Cyber-Planner

Cyber-Planners were used by the Cybermen to create and direct battle plans and strategies.

Characteristics
In the 20th century, the Cyber-Planner was approximately six feet tall and consisted of a framework of metal and transparent tubes with a number of lights and a rotating head section, completely immobile and concealed in a secure place.

The shape of Cyber-Planners differed between the 20th (TV: The Invasion) and 21st centuries. The later "head" section had a more a bulbous, egg-like appearance (TV: The Wheel in Space). The Cyber-Planner's consciousness could take over the mind of an organic life-form and use the knowledge and capacity within to fulfil its function. The minds of children in particular were targeted for their imaginative potential, although later Cyber-Planner units could take over any species, even Time Lords. (AUDIO: The Girl Who Never Was, TV: Nightmare in Silver)

Functions
The Cyber-Planner gathered data from a large variety of sources. It could scan local media transmissions and even channel data from certain human subjects. It used this data to formulate strategies and make decisions based upon probability of success.

The Cyber-Planner had no defensive capabilities and could be destroyed by emotions created by the cerebration mentor, suggesting that they had organic components. (TV: The Invasion)

In an alternate timeline, highly advanced Cyber-Planners served as battle strategists within CyberKings, capable of effectively predicting enemy attack patterns without any errors. (COMIC: Supremacy of the Cybermen)

Early history
One Cyber-Planner was installed into Floor 1056 of a Mondasian colony ship. It sent a group of CyberNeomorphs, led by a Cyber-Leader, from Floor 1056 to Floor 0508 on a mission to prepare a swarm of Cybermats for an attack on Floor 0507, and to capture and  for interrogation regarding the Cybermen's altered definition of humanity. (PROSE: Alit in Underland)

A Cyber-Planner was formed when the Central Committee of Mondas abandoned their individual personalities and funnelled their collective intelligence into a mechanical shell. This Cyber-Planner was sabotaged by the Fifth Doctor, who poured wine into its nutrient vats, severely impeding its thought processes. It was later destroyed by a swarm of Cybermats, which had been reprogrammed by the Doctor. (AUDIO: Spare Parts)

20th century
In the late 20th century, one had knowledge of the Second Doctor's visit to Planet 14. (TV: The Invasion)

Years before, Tobias Vaughn had a Cyber-Planner (known as the Cyber-Director) installed in his office at International Electromatics in London where it acted as a communications channel between Vaughn and the Cybermen. (TV: The Invasion)

The Second Doctor found another Cyber-Planner at work on Earth during a movie shoot of a film based on the Tobias Vaughn incident. (PROSE: Scientific Adviser)

21st century
In 2026, the Seventh Doctor used the neural cortex of a Cyber-Planner to kill Kai'lizakia. (AUDIO: Black and White)

In the 21st century, the Cybermen deferred to a Cyber-Planner while advancing their plan to take Space Station W3. (TV: The Wheel in Space)

Later when another Cyber-force attacked Space Station W3, after Zoe Heriot was returned there by the Time Lords, the Cybermen, noticing her superior intelligence, planned to convert her into a Cyber-Planner. This failed when the conversion machine unlocked the locks the Time Lords placed on Zoe's mind, and she piloted the fleet into the Land of Fiction. Whilst in the Land, the Cyber-Planner of the fleet commanded the Cyber-attack on the Land. It was later destroyed when Zoe and the Sixth Doctor reprogrammed a Book Worm to make the Cyber-Planner believe that Cybermen did not exist, and due to the nature of the Land of Fiction, it blipped out of existence as well. (AUDIO: Legend of the Cybermen)

Cyber-Wars
During the 2260s, in the first Cyber-War, the Cybermen developed the Cyber-Leveller, a Cyber-Planner sub-variant that, unlike regular Cyber-Planners, was fully autonomous, weaponised and mobile, designed as a Cyber-Planner for the frontline of battle. Following the first Cyber-War, the Cyber-Leveller mysteriously disappeared for around 20 years before being discovered by Hollison Grear on the black market; Hollison tracked the Leveller to Port Anvil, a mining town on Burnt Salt, where the Leveller arrived onboard a ship in a large black crate to be delivered to Marion Schaffer, who desired to use the Leveller's expertise to reverse the partial cyber-conversion of her husband, Bernard Schaffer. When a surviving force of Cybermen, lead by a regular Cyber-Planner, arrived at Port Anvil to retrieve the Leveller, the Leveller activated briefly before deactivating again and was taken to Marion Schaffer directly by Gustav. Ultimately, the Leveller was destroyed by Hollison with a sonic grenade, and the surviving Cybermen fled with the Cyber-Planner. (AUDIO: The Tyrants of Logic)

In the 26th century, ten years after the end of the Great Cyber-War, Zoe Heriot was forced by Zennox to interface with, and become, a Cyber-Planner inside a large Cyberman tomb network on Planetoid X. (AUDIO: Last of the Cybermen)

The Orion War
A Cyber-Planner was aboard the Cyber-ship uncovered by the Scorpius Project off the coast of the Isle of Wight during the Orion War. After the Cybermen reactivated and took over the Project, the Cyber-Planner oversaw the conversion of Paul Hunt into their Cybrid agent. (AUDIO: Conversion) The Cyber-Planner oversaw operations in taking control of Earth, with Hunt reporting to it. After Scorpius installed Karen Brett as President of Earth, she was lured to Scorpius (AUDIO: Scorpius) and placed under Cyber control, answering to the Cyber-Planner. With conversions now beginning, it ordered for Brett to be fully converted into a Cyber-Leader and dispatched her to awaken the Master Hibernation Vault on Telos. (AUDIO: Conversion) When no word came from the expedition, due to it being foiled by Orion android forces, Hunt demanded instructions from the Planner but it kept awaiting the outcome of the operation. (AUDIO: Telos)

Over months the Planner and Hunt increased the Cybermen's influence on Earth and began conversions on a greater scale. (AUDIO: Outsiders, Terror, Machines) Android agent Samantha Thorn convinced the human resistance to target the Cybermen's base so she could interface with the Planner. However she found its defences much greater than anticipated and was only able to talk with it, convincing it that continuing operations on Earth would logically lead to all out war the Cybermen could not win. The Cyber-Planner subsequently ordered its forces to withdraw from Earth, though they eventually ambushed in space by android forces. (AUDIO: Extinction)

Cyber Legions
A Cyber-Planner led the Ninth Cyber Legion to invade Earth in London during 2012. The Cyber-Planner used a piece of the Eternity Clock to power the Cyberfactory. The Eleventh Doctor and River Song destroyed the Cyberfactory, along with the Cyber-Planner and the Ninth Cyber Legion and collected the piece of the Eternity Clock. (GAME: The Eternity Clock)

Later history
The most advanced Cyber-Planner calling itself Mr Clever was created from the Eleventh Doctor during the battle on Hedgewick's World. At first the Cybermen targeted the Doctor's companions Artie and Angie, for the creative potential of the children's minds. After discovering the Doctor, the Cybermites instead partially converted him, giving him a Jekyll & Hyde-like mind. Clever and the Doctor fought for control of the Doctor's mind. With the Doctor threatening to use regenerative energy to destroy Clever, they decided to play a game of chess to determine who deserved control. However the Doctor distracted Clever by claiming he could win the chess game in three moves, then used an EMP to rid his mind of Clever, and the Emperor of the Galaxy had the planet destroyed, destroying the Cyber-army. (TV: Nightmare in Silver)

Alternate timeline
In an alternate timeline where Rassilon and the Cybermen conquered all of time and space, the CyberKings that invaded Sontar in the 24th century were fitted with Cyber-Planners, who were able to perfectly analyse the battle tactics of the Last Great Sontaran War Fleet, forcing the Tenth Doctor, Gabby Gonzalez and Cindy Wu to enact a highly-illogical attack to confuse the Cybermen. These Cyber-Planners were erased from existence, along with the rest of the timeline, when the Twelfth Doctor and Rassilon used the Eye of Harmony on Gallifrey at the end of the universe to restore the original timeline. (COMIC: Supremacy of the Cybermen)

Cyberplanificateur