What is ‘Doctors and Daleks’?

This November sees a new incarnation of a classic roleplaying game when the wild adventures of everyone’s favourite Time Lord meld with the world’s most popular roleplaying game in Doctors and Daleks. Take your gaming group into the TARDIS and travel anywhere, anywhen. Want to meet Leonardo da Vinci? Or see who really built Stonehenge? What about visiting another planet entirely? All of time and space is yours to explore, but keep your wits about you — there is a lot of danger to discover amidst the vastness of eternity. 

The Doctors and Daleks Roleplaying Game begins with the 5th edition rules as a base but then takes them on a merry spin around the galaxy. Combat, the mainstay of many a 5E game, is not what Doctors and Daleks is all about, but rather conflict resolution, and its new rules reflect that. Characters and the many challenges they will face have Plot Points – a narrative measure of luck, resolve, and drive to succeed. The Doctor seldom has to hurt a villain to outsmart and defeat them, though sometimes their sense of pride takes a few whacks. Loss of Plot Points can mean changing a foe’s mind, foiling their plans, or being incapacitated yourself.

Doctors and Daleks utilises a new set of mechanics called Quips, which are like spells from the 5th edition rules, only all characters use them. Quips represent your character’s unique abilities and the strength of words, allowing you to do incredible things, such as convincing a Judoon that it has made terrible life choices. You can use Quips to decrease your opponents’ Plot Points, create marvellous technological effects, or just help someone by offering them a Jelly Baby. 

Starting us off is the Doctors and Daleks: Player’s Guide which introduces all the new rules, including a complete set of Character Classes for companions, plentiful backgrounds, and a bespoke set of guidelines to create any unique new custom character species you can imagine! Within the guide are rules for using different levels of technology in the game, from rocks to sonic screwdrivers. There are rules for using and customising the TARDIS, and creating and piloting other time travel devices to adventure from the dawn of history to the end of the Universe.

The Doctors and Daleks: Player’s Guide is chock full of advice on making every Doctors and Daleks adventure feel like you’re living in an episode of the legendary Doctor Who TV series. Of course, no roleplaying game featuring the Doctor would be complete without an expansive look at the history of the Doctor’s Universe, detailing many of the aliens and wildly varied entities the Doctor has encountered across time and space, including profiles for Daleks, Cybermen, Weeping Angels, and more ready to be played!

BBC, DOCTOR WHO, TARDIS, DALEK and CYBERMAN (word marks and devices) are trade marks of the British Broadcasting Corporation and are used under licence. BBC logo © BBC 1996. DOCTOR WHO logo © BBC 1973. Dalek image © BBC/Terry Nation 1963. Cyberman image © BBC/Kit Pedler/Gerry Davis 1966. Licensed by BBC Studios.