Original Dungeons & Dragons is famously minimalist. It’s so minimal, it even includes monsters it doesn’t list a single stat for. One batch of these are the Martian monsters from Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Barsoom series. The same year that D&D was released, TSR published (and quickly pulled after a ceased and desist) a proto-roleplaying game called Warriors of Mars which does include partial stats for these creatures. But since the numbers in those books are somewhat incomplete, buried in hit matrices, and don’t always align with the D&D d20 combat system, I thought it might be useful to pull together a more comprehensive set of stats for each monster. Here is my attempt—maybe someone will find them useful!
Ape, White
12′ tall pale-skinned ape-like creatures with 4 arms. They have no hair except for the bit of bristly white fur on their heads.
AC: 2 [17]
HD: 6
Attacks: 1 × fists (1d6) or 1 × club (1d6+1)
Movement: 12″
Apt
White-furred, 6-limbed predators. They have two large insectoid eyes and jaws like a hippopotamus, with the bottom jaw having two tusks that curve downward.
AC: 3 [16]
HD: 6
Attacks: 1 × tusks (1d6)
Movement: 12″
Banth
10-legged lion-like creatures with serpentine bodies. They have no hair except for their bristled manes.
AC: 1 [18]
HD: 7
Attacks: 1 × claw (1d6) or 1 × charge (1d6+1)
Movement: 15″
Calot
Quick, 10-legged domesticated hunting companions. They have frog-like heads with three rows of tusks and are sparsely covered in bristled hair.
AC: 2 [17]
HD: 5
Attacks: 1 × bite (1d6)
Movement: 24″
Darseen
A chameleon-like reptile that shifts its skin color to blend into its surroundings.
AC: 6 [13]
HD: 4
Attacks: 1 × bite (1d6)
Movement: 9″
Martian, Black
People with skin the color of polished ebony.
AC: 9 [10] or as armor
HD: 2
Attacks: 1 × weapon (1d6)
Movement: 9″
Martian, Red
People with skin the color of ruddy copper.
AC: 9 [10] or as armor
HD: 2
Attacks: 1 × weapon (1d6)
Movement: 9″
Martian, White
People with skin the color of ivory.
AC: 9 [10] or as armor
HD: 2
Attacks: 1 × weapon (1d6)
Movement: 9″
Martian, Yellow
People with skin the color of a lemon.
AC: 9 [10] or as armor
HD: 2
Attacks: 1 × weapon (1d6)
Movement: 9″
Orluk
Large carnivorous hunters covered in yellow fur with black stripes.
AC: 2 [17]
HD: 4
Attacks: 1 × bite (1d6)
Movement: 12″
Sith
Oxen-sized stinging insects with compound eyes capable of seeing in all directions at once.
AC: 1 [18]
HD: 10
Attacks: 1 × sting (1d6 + poison)
Movement: 9″/30″ flying
Thark
Four-armed giant people with green reptilian skin, tusks, and antennae. They grow to between 12′ and 15′ tall.
AC: 9 [10] or as armor
HD: 6
Attacks: 1 × weapon (1d6)
Movement: 12″
Thoat
Eight-legged horse-like creatures with wide mouths and paddle-like tails. Domesticated thoats serve as mounts.
AC: 1 [18]
HD: 5
Attacks: 1 × trample (1d6) or 1 × charge (1d6+2)
Movement: 21″
Here was my process for finding AC, both descending and [ascending]:
- Get original “To Wound” value from the Individual Combat Animals vs. Animals and Men / Men vs. Animals Table from Warriors of Mars (p52)
- Convert that value from 3d6 to a “result or more” percentage.
- Round the percentage to the closest 5%.
- Divide the percentage by 5 to get the d20 equivalent.
- Subtract from 20 to get the AAC equivalent.
- Subtract 1 to reflect the “Target 19” approach of OD&D.
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