diff --git a/frontend/src/api/designSystems.ts b/frontend/src/api/designSystems.ts
index 89cb9ba..e3d7f21 100644
--- a/frontend/src/api/designSystems.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/api/designSystems.ts
@@ -74,11 +74,28 @@ export const fetchDesignSystems = () =>
 export const fetchDesignSystem = (id: number) =>
   apiGet<DesignSystem>(`/api/design-systems/${id}`);
 
+export interface StarterRoleGroup {
+  group: string;
+  description: string;
+  token_count: number;
+  names: string[];
+}
+
+/** The starter token ROLES offered at creation — names and purposes, never
+ *  values. A default palette would be one install's taste shipped as product
+ *  (rule #115), so the values are always the operator's to fill. */
+export const listStarterRoleGroups = () =>
+  apiGet<{ groups: StarterRoleGroup[]; default_prefix: string }>(
+    "/api/design-systems/starter-roles",
+  );
+
 export const createDesignSystem = (body: {
   title: string;
   description?: string;
   guidance?: string;
   parent_id?: number | null;
+  starter_role_groups?: string[];
+  token_prefix?: string;
 }) => apiPost<DesignSystem>("/api/design-systems", body);
 
 /** Omit `parent_id` to leave it alone; send `null` to make the system a family. */
diff --git a/frontend/src/components/StarterRolePicker.vue b/frontend/src/components/StarterRolePicker.vue
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0011fdb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/components/StarterRolePicker.vue
@@ -0,0 +1,212 @@
+<script setup lang="ts">
+/**
+ * The starter token ROLES offered when a design system is created (#2349).
+ *
+ * WHY THIS IS A COMPONENT
+ * DesignSystemsView has two creation forms — the empty state and the one inside
+ * the body — because the empty state is a sibling branch, not a parent. Putting
+ * the checklist inline would make it the third thing in this codebase defined
+ * twice and free to drift, which is what the whole button migration was about.
+ *
+ * WHAT IT OFFERS
+ * Names and purposes, never values. A role is a question the operator answers
+ * with their own palette; a default palette would be one install's taste
+ * shipped as product (rule #115). Every group is individually skippable —
+ * an operator who wants three tokens should get three.
+ *
+ * All groups are checked by default. That default lives HERE rather than in the
+ * service, because the service must never seed rows into a system whose caller
+ * did not ask; a UI default is visible and reversible before the click.
+ */
+import { onMounted, ref } from "vue";
+import { listStarterRoleGroups, type StarterRoleGroup } from "@/api/designSystems";
+
+// props + emit rather than defineModel, matching TagInput and the rest of
+// components/ — being the only file using a different binding idiom costs more
+// than the few lines it saves.
+const props = defineProps<{ selected: string[]; prefix: string }>();
+const emit = defineEmits<{
+  "update:selected": [value: string[]];
+  "update:prefix": [value: string];
+}>();
+
+const groups = ref<StarterRoleGroup[]>([]);
+const defaultPrefix = ref("--ds-");
+const loading = ref(false);
+const failed = ref(false);
+
+onMounted(async () => {
+  loading.value = true;
+  try {
+    const data = await listStarterRoleGroups();
+    groups.value = data.groups;
+    defaultPrefix.value = data.default_prefix;
+    if (!props.prefix) emit("update:prefix", data.default_prefix);
+    // Everything on by default — see the note above.
+    if (!props.selected.length) {
+      emit("update:selected", data.groups.map((g) => g.group));
+    }
+  } catch {
+    // A creation form must still work when this fails. Roles are an
+    // accelerator, not a prerequisite: the operator can add tokens by hand.
+    failed.value = true;
+  } finally {
+    loading.value = false;
+  }
+});
+
+function toggle(group: string) {
+  emit(
+    "update:selected",
+    props.selected.includes(group)
+      ? props.selected.filter((g) => g !== group)
+      : [...props.selected, group],
+  );
+}
+
+const totalTokens = () =>
+  groups.value
+    .filter((g) => props.selected.includes(g.group))
+    .reduce((n, g) => n + g.token_count, 0);
+</script>
+
+<template>
+  <div v-if="loading" class="srp-note">Loading starter roles…</div>
+
+  <!-- Failure is not fatal and should not read as one. -->
+  <div v-else-if="failed" class="srp-note">
+    Starter roles unavailable — you can add tokens by hand after creating.
+  </div>
+
+  <fieldset v-else-if="groups.length" class="srp">
+    <legend class="srp-legend">Start with these token roles</legend>
+    <p class="srp-intro">
+      Named now, valued later. A role you haven't filled in shows as
+      <em>to be decided</em>; a role that doesn't exist is what gets written as a
+      literal instead. Uncheck anything this system won't have.
+    </p>
+
+    <div class="srp-grid">
+      <label v-for="g in groups" :key="g.group" class="srp-item">
+        <input
+          type="checkbox"
+          :checked="props.selected.includes(g.group)"
+          @change="toggle(g.group)"
+        />
+        <span class="srp-name">{{ g.group }}</span>
+        <span class="srp-count">{{ g.token_count }}</span>
+        <span class="srp-desc">{{ g.description }}</span>
+      </label>
+    </div>
+
+    <div class="srp-footer">
+      <label class="srp-prefix">
+        <span>Prefix</span>
+        <input
+          :value="props.prefix" class="input srp-prefix-input" type="text"
+          :placeholder="defaultPrefix"
+          @input="emit('update:prefix', ($event.target as HTMLInputElement).value)"
+        />
+      </label>
+      <span class="srp-total">
+        {{ totalTokens() }} {{ totalTokens() === 1 ? "role" : "roles" }}, no values
+      </span>
+    </div>
+  </fieldset>
+</template>
+
+<style scoped>
+.srp {
+  border: var(--fs-border);
+  border-radius: var(--fs-radius-md);
+  padding: var(--fs-space-4);
+  margin: 0 0 var(--fs-space-4);
+  min-width: 0;
+}
+
+.srp-legend {
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-label);
+  font-weight: var(--fs-weight-medium);
+  color: var(--color-text);
+  padding: 0 var(--fs-space-2);
+}
+
+.srp-intro,
+.srp-note {
+  margin: 0 0 var(--fs-space-3);
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-body-sm);
+  color: var(--color-text-secondary);
+  line-height: var(--fs-leading-body);
+  max-width: 62ch;
+}
+
+.srp-note {
+  margin-bottom: var(--fs-space-4);
+}
+
+.srp-grid {
+  display: grid;
+  grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fill, minmax(15rem, 1fr));
+  gap: var(--fs-space-2);
+}
+
+.srp-item {
+  display: grid;
+  grid-template-columns: auto auto 1fr;
+  align-items: baseline;
+  gap: var(--fs-space-2);
+  padding: var(--fs-space-1) var(--fs-space-2);
+  border-radius: var(--fs-radius-sm);
+  cursor: pointer;
+  min-width: 0;
+}
+.srp-item:hover { background: var(--color-hover); }
+
+.srp-name {
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-body-sm);
+  color: var(--color-text);
+}
+
+.srp-count {
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-tiny);
+  color: var(--color-text-muted);
+  font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums;
+}
+
+/* The description is the useful part on a wide card and the first thing worth
+   dropping on a narrow one — the group name alone still identifies the row. */
+.srp-desc {
+  grid-column: 1 / -1;
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-tiny);
+  color: var(--color-text-muted);
+  line-height: var(--fs-leading-body);
+}
+
+.srp-footer {
+  display: flex;
+  align-items: center;
+  justify-content: space-between;
+  flex-wrap: wrap;
+  gap: var(--fs-space-3);
+  margin-top: var(--fs-space-4);
+}
+
+.srp-prefix {
+  display: flex;
+  align-items: center;
+  gap: var(--fs-space-2);
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-body-sm);
+  color: var(--color-text-secondary);
+}
+
+.srp-prefix-input {
+  width: 8rem;
+  font-family: var(--fs-font-mono);
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-code);
+}
+
+.srp-total {
+  font-size: var(--fs-size-tiny);
+  color: var(--color-text-muted);
+}
+</style>
diff --git a/frontend/src/views/DesignSystemsView.vue b/frontend/src/views/DesignSystemsView.vue
index 805f859..ff50efd 100644
--- a/frontend/src/views/DesignSystemsView.vue
+++ b/frontend/src/views/DesignSystemsView.vue
@@ -42,6 +42,7 @@ import {
 import DesignTabs from "@/components/DesignTabs.vue";
 import { ApiError } from "@/api/client";
 import { useToastStore } from "@/stores/toast";
+import StarterRolePicker from "@/components/StarterRolePicker.vue";
 
 const toast = useToastStore();
 
@@ -148,6 +149,10 @@ const newTitle = ref("");
 const newDescription = ref("");
 const newParentId = ref<number | null>(null);
 const creating = ref(false);
+// Starter roles (#2349). The picker fills these on mount; empty means the
+// operator unchecked everything, which is a real answer.
+const starterGroups = ref<string[]>([]);
+const tokenPrefix = ref("");
 
 async function submitCreate() {
   const title = newTitle.value.trim();
@@ -158,11 +163,16 @@ async function submitCreate() {
       title,
       description: newDescription.value.trim() || undefined,
       parent_id: newParentId.value,
+      starter_role_groups: starterGroups.value.length ? starterGroups.value : undefined,
+      token_prefix: tokenPrefix.value.trim() || undefined,
     });
     newTitle.value = "";
     newDescription.value = "";
     newParentId.value = null;
     showCreate.value = false;
+    // NOT reset: the picker owns these and re-seeds on mount. Clearing them
+    // here would race the next mount and silently create the following system
+    // with no roles at all.
     await loadSystems();
     selectedId.value = created.id;
     toast.show(`Created ${created.title}`);
@@ -540,6 +550,10 @@ function isColourish(value: string): boolean {
           placeholder="What it covers"
         />
       </div>
+      <StarterRolePicker
+        v-model:selected="starterGroups"
+        v-model:prefix="tokenPrefix"
+      />
       <div class="row-actions">
         <button class="btn-primary" :disabled="!newTitle.trim() || creating" @click="submitCreate">
           {{ creating ? "Creating…" : "Create" }}
@@ -601,6 +615,10 @@ function isColourish(value: string): boolean {
               A system with a parent stores only its differences from it.
             </p>
           </div>
+          <StarterRolePicker
+            v-model:selected="starterGroups"
+            v-model:prefix="tokenPrefix"
+          />
           <button class="btn-primary" :disabled="!newTitle.trim() || creating" @click="submitCreate">
             {{ creating ? "Creating…" : "Create" }}
           </button>