>>149512420
Barsoomians have aircraft and radium rifles that can snipe targets from miles away. They don't wear armor because it's obsolete. The war between Helium and Zodanga in the first book is a WWI type of affair with millions of soldiers dug into trenches. The sword fighting that John Carter is so famous for is something the Barsoomian aristocracy and their retainers do in duels and small scale operations because they're autistic about their honor, but in big battles they shell people with artillery and bombers. Barsoom is a very old society run by landed warrior aristocrats with thousands of years of cultural inertia reinforcing their eccentricities, so they have an odd two-tiered war system where special forces teams of swashbuckling nobles duel enemy special forces teams with rapiers while the ship-and-artillery stuff goes on in the background.
As for the nudity, Barsoomians do wear clothes, they just have no concept of body modesty, so their clothing is situational. They can go stark naked when the weather is nice and they aren't expecting trouble but they can throw on sandals and a loincloth or something to hold their junk in place if they're expecting to do something athletic that day. The nudity is a thing but it's not a constant or mandatory thing. It's also a fairly minor part of the setting; Burroughs rarely lingers on it when describing people but instead focuses on the barbaric splendor of the jewel-incrusted harnesses and belts and assorted accoutrements they all wear.
