Doctor Who in 'Hordes of the Things'
by Kent McClure and Alan Saunders

 

Kent McClure sent me the original lists for Doctor Who, but in fact I had already given this some though myself. What follows is an amalgamation of our ideas, with some notes where one or other of us felt it relevant to explain something.

Suitable figures for both of these armies in 28mm can be found in Harlequin's extensive range, although a couple of armies would require a lottery win or a new mortgage. The U.N.I.T. force can be done in 15mm, using figures from Peter Pig's AK47 range, plus other bits and pieces from other ranges for the characters.

September 2006: There comes a time when lists need revision to take into account further experience of HOTT, and it's time these lists were revised.

Here are the lists:

Daleks

1 Blade General @ 2AP

Davros or the Supreme Dalek

2

5 Blades @ 2AP

Daleks

10

1 Artillery @ 3AP

Special Weapons Dalek

3

3 Shooters @ 2AP

Subjugated humans with assorted firearms

6

3 Hordes @ 1AP

Human rabble or other slave troops

3

Stronghold: A large flying saucer or a city of alien design

Alternatives: Warband @ 2AP (Low tech allies, such as Ogrons or Exxilons), Lurker @ 1AP (The Slyther or invisible Spiridon allies), Sneaker @ 3AP (Dalek agents such as Stein), Flyers @ 2AP (Daleks on anti-gravity discs), Airboat @ 3AP (Flying saucers)

Notes: Daleks are well armoured, unimpetuous and fight at close range; classic Blades.Apart from their first appearence they seem relatively unimpeded by rough terrain, operating effectively in jungles and rocky chalk pits. Even stairs cannot slow them, as is widely believed! However, they always seem to make use of dupes or allies, either by enslaving poulations or by diplomacy.

Special weapons Daleks have a single large gun and no manipulator arm.

Can anything oppose the Daleks? This lot can try:

The Doctor and U.N.I.T.

1 Sneaker @ 3AP

The Doctor plus companions

3

1 Hero general @ 4AP

The Brigadier plus Sgt. Benton and Captain Yates

4

7 Shooters @ 2AP

U.N.I.T. soldier

14

1 Artillery @ 3AP

Mortars or bazookas

3

Stronghold: A blue police box, or U.N.I.T. HQ or command post.

Alternatives: Warband or Hordes (Low tech allies, such as Exxilons or Aridians) Lurkers @ 1AP (Guerillas, 22nd century or otherwise), Shooters or Blades (High tech allies such as Movellans or Mechanoids), Sneaker @ 3AP (Another regeneration of The Doctor), Riders @ 2AP (U.N.I.T. troopers in Land Rovers)

Notes: Whilst the Doctor may seem to be a classic hero, he tends not to get directly involved in any fighting, concentrating instead on striking at the enemy leader or their base of operations. However an argument could be made for classifying the Third Doctor as a hero. From a military point of view it's the Brigadier who is in charge of things, so he is the general. He is classed as a hero because he has been shown to be unkillable, and is well suited to leading lesser troops, even if he mistakes alien worlds for the beach at Cromer. For his finest hour, see his confrontation with The Destroyer in 'Battlefield'. If you feel that the hero classification over-emphasises the Brigadier (or wish to represent U.N.I.T. forces that he is not leading) then the general should be one of the shooters, or a rider in a Land Rover.

Kent and I have explored some other ideas for army lists:

Details of a sample 15mm army can be found here.

Click here to see a picture of this army.

Cybermen

1 Blade General @ 2AP

Cyberleader

2

10 Blades @ 2AP

Cybermen

20

2 Lurkers @ 1AP

Cybermats

2

Stronghold: A tomb of frozen Cybermen, or a spaceship

Cybermen are classed as Blades on the same principal as Daleks; they are heavily armoured and use their weapons at close range. They do not seem to make use of allies, or any special field weapons. Cybermen in later episodes seem to die at the merest whiff of gold, but the earlier Cybermen were made of sterner stuff and proved extremely difficult to kill.

Details of a sample 15mm army can be found here.

Silurians and Sea Devils

1 Blade General @ 2AP

Silurian Triumvirate

2

6 Shooters @ 2AP

Sea Devils

12

2 Water Lurkers @ 1AP

Sea Devil Ambush parties

2

2 Behemoths @ 4AP

Myrka or Relic Dinosaurs

8

Stronghold: A cave entrance

Silurians and Sea Devils are related reptilian races that ruled the earth before man. Hibernating groups are sometimes activated by design or accident, and they seem bent on removing humanity from 'their' world, despite the Doctor's attempts at reconciliation. The Silurians are underepresented in the list, as they never appeared in any numbers. They are classed as generals, because on the one occasion they are seen in co-operation with the Sea Devils, they are obviously in charge. See Devils are classed as Shooters as they lack staying power or armour, and fight at longer range than other aliens. The Myrka was a large reptilian monster that killed opponents with high voltage electricity. It bears an unfortunate resemblance to a pantomime horse. The Silurians used a dinosaur to guard one of their cave complexes.

Morgaine's Warriors

1 Magician General @ 4AP

Morgaine

4

1 Hero @ 4AP

The Destroyer

4

1 Hero @ 4AP

Mordred

4

6 Blades @ 2AP

Knights

12

Stronghold: A churchyard with a war memorial.

Alternatives: Regrade The Destroyer as a God @ 4AP.

Morgaine is a powerful sorceror from an alternative Earth, who arrived on this Earth with her forces in the episode 'Battlefield'. They fought the Doctor and U.N.I.T. for control of a nuclear missile. The Destroyer is a powerful summoned monster, the option to classify it as a God reflects its magical nature and the difficulty of killing it. Mordred is Morgaine's son. Mordred's knights wore medieval style armour, and fought with swords, energy pistols and grenades. A U.N.I.T. force opposing this army can opt to have an extra Hero, representing Brigadier Bambera and Ancelyn, Morgaine's enemy from the same alternate Earth.

One alternative which could be added to any list is The Master, as another sneaker. Although primarily an enemy of the Doctor, they have enough mutual respect that they will work together against a common enemy. Even then, he is not to be entirely trusted.

 

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