Tokens are simple image files. The real tasks are getting them into your VTT, sizing them to the grid, and saving them so you only do it once.
What to expect in a token pack
Token packs usually come as individual image files, most often PNGs, often with transparent backgrounds so they sit cleanly on a map. Some include matching portraits, which are larger images of the same creature for display or handouts. Check the listing for the exact count and file formats, since they differ from pack to pack. Both Roll20 and Foundry accept standard image files.
Tokens that are cut out as a circle or a clean silhouette are the easiest to use. Keep a folder for each pack on your computer so that you can find them again.
Importing into Roll20
- Open your game and find the image file on your computer.
- Drag it directly onto the tabletop. Roll20 uploads it to your Art Library as it places it.
- If you have a lot of files, the Art Library window lets you upload in batches. Roll20 limits a batch to 10 files and 5 MB.
- Drag the token to the Objects & Tokens layer and resize it to fit a square on the grid.
Roll20's standard square is 70 pixels wide. If a token image is 280 pixels, Roll20 treats it as one grid square automatically, which is the easiest case to work with. A larger creature is just a bigger drag handle, and with Snap to Grid on, the token settles into place.
For creatures you will use again, save the token as a character's default token from its sheet, so you can drag a ready-made token from the journal whenever you need one.
Importing into Foundry
- Create a folder for your tokens inside your Foundry user data folder. Foundry reads image files from its Data directory or from a public web address.
- Upload the image files into that folder using Foundry's file picker.
- Create an Actor, or open the Token Configuration for an existing one, and set the Image Path to your token file.
- Set the token's Dimensions, which is the number of grid units it takes up. A creature that fits in one square is 1 by 1.
Foundry also has a Scale setting that changes how large the artwork looks without changing the squares it occupies. That is useful when a creature's art is much bigger than its footprint, like a winged monster. Foundry's default square is 100 pixels, but it works with whatever size your scene is set to.
If you have several versions of the same creature, you can use a wildcard image path, which tells Foundry to pick a random image from a folder each time, so a goblin pack does not look like clones.
Sizing tokens to the grid
D&D 5e gives creatures a size category, and the size tells you how many squares they take up:
- Tiny: a quarter of a square. Several can share a square.
- Small and Medium: one square (5 feet).
- Large: 2 by 2 squares (10 feet).
- Huge: 3 by 3 squares (15 feet).
- Gargantuan: 4 by 4 squares or larger.
Set the token's size on the VTT to match, and use the creature's stat block to look up its size.
Top-down tokens and portraits
Top-down tokens show a creature from above, which is why they sit well on a map. Portraits are for the side panel, a handout, or a close-up when an NPC speaks. Keep both in the same folder, named the same way, so you can pair them quickly. A system like "goblin-miner-token.png" and "goblin-miner-portrait.png" saves a lot of searching later.
The Goblin Miners Token Pack includes portraits with its tokens, and the individual image files work in Roll20, Foundry, and most other virtual tabletops. For maps to use them on, see the Goblin Mines Map Bundle.