Dalek Panzer
by BenjaminDRichards
This is my answer: the Panzer Dalek.
First, some history. The Daleks were introduced in Doctor Who way back when, when World War II was still a fresh memory. A Dalek is a superiority-obsessed war machine that looks like a tiny tank. It's nothing new to suggest that the reason for the Daleks' long popularity as villains is the fact that they tap into the British history of battling Nazis.
However, the Daleks were designed in an age when special effects were not quite so advanced. They are an icon, a classic of design, and there's nothing wrong with them. I simply wondered, what would they look like if we'd designed them today, with a slightly more modern aesthetic?
The Panzer Dalek is designed to do three things: look armoured, be flexible, and look like a Dalek.
You'll notice that the head has a distinctive helmet-like covering. This is based on the German Stahlhelm, albeit modified for the Dalek frame. The Dalek eyestalk should exit the head as high as possible, so as to look down on everything. Daleks admit no equals.
There is also a visor, which can slide up to protect the eyestalk when retracted. This is part of a theme for the Panzer Dalek; its casing is a lot more flexible than the classic model. Things pop in and out.
The head rotates atop a central body, visible along the flanks. This body has a heavy shoulder chassis, to which all other components are mounted.
The upper front of the body is protected by two armoured plates (seen in the rightmost Panzer Dalek). These can pop out, rotate up (as in the middle), and lock back into place (as in the left), revealing weapon and manipulator tools. I've illustrated a couple of varieties of these: classic death ray and grip tool, and a more modern ominous glowing thingy of indeterminate purpose. The weapon modules can evoke the classic Dalek chest-box arrangement, but can also be moved about like stubby arms or folded away for a sleek silhouette.
The lower front is an armoured ram. I see no reason why a Dalek shouldn't be able to hurt things just by moving around. It seems in character.
There are two rear stabilisers, which meet in the back to form a protective barrier.
But the real novelty in the Panzer Dalek is its tripod configuration. The ram and the rear stabilisers are not fixed. They are mounted on extendable manipulators, allowing the Panzer Dalek to shift its posture, rest on rough terrain, and even walk (although it prefers to roll or fly). Together with the base of the central unit, the Dalek can keep three points of balance at all times, enough to remain balanced if it doesn't get too excited.
This Dalek can use stairs.
Look, the middle example is negotiating a staircase. Standard Dalek rules still apply, of course. If a Dalek is confronted with a staircase, it usually just levels the building.
The Panzer Dalek is designed to be emotive. It can use its flexible body to adopt a wide range of postures. Of course, Daleks aren't very good with emotions; usually it will just have to convey hate and/or fear, poor thing. That's OK, it fits the needs of the standard Dalek story. The Dalek should be able to crouch and tense like an angry panther - hence its name. (The Nazi design inspiration did not actually contribute to its name until after the panther comparison occurred to me. After that, it was inevitable.)
There are numerous other design details on the Panzer Dalek. It has shallow parabolic recesses on several of its armour plates; these are low-end manipulators like the classic suction cup arm, except because we live in a century with cheap special effects, they can manipulate objects at a distance. It has armoured flashy lights on either side of its head, which are probably some sort of signaling system. There are also large elliptical plates on its lower torso; these are sealed air intakes, designed to route oxygen to ramjets in the extremities. Daleks can fly now, and although their technology level is way in advance of combustion-induced propulsion, intake ducts are cool and communicate the imminence of flight to viewers.
In general, I hope that this design is faithful to the classic Dalek, while allowing it to communicate and act more effectively.
The voice stays. There's no messing with perfection.
