War of the Worlds d20

[imp_fireball]

Tripod
Colossal Construct (vehicle)
Hit Dice 3d10+80 (96 hp)
Speed 50ft. (10 squares); Cannot Climb or Swim
Initiative: +0
Armor Class 31; touch 6; flat-footed 31
(Natural Armor +25, -4 size)
Base Attack/Grapple +2/+43
Attack Standard attack Slam +27 (2d12+25 bludgeoning, 20/x2) or Heat Ray +18 (10d12 fire, 20/x3)
Full-Attack Slam +27 or Heat Ray +18
Space 30ftx30ft.; Reach 25ft. (25ft. beyond natural reach for collossal sized creature)
Special Attacks Heat Ray, Improved Grab, Black Snow Smog
Special Qualities Imprison, Piloted, Force Field, hardness 15
Saves Fort - Ref - Will -
Abilities Str 60, Dex -, Con -, Int -, Wis -, Cha -
Skills N/A
Feats N/A
Environment Earth (likely invading)
Organisation Alone or 3 - 15 tripods (standard invasion force of a region)
Challenge Rating 10
Treasure Whatever can be salvaged
Alignment None (Non-sentient)
Advancement N/A
Level Adjustment -

Heat Ray (Ex)

As a standard action, the Tripod can fire a heat ray at a given space by rolling against the space's AC. Anyone occupying the space must make a reflex save against the Tripod's attack roll or suffer its damage. Victims reduced to 0 hp by the heat ray are disintegrated instantly along with all of their belongings, etc.

Once the heat ray has been fired, it can continue firing in the same location for each consecutive round following, or the Tripod can change its firing vector as a swift action - it can choose to fire at any other space within 60ft of the previous space it chose. The shortest line to the new space is how the Tripod shifts their heat ray. Anyone caught in the line must make a reflex save or suffer the heat ray's damage. All objects within spaces that the line passes through are damaged accordingly.

If a heat ray damages an object enough that its full damage surpasses the object's hp into the negatives, then that damage can transfer over to an object directly behind it (within the heat ray's line of effect). The same applies to creatures damaged by the heat ray.

Imprison

Creatures caught by a Tripod's tentacle (failed an opposed check against its grab) can be dragged into its cage at the top of the tripod at highest initiative on the next round. The Tripod has a maximum of three tentacles, each behaving as constructs of their own, and each having a separate grapple modifier (+43). A tripod can store a mass of 60 tons worth of creatures in all of its cages combined.

If the Tripod is destroyed while creatures are in any one of its cages, they each must make a DC 15 reflex save or free fall 90ft. A successful save indicates that they hold onto the tripod and protect themselves with its bulk as it collides with the ground. If a Tripod's death involves not colliding with the ground (say if it is completely obliterated, or it ends up leaning against a tall obstacle), then the GM can modify the rules accordingly.

Piloted

One martian is required to pilot each tripod and the tripod has no assumed room for passengers (except prisoners). Anyone who is not a martian whom attempts to pilot a tripod must make a Use Technological Device check (DC 10) every time they control it, even if they have figured out the controls already.

Force Field (Ex)

Each tripod has a force field that is seemingly invulnerable to all forms of damage (as wall of force, but in a contact sensitive circle shape). The only way to actually damage a tripod is to sneak inside wherever you believe the barrier happens to be. The cages of the Tripod are particularly known for being housed within the barrier and thus the Tripod is most likely more vulnerable at that point.

Black Snow Smoke

The black snow smoke spreads a virulent poison that causes the disease 'black snow'. The fortitude save against this disease is DC 40.

Black Snow Poison
Contagion: Inhalation
First: Choking, Severe Mania and Blindness. Severe burning sensation. Mechanically this functions as nausea.
Incubation Period: 1 round.
Secondary: Black Snow Disease.

Black Snow

Black snow is fast acting. It causes all of the blood in any living creature to actually cease flowing and then move in a sporadic manner. Within less than microseconds of this sporadic movement, it becomes be heavily coagulated and moves so rapidly that it literally heats up - but in such an odd way that it solidifies and turns into an ashy substance. It does not melt through arteries or veins, but the veins and arteries become naturally brittle from this.

Mechanical Affect - Creature must make a Fortitude save of DC 40 or die instantly. Even if the creature recovers from this, they still lose a standard action each round due to immense pain for the next 1d8 weeks - the pain is so horribly immense that the creature is rendered to that of animal intelligence (2 Int, unless Int is already 2 or if Int is 1). They forget how to speak and forget the use of all skills that involve reasoning.

Every hour they must make a will save (DC 30) to prevent going completely insane and losing all use of Wis skills as well.

If they make a concentration check as a free action (every secondary concentraton check in the round is a move action) they can temporarily retain this reasoning (their Int score before the shift to animal Int).
------

Martian (Warrior 2)
Medium Monstrous Humanoid (martian)
Hit Dice 2d8-3+3 (9 hp)
Speed 40ft. (8 squares), 20ft. (Climb; 4 squares)
Initiative: +4
Armor Class 12; touch 10; flat-footed 12 (Natural armor +2)
Base Attack/Grapple +2/+4
Attack Standard attack Slam +4 (1d4+2 Bludgeoning, 20/x2) or Bite +1 (1d4+1 Slashing/Piercing, 20/x2)
Full-Attack Slam +4, or Bite +1
Space 5ft.; Reach 10ft.
Special Attacks None
Special Qualities Unattuned
Saves Fort +1 Ref +0 Will +0
Abilities Str 14, Dex 10, Con 7, Int 15, Wis 11, Cha 8
Skills Spot +4, Listen +4, Search +6, Pilot +4
Feats Toughness
Environment Earth (likely invading)
Organisation Alone, 3-10 Martian Warriors (levels 1-3) or Tripod Troop
Challenge Rating 1
Treasure Standard
Alignment Usually Evil (any)
Advancement by character class
Level Adjustment +1

Unattuned

Martians are unattuned to traditional environments. Perhaps it is because they have lived in sealed environments for so long. Or perhaps it is merely petty bacterial differences between planets? Nevertheless, Martians must make a FORT save each day (DC 10) or contract a disease as the spell cause disease.

Martians as PCs

Martians have the following racial features:

- +2 Strength, +4 Intelligence, -2 Charisma, -6 Constitution

Martians are lanky and strong. Constant, furious study brought on by a history of war has made them incredible thinkers. However, they are rash and mean and their inability to adapt is rather pitiful by the standards of almost any species in comparison.

- Natural armor +2

- Bite and Slam natural attacks. Bite is at a -3 penalty with 1/2 STR bonus to damage. Slam is 1 die less than regular for a creature of its size.

- Climb Speed 20ft.

- 10ft. reach despite size medium.

Martian limbs can extend forwards and slope downwards like a quadrapedal despite the fact that the species is both humanoid and bipedal.

- Unattuned as a racial quality

[Mulletmanalive]

If you're going for an actual HG Wells thing, Tripods don't have a force field, just an armoured hull with a pretty high DRx/Adamantine or the like. They were killed with reasonable ease by cannons.

That and a tripod was probably only Huge in size but with ridiculously long reach and a total immunity to most melee attacks short of bullrushes [they were vulnerable to being knocked over by outside forces]. Mechanically, they would probably have basically flown.

While I'm here, remember the Black Smoke!

Pretty much a Cloudkill attack heightened to yazoo. No human was able to resist its poison, instead turning into a desicated husk with black snow for blood. Perhaps just a really powerful lingering area desication damage effect [see Sandstorm].

The thing missed in the classic 53 version and in Spielburg's version is that the tripods weren't invulnerable; they were simply able to kill anything and everything before they could mount a decent resistance. Both a team of cannons and the Thunderchild managed to account for tripods...

[Calmar]

Is this about the Martians from the book, or the Spielberg movie?

In the novel they actually look pretty much like here and are clearly not humanoid.

[imp_fireball]

I only saw the most recent movie.

Also, there's no mechanics for human blood extraction and desecration of the land since that's entirely RP (that occurred in the Spielberg version too); except that the human maybe needs to be rendered helpless by a tentacle or whatever.

The machines in the Spielberg version were definitely colossal (humans had to stretch their necks to look all the way up at them). And it makes more sense considering their strength scores that size would increase their lift capacity enough to un-burrow from so deep underground.

[Calmar]

I only saw the most recent movie.

Also, there's no mechanics for human blood extraction and desecration of the land since that's entirely RP (that occurred in the Spielberg version too); except that the human maybe needs to be rendered helpless by a tentacle or whatever.

The machines in the Spielberg version were definitely colossal (humans had to stretch their necks to look all the way up at them). And it makes more sense considering their strength scores that size would increase their lift capacity enough to un-burrow from so deep underground.

I would strongly suggest to read the novel. It is by all means better than any film adaption so far.

[Mulletmanalive]

I would strongly suggest to read the novel. It is by all means better than any film adaption so far.

Yup. If anything, the fact that the opponent was both overt and killable made it so much scarier as a concept than the movie versions. Covert and unkillable works ok [see Alien, The Thing] but the other two combinations tend to fail in my humble opinion, at least in terms of actual scariness [friday 13th, starship troopers 2, most zombie films...]

Speilburg's film seems to have been a remake of the classic '53 version, given the copying of the nuke sequence and whatnot.

If you're going for a genuine Spielburg feel, it would probably work better having them acting like lethal scenery and driving the population into the underdark, pressing them into conflict with the denizens of the dark below and forcing them to eek out an existance while praying that something intervenes [probably germs eventually].

Incidentally, according to Wells himself, the reason that they have three legs on their war-machines is that such a shape doesn't wobble, unlike a four point contact. They adapted to England's rolling hills; logically they would probably have had four legs had they landed in the grain states...

[imp_fireball]

If you're going for a genuine Spielburg feel, it would probably work better having them acting like lethal scenery and driving the population into the underdark, pressing them into conflict with the denizens of the dark below and forcing them to eek out an existance while praying that something intervenes [probably germs eventually].

Sounds like quite a campaign setting idea you've got there. War of the Worlds merged with fantasy in a traditional D&D universe involving the underdark, why not?

Incidentally, according to Wells himself, the reason that they have three legs on their war-machines is that such a shape doesn't wobble, unlike a four point contact. They adapted to England's rolling hills; logically they would probably have had four legs had they landed in the grain states...

Then again, they invaded the entire world (I think), so three point contacts were probably just standard for everything (Wells also didn't really consider that the legs would likely be dynamic enough to bend and adjust; but he did a good job of just assuming they'd perfectly roll over everything that didn't involve them having to swim or actually fly over a cliff... also, I read some of the book. Bit dull, but then again what else would you expect in 19th century prose? ). Lot of hills on mars too.

EDIT: I might go back to this, and make it more concise.