Grey Dalek

Grey Dalek
Also called:	Warrior Dalek, Dalek Drone - Type 2 Type IV Dalek, Mark III Travel Machine
Type:	Dalek - Kaled mutant
Affiliation:	Dalek Empire
Place of origin:	Skaro, Spiridon
Notable members:	Dalek Prime, Dalek Section Leader, Expedition Squad Leader
First appearance:	Day of the Daleks
Appearances:	see list

Grey Daleks (PROSE: Remembrance of the Daleks) were basic Daleks with dark grey casings, who served as the default form of Dalek drone at many points in Dalek history, beginning with the first Mark III Travel Machines unveiled by Davros. (TV: Genesis of the Daleks)

They served as warriors, with the Eighth Doctor claiming they were "foot soldiers" with very limited intelligence but obedience. (PROSE: War of the Daleks) However, standard Grey Daleks were indeed very intelligent, (AUDIO: The Elite) but they always quickly elected to obey orders instead of give them in the presence of higher ranking Daleks. (PROSE: Remembrance of the Daleks)

Though some of the first Daleks on Skaro's casings were the slatless, pale Dalek War Machines, (TV: The Daleks, COMIC: Genesis of Evil, Legacy of Yesteryear, etc.) later phased out in favor of Silver Daleks slightly more similar to Davros's Grey Daleks, (TV: The Chase, The Evil of the Daleks, COMIC: Shadow of Humanity, etc.) Grey Daleks served as the default drones throughout the bulk of the Dalek history prior to the Last Great Time War. (TV: Destiny of the Daleks et al.) During the Imperial-Renegade Dalek Civil War, they were classed as Renegade Daleks, loyal to the Supreme Dalek and Dalek Prime, opposed to the white Imperial Daleks loyal to Davros. (TV: Remembrance of the Daleks)

Hierarchy

Shades of grey. (PROSE: Dalek Combat Training Manual)

The Grey Daleks were subordinate to Gold Daleks, (TV: Day of the Daleks) Black Daleks, (TV: Resurrection of the Daleks) and black-and-gold Supreme Daleks of the Supreme Council. (TV: Planet of the Daleks)

Though generally appearing as foot soldiers, Grey Daleks could also be of higher ranks. On Spiridon, a Grey Dalek served as Section Leader. (TV: Planet of the Daleks)

Upon encountering a Grey Dalek setting itself up as a High Priest attempting to return to the fleet, the Fifth Doctor asked if they would really come for it, commenting that a Grey Dalek was "hardly vital to the war efforts." (AUDIO: The Elite)

Following the Dalek-Movellan War, the Supreme Dalek was supported by grey Daleks beginning with a designated Alpha Dalek leader, followed by the Beta Dalek, Gamma Dalek, Delta Dalek and Epsilon Dalek. Upon encountering an Alpha Dalek during the Duplicate Incident, the Fifth Doctor observed that it was a new title. (PROSE: Resurrection of the Daleks, TV: Resurrection of the Daleks)

Variants

A variant of the "Type VIII Dalek" coloured grey. (PROSE: Dalek: The Astounding Untold History of the Greatest Enemies of the Universe)

The first Mark III Travel Machines presented by Davros were grey casings with grey slats and black sense globes, with blue insulator discs across the Dalek eyestalk. (TV: Genesis of the Daleks) Later Daleks, seen during the Dalek-Movellan War, were of a lighter shade of grey with black slats as well as sense globes. However, darker, grey-slatted Daleks remained during this time, and appeared to serve as leaders to the black-slatted Daleks as seen in the Movellan Incident. (TV: Destiny of the Daleks, PROSE: Doctor Who and the Destiny of the Daleks)

The Time Lords who scrutinised Dalek history during the Time War identified the grey Daleks as Type IV Daleks, following the silver Type I and its modifications, the Type II and the now slatted Type III Dalek. The black sense globes were identified as "multiphase" improvements to the blue globes used by the first three Types. They observed that the Type IV, which retained many of the features of the earliest prototypes, which had a toughened grey coating bonded to the Dalekanium shell. The prototype design had been replicated for later design units with variant coatings resulting in different shades of grey as the Type IV was used in many campaigns. The Dalek Combat Training Manual identified three distinct shades: an initial, darker shade, the lighter shade associated with the Movellan War, and the shade used by the Renegade Daleks. The manual also advised that damage inflicted in various battles resulted in some of these units being particularly susceptible to attack. The Type IV was followed by a modified silver Dalek model with black sense globes, the Type V, the structure of which formed the basis of Davros' prototype Imperial Daleks, the Type VI, which was refined into the Type VII. (PROSE: Dalek Combat Training Manual)

Earlier, the Dalek Survival Guide identified the Grey Daleks as the "Type 2" Dalek Drone following the Silver "Type 1" and preceding the "Type 3", the modified Silver Dalek. The guide was also aware of reports of slightly different "Type 2" models and observed that, during the Dalek-Movellan War, different versions worked within the same battle sections in varying states of disrepair. The guide even believed that some "Type 2" Drones, such as those who served in the Time Paradox Incident, were coloured black. (PROSE: Dalek Survival Guide)

The Grey Daleks that rescued Davros from the Prison Station had black slats and sense globes. However, the insulator discs across their eyestalks were white rather than blue. They were subordinate to a black Supreme Dalek with white sense globes. (TV: Resurrection of the Daleks) Identical Daleks later came to Necros to capture Davros. (TV: Revelation of the Daleks)

History

Davros's first creations

On Skaro, in the account of the creation of the Daleks which saw them as the creations of the scientist Davros, the first Mark III Travel Machines which Davros presented to the Kaled Scientific Elite were dark grey. The newly-christened Daleks were sent by Davros to exterminate the Thals, supposedly in retaliation for the attack on the Kaled Dome. They turned on Davros, as they were not programmed to recognise any creature as superior to them, apparently killing him. Accidentally, whilst attempting to stop the Fourth Doctor, a Dalek triggered an explosion which destroyed the embryo room before the Thals sealed the bunker entrance and trapped the Daleks there. In the aftermath, the Doctor believed he had only held back their progress by about a thousand years or so, and that they would return. (TV: Genesis of the Daleks)

Use as the basic Dalek drones

By one account, "rank and file" Daleks coloured a "simple grey and blue" were at the bottom of the original Dalek hierarchy established by the Dalek Prime. Above them were Red-and-gray Daleks responsible for transportation, who were themselves subordinate to the Red Dalek section leaders. (PROSE: The History of the Daleks)

A group of grey Daleks followed a Red Dalek and their leader, a Black Dalek, on Earth in 2199. (PROSE: Legacy of the Daleks)

By one account, grey Daleks were drones during Operation Human Factor and the subsequent Dalek Civil War. (PROSE: The Evil of the Daleks)

After the Dalek Empire spent some time with Machine Daleks, and then Silver Daleks, as its default drones, (TV: The Daleks, The Evil of the Daleks) Grey Daleks resurfaced in the aftermath of the Dalek Civil War. One detachment, led by a Gold Dalek, invaded Earth in an alternate 22nd century after the World Peace Conference was destroyed by Shura from the future. World War III started as various global factions accused each other of having done so. They used Ogrons as enforcers. The Third Doctor and Jo Grant travelled to 1970s and undid that alternate timeline. Shura used the bomb to destroy the Daleks and Ogrons in the Auderly House. (TV: Day of the Daleks) One account claims a Black Dalek was present as a second-in-command and was responsible for much of the Gold Dalek's tasks while the Gold Dalek acted as an overseer. (PROSE: Doctor Who and the Day of the Daleks)

Grey Daleks on Spiridon. (TV: Planet of the Daleks)

In 2540, the Daleks allied with the Master to undermine the Earth and Draconian Empires and set them against each other and then take over with a huge army of Grey Daleks assembled on Spiridon. (TV: Frontier in Space) Despite the Master's failure to cause war, the army was prepared and the Daleks looked toward utilising the invisibility properties of Spiridon's inhabitants as a means of developing stealth technology. However, all of these plans were foiled when the Grey Dalek army was frozen by the Third Doctor and a taskforce of Thals. (TV: Planet of the Daleks) Grey Daleks served in the ensuing Second Dalek War, (AUDIO: Out of Time) however towards the end of the conflict some of the first Bronze Daleks had been deployed in their place. (PROSE: Prisoner of the Daleks)

During the Second Great Dalek Occupation, an attempt was made by the Dalek Scientific Division to recover the frozen army of Grey Daleks on Spiridon, however this was ultimately foiled when the Seventh Doctor unleashed a virus on the planet which infected the occupying Daleks with light wave sickness. (AUDIO: Return of the Daleks)

Bomb-laden Daleks on the march during the Dalek-Movellan War. (TV: Destiny of the Daleks)

Grey Daleks fought in a war against the Movellans, (TV: Destiny of the Daleks) as did more Bronze Daleks. (TV: The Pilot) The conflict soon resulted in a stalemate: each side's purely logical battle computer kept them in deadlock. To circumvent this stalemate, the Daleks returned to Skaro to find Davros so his biological mind could reprogram their battle computers to win the war. However, the Fourth Doctor defeated them and the Movellans and Davros was taken by the Daleks' former slaves to stand trial. (TV: Destiny of the Daleks) The war continued for another 90 years, until the Movellans developed a Movellan virus to defeat the Daleks. (TV: Resurrection of the Daleks)

A Grey Dalek was time scooped to the Death Zone on Gallifrey, where it tried to exterminate the First Doctor and Susan Foreman, only to be destroyed when they pushed it into a dead end, causing its energy weapon to ricochet and destroy it. (TV: The Five Doctors)

Renegades versus Imperials

A detachment of Grey Daleks led by a black Supreme Dalek went to free their creator to find a cure for the Movellan virus. They also used a time corridor and a Dalek duplicate called Stien to trap the Fifth Doctor to duplicate him and his Companions to assassinate the Time Lord High Council. However, the Doctor broke free of the duplication apparatus and turned Stien to his cause. Meanwhile, Davros turned several Dalek Troopers and two Daleks to his cause but the Supreme's Daleks destroyed the rebels. Both Davros and the Doctor unleashed the virus and the Dalek ship was destroyed by Stien. (TV: Resurrection of the Daleks)

Grey Daleks arrive at Tranquil Repose (TV: Revelation of the Daleks)

Davros escaped to Necros and began to turn intelligent cryogenically frozen people into Imperial Daleks to conquer the universe. However, Takis called the Renegade Daleks to take Davros to stand trial. (TV: Revelation of the Daleks) Under the Alpha and Beta Daleks, (PROSE: Revelation of the Daleks) the Grey Daleks fought their way past the Imperials to take Davros. He tried to get them to take the Sixth Doctor, but they did not recognise him. The Renegades' attempt to recondition the Imperials failed because of the Imperials' destruction by the Doctor and Orcini. (TV: Revelation of the Daleks)

By one account, the ship carrying Davros, en route to Skaro, crashed on the planet Lethe, where Davros was rescued and set himself up as "Professor Vaso", altering the perceptions of the humans on the colony so they would not recognise him as the "Great Healer". He attempted to create a new machine, a Juggernaut based on a Mechanoid design. Lethe's atmosphere prevented the Supreme Dalek retrieving Davros directly, but its forces, led by a Black Dalek, intercepted the Sixth Doctor's TARDIS, forcing him to serve as an agent of the Daleks and stop Davros' researches and manipulations. The Doctor discovered two of Davros' Necros Daleks had survived the crash, but were destroyed following Davros' final gambit on the colony and the Supreme Dalek's intervention. (AUDIO: The Juggernauts)

The Renegade and Imperial Daleks both headed to Earth in 1963 to claim the Hand of Omega, waging a lengthy battle at Shoreditch. Aided by the Special Weapons Dalek, the Imperial Daleks won, almost wiping out the Renegades aside from the Supreme, who later self-destructed after the Seventh Doctor manipulated the Imperials into destroying Skaro. (TV: Remembrance of the Daleks)

Beyond the Civil War

Grey and Black Daleks infiltrating Castle Tersurus. (TV: The Curse of Fatal Death)

In a vision of his future, the Eighth Doctor saw "a conical robot, gunmetal-grey" which swung a camera eye at him with the lights on the top of its head flashing angrily. (PROSE: Father Time) Looking into his future via the Tomorrow Window, the Eighth Doctor saw "squat machines in gunmetal grey" gliding through the rubble of a ruined city beneath a flying saucer, their eyestalks scanning from left to right.

Another element of his future that the Eighth Doctor foresaw was a "listless" possible version of his ninth incarnation, (PROSE: The Tomorrow Windows) who would later face the Master and a platoon of Grey Daleks led by a Black Dalek on the planet Tersurus. The Master had promised to give the Daleks the secrets of the awesomely-destructive zectronic beam in exchange for their cooperation in killing the Doctor. However, the Doctor succeeded in destroying the beam at the cost of several of their regenerations.

When the twelfth incarnation of the Doctor appeared to be dying permanently, the Black Dalek vowed that the Daleks would "honor their fallen enemy" while the Master mourned him. Following the Twelfth Doctor's regeneration into a female thirteenth incarnation, she departed from the Dalek spaceship with the Master, with the grey drones making no visible effort to stop the two Time Lords. (TV: The Curse of Fatal Death) However, most other accounts agreed that these had not been the ninth and following incarnations of the Doctor. (TV: The Day of the Doctor, Rose)

Restoration Empire

The Daleks during the war against the Hond. (COMIC: Defender of the Daleks)

When the Emperor of the Restoration founded the Restoration Empire, he brought back the Silver Daleks as the Drones to harken back to the original Empire, (PROSE: The Restoration Empire) with Grey Daleks appearing to command these Drones. One Grey Dalek with yellow sensor globes served as a leader to Silver Dalek Drones who recruited the Tenth Doctor into the war against the Hond. (COMIC: Defender of the Daleks)

Phasing out

Classed by the Time Lords as Type VIII, (PROSE: Dalek Combat Training Manual) bronze Daleks such as were already deployed in the late stages of the Second Dalek War (PROSE: Prisoner of the Daleks) and the Dalek-Movellan War, (TV: The Pilot) eventually supplanted grey casings as the default travel machine used by Dalek drones in the time leading up to and during the Last Great Time War (TV: Dalek, The Day of the Doctor) even though grey casings saw some limited use during the War, such as the Battle of Seramiphius V. (PROSE: Dalek: The Astounding Untold History of the Greatest Enemies of the Universe) In their wartime guide to the Daleks, the Time Lords advised damage inflicted in various battles resulted in some of the grey Daleks, designated Type IV, as being particularly susceptible to attack. (PROSE: Dalek Combat Training Manual)

The varyingly-successful attempts by the Daleks to rebuild their power base after the Time War also employed Bronze Dalek casings, such as the Dalek Emperor's half-human Dalek Fleet (TV: The Parting of the Ways) or the New Dalek Empire. (TV: The Stolen Earth)

A Grey Dalek in the Dalek Asylum. (TV: Asylum of the Daleks)

Even after the New Dalek Paradigm attempted to introduce red Drone Daleks, (TV: Victory of the Daleks) Bronze Daleks would endure. (TV: Asylum of the Daleks, Into the Dalek) Some Grey Daleks did remain in the universe after their casing type was replaced by the Bronze ones, however. Some Grey Daleks, having survived encounters with the Doctor and classed as insane, had been taken to the Dalek Asylum. These insane Daleks died when the asylum was destroyed by the Parliament of the Daleks. (TV: Asylum of the Daleks)

Other Grey Daleks were among the numerous variants present in the Dalek City when Davros and the Daleks reoccupied Skaro. (TV: The Magician's Apprentice, The Witch's Familiar)

Aborted timeline

In an aborted timeline, the War Master stole the Anti-Genesis codes from Gallifrey during the Last Great Time War to travel to Skaro during the Thousand Year War and kill Davros. (AUDIO: From the Flames) The Daleks that the Master created in Davros' place were initially identical in appearance to the Grey Daleks that Davros created, but possessed a mutation weapon that could transform a victim into a Dalek mutant. (AUDIO: The Master's Dalek Plan) These Daleks ultimately went on to conquer Skaro (AUDIO: Shockwave) and the entire universe, before betraying the Master as the Daleks of the original timeline did to Davros. Ultimately these Daleks were erased from existence when the Dalek Time Strategist exterminated Crazlus, the Master's servant and the focal point of the alternate timeline. (AUDIO: He Who Wins)

Behind the scenes

Merchandise

• Dapol, which produced a range of toys based on the classic series of Doctor Who, released several original Grey Dalek variants which did not appear on-screen. The variant W008-12, for example, was light grey with gold detailing.

Invalid sources

A Grey Dalek intimidates a Sontaran on behalf of the Parliament of the Daleks in The Universal Song Contest (2015).

Grey Dalek drones appear in Trapped in the Time Corridor, an illustration for the 30th Anniversary Calendar, serving under the Golden Emperor, the Black Dalek, the Red Dalek, and a red-domed Dalek.

An early sketch by Matt Savage for the Daleks' return in the 2005 story Dalek depicted a gunmetal Grey Dalek before the Bronze Dalek design was settled.

The Dalek Handbook claims that grey Daleks succeeded the silver Daleks as drones following the Dalek Civil War, dated to the 41st century, and that their presence in the 26th century Operation Divide and Conquer and the Spiridon campaign was indicative of continued operations to overwrite history in the Daleks' favor, with the silver Daleks seen in the Exxilon Gambit being 27th century-native Daleks that had been subsumed into future Dalek forces.

In their list of real world paradigms, The Dalek Handbook counts early grey Daleks as part of the "1972-1985" paradigm with the Gold Dalek and the Dalek Supreme, and later grey Daleks as the "1974-1984" paradigm with the Exxilon Daleks and the Black Dalek Leader (Duplicate Incident). The Renegade Daleks and their Black Dalek are in the "1985-1988" paradigm with their enemies, the Necros Daleks and the Imperial Daleks.

As one of the most iconic Dalek designs in Doctor Who's history, Grey Daleks were featured in several works not considered valid in-universe sources by our Wiki's policy, often due to a parodical nature casting doubt on whether they are seriously meant to take place in the wider Doctor Who universe. For example, Doreen, the insane Dalek from Hallo My Dalek, was a Grey Dalek, although one whose casing possessed several peculiarities.

In The Universal Song Contest (one of the sketches released as part of The Fan Show), Grey Daleks even were shown to be employed by the New Dalek Paradigm on occasions, even though no sign of this had ever been shown on television and Grey Daleks were no longer the current design of the Dalek soldier by the time The Universal Song Contest was webcast.

Grey Daleks feature alongside silver "Exxilon Daleks" in Regression of the Daleks, a fictional 1988 serial of Doctor Who which features in the fourth episode of It's a Sin.