Custom New Series Dalek Figures – Part 6

Welcome to the latest post in a series of showcases of my Custom Dalek collection! During lockdown making Custom Daleks was one of the few things keeping me sane, and I am proud to present the latest in a series of posts showcasing the newest additions to my ever-growing collection. These Daleks are based on several ideas I had for potential Dalek ranks existing during the Time War and post-Time War era of Dalek history, combined with several experiments with alternate Dalek colour palettes using the updated Time War Dalek figure sculpt. Although the TV Series itself has been reluctant to include colourful variations of the New Series Dalek design, Big Finish have been including some interesting designs on the cover art of their Time War audios and some of these have inspired the basic colour layouts on these Daleks, to see more Custom Daleks that are directly inspired by Big Finish cover art, check out the previous instalment of my Custom Dalek Collection Showcase.

Time War Dalek Strategist

During the Time War, hundreds of Daleks were enhanced with temporal genetic engineering that allowed them to better understand the intricate subtleties of the Time Vortex and its infinite potential, and many as a result developed severe God Complexes. Uniquely for individual Daleks, Time War Strategists were known to make extensive modifications to their casings for purely aesthetic reasons – in some cases violating the most ancient of Dalek ranking convention to adorn themselves in elaborate casings. Human researchers who study Dalek ‘culture’ admit that these are perhaps the closest thing the Daleks have to ‘artists’.

This custom was created using one of the Dalek Interrogator Prime figures from the B&M Doctor and Dalek 2-packs sets, painted with bronze paint on the midsection slats, middle band and a selective number of hemispheres, and white paint on the dome with the detailing highlighted with thin black permanent marker.

Dalek Davros Guard

The Time War saw Davros propelled to a unique position of power among the Dalek hierarchy. Whilst they had previously shunned his attempts to modify or ‘improve’ the Dalek genome, dire straits during the darkest days of the war led to the Daleks taking extensive measures to ensure their own survival and they eventually turned to their ancient, long-estranged creator for help. As a result, Davros not only allowed to continue his experiments, he was even given his own Command Ship complete with devoted guards who altered their casings to emulate their creator. Unfortunately for Davros, this arrangement was short-lived, as his ship would be devoured by the Nightmare Child in the first year of the War, though unlike his guards he would be saved at the last moment by an insane Dalek Caan, leaving his devotees to meet their fiery end.

This custom was painted using black and silver Citadel paint applied using a regular sized brush, though a smaller brush was used for touching up the details. The dome was painted black initially and then covered with many coats of silver dry-brushing, giving it the look of scuffed metal.

Dalek Justiciar

Despite extensive propaganda suggesting otherwise, internal dissent within the Dalek Empire is a semi-regular problem for the Daleks, particularly on their production-plant worlds. In some facilities tens of millions of Daleks are grown and fused with their casings in a single day, and every once in a while Daleks are born with a tiny seed of conspiratory dissent that, if left unchecked, eventually germinates into fully-fledged treachery. As such, each Dalek planet has at least one active Justiciar, who is given full authority to exterminate any Daleks that show any signs of dangerous thinking before they reach maturity. Sporting striking red livery and capable of accessing any level of a Dalek production facility with unlimited access, Justiciars are ruthless and are known to exterminate other Daleks on a whim for the most minor of transgressions. As a result they are shunned by their own kind, and often isolate themselves leading many to develop unusual personality traits that ironically resemble the very quirks that they were assigned to root out.

This custom was created using an Axis Strike Squad Dalek with the black dome and hemispheres repainted with red Citadel paint, and then touched over with flecks of black and silver to give the impression that this Dalek is ancient. The custom was also given a grey wash to enhance this effect by adding a weathered effect.

Dalek Platoon Leader

Moving away from the more unorthodox Dalek ranks that have been showcased in this post thus far, the Dalek Platoon Leader is a somewhat more common rank of Dalek, as usually hundreds are involved in the process of a planetary invasion, though they are often spread out to co-ordinate Dalek attacks on important military targets. Distinguished by the black highlights to an otherwise standard Dalek casing with a silver dome, Platoon Leaders have advanced command processing units and can receive tactical information from and relay orders to several Dalek Assault Squads at once in real-time, all while personally participating in ground assaults as a front-line unit. A Platoon Leader would have been responsible for each of the Dalek attacks on important Human military installations during the Medusa Cascade incident, and thousands of these Daleks were said to have been destroyed leading their brethren into battle against the Doctor at the Siege of Trenzalore.

This custom was created using another Axis Strike Squad Dalek, this time with more black detailing added covering the midsection slats and middle band. The dome was dry-brushed with silver paint to add a metallic effect, and the entire custom was given a wash with grey paint to add a grime effect to the casing.

Custom New Series Movie Dalek Figures

Welcome to my showcase of custom New Series Daleks that have been repainted in new colour schemes inspired by the 1960s Peter Cushing Dalek Movies. Known for their garish colour schemes, the Daleks in these films were distinctly different from the Daleks seen in the Classic Series of the show at the time. Ironically, however, the New Series would include design elements that were somewhat inspired by the Movie Daleks, such as the bulkier base and more prominent ear lights.

As such, I experimented with repainting several New Series Daleks to resemble Movie Daleks, with varying degrees of success. Some of these colour schemes are very much grounded in the 1960s, and would not be considered for Dalek designs today. Others, however, have merit that could make for an interesting cameo or reference to the Peter Cushing Movies in the modern TV Series.

Custom Movie Dalek Drone

This custom depicts a Movie Drone Dalek in New Series form, complete with the cyan dome and with improvised bronze slats. Despite the bright blue colour scheme seeming a bit too wacky for modern tastes, the cyan and bronze design does actually look very good on the New Series design. I doubt that this colour scheme will ever appear in the TV Series, and that is probably for the best, but it is still good to know that the New Series designs meld so well with Movie-inspired colour schemes. I painted this Dalek using cyan Citadel paint for the dome, hemispheres and base, bronze Citadel paint for the midsection slats, and silver Citadel paint for the neck rings, midsection and skirt. The ear lights were also painted using a dark burgundy paint job covered by a black wash.

Custom Movie Dalek Commander

Although the red Dalek in the Movie has a more gold appearance than the bronze-looking red Dalek here, I created this custom with the intention of ‘porting’ the Movie colour scheme into the New Series Dalek design mythos, rather than simply attempting to emulate the exact colour scheme of a Movie Dalek on a New Series Dalek figure. As such, I chose the bronze as it gives the Dalek a more muted colour scheme, and emphasises the red and black combination that looks excellent on a Dalek. I painted this figure using red Citadel paint for the dome, midsection and skirt, black Citadel paint for the hemispheres and bronze Citadel paint for the neck rings, midsection slats and base.

Custom Movie Dalek Supreme

Despite not being a Movie Dalek itself, the Planet of the Daleks supreme was a repainted Movie Dalek prop and so this design can therefore be technically classified as inspired by Movie Daleks. Unlike the other two Daleks, this one has been given an added custom grime effect using black Citadel paint. The eystalk of this Dalek was painted red to emulate the unique look of the eyestalk of the Supreme Dalek in Planet of the Daleks. Likewise, the ear lights have been painted purple. The rest of the figure was painted with black Citadel paint for the midsection and skirt, and yellow Citadel paint for the dome, neck rings, midsection slats and hemispheres.

Custom Davros Figure Collection – Part 3

So far in these Custom Davros figure posts the figures have been shown in chronological order from Davros’ perspective – from his early exploits in the Big Finish audio Davros and the TV story Revelation of the Daleks to his participation in the Dalek Civil War in audios like The Juggernauts and Daleks Among Us. However, we have now reached the point in Davros’ timeline in which the Time War is present, and as such I moved away from Classic Series inspired Davros figures and instead focused on customising Davros figures from the New Series, in which Davros is played by Julian Bleach.

Customising Davros figures is fun, particularly due to the variety of media to draw inspiration from. However, like many of my custom figures, these are not intended to be ‘screen-accurate’, or in the case of audios, accurate to their depictions on the cover. I like to take creative license with my custom figures and rely on my own imagination to create interesting designs that pay homage to excellent Doctor Who audios and TV stories.

Custom Davros figure from Terror Firma

Terror Firma stands at somewhat of a crossroads in Doctor Who canon at the moment as the depiction of Davros as having an internal mental battle with the Dalek Emperor persona stands at odds with what we see of the character in his appearances in the New Series after the Time War. It is of course possible that Davros eventually repaired himself, which is the most likely occurrence, so I created this custom to depict the ‘restored’ Davros, who has shed the Dalek Emperor title and reverted back to a form more akin to his traditional design. This custom is a slightly modified and repainted version of a New Series Davros figure, with several sections of the headpiece removed and the life support chair repainted. I used black Citadel paint for the base, skirt and midsection, silver Citadel paint for the dry-brushing on the skirt, and gold Citadel paint for the hemispheres.

Custom Time War Davros figure

This custom depicts Davros in the immediate run-up to the Time War, keeping a low profile as a weapons developer for the Dalek Emperor. We know that Davros created the Nightmare Child, and it was this terrible creature that would eventually destroy his command ship, taking Davros out of the war. We know that Dalek Caan would go back in time to save Davros, but this custom depicts Davros before his misadventure with the Nightmare Child. I used a standard New Series Davros figure painted with grey Citadel paint on the skirt and base, grey permanent marker on the hemispheres and silver Citadel paint on the midsection and control panel.

Custom Infirmary Davros figure

This custom figure depicts Davros in his last chronological appearance to date, in the Series 9 opening two-parter The Magician’s Apprentice and The Witch’s Familiar – in this story, Davros is dying and appears in a bad way, with wires attached to his life support chair and a less pristine look for his controls. I also included the removable Davros as a feature for this custom, to replicate the scene in the episode in which Davros is removed from his chair. I had to use a hacksaw to remove the lower part of the Davros figure, and the inside was filled with hot glue, papier-mâché painted green, and pieces of wire and plastic to emulate his cybernetic organs and vertebrae. I also attached another arm from an Auton figure which can be used to prop Davros up, although it lacks a hand as seen in the episode. Lastly, the entire figure was given a black wash to add the grime seen in the episode.

Custom Classic Series Movie Dalek Figures

Those who assumed that I would be skipping over the Peter Cushing Movie Daleks, think again – although I have not created customs of every Dalek from the Peter Cushing movies, I do have some Daleks in my collection that are heavily inspired by these iconic designs. As always, my customs are not necessarily screen-accurate remakes of these Daleks, and I have taken some creative license with their creation. For example, some may notice that my customs lack the distinctive ‘chunky’ ear lights that the Peter Cushing Movie Daleks were known for – however, I have chosen not to include these as a feature yet, partly because I need LEDs in order to do so.

As there are no modern Dalek figures based on the Peter Cushing Movies, I had to somewhat improvise when it came to creating these figures. Naturally I used the Dalek figure that most closely resembled the Movie Daleks, that being the 1960s The Dalek Invasion of Earth design, with just a few modifications. Interestingly, the Dalek Guard figure from The Chase is actually a depiction of a modified Movie Dalek, as the production team borrowed several props for use in the TV Series, but replaced their ear lights and base to make them look more consistent with the TV Series Daleks.

Custom Movie Dalek Drone

As they appeared very garish in the film, particularly due to the less advanced filming techniques of the time, the Dalek Drone design was always among my least favourite of the Peter Cushing Movie Daleks. However, when it came to making this custom, I decided to tweak the design slightly so suit my tastes. As such, this figure sports a darker colour scheme than its on-screen counterpart. I painted this Dalek using cyan Citadel paint for the dome, hemispheres and base, grey Citadel paint for the midsection and skirt, silver Citadel paint for the neck rings and bronze Citadel paint for the prominent midsection pieces.

Custom Movie Dalek Commander

One of the few explorations of a red and black colour scheme in on-screen Doctor Who, the red Movie Dalek has just enough gold to offset the black and red to create a garish and bright colour scheme. This figure is more screen-accurate than the last, as I used a bright shade of red Citadel paint for the dome, midsection and skirt, black Citadel paint for the hemispheres and gold Citadel paint for the neck rings, prominent midsection pieces and base. Some may notice that the Dalek is also missing its ‘middle’ base featured on the Dalek figures from The Dalek Invasion of Earth – that is because the Movie Daleks lack this thinner ‘interim’ base between the bottom of the skirt and the thick base.

Custom Movie Dalek Supreme

This distinctive black, silver and gold design has never been replicated since on Doctor Who, which is somewhat of a shame – the alternating hemisphere colours might look garish, but with the right combination of colours this design could work well on a modern Dalek Supreme. As a result of the intricacy of the colour scheme, this custom took more time and care than most Dalek customs, particularly considering the fact that multiple coats were needed. I painted this figure using black Citadel paint for the dome, midsection and skirt, silver Citadel paint for the neck rings, hemispheres and base, and gold Citadel paint for the other neck rings, the other hemispheres and the midsection.

Custom Movie-Inspired Dalek

Although this Dalek does not follow the same design as the previous few, with the thicker base that is a distinctive feature of Movie Daleks, this custom does sport a colour scheme that was inspired by the yellow Dalek Commander of the second Peter Cushing Dalek Movie. This colour scheme likely contributed to the inspiration for a Gold Supreme Dalek in TV stories like Day of the Daleks and Frontier in Space. I created this custom using an Emperor’s Guard Dalek from the Dalek Collectors Set #2, and painted it using yellow Citadel paint for the dome, midsection and skirt, black Citadel paint for the hemispheres and base and silver Citadel paint for the detailing on the slats.

Custom Davros Figure Collection – Part 2

Although Julian Bleach did an excellent job with the role of Davros in the New Series, for me nobody will be better suited for the role than Terry Molloy, the actor who portrayed Davros in the 1980s Dalek stories as well as many Big Finish audios. Not only does Terry clearly understand the character better than most, he gives a fantastic performance as both the scheming, subtle villain and the cackling, maniacal psychopath that Davros embodies. This is never more true than in the Big Finish audios, which contain some of Terry Molloy’s best performances as Davros to date.

The three Davros customs featured in this post are all based on Big Finish audios, and so are heavily inspired by the Terry Molloy version of Davros. However, for the sake of consistency, I have also attempted to include a degree of transition between my Davros customs and the official figures that they go between on my shelf. For example, I have gradually incorporated elements from New Series Davros figures into Classic Davros customs that are based later in his timeline.

Custom Davros figure from The Davros Mission

Davros is in a bad way at the end of Revelation of the Daleks, as by the end of the episode he has lost his only remaining hand and been captured by the Daleks. This is followed up on in the I, Davros series and the follow-up audio The Davros Mission, which depicts the events leading up to Davros’ trial as well as the trial itself. I created this custom to depict Davros as he stands trial, including his life-support chariot and bloody arm stump bandage. I created this figure using the body of an Auton figure with a heavily modified head, and several Dalek bases linked together with metal wires and create a ‘hovering’ effect. The wires connecting from the chariot to Davros’ body are smaller electrical wires, and the figure was painted using black Citadel paint for the top of the chariot and Davros himself, silver Citadel paint for the outside of the chariot and green Citadel paint for the Kaled blood on Davros’ hand.

Custom Davros figure from The Juggernauts

This custom is based on one of my personal favourite Doctor Who audios, The Juggernauts. After crashing on the planet Lethe and assuming the identity of ‘Professor Vasso’, Davros begins to create the ultimate anti-Dalek force using salvaged Mechanoids, and the titular Juggernauts are born. One of the best things about this story is that we see Davros playing the role of a kind old man whilst secretly plotting to harvest the organs of everyone in the colony. As depicted on the cover and mentioned by the Doctor in the audio, this figure uses the Necros Dalek colour scheme for the skirt, as Davros allegedly salvaged one of the Necros Daleks to repair his damaged life support chair. This custom was painted using white Citadel paint for the base of the skirt, Davros’ shoulder panels and the control console, gold Citadel paint for the hemispheres, black Citadel paint for the base and for some of Davros’ machinery, and grey Citadel paint for Davros’ ‘Professor Vasso’ tunic. The Davros body in this custom is a heavily modified version of the New Series Davros figure, with the hand replaced with a more primitive claw and the tunic enhanced with wires.

Custom Davros figure from Daleks Among Us

Once again hiding out on a remote world, Davros in Daleks Among Us is depicted as occupying a battered and beaten-up life support chair, either due to damage caused by age or as a result of botched repairs. Either way, I created this custom to represent a more slapdash version of Davros’ life support controls, to reflect the fact that Davros is in hiding. The skirt of this Dalek came from a New Series Dalek, but the base is from a Classic Series Dalek. The body of Davros came from a Pig Slave figure with the hand replaced with a plastic claw and the head heavily modified to resemble Davros. I painted this custom using black Citadel paint for the skirt, control panel and body of Davros, Gold Citadel paint for the hemispheres and the base, and a combination of beige, red and blue Citadel paint for the detailing on Davros’ face. The control panel itself was made using a piece of old computer mother board, and the back of Davros’ chair is the rear panel of a Paradigm Dalek.

Custom Davros Figure Collection – Part 1

Davros, the creator of the Daleks, is a recurring staple of Doctor Who, and after his first appearance in Genesis of the Daleks he has become almost as iconic as his creations. As both a collector of Dalek figures and a creator of Dalek customs, I eventually got round to building a collection of custom Davros figures, designed to depict Davros in his various appearances across Doctor Who media, particularly Big Finish audios. Although the general appearance of Davros has remained consistent throughout his appearances in the Classic Series and the New Series, the specifics of Davros’ design have altered over time, particularly has the character has been portrayed by multiple actors over the years. Also, Davros is represented as having multiple additions or modifications to his life support chair, particularly in the Big Finish audios. As such, I tried to make these customs as diverse as possible, so that I wasn’t just making the same figure over and over again.

The result of this is an eclectic collection of Davros figures made from a variety of different materials and spare parts, including a large number of spare Dalek skirts, although I was short on both Classic Series bases and spare parts from pre-existing Davros figures, meaning that there was a fair degree of improvisation involved in the creation of these figures, particularly the ones depicting Davros in the Classic era.

Custom Davros figure from Davros

Although the Big Finish audio simply titled Davros makes no mention of physical changes to Davros’ chair during the events of the story, those who have listened to it will know that during the story Davros gains considerable influence over ‘Trans Allied Inc’, an intergalactic corporation that he intends to use to collapse the galactic economy. I created this custom to represent Davros allied with TAI, including a computer systems interface installed on the side of his chair and the infamous projectile injector that Davros wields during this story. I made Davros using an Auton figure, and I made the face particularly grotesque by adding quantities of hot glue to reflect Davros’ desiccated state in this story.

Custom Davros ‘Great Healer’ figure

Though it may seem hypocritical to dissect the design quality of the ‘Great Healer’ prop from Revelation of the Daleks after unveiling this monstrosity, I created this custom in an attempt to re-imagine the ‘Great Healer’ as less of a disguise and more of a false deity, incorporating aspects of the Dalek design into an artificial figurehead for a species that was completely ignorant of the Daleks’ intentions. The false Davros head inside is made using the head of an Auton, and using an intricate system of decorative wires one can move the head left and right. I constructed the housing using pieces of Dalek, plastic frames from a Warhammer set and pieces of an old phone charger. The figure is draped in sheets adorned with symbols, intended to be offerings from adoring worshipers, which I created using masking tape and permanent marker.

Custom Davros figure from Revelation of the Daleks

Despite the existence of a Davros figure for Revelation of the Daleks, I always found Davros’ appearance in that story to be somewhat lacking, particularly after hearing some of the Big Finish audios. The production team missed a trick by not showing some of the physical decay or damage that both Davros himself and his life support chair would have acquired by that point, and I created this custom to show some of the ideas that could have been present in Revelation of the Daleks. For one, Davros’ chair is much more battered and missing quantities of its control console – not only that, but Davros himself looks worse for wear, as I have emphasised the deformed face on this custom to illustrate Davros’ decay. I created the Davros figure from an old Pig Slave figure from Series 3, and ironically the Dalek skirt came from a Dalek Sec figure.

Custom Intensive Care Dalek Asylum Inmates – Part I

Welcome to Part I of my showcase of custom Dalek figures in my collection created to resemble Daleks in the Intensive Care section of the Asylum in Asylum of the Daleks. These Daleks are alleged to be the most insane Daleks in the Asylum, so it makes sense that as part of my Asylum Project to expand on the ideas and themes that we are shown in the episode. First, let’s address the elephant in the room – in the episode, the Dalek Oswin refers to to Intensive Care as containing ‘survivors of particular wars’, later revealed to be survivors from encounters with the Doctor on planets like Kembel, Exxilon, Spiridon and Vulcan. These are planets from Dalek stories in the Classic Series, so the Intensive Care ward should in theory contain Classic Series Daleks. However, in the episode, the Daleks we see are in fact New Series Daleks, more specifically the bronze Time War variants. Whilst some, including myself, have passed this off as a lazy oversight in the past, an explanation must exist for why this is the case. The most realistic idea that I can think of is that, upon being rescued from whichever battle they were a part of and condemned to the Asylum, the survivors were removed from their original casing and placed in newer Time War casings.

This explains a lot, but it also poses more questions. The Daleks are capable of time travel, and therefore fully capable of rewriting their own history as well as the history of the Galaxy, so we aren’t even sure if the events of the Classic Series episodes happened as we saw them happen from the Daleks’ point of view, because since then in their personal timeline they have meddled with their own personal timeline. What era in the Daleks personal history did they create the Asylum? Personally, I believe it was the Paradigm Dalek era, and the Asylum went back along the Dalek timeline and snatched up the insane or deranged. This would explain why the Cult of Skaro, a secret order above and beyond even the Emperor Dalek, would not think to go to the Asylum for the rich source of Dalek flesh stored there – it didn’t exist at that point in their history.

Custom Opened Dalek with Mutant

This custom was created using a Damaged Dalek Thay figure, which will become a recurring theme throughout these blog posts. To achieve the opened effect, I took the entire Dalek casing apart and used a hacksaw to cut the front panel into two pieces. I then re-assembled the Dalek around the remains of the head of a 12″ tall Dalek Sec which provided the wrinkly base for the mutant inside. I then used hot glue to attach the pieces of the front panel to the skirt to be consistent with the manner in which New Series Daleks open their casing. The wires connected to the mutant were from an old phone charger, and they are held in place by plastic pieces attached to the back of the casing. The mutant itself was painted green using Citadel paint and the eye was coloured in with permanent marker. The eyestalk is fake, created using the pieces from the gunstick of a remote control Dalek. Lastly, the entire figure was given a black wash with Citadel paint.

Some of the patients in Intensive Care are there for the long haul – like this Dalek which requires constant fluid replacements otherwise its flesh will expand and the mutant will explode. Needless to say, the mutant itself is hardly pleased with this arrangement, and several Asylum systems have been damaged in its rage.

Custom Extensive Dalek Life Support

This figure represents a Dalek in critical condition that requires a delicate, intricate system of life support machines to keep it alive. I removed the top part of the Dalek with a hacksaw and filled the insides with pieces of plastic and tissue paper. I then covered the inside with hot glue and added a plastic cylinder from the inside of an old fish tank filter (still sporting the impeller) and attached wires to the outside with hot glue as well. The frame was built using pieces of plastic from a Warhammer set held in place with hot glue, and painted silver – there are more pieces of plastic added to the frame at the top to resemble machinery, and the wires from the Dalek connect to various points along the upper frame. The entire figure was given a black wash to simulate the grime and dust in the ward.

After constructing this intricate system of life support mechanisms, the Asylum’s automated medical systems essentially left this Dalek to its own devices – literally. The Dalek casing has since formed a symbiotic relationship with the modifications in order to keep the mutant inside alive while it sleeps.

Custom Intensive Care Time War Dalek

This custom introduces a recurring theme of using half of a Genesis Ark for some of these customs – the idea behind this (other than to find a use for the half-a-dozen Genesis Arks I had in my workshop) was to emulate the ‘booths’ that many of the Intensive Care Daleks inhabit in Asylum of the Daleks. I created this Dalek by cutting the top half off a Damaged Dalek Thay figure and filling the gap with a piece of plastic from the inside of an old amplifier. I held the Dalek in place using wires of solder and later with hot glue, and the wires feeding in from the top came from the inside of an old computer. I also gave the figure a black wash concentrated around the upper section.

After sustaining critical temporal damage in a skirmish of the Time War, this Dalek was transported to Intensive Care and rushed to a life support booth. Since then, the Asylum systems have been working night and day to repair the damage to its mutant’s flesh, whilst the casing’s auto-repair functions attempt reconstitution.

Custom Opened Intensive Care Commander

This elaborate custom is designed to emulate the ‘levitating’ open Dalek that appears in the entrance to the Intensive Card ward in Asylum of the Daleks. This was a physical prop in the episode so the production team must have engineered a way for the top half to lift off – unfortunately, this is less simple with a custom figure. I did the paint job on this Dalek first, using red and black Citadel paint for the detailing and red permanent marker for the Asylum stamp. I cut the Dalek in half using a hacksaw and cut the front panel in half. I then used the plastic frames of Warhammer figures to keep the upper half elevated whilst also attaching the two halves of the front panel to the front of the custom. This was all done using hot glue, which I also used to fill the inside with pieces of plastic and circuitry from the inside of a computer, which was then painted black. The entire figure was then given a black wash using Citadel paint.

Though the mutant inside is long dead, this Commander-class Dalek casing remains in Intensive Care for spare parts in case of emergencies – despite the botched nature of the operation that killed this Dalek, the Asylum’s automated repair drones repeat the same mistakes over and over again with little progress.

New Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Intensive Care Asylum Daleks Part 2

Welcome to the next instalment in this series of Dalek customs showcases, a tour through my collection of custom-made New Series Daleks that have been altered and painted to appear destroyed, with some marked with stamps for the Dalek Asylum. Continuing from Part 1, these are the next set of ‘intensive care’ Dalek customs. These are based on the Daleks that appeared in the special ward of the Dalek Asylum who are all survivors of particular encounters with the Doctor. All of these customs are made by me unless stated otherwise in the description.

Open Emperor Guard Dalek

This custom was created using a previous attempt at an insane Dalek Caan custom, with the mutant removed and replaced with a custom green mutant made using hot glue and a plastic claw. This Dalek is intended to represent one of the Dalek Emperor’s Human-Dalek Hybrids, specifically one of the Emperor’s Guards that somehow managed to survive the events of The Parting of the Ways and has ended up in the depths of the Dalek Asylum. As the last of the Emperor’s Human-Daleks, this specimen is quite insane, and the repair drones dare not approach for fear of being sliced in half by this Dalek’s vicious metal claw. The weathering on this Dalek was done using drybrushing and as the base model was already burnt the pieces are warped and malformed as if the casing has melted due to extreme temperatures.

Ongoing Maintenance Dalek

Not all Daleks in the Asylum were admitted for insanity – some are cast into the dark chambers of the facility for simply malfunctioning. This Dalek contracted some form of computer virus during an encounter with the Doctor and its casing’s self-repair systems have shut down, meaning the Asylum’s drones must continuously repair the Dalek’s systems as the virus works to take them down in an endless battle between two continually adapting programs. All the while this Dalek waits patiently for the balance to tip in its favour, as more than anything it wants revenge against the Doctor. The plastic and wires of this custom’s frame were taken from an old radio and stuck together using hot glue. The paint detailing is Citadel paints applied using a dry brush.

‘Steampunk’ Dalek Commander

Some of the Daleks in the intensive care ward were damaged within the Asylum itself – this former Dalek Commander was admitted to the Asylum during the Time War after an incident involving the Doctor and an electro-magnetic pulse. Since the ‘accident’, the Commander has conducted many botched repairs on itself in an attempt to remove its dependence on electronic components and has replaced many of them with cobbled-together clockwork and steam-powered devices constructing using re-programmed self-repair drones. Regarded as an eccentric by the other inmates of the Asylum, this Dalek is generally avoided by the more lucid Asylum denizens, This custom includes parts from an old CD drive as well as wires and pieces taken from an old radio. Promarker pen was used for the weathering and detail on the various cogs and other pieces.

Asylum Supreme Dalek

Having been updated since its appearance in the New Series Dalek Supremes Collection Tour, this Supreme Dalek now resides within the Asylum and has become the ringleader of a desperate faction of Daleks from various time periods who have allied together for protection. Using its old command codes, this Dalek is capable of interfacing directly with the Asylum’s central mainframe, giving it a unique insight into the Asylum’s Labyrinthine layout that makes it a vital asset for the various competing factions within the Asylum.

Next – New Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Even More Destroyed Daleks

New Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Screen-Accurate Asylum Daleks

Welcome to the next instalment in this tour through my collection of custom-painted New Series Daleks. Following the Special Weapons Dalek Customs, this short feature includes a brief look at two of my best Dalek Asylum customs. All of these customs are made by me unless stated otherwise in the description.

‘Eggs’ Dalek

This Dalek is intended to represent the Dalek that Rory first encounters in the Dalek Asylum in the initial chamber shown in Asylum of the Daleks. This Dalek became infamous for attempting to say ‘Exterminate’ and simply repeating ‘Eggs’ over and over again, baffling Rory but giving the other Daleks enough time to wake up. I set out to create this Dalek as my first attempt to properly recreate a figure that had been seen on-screen. And whilst my approximation with this figure is hardly perfect, I feel I have at least achieved a striking resemblance with this attempt. The hardest part about creating this custom was accurately recreating the damage to the manipulator arm slot that this Dalek possessed, which I had to inflict using a hacksaw and a pair of pliers (applied with delicate and professional precision, of course) to eventually open up the housing for the manipulator arm ball joint and fill in the exposed gap with hot glue, giving it a finish similar to that of melted metal when left to dry and painted black. Finishing details like the weathering, the Dalek stamp and the oil and grit in the seams I achieved using Pro-marker pens.

Plunger Dalek

Asylum Dalek

This Dalek is intended to represent another Dalek shown in the Asylum in the opening chamber shot of Asylum of the Daleks. This Dalek was much easier to modify than the Eggs Dalek, particularly since no drastic alterations needed to be made to the casing. However, Particular detail had to be given to the missing spheres which, as shown in the episode, show evidence of impact scoring combined with oil and grit residue. I painted this Dalek with a very thin grey overlay so that the oil-coloured marker pens would have a standout effect, particularly in the light.

Next – New Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – More Destroyed Daleks

Custom Collection Tour - More New Series Destroyed Daleks

Classic Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Destroyed / Asylum Daleks

Welcome to the next instalment in this series of Dalek customs showcases, a tour through my collection of custom-made Classic Daleks that have been altered and painted to appear destroyed, with some marked with stamps for the Dalek Asylum. The previous instalment featured the New Series Dalek Asylum inmates, but one of the biggest draws of Asylum of the Daleks was the fact that there were Classic Daleks in the Asylum, so I was eager to include some in my collection. All of these customs are made by me unless stated otherwise in the description.

DISCLAIMER: I have not damaged or destroyed any rare classic Dalek figures to create these customs.

All of these Daleks are either common Classic figures painted to look like rarer figures, or figures which I bought on the pretence that they were damaged beyond repair and then painted and customised, so rest assured, no rare Daleks were harmed during the making of these customs. (At least, not by me, but I’ll explain that later…)

Duo of Destroyed Genesis Dalek Custom Figures:

These are two destroyed Daleks from totally different eras, even if they are of the same design. The left side Dalek has been altered to resemble a casualty of the early Dalek-Thal War that takes place on Skaro during the finale of Genesis of the Daleks. Damaged out in the wastelands of Skaro by a land mine and hit with a well-aimed explosive, this Dalek has collapsed in on itself as the mutant inside dies. I had to cut the neck rings to shape and use hot glue and paint to make it appear as though the front part of the Dalek’s neck ring had collapsed due to an impact on the back of the casing, which spewed green oil and fluid all over the top part of the Dalek and blasted off its weapons and eyestalk in the process.
The right side Dalek is my rendition of a Genesis-style Asylum inmate, who has been rotting in the Asylum since the very beginning. Long since destroyed by age and the other inmates, this relic to Dalek history sits abandoned, still bearing the scars of its former battles and stains of oil on its side. Whether or not the pole sticking out of its head is what remains of the eyestalk or a brutal makeshift weapon that has been embedded in the dome somehow is open to interpretation.

Damaged Revelation-era Asylum Custom Figure:

Asylum 70’s Dalek

This Dalek was painted to resemble a Dalek from the 1980s using a Gold Day of the Daleks Supreme as the base, and then dirtied up with black, brown and green paint and stamped with an Asylum mark. This Dalek was also partially inspired by a bizarre story from 2009 in which a classic Dalek prop was found in a swamp and fished out, which you can read about here. the paint applications represent burn marks and stains of mud from a swamp or jungle which probably indicate that this Dalek was in some scrapes before being admitted to the Asylum but it is still very much active. Now it spends its time stalking labyrinthine corridors of the planet-sized facility, eagerly stalking bands of Imperial Daleks that have also been admitted to the Asylum, but more on that later.

Insane Emperor’s Guard Dalek Custom Figure:

Asylum Emperor’s Guard

A relatively prominent feature in the Asylum during Asylum of the Daleks was a dirtied-up Emperor’s Guard Dalek from The Evil of the Daleks, which featured in several of the promotional photos for the episode and actually appeared numerous times throughout the episode, unlike some of the other classic Daleks. Most notably it appeared as the Dalek which Amy, in her drug-induced hallucinatory state, imagines as a dancing ballerina, when it is in fact spinning endlessly and out of control. It would seem wrong then to not include this figure as part of the Asylum collection. For newcomers to the world of customising Dalek figures, this is one of the easiest customs to make, since 60s-era bodyguards are among the cheapest of the Dalek figures you can buy. All I used here was black and grey paint to dirty it up a bit and a tippex pen and red Sharpee for the Asylum stamp, as is the case with all of my Asylum customs.

Burnt Death to the Daleks Custom Figure:

Another Classic Dalek which was in Asylum of the Daleks but did not feature as prominently as the Emperor’s Guard Dalek was recreation of a Dalek from Death to the Daleks. Unfortunately, this Dalek prop barely featured in the actual episode, as it was painted with dull grey, making its unique design barely recognisable. This figure is therefore a representation of how the iconic Death to the Daleks Dalek should have appeared as an inmate in the Asylum. I created this model using a repainted Emperor’s Guard figure that I detailed in black paint to appear burnt, as a reference to the fact that several of the Daleks inexplicably catch fire in this episode. The orange lights indicate that this Dalek was once a commander before it was admitted to the Asylum, possibly having been scarred for life after the events of Destiny of the Daleks by that ridiculous-giant water eel that definitely wasn’t made of plastic and held up with wires. As a result, this Dalek is one of the catatonic Daleks imprisoned in the intensive care unit.

Destroyed The Dead Planet Dalek Custom Figure:

Asylum Dead Planet Dalek

Another feature in the Asylum was a classic The Dead Planet Dalek, featuring the new updated colour scheme that would later become more prominent in The Magician’s Apprentice/The Witches’ Familiar, particularly since the props used in that episode were remarkably accurate yet updated for the modern era, with the addition of a blue eyestalk and a slightly altered yet more dynamic colour scheme. Oddly, some fans at the time complained that these Daleks weren’t ‘screen-accurate’ representations of the original Daleks from The Dead Planet, overlooking the fact that, although the props themselves were made by fans, they are still Dalek props that appeared in an actual episode, so they are now simply a canon variation of the original Dalek design. For this custom I modified a Dalek Saucer Pilot, replacing the base with a shorter one and painting the Dalek with grey and black paint to appear old and dirtied. I also added a ‘mutant reveal’ feature to this Dalek, by removing the front section and sanding down the parts that keep it in place so that it can be securely fitted but easily removed. The interior I created using parts of an old CD to give it a 1960s vibe, and the mutant is simply the top half of a Dalek Sec Hybrid figure’s head, held in place by a plastic sheet that holds the piece in place.

Duo of Destroyed Imperial Dalek Figures:

One of these is not a custom, but is in fact the destroyed Imperial Dalek that strangles the Seventh Doctor that was included in the Remembrance of the Daleks two-pack with Emperor Davros. The sculpting of the mutant on this figure is marvellous, far beyond anything I could do in a custom, and it was well worth the purchase. The Dalek on the right is a custom that I cannot take complete credit for, as I did the paint job but not the custom itself. I believe this to be one of CaptainJimiPie’s customs, the video for which is featured below. This Dalek has clearly been the victim of fire from other inmates in the Asylum and now sits dead, its rotting flesh hanging out of the scarred casing. One day I would like to do a custom of an actual Imperial Dalek model, but I would have to find one that was already broken as I could never bring myself to damage a rare figure of one of my favourite Dalek designs.

Next – New Series Dalek Customs Collection Tour – Other Asylum Inmates

Bonus – Custom made by CaptainJimiPie

This is another CaptainJimiPie custom that I got in a job lot of other Daleks. I have fitted with a new base since the original one had been removed when I received this figure. This Dalek features in CaptainJimiPie’s showcase of his Asylum Dalek collection, which you can view here (This Dalek that I now own features at 1:08 in this video):