This week we bring you a new character race from the Sword and Planet classic “A Princess of Mars.” The Green Martians!
“In one respect at least the Martians are a happy people, they have no lawyers.” – Edgar Rice Burroughs – A Princess of Mars
Green People From Another World
The Green Martians are tall, standing almost twice the size of a human, although not much wider. Their skin is light green to yellow-green when they hatch, it can darken to an olive green as they grow older. Green Martians’ eyes are on the extreme sides of their heads, which allows them a much wider field of view. Their eyes can move independently of each other, and eye color is a uniform blood red. Their ears are pointed, almost antenna-like, and rest on a level just above the eyes. They have no head or body hair. They have long tusks, which are white like fine china. In men, the tusks grow to about eye level, but on women they grow past that to ear level. However, by far the most striking feature of the Green Martians are their four arms, which they are able to use quite dexterously.
Living Among the Ancients
On their home of Mars, the Green Martians have become one of the dominant species. Long ago, when the planet was wet and green, the Green Martians lived in the wilderness and lived an existence similar to traditional D&D Orcs. However, the seas of Mars began to dry up and recede, and the city-dwelling Martians died out. The Green Martians moved into the ruins, and while they were never able use or replicate the technology left behind by the ancients, they became fiercely loyal to the cities they took up, and in keeping them clean and maintained. In modern times, Green Martians have no racial name, but instead they view themselves as a member of the city they live in. Rather than call their race Green Martians, they identify racially as Thark, Thurd, Torquas, Warhoon, or whatever else city name you’ve come up with for your character’s backstory.
A Warriors Life
The universe is a strange place, and for any number of reasons a Green Martian may find herself away from home. Unlike the ancients who built the cities they dwell in, they have proven to be quite adaptable and able to process a changing world quite quickly. While they will be viewed as an oddity on other D&D worlds, they will typically find work and establish themselves quickly. Green Martian culture is very focused along martial traditions, so they typically become swords for hire. However, their tactical minds can help them rise to positions of leadership within the organizations they work for.
Green Martian Traits
Green Martians share a number of traits in common with each other.
Ability Score Increase. Your Strength score increases by 1, and your Constitution score increases by 2.
Age. Green Martians mature faster than humans, reaching adulthood around the age of 10. On Barsoom it is thought Green Martians could live to the age of 300 or more, if this was due to advanced medicine left by the ancients, or their natural span it is unknown. Most however, die to violence long before they get the chance to find out.
Alignment. Green Martians come from a tribal society with very structured rules. You typically have neutral or lawful alignment, but that can vary widely based on what city you are from.
Size. Green Martians are very tall but not significantly more heavily built than humans. You are typically 10 feet tall and weigh between 320 and 400 pounds. Your size is medium.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Harsh Realm. You have proficiency in the Survival Skill.
Four Arms. You may wield two-handed weapons and still benefit from shields. If for any reason you gain a class feature or feat that allows you to dual wield medium weapons, you may choose to dual wield two-handed weapons instead.
Long Torso. Because your body is very long it is hard to bind both sets of arms. You have advantage on any saving throw to avoid becoming restrained.
Powerful Build. You count as one size larger when determining your carrying capacity and the weight you can push, drag, or lift.
