Doctor Who: EVERY Version Of The Cybermen Explained

Manufactured on a global scale by his company Cybus Industries, John Lumic’s Cybermen were merely human brains dropped into metal suits, and were created by the mad scientist as a means of prolonging human life – motivated by the fact that he himself was dying.

Made from bulletproof steel, they were stronger and more muscular than their predecessors, and carried emotional inhibitor chips to disable all feeling and humanity. Later units were equipped with arm blasters, while others used guns originally belonging to anti-Cybus resistance group the Preachers.

The Doctor brought down the original Cybus Cybermen by disabling their emotional inhibitors, driving them insane by causing them to see what they'd become. However, some survived, and upon discovering a gap in the fabric of the universe, crossed through to our world disguised as "ghosts."

Also breaking through were the Daleks, who rejected the Cybermen's offer of an alliance, resulting in the explosive Battle of Canary Wharf. In the end, the Doctor managed to suck both sides back into the Void, but some Cybus Cybermen escaped and spread throughout the stars, popping up in places like Victorian London, and as part of the Pandorica Alliance that trapped the Eleventh Doctor.

The Cybus design quickly became the blueprint for Cybermen across the universe, likely due to their increased strength and superior technology compared to their Mondasian cousins.