Ares
Ares — The Encounter
Blood-drunk war god who feeds on the broken line · a boss your table can run with almost no prep. SRD 5.1-compatible.
Who Is Ares
Where Athena keeps the ledger of war, Ares is the moment the ledger burns. He does not inspire armies; he consumes them. Grimoires of the old pantheon record that his presence on a field turns disciplined ranks into a screaming mob — shield walls shatter not from the enemy but from neighbors turning on one another in his god-madness. He fights always in the first rank, armor scarred and weeping with the dents of every spear that ever struck him, because killing is the only thing that lets a god feel alive. The flames at his feet are said to be the last breaths of the slain, drawn up around him like incense. Banish him and the battle does not end — but at least the men remember which way to point their spears. To name him in a war-prayer is to ask for victory and accept that you may not survive your own side to enjoy it.
Run Ares in Sixty Seconds
- Aura first — switch on Aura of Carnage every round; the real damage is PCs forced to attack their own allies, not Ares's spear.
- Open with the charge — at native tier, Driving Charge straight into the back-line caster, knock them prone, then Multiattack. Punish anyone who clumps up with Reaping Sweep.
- Kill-priority is a kill — Bloodthirst heals him 15 and speeds him up whenever he drops someone, so steer him toward downed or low PCs and make finishing one his goal.
- When bloodied — he never retreats; lean into Goad to Fury legendary actions to keep the party fighting itself while he bleeds them down.
- Three ways to run him — (1) raw avatar boss solo with legendary actions, (2) drop a band and run him as a tier-2 warlord beside Deimos, (3) skirmish add: native numbers, no band-drop, glued to a bigger deity as the front-line butcher.
Ares
Medium celestial (deity), chaotic evil
CR 13 · 10,000 XP · GUIDELINEBloodthirst. Whenever Ares reduces a creature to 0 hit points with a melee attack, he immediately regains 15 hit points and his speed increases by 10 ft. until the end of his next turn. He revels in slaughter and never retreats.
Aura of Carnage. Signature. Each creature that starts its turn within 15 ft. of Ares must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom save or become consumed by battle-fury until the start of its next turn: it must use its action to attack the nearest creature (ally or enemy) and has disadvantage on Wisdom and Charisma saves. A creature that fails by 5+ also takes 7 (2d6) psychic damage as the war-madness tears at it.
Magic Weapons. Ares's weapon attacks are magical.
Actions
Multiattack. Ares makes three Warspear attacks, or two Warspear attacks and uses Reaping Sweep.
Warspear. Melee Weapon Attack: +12 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (3d6+7) piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) fire damage.
Reaping Sweep (Recharge 5-6). Ares sweeps his spear in a wide arc. Each creature in a 15-ft. cone must make a DC 17 Dexterity save, taking 28 (8d6) slashing damage on a failure, or half as much on a success. Creatures that fail are knocked prone.
Bonus Actions & Reactions
War Cry (Reaction). When a creature Ares can see makes an attack against an ally within 30 ft. of him, Ares roars; the triggering creature must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom save or have disadvantage on that attack roll.
Legendary Actions (3/Round)
Spear Thrust. Ares makes one Warspear attack.
Driving Charge (Costs 2 Actions). Ares moves up to his speed without provoking opportunity attacks. The first creature he moves through must succeed on a DC 17 Strength save or be knocked prone and take 11 (2d10) bludgeoning damage.
Goad to Fury (Costs 2 Actions). Ares fixes one creature within 30 ft. with a hateful glare. That creature must succeed on a DC 17 Wisdom save or immediately make one weapon attack against a creature of Ares's choice within its reach.
A heroic-proportioned war god in dented infernal plate and a crested helm, cape snapping behind him, spear planted in a flame-wreathed ruin of broken stone. Beautiful and repulsive at once — the front-line butcher of the gods.
Ares, Bound
Companion · acts on your initiative
Bound · GUIDELINEDread Presence (signature). Each enemy that starts its turn within 10 ft. of Ares must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom save or be frightened of him until the start of its next turn.
Actions
Terror Blade. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 14 (3d6+4) slashing damage, and a frightened target takes an extra 7 (2d6) psychic damage.
Reactions
Feed the Panic. When a creature within 30 ft. fails a save against being frightened, Ares moves up to half his speed toward it without provoking opportunity attacks.
The embodiment of dread who rides at his father's heel, harvesting the men too afraid to flee.
Guideline numbers — formula-tuned and read from the miniature's design, not yet table-proven. Tell us how it ran in the comments.
How It Fights — by Tier
Same creature, scaled threat. The traits never change; only the numbers move.
Open with Aura of Carnage active and Warspear the front-liner; the aura turning a PC against an ally does more than any hit. Save Reaping Sweep for two or more clustered targets. Kill-priority: whoever can dispel or banish — at this tier he is a terrifying mini-boss, not a true avatar.
Lead with Goad to Fury on the party's heaviest hitter to split the group, then full Multiattack the healer. Use Reaping Sweep when three+ cluster to escape a pin. Pair him with Deimos so the frightened are funneled into Ares's reach.
Centerpiece boss: open by charging the squishiest caster, then spend legendary actions on Goad to Fury and Spear Thrust between turns so no one feels safe. Reaping Sweep on clusters; when bloodied, Bloodthirst lets a kill heal and accelerate him — make a kill the kill-priority. Kill-priority for PCs: drop concentration on anything blocking his charge lanes.
Put Ares on the table
Download the presupported STL and run the fight tonight — the model, and the encounter that comes with it.
Get the STL on MyMiniFactory →Clay Cyanide Companion Rules v1
How a bound creature acts
- A companion acts on its owner's initiative, immediately after the owner.
- It uses the Companion block above — roughly ×0.6 HP and damage, no recharge abilities, and at most one reaction trait.
- It moves freely; it takes its Action only while its owner is conscious.
- At 0 HP a companion is broken, not dead — restored on a long rest unless your table rules otherwise.
Original Clay Cyanide material © Clay Cyanide LLC — explicitly not the non-SRD official sidekick rules.
Questions, Asked at the Table
What CR is Ares?
As written here he is CR 13 (10,000 XP) at his native tier 3 — a solo-capable avatar-of-war boss with legendary actions. The render is marketed as a 20+ deity, but this guideline block scales him to be beatable by an 11th-15th level party; the tier-1 and tier-2 rows let you field him as low as level 1.
Can Ares be a companion or ally?
Rarely, and never willingly tame — Ares serves only his own appetite for slaughter. If a party bargains for his aid he fights at the front, ignores their plans, and his Aura of Carnage endangers them as much as the enemy. The included companion Deimos, his dread-spawned son, is the more practical ally to bind.
Why does fighting Ares turn the party against itself?
Aura of Carnage and Goad to Fury both force Wisdom saves that compel attacks on the nearest creature, friend or foe. Spread your formation out to keep allies out of one another's reach, and prioritize anything that grants advantage on Wisdom saves or immunity to the charmed condition.
Tell Us How It Ran
This work includes material taken from the System Reference Document 5.1 ("SRD 5.1") by Wizards of the Coast LLC and available at dnd.wizards.com/resources/systems-reference-document. The SRD 5.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License available at creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode.
Clay Cyanide Miniatures is not affiliated with, endorsed, sponsored, or specifically approved by Wizards of the Coast LLC. This content is compatible with the fifth edition of the world's most popular fantasy roleplaying game. Companion rules, lore, names, and original mechanics © Clay Cyanide LLC.
The Legend
In Your Campaign
CR Range: 20+ (deity / avatar of war)
Encounter Design: Ares is not a fight — he's a catastrophe. His presence on the battlefield drives NPCs into a frenzy. Use him as a puppet master who empowers enemy armies, or as a divine patron who demands ever-escalating violence from his followers. If the party must face him directly, give him an aura that forces attack rolls and prevents healing.
Campaign Hooks: A war that won't end because Ares is feeding on both sides. A temple where worshippers fight to the death for his blessing. An artifact that can bind the war god — but using it requires defeating his champion first.
Technical Specifications
32mm, 75mm
STL, Pre-supported STL
Standard or ABS-like resin, 0.05mm layer height
Yes — ready to print, optimized supports included
From the Same Collection
Frequently Asked Questions
What mythology does this Ares miniature draw from?
This is the Greek god of war, Ares — not to be confused with the Roman Mars. The sculpt emphasizes the chaotic, brutal aspect of war that the Greeks associated with Ares, distinct from Athena's strategic wisdom.
Is Ares suitable for a Greek mythology tabletop campaign?
Perfect for Greek-themed campaigns. Use as a deity encounter, divine patron, or the inspiration for a warlike NPC faction. The sculpt works equally well as a display piece for mythology enthusiasts.
What base size does Ares fit on?
At 32mm scale, Ares fits on a standard Medium (1x1) or Large (2x2) base depending on the pose. The heroic proportions make him a commanding presence on any tabletop.
Played Ares at your table? Log in with your Obsidian Tavern account to leave a balance note, a war story, or a file issue — the sharpest reports get the block revised.
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