A guide to using multi-layered maps

Hey forum gang! I only just weeks ago started running my weekly rpg on roll20 and my players and I are so far totally jazzed with it. I am still feeling out some of the functionality and I have some newbie questions about using multi-layered map packs. Is there an easy and accessible guide for using map packs that have multiple floors or interior/exterior images? I'm more accustomed to using Photoshop so I'm feeling somewhat limited by the number of layers in the roll20 application but the creators have made so many delicious looking castles to storm that I'm sure there must be a cool way to use them like how I'm imagining. Thanks in advance!

There is no guide that I'm aware of in how you are thinking.

There is only map layer, object layer, GM layer, and Dynamic Lighting layer (paid subscription feature). When a map pack has multiple floors, you can do a representation a few different ways.

1. Each floor / level is it's own map page.
2. All the floors levels are on one page but spread out (similar to laying out various paper maps on one table). Each covered by fog of war or seperated dynamic lighting.

Now there are a few ways to move tokens from map to map. There is the manual way of dragging tokens to the appropriate map on the page (#2 reference), the use of specific API scripts (pro subscription), presetting tokens on the proper pages (#1 reference) and either manually moving the player ribbon or using an API script to do that.

If you think of this as being your kitchen or gaming table in your home and treat it as that, you will have a decent idea of what can be done.

Sounds interesting! I don't have any experience with scripting but I am excited to try it out and make it work and I suppose in the meantime the manual drag and drop method you described will work just fine. Thanks again!

You could also set up all the image as a side of a rollable table and place them on the VTT as a token from there, then using right click and 'select side' you can choose which floor to display at any given point.

As a pro user (and assuming you are the creator of the game... or the creator is a pro...) you could also use the Dynamic Lighting recorder API to pre-record the DL for each floor ahead of time, then when you change the side being displayed the dynamic lighting will also update (less useful if the party splits however!)

I haven't experimented much with dynamic lighting, API scripting, or rollable tables yet. I hope to give them all a try soon.