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Voya Nui Resistance Team Revamp


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A tribute to the second coolest Matoran group in Bionicle (Chronicler's Co. being the first, but more on that later). This project has been in the works about as long as Project Reignition (which you could consider this a "Part 2" of), and it all started with me getting Garan in the mail from someone here on BZP (sorry, I totally forgot who). Suddenly, I just had to revamp his silly form (which was actually better than most small sets up to that point, but was also exactly the same as Velika), and after doing that, I noticed that there were very few revamps of the VNRT out there, so I promptly got out my parts and started building. That was about 6 months or so ago. Now that I finally ordered the pieces I wanted to put into Piruk, I could finish it. I also got an opportunity to use my new lightbox again, which turned out so much better now that I read the instructions (let that be a lesson to all of you) So, without further ado, enjoy:

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Group Shot

Garan

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I want YOU to join the Voya Nui Resistance!

Fearless Onu-Matoran Leader of the group who carries a pair of Pulse Bolt Generators. I would have liked to make his eyes, heartlight, and Generator lights purple to match his Piraka Attack appearance, but alas, the pieces don't exist. Garan has also stayed together the longest of all the Matoran, since I only changed his lower arms from light grey to black. Most of the rest have been completely redone a few times. The new Garan has eighteen points of articulation compared to nine in his set version, which was one of my major goals with this project, along with heartlights, fingers, better weapons, and a unique design for each Matoran.

Front

Side

Back

Comparison to old build

Velika

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The coolest iceberg is the one that gives little and remains silent.

What does that even mean?

Secretly a Great Being, this "Po-Matoran" is the inventor of the group, and often spouts seemingly random bits of wisdom. He carries a pair of Power Carvers.

Velika ended up as a bit more industrial looking, with a boxy appearance and few smooth edges. No idea why I put the Hordika necks on his sides, just that it looked awesome I guess. His waist also reminds me of Bumblebee from the newer Transformers, don't you think? I'm still not a huge fan of his leg design, but I've already used pretty much everything else with the other Matoran and didn't want to overlap too much. He has eighteen points of articulation (his waist bends, sort of) compared to the original nine.

Front

Side

Back

Demonstration of posability

I've got it!

Comparison

And because I was bored

Dalu

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Just try to take me down.

A valiant warrior of water who used to be docile like any other Ga-Matoran until her time in Karzahni changed all that. Now, she protects the Resistance with her twin Chargers.

Dalu was one of the more interesting builds. Some of you may recognize her knee design from my Hydroenix, most of you won't. She actually came first. Also, her torso was copied from Isirh from a ways back, and it still looks great. I was trying to go for a more feminine, streamlined but armored look with her, so let me know what you think. She has twenty points of articulation (if you count her double-jointed knees) compared to nine on her earlier version.

Front

Side

Back

Posablity

Comparison

Stop fighting you two!

Balta

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Balta is a hopeful and brave Ta-Matoran who can also act as a secondary inventor of smaller devices. He wields a pair of Repellers, which he's used even on the Piraka a few times.

Balta's original look was ugly. He was wide, and had Bohrok Eyes in wierd places, and his arms were all wobbly. Sadly, mine isn't much better. I had some problems getting some new ideas after building practically every other Matoran, and I've never been too pleased with him. The arms aren't bad, and I like the back, but the waist is weird. Still, he's much better than a lot of my previous MOCs. He has seventeen points of articulation (sadly no waist) compared to the original ten (if you count the shoulders).

Front

Side

Back

Posability

Comparison

Kazi

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The Red Star sure is pretty tonight. Well, that's one thing on this island.

Kazi is a cold and sarcastic Ko-Matoran, although more talkative than others of his element. He wields twin Echo Forks.

Kazi was an interesting case, as his set didn't even have any sort of hip joints, but I was determined to make him look similar to his set counterpart, so I used the Hordika necks as legs and gave him some more joints in his waist to compensate. It ended up making him look like a bodybuilder, but I blame Karzahni. Also, turns out that the trans-medium blue 1x1 round studs were only in like 3 sets, so I had to use light blue. At least it matches his eyes. I was actually surprised how well he showed up against my background. It was nice. He has seventeen points of articulation (two in each of his hips) compared to the original seven.

Front

Side

Back

Posability

Comparison

Stargazin' with the other hardest color to photograph. Or maybe they're trying to avoid each other.

Piruk

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I'm n-n-not playing with m-m-my claws, I'm j-j-just a b-b-bit camera shy.

A rather nervous Le-Matoran spy for the Voya Nui Resistance. He has Shredder Claws attached to his hands that he has a bad habit of sharpening when nervous. Luckily we got him calmed down before finishing the shoot.

Piruk was the last one I made, the most expensive and the most fun. I figured that he needed some kind of power generator for those massive claws (which are actually copied from my Lageris hands), so I gave him a Mata Head generator and some Mahri tubing, which actually worked out great with his color scheme. He's so much fun to pose, and I really love those HF 3-length double sockets, so I'm glad I ordered some from Bricklink. He has twenty-five points of articulation (if you count his finger joints) compared to nine on his original set. Great improvement there; nearly 300%!

Front

Side

Back

Posability

Attack!

Comparison

Well, finally got that out of the way. Now I have some more pieces for the many projects I have going on right now. Huge "thank you" to my guest stars: the Nuparu Inika Groupie and the amazing shapeshifting talents of Aldrak! Give them a big round of applause! :happydance: I hope you enjoyed, my next post should be the Chronicler's Co. since I finally retrieved all of their masks from Bricklink for only $30 or something. :P

Goodbye!

Piruk! You better not have ruined another picture!

Of c-c-course not, G-G-Garan. :D

Edited by Click
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Ooooooh. I like! The use of a bunch of small parts definitely makes them look more realistic! I think my favorite is Dalu. I really like how you fashioned the hands and blades, it definitely looks natural. They do look a little fragile, can they be played with, or are they better just chilling on display?

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Most of the connections are actually pretty sturdy, but there are a few that can come apart like Dalu's knees, most of the fingers, and then just a few other random joints just because of the part used that I could switch out.

 

Thanks for your comments! I'm glad someone braved the wall of text. :D

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These are some of the most inspiring Matoran designs I have ever seen!! The level of detail you've put into them is staggering. One thing to recommend about Kazi, though, is to cover up the technic on his waist by connecting a 2m beam with cross holes on either side of his waist connection and then attaching two bohrok eyes together to kinda smoothen the look of that area. I'll post an LDD pic, if you want further explanation. But seriously, Piruk looks incredible, and the finger design is just epic. I also like Balta's interesting groin armor.

 

Overall, a spectacular job on these MOC's!! Very well done!

:tohu:

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"Welcome to Valhalla, Warrior."

 

Recent MOC's: The Headless Horseman (BBC71 Finalist)    LDD CCBS Chess    The Shadowed One (BBC69)    Nydoretha (Netherealm Empress)
 

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Wow, these are really cool. I like the fusion of Bionicle and system elements, and you got in a striking amount of detail for such a scale! My favorites is probably Garan, but the rest do look very similiar to their set versions. The only part I was disappointed about was Kazi's legs; it would've been cool if you'd revamped them too, because they look a little too much like the original, which weren't that great of a design in the first place. But still, excelent designs, good job!

 

:music:

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These are incredibly impressive. I particularly like Piruk; the claws are phenomenal and the color scheme is very well done. I am glad to see another MOCist who utilizes Bricklink as I do! I have seen those parts before but never had any reason to buy them, as much as I wanted to. If possible, I would suggest making the system handles to which the fingers are attached dark bluish grey instead of black. The ball joints should all be dark bluish grey as well, for consistency. Amazingly, the HF parts (of which I want many now that I am aware of their existence, though I could make them with ordinary connector blocks with some serious modification and gluing) do not mess up the consistency of ball-and-socket pattern (i.e. dark green socket and dark bluish grey ball) because they are of such a different aesthetic compared to the feet and waist sockets.

 

Dalu is also amazing, though a bit bulky. I forgot that regular blue was in her original set, but the way you have used it here is far more appealing. It matches the mask almost perfectly, and is spread out nicely amongst the silver.

 

The issue that spans most of these MOCs is a lack of complete, 360 degree visual appeal. By that I mean that there is at least one viewpoint from which these MOCs just don't look all that great. For example, Dalu's leg design is not only clever and original, but it looks fantastic... from the front. From the back, not so much. I really have no suggestions besides finding a way to add more armor to the back. The problem is finding a way to preserve articulation, and that becomes far more difficult the smaller the MOC is.

 

Anyways, these are very well done, especially for Matoran MOCs (which are, in my opinion, the quickest to make, but the most difficult to perfect).

 

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Toa Gali Nuva

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I like the junky mechanical look the system-technic mix gives them. Makes it really appear that they are the twisted rebuilt Matoran from Karzahni. The builds of Garan, Piruk and Dalu are solid, but Velika and Balta seems a little too jumbled. Kazi has a nicely made torso, but I don't like the lack of articulation with the legs, nor their un-proportionate shortness. And replacing the trans-blue bohrok eyes with white ones would improve his color scheme.

 

Dalu is probably my favorite, followed by Garan and then Piruk. Garan is constructed with a smooth blend of technic and system; Dalu also has a nice build, and a wonderfully balanced color scheme. I also can't help but love her nice hands and how smoothly she actually appears to be holding her blades. Piruk's hands/claws are also great, and the tubes are a nice touch.

"What we see depends mainly on what we look for" -John Lubbock
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Awesome! I especially like Balta's body design and Piruk's claws. :D

Thank you! Piruk definitely seems popular...

 

These are some of the most inspiring Matoran designs I have ever seen!! The level of detail you've put into them is staggering. One thing to recommend about Kazi, though, is to cover up the technic on his waist by connecting a 2m beam with cross holes on either side of his waist connection and then attaching two bohrok eyes together to kinda smoothen the look of that area. I'll post an LDD pic, if you want further explanation. But seriously, Piruk looks incredible, and the finger design is just epic. I also like Balta's interesting groin armor.

 

Overall, a spectacular job on these MOC's!! Very well done!

:tohu:

Thank you, I tried to be varied in my designs, so maybe I'll make another Matoran based on what I learned with these guys. I figured out what you mean, and that's a great suggestion. I might try and do that if I decide to keep him for a while. I'm glad you liked Balta more than I did. :)

 

Wow, these are really cool. I like the fusion of Bionicle and system elements, and you got in a striking amount of detail for such a scale! My favorites is probably Garan, but the rest do look very similiar to their set versions. The only part I was disappointed about was Kazi's legs; it would've been cool if you'd revamped them too, because they look a little too much like the original, which weren't that great of a design in the first place. But still, excelent designs, good job!

 

:music:

Yeah, I guess Kazi's legs could be better. I was attempting to make him the same scale as his set counterpart, but if I think about it, there are other ways I could get similar results. Thanks for your imput!

 

These are incredibly impressive. I particularly like Piruk; the claws are phenomenal and the color scheme is very well done. I am glad to see another MOCist who utilizes Bricklink as I do! I have seen those parts before but never had any reason to buy them, as much as I wanted to. If possible, I would suggest making the system handles to which the fingers are attached dark bluish grey instead of black. The ball joints should all be dark bluish grey as well, for consistency. Amazingly, the HF parts (of which I want many now that I am aware of their existence, though I could make them with ordinary connector blocks with some serious modification and gluing) do not mess up the consistency of ball-and-socket pattern (i.e. dark green socket and dark bluish grey ball) because they are of such a different aesthetic compared to the feet and waist sockets.

 

Dalu is also amazing, though a bit bulky. I forgot that regular blue was in her original set, but the way you have used it here is far more appealing. It matches the mask almost perfectly, and is spread out nicely amongst the silver.

 

The issue that spans most of these MOCs is a lack of complete, 360 degree visual appeal. By that I mean that there is at least one viewpoint from which these MOCs just don't look all that great. For example, Dalu's leg design is not only clever and original, but it looks fantastic... from the front. From the back, not so much. I really have no suggestions besides finding a way to add more armor to the back. The problem is finding a way to preserve articulation, and that becomes far more difficult the smaller the MOC is.

 

Anyways, these are very well done, especially for Matoran MOCs (which are, in my opinion, the quickest to make, but the most difficult to perfect).

 

a_peace.png

I love Bricklink so much, although I'm trying to spend less. :D Sadly, the claw pieces aren't available in grey (yet, hopefully). I'm not sure if the ball joints are either. If so, maybe I'll switch them out, because I'm definitely keeping Piruk around for a while. And definitely get those HF pieces. They are so nice for Matoran MOCs.

 

For Dalu, the legs were kind of meant to look like streamlined combat boots or something while also looking similar to her old Bohrok legs. I like the look, but it would be better for something a bit bigger maybe. And I'm trying to figure out how to cover the back, since the black kind of stands out. Curse those HF pieces. They look so nice from only the front. I would be willing to sacrifice the secondary knee joint if possible to cover that up. Maybe something like this and a Bohrok eye or something might rectify that?

 

I'll also have to work on the 360 views then. I can see what you mean now that I look closer at some of the Matoran. Thanks for your indepth comment. :)

 

I like the junky mechanical look the system-technic mix gives them. Makes it really appear that they are the twisted rebuilt Matoran from Karzahni. The builds of Garan, Piruk and Dalu are solid, but Velika and Balta seems a little too jumbled. Kazi has a nicely made torso, but I don't like the lack of articulation with the legs, nor their un-proportionate shortness. And replacing the trans-blue bohrok eyes with white ones would improve his color scheme.

 

Dalu is probably my favorite, followed by Garan and then Piruk. Garan is constructed with a smooth blend of technic and system; Dalu also has a nice build, and a wonderfully balanced color scheme. I also can't help but love her nice hands and how smoothly she actually appears to be holding her blades. Piruk's hands/claws are also great, and the tubes are a nice touch.

Huh, didn't think of that effect, but I'm glad you like it. :D

Velika and Balta were some of my least favorites just for that reason.

As for Kazi, I probably wouldn't do the same waist design if I did it again. I actually tried doing trans-light blue Bohrok eyes to keep it consistant, but it looked terrible and unlike his set. White would probably have the same problem.

 

Glad you like them, Piruk seems to be a clear favorite overall.

 

 

 

Thanks for all of your comments!

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The claws on Piruk were done wonderfully. At first, Velika looked to be really big, but the comparison made me really think about how much effort it must have took to design something that well to be around the same size. Really great mocs all in all.

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Okay, first of all these are really awesome MOCs(better than anything I could build) so I don't think I don't like them when I critique them

 

Garan- You did a great job on giving him a hunchbacked Onu-Matoran look (better than actual Onu-Matoran sets) but the silver on his back looks a bit out of place although I don't think that part even comes in black. 9/10

 

Velika- Velika looks great from the front. However the orange Bohrok eyes on the back make him look like some kind of robot from that angle and when he leans down he looks like an Onu-Matoran. He also looks a bit awkward from the side, that said, the stockiness does make him look like a Po-Matoran and I suppose if they looked amazing, they wouldn't look like they had been "fixed" by Karzahni. 6.5/10

 

Dalu- Okay Dalu just looks plain awesome and you did a great job giving her a more feminine look. Only criticism I can come up with is that she suffers from a problem many later sets had, especially Mata Nui- Monkey Arms. That said she's awesome enough to make up for it. 8.5/10

 

Balta- I think I actually like Balta more than you do. Although your first picture of him isn't very flattering, I think he looks really cool from the front and side. From the back, well he doesn't pull off that armor near as well as Garan (who could have done better anyways) and it just makes him look clunky. I suppose we'll have to blame Karzahni for that one too. 7/10

 

Kazi- Okay I like how you made Kazi's torso and his arms are cool too. Can't say I'm a fan of Kazi's legs, though. He also suffers from monkey arms even more than Dalu, likely due to his tiny legs. And this is just a canonical nitpick but aren't all heartlights yellow. Still he looks cool and is definitely Kazi. 7.5/10

 

Piruk- Okay Piruk looks really cool and my criticisms are few. From every angle he looks awesome, something he shares only with Dalu. However, his hollow legs are glaringly obvious, perhaps some armor could cover that up? Another is that his tubes make him look like a robot. And something that you either did a really good job on or a slight misunderstanding- Aren't Piruk's claws supposed to be weapons he holds? If I'm wrong his hands are awesome, If I'm right I'd recommend making it a little more obvious. But from the back the generator does like really cool (have I said cool enough yet?) 8/10

 

So, from least to greatest- Velika, Balta, Kazi, Piruk, Dalu, Garan.

 

All in all, great job!

 

P.S. If it was just Velika, he would have probably received a higher rating, but seeing all these others, I know you can do better than cool. You can do awesome.

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Wait woah woah WOAH. I didn't understand this. Did you take regular lego + HF parts to make bionicle toas, or do you actually have the original sets?

What are you talking about? There are no Toa in this post. He just revamped the Voya Nui Matoran.

save not only their lives


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Nice set, Click. Piruk is my definite favorite as well.

Thanks!

 

The claws on Piruk were done wonderfully. At first, Velika looked to be really big, but the comparison made me really think about how much effort it must have took to design something that well to be around the same size. Really great mocs all in all.

Velika was pretty tricky, and he does look really bulky and large, but he is the same size as everyone else. It is definitely a challenge to do something like that, but very fun and rewarding if you can do it right. Feel free to borrow some of my ideas if you want to try it out. :) And thank you.

 

Wait woah woah WOAH. I didn't understand this. Did you take regular lego + HF parts to make bionicle toas, or do you actually have the original sets?

What? These are Matoran, and yes, I did build them. That's what this forum is for. And fun fact, I only own Kazi, Garan, and Velika. The rest I Bricklinked the pieces that I needed. :)

 

Okay, first of all these are really awesome MOCs(better than anything I could build) so I don't think I don't like them when I critique them

 

Garan- You did a great job on giving him a hunchbacked Onu-Matoran look (better than actual Onu-Matoran sets) but the silver on his back looks a bit out of place although I don't think that part even comes in black. 9/10

 

Velika- Velika looks great from the front. However the orange Bohrok eyes on the back make him look like some kind of robot from that angle and when he leans down he looks like an Onu-Matoran. He also looks a bit awkward from the side, that said, the stockiness does make him look like a Po-Matoran and I suppose if they looked amazing, they wouldn't look like they had been "fixed" by Karzahni. 6.5/10

 

Dalu- Okay Dalu just looks plain awesome and you did a great job giving her a more feminine look. Only criticism I can come up with is that she suffers from a problem many later sets had, especially Mata Nui- Monkey Arms. That said she's awesome enough to make up for it. 8.5/10

 

Balta- I think I actually like Balta more than you do. Although your first picture of him isn't very flattering, I think he looks really cool from the front and side. From the back, well he doesn't pull off that armor near as well as Garan (who could have done better anyways) and it just makes him look clunky. I suppose we'll have to blame Karzahni for that one too. 7/10

 

Kazi- Okay I like how you made Kazi's torso and his arms are cool too. Can't say I'm a fan of Kazi's legs, though. He also suffers from monkey arms even more than Dalu, likely due to his tiny legs. And this is just a canonical nitpick but aren't all heartlights yellow. Still he looks cool and is definitely Kazi. 7.5/10

 

Piruk- Okay Piruk looks really cool and my criticisms are few. From every angle he looks awesome, something he shares only with Dalu. However, his hollow legs are glaringly obvious, perhaps some armor could cover that up? Another is that his tubes make him look like a robot. And something that you either did a really good job on or a slight misunderstanding- Aren't Piruk's claws supposed to be weapons he holds? If I'm wrong his hands are awesome, If I'm right I'd recommend making it a little more obvious. But from the back the generator does like really cool (have I said cool enough yet?) 8/10

 

So, from least to greatest- Velika, Balta, Kazi, Piruk, Dalu, Garan.

 

All in all, great job!

 

P.S. If it was just Velika, he would have probably received a higher rating, but seeing all these others, I know you can do better than cool. You can do awesome.

Garan: I was trying to distribute the silver all over his body from the two Bohrok eyes on either side of his body, but I agree the Nuva armor may have been a bit too much. Especially since I switched out the lower arms with black instead of light grey, which looked like more spread-out silver. Glad you like him so much.

 

Velika: Yeah, I just noticed that robot thing while I was posting these images. I was going through my Brickshelf gallery, and was like "What is that? I didn't build that guy!" Then I realized it was Velika. :P Probably could fix him up a bit. I tried to give him a similar shape to Garan since their sets were practically the same, but unique enough that he looked different.

 

Dalu: Yep. Lots of monkey arms here. I tried to make them shorter, and actually she has some of the shorter arms in the group, but they're all too long. Glad she has some redeeming qualities.

 

Balta: Stupid Karzahni, making all my designs look bad. :P I guess I could be more unique, but while I was messing with that, I came up with a brilliant upper torso for an Onua Nuva revamp, and then it ended up as his body. I'll still have to build that revamp sometime.

 

Kazi: This guy has probably gotten the most criticism because of those legs. Maybe I'll fix that just because now it's starting to bug me. Especially with those huge arms. And I don't think all heartlights are yellow, I usually just match them with the eyes.

 

Piruk: I was hoping those Technic cams would help block up some of that hollow leg, but ah well. It's really hard to get a leg that looks solid while retaining posability when using ball joints, especially on this scale. And no, Piruk's claws are actually attached to his hands. Glad you all like him so much, he was so much fun to build (except when the tubes kept pulling off the Mata brain and I had to fix it a million times. :P)

 

Thank you for your comments, and I hope I can do better with my next creations. I've got so many projects going on right now, and I still need to use my magnificent Modalt masks. :D

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