Let’s Play D&D With Some Doctor Who Monsters
The Doctor has always had some great foes, so this week we’re adding a few of our favorites to our next D&D campaign.
Doctor Who is some of the longest running and most popular science fiction out there. Between hundreds of episodes, multiple spin-offs, and an immeasurable effect on the nerd zeitgeist, The Doctor is one of those characters who, love them or hate them, you know who they are. We love finding ways to mix things from all over the nerdy world into D&D, so this week let’s make tabletop gaming a little more timey-wimey with a few of The Doctor’s (least?) favorite foes.
Daleks
Sheet made on The Homebrewery.
Daleks feel a little silly to drop into a world of high fantasy like Dungeons and Dragons, but they wouldn’t actually be that off base for the game. D&D has a history of quietly including alien technology into the settings, and mechanical constructs are very much a thing thanks to the addition of artificers. Charm (or curse) one with sentience and a bad attitude, and something Dalek adjacent is very possible. Or don’t explain it, your players don’t need explanations for everything.
Aside from their consistent look and personality, there aren’t a lot to Daleks, and that makes them very easy to add to your next D&D session in a fun and recognizable way. Their eyestalk gives them a significant weakness, but aside from that they aren’t exactly pushovers. If your party is facing one, you’ll probably beat them eventually with some damage from their Gunstalk and one use of Exterminate. But against a group of them, your right will suddenly be significantly more difficult.
And that’s one of the most fun parts of Daleks, they almost have to attack in a swarm. They’re not particularly fast, a kind DM will make them avoidable with a flight of stairs, and the have one obviously perturbing weakness. But in a group? Your party will have to be a little more thoughtful and strategic to defeat a group of Daleks.
Daleks are the villain that everyone would be a little amused to see at the table, though. Let’s add one that everyone would be a little horrified to see added to their next session…
Weeping Angels
It’s been YEARS and I still find them terrifying.
Sheet made on The Homebrewery.
Weeping Angels don’t even require any extra explanation or backstory to be reasonable to run into in your average D&D setting. They feel a lot like magic on their own and have powers that can mesh with fantasy just as well as science fiction.
Unlike the Daleks, Weeping Angels are very fast, and will likely catch up with you faster than you’d like. Because of their sharp teeth and general monstrous look I gave them Claw and Bite, but we all know those aren’t even close to their bread and butter. Classically, the Weeping Angel throws its victims back in time and lets them sort of live to death, but playing with time travel is a little more complex than your average D&D campaign has the ability for. Instead, these Angels throw you to another Plane of Existence. It will still ruin your character’s day and end a fight, but it doesn’t have to mean that a player character is permanently lost or that a party will be permanently separated.
Of course, if you look at a Weeping Angel this won’t be an issue. But will a member of your party be able to stare at them long enough for the rest of the party members to defeat the statue without blinking? And what if there’s a second one out there?
Would you add a Doctor Who inspired monster to your next D&D session? Which of the Doctor’s foes is your favorite? Have you been enjoying this season of Doctor Who? Let us know in the comments!
Don’t Blink. Don’t Even Blink, Adventurers!
