First time playing on Roll20? This is a basic walkthrough to help you get started as a player. We even have a video guide to provide an overview! You’ll get easy step-by-step instructions on how to access the core features of Roll20, from turning on your webcam to rolling dice and moving tokens you control.
If you're looking to dive in and learn about the features we offer, check out our Tutorial for an overview of Roll20's Virtual Tabletop. It's full of fun tips and tricks to get you up to speed and in a game!
For more tutorial resources, check out these other introduction articles on the Roll20 Help Center:
- Roll20 Crash Course: Step-by-step help for GMs bringing their tabletop game online.
- Introduction to Tabletop RPGs: Learn about game systems that suit your style of play.
Join a Game
Once you click on the game invite link from your GM, the first page you’ll see is the Game Details page. This has a game-specific forum for you to use out of game, lists the players in the game, and, most importantly, has the Launch Game button to get you into the game itself.
Roll20 has built-in support for Video and Voice Chat that uses your webcam and microphone to connect with other players around the virtual tabletop. Your web browser will prompt you to “Allow” the website to access your camera and microphone. Once you say yes you’re good to go, and you can always change your Audio and Video preferences in the Game Settings!
You can also talk to your friends via Roll20’s robust text chat. Typing in the window on the bottom right side of your screen (make sure you’re in the Chat tab!) allows you to whisper secrets to your GM or emote your action.
You can even choose who you’re “speaking” as from the dropdown menu below the chat box so all of you can have in and out of character conversations and rolls.
Related Resources:
- Video and Voice Chat [Text] How to use the Roll20 in-app WebRTC chat feature.
- Text Chat [Text] How to use the Roll20 text chat.
- Speaking As [Text] How to change your avatar in-game and in chat.
Roll Your Dice
You can roll dice directly from the Toolbar by clicking on the dice icon. It’s great for easy rolls of various dice, and can be whispered to your GM or rolled openly. You can also find and reroll your most recent dice rolls.
If you’re jonesing for that satisfying math-rock rolling, you can enable 3D dice in the My Settings tab. It will roll virtual dice on the table using a real physics simulation.
The Journal tab is essential. That’s where you’ll find your Character Sheet and its attached token, once your GM has given you edit and control access. When you want to check your stats, or need to level up, the Journal tab is where you’ll head.
Many Character Sheets are click-to-roll which means you simply need to ensure you have the correct information set-up in your sheet and then you can click the attribute you wish to roll and voilà! It will automatically roll in the chat for you.
Related Resources:
- Dice Rolling GUI [Text] How to roll directly from the in-app Toolbar.
- Dice Reference [Text] How to roll virtual dice in every possible way.
- 3D Dice [Text] How the 3D dice work.
- How to Create a Character [Text] How to create a click-to-roll character sheet.
- Journal [Text] How to find and use everything in the Journal tab: Characters, Handouts, and Folders.
- Roll20 Charactermancer [Text, Video] How to use the Roll20 Charactermancer for Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition.
Move Around the VTT
You can see tokens that are on the Objects & Tokens Layer. You will be able to select and move any token that your GM gives you permission to control. When you have control over a token linked to a Character Sheet, you can move it on the tabletop, rotate it, and use token markers to show status effects. You will be able to change the values within the bubbles that pop up above the token. For example, if a GM has tied a bubble to your character’s hit points, you will be able to type in “-5” and it will automatically subtract 5 from your hit point total.
By selecting different functions from the Toolbar in the top corner of the tabletop, you choose what your mouse will do. You can pan to look around the VTT, zoom in and out using the magnifying glass, or measure distances with the ruler.
You can get everyone’s attention to anywhere on the tabletop by clicking and holding on that spot. That sends a ping (an expanding ring of color centered on where your mouse is) to everyone at that location.
Related Resources:
- Roll20 Tips: Select/Move Tool [Video] How to move and manipulate tokens.
- Roll20 Tips: Rings, Zoom, & Panning [Video] How to ping a location and change the color of the ping.
- Token Features [Text] How to edit tokens and an explanation of each part of the feature.
- Toolbar Overview [Text] How to use the different functions on the Toolbar.
Characters and Tokens
How to create a character
In this tutorial, we go over the different ways to set up character sheets, how to make and share handouts with all of your players (or just one), and how to create and organize folders.
How to create a character sheet using Charactermancer
This tutorial is all about the Roll20 Charactermancer. We provide a Charactermancer walkthrough using D&D 5e and show you how to level up, create an NPC sheet, and edit a character sheet directly.
Connecting Tokens to Character Sheets
Connecting tokens to character sheets and vice versa is easy with this Roll20 Tutorial. We also share troubleshooting tips and tell you how to use multiple tokens for the same creature.
Character Sheets
Using the D&D 5E by Roll20
If you're a new D&D player playing on Roll20, this is the tutorial for you. We go over everything about our D&D 5e Character Sheet from rolling ability checks to casting spells and much more.