The Chessmen of Mars · Characters
Character guide
Key figures in The Chessmen of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
Skim names here — open a free preview to see character cards and Character Web beside the page as you read.
Tara of Helium
major
Also known as Helium, Tara, Princess Tara of Helium, The Princess of Helium, Princess
Tara of Helium moves through her father's palace trailed by suitors she refuses to take seriously, dismissing Djor Kantos's devotion as mere friendship with her brother. When she is captured and sold into slavery, her imperious temper collides with a world that punishes defiance — yet she kills her would-be attacker with a hidden blade and coolly tells the terrified slave girl beside her that honor matters more than life. Her refusal to be broken is what drives the novel's central journey.
Gahan of Gathol
major
Also known as Gahan, Gathol, Jed of Gathol, The Jed of Gathol, Jed
Gahan of Gathol is a ruler who would rather earn a woman's love than command it, so he sheds his identity and serves as a nameless wandering warrior. His pride and his secret cut both ways: Tara, not knowing who he is, treats him as a hireling, and his deception risks destroying the very trust he hopes to build. His masquerade places him at the center of every rescue and reversal in the story's middle arc.
Turan
major
Also known as Turan the panthan
Turan the panthan is a mercenary with no land and no lord, which makes him invisible to the highborn — exactly what he needs. He attaches himself to Tara's fate with a devotion that seems inexplicable for a hired blade, enduring her scorn and the perils of Bantoom and Manator at her side. His hidden identity creates the central tension of the romance: whether Tara can love the man rather than the title.
Ghek
supporting
Also known as Ghek the kaldane
Ghek belongs to a race that has abandoned individual feeling for cold collective efficiency, his kind treating their own bodies as disposable mounts. Exiled or estranged from that logic, he becomes fascinated by Tara's fear, courage, and grief, emotions his people consider defects. His strangeness makes him both threatening and pitiable, and his gradual loyalty gives the story one of its most unsettling and affecting partnerships.
O-Tar
supporting
Also known as O - Tar, the jeddak, Tar, Jeddak, The Jeddak, the wicked Jeddak, Manator, O - Tar of Manator
O-Tar rules Manator through fear and self-regard, but when danger touches him personally his nerve fails, and his own nobles watch him choose humiliation over courage. He has taken the unwilling Princess Haja and persecuted Gathol's slaves, feeding a resentment that U-Thor voices openly in his throne room. His paranoia and need to dominate make him the engine of the story's later dangers, and his weakness is the crack through which the heroes might escape.
Luud
minor
Also known as the Luud
The chief of the kaldanes in Bantoom, a powerful brain creature.
A-Kor
supporting
Also known as A - Kor, Kor, Kor the dwar
A-Kor is a Manatorian noble of conscience in a court ruled by a tyrant, and his refusal to bend has landed him in the pits alongside the very strangers he will help. U-Thor demands his release before the assembled jeds, making A-Kor's fate a test of whether Manator's nobility will finally check O-Tar's power. His loyalty and local knowledge give Gahan and Tara their best hope of surviving the city's games.
U-Dor
minor
Also known as U - Dor, Dor, The black haired U - Dor
A Manatorian chief who opposes A-Kor.
U-Thor
minor
Also known as Thor, U - Thor, Manatos, U - Thor of Manatos, Thor of Manatos
The Jed of Manatos, an ally of Gahan.
John Carter
minor
Also known as Barsoom, The Warlord, Warlord of Barsoom, The Warlord of Barsoom, Prelude John Carter
The Warlord of Barsoom and father of Tara, who appears in the prelude.
Tasor
minor
Also known as the Gatholian, The Gatholian, Tasor the Gatholian, Gatholian, Tasor of Gathol
A Gatholian warrior loyal to Gahan.
E-Thas
minor
Also known as E - Thas, Chiefs E - Thas
A Manatorian chief who serves O-Tar.
I-Gos
minor
Also known as old I - Gos, I - Gos, Gos
An old Manatorian who helps the heroes in the pits.
Uthia
minor
Also known as the privileged Uthia
A privileged woman of Manator who befriends Tara.
Djor Kantos
minor
Also known as Kantos
A Heliumite warrior and friend of Tara.
Val Dor
minor
Also known as Helium, Val Dor of Helium
A Heliumite warrior who accompanies Tara's rescue party.
Olvia Marthis
minor
Also known as the fair Olvia
A noblewoman of Helium and friend of Tara.
Lan-O
minor
Also known as Fetch Lan - O, Lan - O, Lan, Lan - O.
A Manatorian warrior who serves O-Tar.
Floran of Gathol
minor
Also known as Floran, Gathol
A Gatholian warrior loyal to Gahan.
Dejah Thoris
minor
Princess of Helium and mother of Tara, mentioned but not present.
E-Med
minor
Also known as E - Med, E - Med the dwar
A dwar of Manator who opposes A-Kor.
O-Mai
minor
Also known as O - Mai the Cruel, O - Mai, Mai, the dead O - Mai
A legendary dead jeddak of Manator whose tomb is discovered.
Kantos Kan
minor
A Heliumite noble and father of Djor Kantos.
Zav
minor
Also known as I - Zav
A Manatorian warrior who participates in the games.
Haja
minor
Also known as the Princess Haja, Haja of Gathol
A princess of Gathol and relative of Gahan.
O-Zar
minor
A Manatorian chief who serves O-Tar.
Moak
minor
Also known as a Moak
A Manatorian warrior who fights in the arena.
Carthoris
minor
Son of John Carter and brother of Tara, mentioned briefly.
A-Sor
minor
Also known as the Manatorian, A - Sor the Manatorian
A Manatorian warrior who aids the heroes.
U-Kal
minor
Also known as U - Kal, Manataj, U - Kal of Manataj
A warrior from Manataj who participates in the games.
Thuvia of Ptarth
minor
Also known as Ptarth
A princess of Ptarth, mentioned in passing.
Tanus
minor
A Heliumite warrior mentioned in the narrative.
Sept
minor
A Manatorian warrior who serves in the palace.