Skaro

Skaro was the war-torn homeworld of the Daleks, the Kaleds and the Thals.

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Skaro seen from space (DW: Doctor Who: The TV Movie)

Geography

Skaro was a planet of similar atmosphere, climate and gravity to Earth. (DW: The Daleks onwards) and the twelfth planet from its sun. It had a single continent that was divided into east and west halves of almost equal size. (DW: The Daleks)

Ecosystems and native life

Jungle or forest abounded on parts of Skaro (DW: The Daleks), where Varga plants (DW: Mission to the Unknown), Magnodons (DW: The Daleks) and Slythers (DW: The Dalek Invasion of Earth) could be found. After an exchange of neutron bombs, the forest petrified. (DW: The Daleks)

Other parts appeared simply like nondescript wastelands. (DW: Genesis of the Daleks, Destiny of the Daleks).

This may have happened as a result of the Thousand Year War between the Thals and Kaleds and/or the later wars between Daleks and Thals.

History

Pre-War history

Oral and written history suggests that the Thals lived as a race of warriors and another race, the Dals, as scientists, who would later mutate into the Daleks. (DW: The Daleks). One account claims that both Thals and Kaleds come from descendants of humans from Earth transported to Skaro by the Halldons as an experiment. (We are the Daleks!)

This contradicts later evidence that the Daleks evolved from the Kaleds, not a race called the Dals.

Creation of the Daleks

By the time of the creation of the Daleks, the Kaleds and the Thals fought the Thousand Year War over the wasteland adjacent to the Kaled Dome. (DW: Genesis of the Daleks)

Other historical sources would say that the race that would evolve into the Daleks had originally called themselves the Dals.

Technology had devolved in this time. A Scientific Elite now governed the Kaleds. By this phase of the war, biological and nuclear weapons had begun to cause mutations. known as mutos. The Kaled scientists saw this as the end of their species in its "pure" form. The Kaled chief scientist, Davros, decided accelerated to accelerat the mutations on purpose to determine their "ultimate form" and placed the results in travel machines. These creatures then became the successors to the Kaleds, the Daleks.

The Doctor, transported to this time period by the Time Lords to prevent a possible future where the Daleks would rule the universe, played a part in entombing the Daleks in the Kaled bunker. The Daleks still survived and promised to re-emerge. (DW: Genesis of the Daleks)

The aftermath

Centuries or thousands of years passed. Radiation levels had dropped, though not so far athat they did not still present a danger to Human (and Gallifreyan) life.

A handsome people, believed that they had evolved into beings of intellectual and physical perfection. The lived a simple pastoral and pacifist life style. The Thals never ventured into the Dalek City near to the petrified forest or showed any curiosity about it. Because of their dependence on static electricity to move about, the Daleks stayed within the city.

The Doctor had landed the TARDIS here, with his other companions, to Skaro, not knowing the planet's dangers. By an irony, the Daleks' discovery of the Doctor and his companions, who came from off-world, caused them to wonder about and to fear the existence of other sentient life on Skaro.

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Ian Chesterton, Barbara Wright, Susan and the Doctor look down upon the Dalek City (DW: The Daleks)

Ian Chesterton taught the Thals to use violence in self-defense, in order to protext themselves against the xenophobic Daleks who threatened them.

The Daleks came to know, during this time, that they needed high radiation to live. With levels subsiding and their lives threatened, the Daleks proposed to set off another neutron bomb. A combined effort of the Doctor and his companions and the Thals, turned off electricity in the Dalek City, making the Daleks powerless. (DW: The Daleks)

Spaceflight era and after

• In an alternative 22nd century, the Daleks had conquered Earth after a World War III had occured there in the 20th century. The Daleks transported Earth's mineral wealth back to Skaro. (DW: Day of the Daleks)

• During the 26th century it seemed that the Thals had reclaimed Skaro from the Thals. (DW: Planet of the Daleks)

• One account showed a future era where Skaro has once more become a barren world, possibly abandoned by the Daleks themselves. A few Kaled mutants, outside of Dalek shells, survive. (DW: Destiny of the Daleks)

• In another era, the Dalek City, the Emperor Dalek ruled a Dalek Empire which spanned both time and space. (DW: The Evil of the Daleks)

• The Master's execution would also happene on Skaro and the Doctor would make arrangements to go there to pick up the remains (DW: Doctor Who: The TV Movie) The fact that the Doctor could do this, indicated a somewhat less hostile attitude of the Time Lords towards the Daleks under President Romana. (NA: Lungbarrow)

These events may have taken place in the relative past of Skaro's timeline before its destruction, as Eighth Doctor does not comment on it. In the Doctor's personal timeline, Skaro no longer existed.

Destruction of Skaro

Skaro was apparently destroyed circa the 30th Century when, as planned by the Doctor, the Hand of Omega caused its sun went supernova, . (DW: Remembrance of the Daleks).

Survival of Skaro

It was revealed that Skaro had not in fact been destroyed. The Daleks, via time travel, had discovered records that showed Skaro's destruction. An attempt to change history was unsuccesful.

This refers to the Daleks invasion of the alternative 22nd century Earth.

The Daleks decided to terraform the planet Antalin to resemble Skaro and manipulated Davros and the Doctor into ensuring that Antalin was destroyed to take the place of the original. (PDA: War of the Daleks)

Other facts

The Movellans refered to Skaro by the designation D5-Gamma-Z-Alpha.

Behind the Scenes

John Peel's explained in his novel War of the Daleks that the Doctor did not really destroy Skaro at the end of Remembrance of the Daleks. This break wih televised history has not met with great approval with Doctor Who fans.

Appearances

Television

• The Daleks
• The Evil of the Daleks (episodes 5 and 6)
• Genesis of the Daleks
• Destiny of the Daleks

Audio dramas

• Davros (flashbacks)
• I, Davros

Theatrical movies

• Dr. Who and the Daleks (non-canonical)

Quotes

"It was on the planet Skaro that my old enemy, the Master was finally put on trial, they say he listened calmly as his list of evil crimes were read and sentence passed." (Eighth Doctor, TV Movie)

"Home planet Skaro about to vaporise!" (Imperial Dalek aboard Dalek mothership) Remembrance of the Daleks)