This guide is to help you with the basics of getting started using GM Forge. If you want to play multiplayer make sure you take a look at this guide here

When you start GM Forge you first create a world and select a default "Game System" for this world. This system can be changed later on, but you will start by selecting a system (These options are the 6 starter packages, which are available on the workshop. More systems can be downloaded from the workshop later on)


You will be prompted to name your world, which will be saved in your public/worlds folder.

Now you are setup, and if you have multiplayer setup players can join and start creating in your session.

Characters in GM Forge are known as "Actors", you can create a new actor from the "Assets" tab in the top right.


Once an actor is created, you can see them appear in the actors list. You can click on the actor to view its sheet, or right click on the actor to different things such as changing access, rolling initiative and more! You can also right click directly on the sheet to see this dropdown menu again.


All things you create in GM Forge have options to configure "Access" to them. Access determines how a player can use/see and interact with a character, both on the map and off the map. There are four levels of access you can grant a player


Somebody with "Owner" access can do everything that somebody can do with "Rights" access, and anybody with "Rights" access can do anything somebody with "Visible" access can do.

You can place a character onto the map by dragging and dropping them onto the map. A player can not drag their own Actor on the map, but can create a token for themselves if one does not already exist by "Right Clicking" on the map. This will only work if they are currently "impersonating" an actor.


If you need to edit the token, click on the token and use the quick options, or go to the advanced options by clicking on the "gear" icon.




You can rotate a token with
You can ignore snap to grid by down holding
Players can also use the to move a token, but only if you have "Rights" access to the actor attached to that token.

You can select a battlemap from any files you have in GM Forge (which are stored in your /public/custom folder) by selecting the "background" tab in the bottom left



and then clicking on the background image. You can only have one background image, which can be .png, .jpg or even video files (.mp4, .ogg, .webm)


For a more extensive guide on how to build your maps, check a guide by another generous user of GM Forge


Link to Other Guide

In the combat tab you can add combatants to track initiative, depending on the system the way your initiative rolls will vary, however all players who are impersonating characters will be prompted to roll initiative when combat begins, unless they are given an explicit initiative order. You can give explicit initiative order by right clicking on an actor, combat->roll initiative.

You can set initiatives by right clicking on them in the asset list, combat-> Roll/Set Initiative.
You can assign the initiative by setting it directly, or entering a macro formula. If you enter nothing, it will roll initiative

If the current turn is the same as a hidden combatants, they will appear in the initiative order, but with a hidden image/name. Otherwise a player must have "Visible" access to them to see them in the initiative order

You can hide/unhide combatants after a combat a started.

Hiding a combattant in the combat menu will also hide their token on the map. However you can "unhide" the token on the map, but still leave the combattant hidden in combat.

You can setup a new track in the music tab for your music. Tracks are a collection of music files from your computer, that you can play simultaneously or individually depending on what you need.


To play a track simultaneously, use the "play" button on the track label, and to play a random track click on the "shuffle" button which is directly to the right of the "play" button.

You can toggle individual music by using the "play" and "pause" buttons next to one another, and balance audio using the slider. All players will hear audio at this volume

You can share youtube videos by using the "Media" tab, simply search a video, select the video you want to be synchronized with your group, and press play after its loaded. These can only be played by the GM, and the window can not be hidden due to youtube's terms of service. Players can control their own volume, and close the window if they need to.


All your custom files should be placed in the /public/custom folder. This folder can contain anything from Art and music, to PDFs and videos. If you are looking to share a PDF with your group, add a "resource page" to the navigation bar at the top of your window.

You will need to manually click "refresh" if a new file is added via your file browser while you are still on the files tab

You can roll dice using a variety of different ways. The most basic way is to use the dice buttons which vary depending on which system you chose for your world

Alternatively you can "pool" dice together using the dice pool roller


If you are looking to roll an equation from chat, simply type in chat


If you are looking for something a little bit more advanced, please see the "Macros and Actions" guide on the workshop

On most sheets there are clickable elements. You can left click on them to roll whatever dice has been setup for the buttons, or right click on them to make a popup menu you can use later.