister Spire) of a 3 part series .. by any chance do these published adventures exist anywhere to import the campaigns? If not then I presume I'd need to recreate their published landscapes myself. There seems to be a lot of features here, so many its initially overwhelming .. so am wondering if initially I can use it just to show the various rooms in the adventure as they discover them (by using my smart TV browser or laptop output) and handle the game interactions the old fashioned way ... Roll20 does have some modules for purchase on our Marketplace . However copyright law/ the OGL prevents the specific published adventures you are looking for from being mass produced on our site. The beauty of Roll20 is that you can recreate them in your game if you would like to use them for yourself. We do have the Transmogrifier tool and the duplicate tool to help you when you do start creating. You might also check out our crash course to learn more. Appreciate the info .. was reading some more info in the wiki .. for my adventures can I scan the room grids to import them into roll20 instead of having to recreate them by hand? Saw something in some of the d&d 3.5 wiki about importing but no link or details how .. thanks ..

Take a look at our Tabletop Overview and our Image Best Practices wiki pages, they will have all the information you need!

Roll20 is da bomb ... just spent about 2 hours and created 3 pages importing pictures from my DnD3.5 .. created my NPCs etc .. looking forward to giving it a test run with the troop. Well done ...

I have a question about the dynamic lighting. I have it set to where they cannot see past a door. How would I be able to essentially "open the door" for them to be able to see?

Jason M. said: I have a question about the dynamic lighting. I have it set to where they cannot see past a door. How would I be able to essentially "open the door" for them to be able to see? The most common solution is to make a single segment line, usually of a different color, and then move or delete that line as the door is opened. As a mentor level feature, there are API scripts that do this automatically.

Quick 2 parter: I imported some gifs and they look good, just that some of the map/layout grid blocks are still showing on the side of it .. can I delete them or do they really not matter. Also, can I rotate the map/background? Right now its vertically aligned and I'd prefer it horizontally (want to try to display it on a widescreen TV)

Howdy Sir Loin Ok, for the first part I'm not entirely sure what you mean. Do you mean there is a single image on the page, and you have extra 'grid squares' around the edges you wish to remove? Something like this... If so, one option is to change the Page Settings to resize it to match your image: "1" above Just trim off the extra grid from the appropriate side; in my case above, I'd turn the width down by 3 and the height by 2, as that's the number of extra squares on each side. Another option is to resize the image itself. Assuming it's on the Map Layer, simply switch to that layer, select the image, and 'stretch' it by grabbing the corner dot and dragging it: "A" or any of those dots around the edge can be used to stretch your image. For part 2, you'd use "B" in the image above, called the "Rotation Gizmo". Click and drag that and you can easily rotate the image. In both cases A and B above, you can hold down the ALT key to ignore the 'snap to grid' function and get the exact size and/or alignment you want. Hope that helps! -Phnord

spot on for both, many thanks!!!

Is there anything special to do to move PCs from 1 page to the next .. or just drag & drop them from the journal again onto the next page? I was wondering if like dragging the players icon from the one page to the next page might have moved them automagically .. but it didn't seem to ..

Copy/paste the player's token's is probably the best option for moving player's between maps. Moving the player's ribbon just moves focus for the player's to a new map. There might be times when you want the players to view a certain map, while you prepare another. Move the player's ribbon once you are ready. There are suggestions made for combining the movement of player's tokens with he player ribbon. Attach player tokens to the 'players' ribbon

im trylng to figure out how to add avatar and token pictures to a character and how to add them onto the page once i've done that. can't seem to make it work.

Hi Toby. Have a look on the wiki, Journal That should describe what you want to do. To properly link tokens with character sheets so that you can just drag/drop from the sidebar have a look at Link Tokens to Journals . Hope that helps. Post back if you have more questions.

Steve K. said: Jason M. said: I have a question about the dynamic lighting. I have it set to where they cannot see past a door. How would I be able to essentially "open the door" for them to be able to see? The most common solution is to make a single segment line, usually of a different color, and then move or delete that line as the door is opened. As a mentor level feature, there are API scripts that do this automatically. If I was to go to mentor level, Is there an explanation of the API scripts on how they work?

Most API scripts have a corresponding thread in the API forum and or a API listing in the wiki. You will find instructions on how to use the script, ask questions, and make suggestions in the API forum. Well worth the Mentor subscription IMO.

hi i am brand new to the site, ive never once played table top games but ive always wanted to play d&d im kinda super lost i watched a bit of the videos but it wasnt making much sense i deal witha high functioning form of autism so its a tad tricky for me im kind of confused and a little embarrassed at my lack of knowledge

It does seem worth it. After reading the forums, im not to sure I could do all of that. I've never had to work with coding like that before. Seemed complicated. Thank you though for helping with the dynamic lightning though.

Welcome aboard Shayne. To learn how to play D&D, or any rpg for that matter it helps to be introduced to the game by others that are very familiar with it and that are willing to teach a new player about the game. Luckily, I've found that most gamers are more than willing to help new players learn their gaming system. Local gaming stores are a good place to find other gamers in your area. On roll20, use the LFG section and to find games that are open to new players. Start a correspondence with the GM and explain that you are completely new to D&D, rpg's, and roll20. Best to be completely honest so that everyone playing knows what needs to be taught. For D&D 5e I would suggest buying the player's handbook to get you started. Luckily, as a player on roll20, you don't have to know every nuance of the roll20 system. Go thru the getting started and intro videos on the wiki and post specific questions as they come up. Most of all, have fun.

I'm struggling figuring out how to set up the initiative turn order for 5E D&D game. I'm instructed to right click a token to add a turn but this doesn't do anything. Is this because I'm using a Mac? Also, how can I erase selected or individual freehand drawings or shapes? I see the erase all button but I can't seem to locate and eraser button or something that allows me to go in and erase only things I want. Thanks in advance for the help...

Hello AO. <a href="https://wiki.roll20.net/Turn_Tracker" rel="nofollow">https://wiki.roll20.net/Turn_Tracker</a> covers the basics of the turn traker (Initiative order). You have to have it open first then you can right click on the token and add turn. This will place an entry in the turn tracker with a 0. You just need to click on the 0 and enter your number. Now there is also a few macros if you are needing to automate it some what also. <a href="https://wiki.roll20.net/Macros#Rolling_For_Initiative" rel="nofollow">https://wiki.roll20.net/Macros#Rolling_For_Initiative</a> will explain most of what you will need to know. To erase the drawings you should be able to right click and delete them. If you want to remove all the drawings, you can click on the clear drawings.

Psssst, Pat: Macs don't have a right & left click.

Ah. I don't have a mac so I didn't know. <a href="https://wiki.roll20.net/Drawing_Tools" rel="nofollow">https://wiki.roll20.net/Drawing_Tools</a> doesn't have much info for Macs. Found keyboard shortcuts for OS X. Try them and see if they work: <a href="http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201236" rel="nofollow">http://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201236</a>

AO, I briefly googled and you should find this helpful: <a href="http://www.wikihow.com/Right-Click-on-a-Mac" rel="nofollow">http://www.wikihow.com/Right-Click-on-a-Mac</a>

Hey, new to roll20 here! I'm heavily used to Theater of the Mind and non-linear progression, with the aid of a dry-erase grid because mini's and hand drawn maps are time consuming, and I'm having a hard time trying to make that work within the confines of the system. Is there really no way to allow my groups to just do what they would normally do when playing face to face physically, and take what I want to do and throw it all over creation, which I highly enjoy? Or do I have to make them wait while I construct new maps? Can I just forgo maps in their entirety? It's a lot to process haha

Hello Garret. Theater of the mind games are easy to do here. Just ignore the map or let the players draw on it. I've ran narritive games (theater of the mind) and play in them all the time here in roll20.

You can remove the grid from the map display, and just have a vast expanse of white for everyone to scribble on. I do suggest having player tokens, if only so people can attach macros as 'token actions' (macros that only show when the token is selected).