742mph

IC: As he focused his elemental power, causing a large dome of Iron to erupt from the ground, Fetix answered, "Something like that. It's not as simple as it sounds, though. Confronting Makuta directly isn't going to work, so my plan is to bring his lair down on top of him suddenly and without warning." Under Fetix's control, the inside of the dome hollowed out, leaving a space large enough for Kakopa's needs. "I intend to gather Toa with mask and elemental powers that can manipulate the ground in various ways, which is what we'll need for this task." Readying his Razor Claws, the Toa of Iron stepped over to the metallic structure and used the claws to slice a doorway-sized hole in the side of the new shelter. "If you decide to help me, though, don't let anyone know about this unless you're sure you can trust them. Also, before we start the search, I need to ask you a question. I've heard stories of a Ta-Matoran named Takua who chronicled the orginal Toa's quest to defeat Makuta. He may have recorded things about their descent into Mangaia itself, and if he did, he might have a vague idea of its layout, which could be useful in determining exactly where to strike. Do you know if he's still alive, and if so, where is he?"

IC: "Sure," Fetix replied. "After that, though, I have a bit of a favor to ask you. It involves risking both of our lives, but that is the new norm for us, after all."

IC: As luck would have it, Fetix found the Toa he was searching for near the main gate of Po-Koro barely five minutes after his search began. When the two saw each other, the Toa of Fire indicated that Fetix should follow him and then began to move towards the gate. Jogging to catch up, Fetix said to him, "I was just looking for you, but it appears you were looking for me as well. What for?"OOC: By "walked outside Po-Koro", you meant "started to leave Po-Koro", right? That's the best interpretation I could think of.

IC: Toa Fetix paced back and forth in front of his self-generated Iron hut in the village of Po-Koro. The battle against Makuta's armies was not lost yet, but it was clear that those opposed to them would eventually be overwhelmed. The numbers of Rahi and Rahkshi were simply too great for them to be defeated. No, if the Matoran, Toa, and the rest would ever be victorious, it would have to be by stealthily taking out Makuta himself and leaving his forces weakened and disorganized. The skull is the most well-armored part of the body, pondered Fetix, but if it is breached, the brain can be destroyed and the body will soon follow.But how would such a feat be accomplished? Fetix went back to considering his analogy, as he often came up with his best ideas that way. One way to destroy the brain is to find an opening in the skull, but Mangaia has none. Every part of it must be guarded by Makuta's finest minions. Of course, another equally effective option is to crush the head from outside, and if it is done suddenly and without warning, then maybe... Now that he thought about it, bringing all of Mangaia down by striking from the surface was not as crazy an idea as it seemed before. A lot of elemental and mask powers revolved around manipulating the ground and/or squashing things, so it could concievably work if a large enough force was assembled and they all struck simoultaneously so as not to alert Makuta to what was happening.The first step, of course, Fetix thought, is to assemble a team of such capable manipulators... and I think I know where to start. He had seen a red-and-gold-armored Toa around the Po-Koro area recently. This Toa wore a Mask of Gravity, which would undoubtedly be useful for collapsing and compacting the ground above Makuta's lair. Of course, the team would have to destroy the Kini-Nui to accomplish their task, and some beings might be opposed to the idea of sacrificing such a majestic place. Fetix hoped that this Toa would have the sense to understand that that is what it takes to defeat a being such as Makuta. After a few seconds of confirming that this was a good plan, he stepped out onto Po-Koro's main road to search the dwellings for his potential ally.

Name: FetixSpecies: Toa of IronGender: MaleAlignment: Good, not affiliated with any Toa teamAppearance: (Credit to Danska for the building kit.)Powers/Weapons: Fetix has control over the element of Iron, obviously, and specializes in shaping it into machine parts and defensive/structure-supporting walls. If attacked, he will often create a shield of iron in front of him and use it as cover, although he prefers to avoid combat whenever possible. He wears a Kanohi Volitak, the Mask of Stealth, which was carved into the shape of a Pakari because Fetix was inexplicably hard to take seriously while wearing it in its normal state.His weapons are the Razor Claws, twin Protosteel shield/claw combinations that are actually too small to be used effectively as shields. They are incredibly sharp and can be used to slice through armor as well as carve rock and metal. Fetix uses them in conjunction with his Volitak for dangerous surprise attacks on his opponents.Personality: Fetix is very logical and has excellent spatial thinking skills, qualities that make him very adept at his Matoran engineering occupation that he continued even after being transformed into a Toa. He prefers to plan ahead and consider all possible outcomes before carrying something out, be it the construction of a mechanical device or a battle against Makuta's armies--not that he does the latter any more than absolutely necessary. Fetix never attacks directly if he can help it, and basically all of the combat he's involved in is simply defensive of his home village of Po-Koro. He prefers to work alone and often gets frustrated with allies who mess up his carefully laid-out plans. He also believes that the only way to defeat Makuta is to outwit him somehow (possibly involving stealth and/or bringing Mangaia's roof down, two rather vague and impractical ideas that he's thought up).History: As mentioned above, Fetix was (and still is) an engineer, an occupation that is very rare in Po-Koro. He was often told that he should be stationed in Onu-Koro instead, but he knew he could never tolerate the constant darkness and claustrophobic tunnels 24/7. During his time as a Matoran, he devised a way to channel the powers of a Kanohi into another object using a special type of charged wiring he invented. After his transformation into a Toa, which he was quite surprised at, he often used his Iron powers to speed up the process of constructing machinery. However, both as a Matoran and as a Toa, his inventions were too large and clunky to be effective in battle. They were usually more along the lines of Matatu-powered floating elevators and whatnot. Most of his devices are also rather rare, since Great and Noble masks are not easy to come by.Weaknesses: Fetix, as stated in the previous few paragraphs, is not very effective at working with others. He is also quite inexperienced at direct combat, which is why he prefers stealth/defense and wears a Volitak instead of a Calix/Hau/Matatu/etc. His Razor Claws also have very short range, reducing them to simple elemental power channelers in terms of ranged combat and making them most effective for sneak attacks the rest of the time.---Name: BaronuSpecies: Toa of MagnetismGender: MaleAlignment: Good, not affiliated with any Toa teamAppearance: Baronu has thick silver-white armor, which is rather unusual for a Toa of Magnetism. He is quite muscular, especially in his legs, which allows him to run at an above-average speed. His upper chest armor is shaped like a U, with two struts of metal curving outward to his shoulders from the central bulk of it. He also has unusually large hands, unusually small feet, and two small white-colored spikes jutting out from the top of his upper arms.Powers/Weapons: As a Toa of Magnetism, Baronu has the ability to create and control magnetic fields in order to move metallic substances around, including the armor of his foes. He wears a Kanohi Sanok, the Mask of Accuracy, which greatly increases the odds of something he throws or launches hitting its target.Baronu's weapon is the Buzzsaw Staff, a long spear/staff-like tool that has a set of spinning Protosteel blades on the end. The blade mechanism can be detached from the staff and thrown at foes in a ninja star-like fashion with the help of Baronu's Sanok. Baronu often uses his elemental powers to magnetically yank the blades back over to him and reattach them to the staff after they hit a target, making his only ranged attack a reusable one.Personality: Baronu is rather arrogant and not much of a strategist, relying on his equipment and powers to carry him out of battles victorious or at least alive. He is a bit spoiled by his Magnetism abilities in a sense, as most of the foes he faces have plenty of metallic components for him to crush and tear apart. He has above-average intelligence in general, but doesn't really use it that often. He's not very ambitious either, which is part of the reason why he was content with staying in obscurity even after his transformation.History: Baronu was originally a Matoran of Magnetism working as a toolsmith in a village of Matoran near the eastern shore of the Northern Continent. He was transformed into a Toa around 50,000 years ago by a Toa Stone of unknown origin. The Order of Mata Nui soon discovered his existence and instructed him to stay and defend his village rather than go adventuring and risk the Brotherhood of Makuta learning about him and killing him like they did so many other Toa of Magnetism. After his transformation, Baronu happily abandoned his original profession, always having found it boring and not as important as his fellow Matoran believed it was.Sadly, his entire village was destroyed during an earthquake resulting from the Great Cataclysm, and Baronu was the only survivor. He later made his way to the island of Mata Nui along with many other Toa and members of other species as well. Once there, he settled down in Onu-Koro and began using his elemental powers to help the Onu-Matoran miners dig metallic ore out of the ground. He finds this job nearly as boring as his old one as a toolsmith, however, and would rather be taking the fight to Makuta than working monotonously in claustrophobic tunnels. He is smart enough to know that the former is essentially suicide, though, so he doesn't try.Weaknesses: Baronu's overconfidence can sometimes get him in trouble, and his impatience is part of the reason why the tactical approach doesn't really work for him. He isn't very agile either, so his best bet in combat is to stay in cover and snipe enemies with the help of his mask, relying on his tough armor to protect him when he is forced to go out in the open. His elemental abilities are also a bit more limited than, say, Fetix's, as he can effectively only control existing metal rather than creating more of it.

The Chronicles of Xa and Vu: Episode 3 Somewhere in the series of flooded tunnels between Mata Nui and Metru NuiVu: Are we there yet?Xa: No, we are most certainly not. It’s only been two hours since we left, remember?Vu: Okay.*5 minutes pass*Vu: Are we there yet?Xa: For the last time, Vu, we are not there yet! Now be quiet, I’m trying to concentrate on driving.*Another 5 minutes pass*Vu: What’s that thing up there?Xa: I told you, I need to keep my attention on-*looks up*-what in the Bahrag’s name is that?!*What looks like a misshapen Bohrok, unable to fully curl up into a ball, drops from the tunnel ceiling and hovers a few feet above the silvery water.*Xa: It looks a bit like a Bohrok, but there’s something wrong. A green head, a brown faceplate, white shoulders, Nuhvok shields, blue fangs…Vu: Creepy.Fake Bohrok: Creeps, say you? I is not creeping, I is mighty cool strong Invincibility Robot!!!Xa: …wow. What a ripoff.Inv. Robot: Has appeared me from next dimension what I scrub side or a Big Ghost, Matt A Nut!Vu: What’s he saying, Xa?Xa: I have no idea. It sounds like he’s speaking in another language and using a bad translator program or something. *clears throat, speaks slowly and condescendingly, as if to a mentally handicapped person* Why… are… you… here?Inv. Robot: Come for over take of world! Rule every what my awesome Super Powers!!!Xa: I think he wants to rule the universe or something like that.Vu: We’re not gonna let him, are we?Xa: He probably wouldn’t have much chance anyway, but nope. *shoots a bolt of acid at the Invincibility Robot, melting its right arm off*Vu: I hope he was right-handed.Inv. Robot: Invincibility Robot does hands both equal! Die You Now!!!*Invincibility Robot fires a giant death laser from its left shield, destroying Xa and Vu’s boat. Both of them jump out at the last second and Vu begins hovering, allowing Xa to grab on before they fall into the water.*Xa: Congratulations, Vu. You finally learned to fly.Vu: Kind of.Inv. Robot: Still you had alive?! Now yes angry, you crush again up! *starts charging another death laser*Vu: Xa, I’m getting tired…Xa: You’re running out of flight energy already? Well, then, I suppose there’s nothing left to do but this. *fires a large amount of acid at the Invincibility Robot’s head, melting its faceplate and poisoning its Krana*Inv. Robot: Not! How debt feeted! Lost have me Matt A Nut!!! *Krana dies and falls out of head, shell continues hovering*Xa: Apparently, it doesn’t need its pseudo-Krana to fly. Okay, Vu, maneuver us over there before you run out of power and drown us both.*Vu drops Xa onto the top of the ruined Robot and grabs onto its dangling feet.*Vu: How are we going to get to that island now?Xa: If I can figure out how to fly this thing, it might actually speed up our journey. *removes shield and inserts finger into the Robot’s Krana interface port* Let’s see here. Color randomization program, giant laser controls… ah, here we are: self-powered flight mechanism. Hang on tight, Vu.Vu: How fast does it go?Xa: Fast enough to get us to our destination in only a few hours, actually. Now let’s hope this thing has…*The shell rockets forward, Xa and Vu barely hanging on, and slams into a wall a few hundred yards ahead of where it started.*Xa: …an acceleration curve. Never mind, then.---The Silver Sea, about 20 miles off the northeast coast of the Southern ContinentVu: Are we—Xa: NO.Vu: —gonna have to get any closer to those guys? *points toward a boat ahead of them with several ferocious-looking beings in it*Xa: Oh. I hope not. Let’s just ignore them and hope they do the same to us, okay?Vu: Okay.*A bolt of laser vision shoots out from the boat, narrowly missing Xa and Vu.*Xa: *brings the Robot shell to a halt* Hey! What was that for?!???: You fools dared to come within a 1-mile radius of us, the greatest team of warriors in the Matoran Universe! What is your business around here, anyway?Xa: We were sent by the Bahrag Queens to investigate some kind of energy fluctuation on one of the Southern Islands. And what right do you have to fire on us when we weren’t even attacking you?!??? #2: Because we’re awesome like that.???: Quiet, Reidak!Reidak: Then why did you fire lasers at them, Zaktan? I honestly don’t know.??? #3: Chill out, you two. They’re not even worth our time.Vu: Can we get out of here now???? #4: Are you trying to flee from us?! I’ll have you know that you’re dealing with the Piraka, the most accomplished members of the Dark Hunters organization by far!Zaktan: Thok, I’ll decide who is and isn’t worth our time here. And Avak, we’re the accomplished ones. You didn’t even have the guts to try and overthrow the Shadowed One that one time!Avak: I didn’t “try” because you wouldn’t let me help!??? #5: Can we get back to assassinating that bothersome group of Frostelus now?Xa: Please do. I think both Vu and I are already sick of you.Zaktan: No, Hakann, we cannot. I want to teach these oversized insect-ish things a lesson.??? #6: You’re an oversized insect-ish thing.Thok: I’m pretty sure he’s just made of a whole bunch of smaller insect-ish things, Vezok.Vezok: Whatever.Zaktan: Quiet, all of you! I ought to kill you right here and now and split myself up into six smaller me’s and form a new team out of them and then—*A death laser punctures the hull of the Piraka’s boat, causing it to sink.*Xa: That should teach them a lesson of their own.Zaktan (treading water): We’ll get you for this, snarky green thing and quiet black thing riding on damaged multicolored thing!Reidak: Yeah, we’ll get you for it! We’ll get you so good that you explode from our awesomeness!Avak: Shut up, Reidak.Vu: Are these guys really the best fighters in the world, Xa?Xa: Not at all, from the looks of it. Anyway, let’s continue south and hope these “Piraka” either drown or forget about us entirely.*As the Robot shell lurches forward once more, the Piraka begin to swim for the Southern Continent while cursing and muttering to themselves.*Zaktan: They’re going to pay for this. I swear they are.END OF EPISODE 3

http://i.imgur.com/YSFPG.pnghttp://i.imgur.com/pSy6m.pngThis is the Gara-Nui ("Great Liberator" in Matoran). It is a combat/transportation-type vehicle that is operated by a rather intelligent AI and can carry up to 2 Krana and 1 entire Bohrok. In its flight mode, shown above, it can either pilot itself or be controlled by a Krana residing in the Bohrok shell it is carrying. It can also fold out legs and/or sword-carrying arms for battle and use as a walker, making it a TransforMOC of sorts. Again, these limbs can be either self-controlled or controlled by a pilot Bohrok.The reason for the Gara-Nui's name, as well as its purpose, will be explained in a future chapter of The Chronicles of Xa and Vu when it makes an appearance. You can also download the full set of images for the Gara-Nui, including building instructions and pictures of its humanoid form, here. (No, the patched-together-looking Bohrok riding it in one image is not Xa).This relatively simple MOC was actually created quite a while ago, and an earlier version may have been posted here under the name "Krana Carrier". It has undergone a few changes since then, though, and will undergo more as the series in which it appears progresses.

The Chronicles of Xa and Vu: Episode 2 Xa’s first progress report, 1 week after Vu’s training beganUnderground Bohrok HQ, Level *classified*, Island of Mata NuiCahdok: So, my little disobedient and extremely irritating friend, how much has Vu-358 learned over the past week? Surely you’ve at least taught him sufficient control over his Krana and elemental abilities.Gahdok: If you haven’t even managed that, we’ll make sure your wiring is nice and toasty!Xa: Oh, things have been going… uh… pretty well. Vu’s making progress on performing his class’s typical duties, and he can fly across small chasms without much trouble. He’s, um, even managed to keep his Earth powers in check and hasn’t injured me in two days!Vu: Xa is a nice teacher. He lets me eat food if I don’t give him owies. Right, Brahag?Xa (whispering): Vu, you weren’t supposed to tell them about that…Cahdok: I’m sorry, Xa-881, but you aren’t doing nearly a good enough job. “Vu” doesn’t seem to have been meeting our NKSs (Novice Krana Standards), which state that he should at least be able to dodge projectiles in mid-fight and—Gahdok: Besides, feeding a Krana wild fruits and other sources of nutrition is both dangerous and in violation of our food rationing laws! You are outdoing yourself in incompetence, 881!Vu: Hey, they were nice foods. Xa called them Macku Cabaldo or something, and they were yummy!Xa (whispering again): And you really weren’t supposed to mention their name.Gahdok: Alright, that’s it, you worthless maggot of a Bohrok! You fed a trainee potentially explosive Madu Cabolo fruit without authorization from a Za-class management official?! You don’t even deserve to be training someone how to demolish things! Do we have to assign you to a constructive job?!Cahdok: Now, Gahdok, I’m sure Xa knew what he was doing at least partially. We should probably look over the data before reassigning him again—Xa: *frustrated groan* So do you interrogate all of your “incompetents” with Good Cop/Bad Cop routines, or just me?Vu: Huh? Cops? Where?Gahdok: WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME, 881?!Cahdok: Even I think that that was way out of line, Xa. I’m afraid we are going to have to repurpose you and your trainee—Gahdok: SCREW REPURPOSING! THROW THEM BOTH INTO THE MANGAI VOLCANO! *insane cackling*Cahdok: Come on, Gahdok. Calm down. We’ll just get you to your sleeping chamber and give you your relaxing pills, okay? Everything’s going to be fine. *slowly and carefully leads a moaning and growling Gahdok out of the door*Xa: Well, that was… eventful.Vu: And kind of scary.Cahdok (after returning): I’m sorry about that. She has anger management issues sometimes, especially when we use that… interrogation method. I should really convince her to be the Good Cop next time. Anyway, let’s head down to Level 17’s mission briefing room. I’ve got a new assignment for you.---Briefing Room, Underground Bohrok HQ, Level 17, Island of Mata NuiCahdok: Alright, you two. Here’s what I’ve taken you down here for. *points to map of the MU, where one of the Southern Islands is flashing* As you can see, we’re picking up a very high concentration of elemental energy in a single being somewhere on this island. No Toa or Makuta should be able to comfortably contain this amount of energy, and this thing has been here ever since we started scanning, so it’s not a Kaita. They don’t last this long.Xa: Hold on a second. What is this map of? Is that island at the top us? And how did you find out about all of this energy?Cahdok: Our universe, it’s one directly below us, and Bohrok shells aren’t the only thing we have secret sensors implanted in, in that order.Vu: But why can’t we see all that in real life?Xa: And why should we care?Cahdok: Always questions with you two, isn’t it? Why can’t you accept that we are smarter and stronger and more sensible and better than you in every way and just follow our orders?! *sigh* Anyway, you can’t see it because everything in this map is underwater, but not actually submerged somehow. As for why we care, that’s classified.Xa (whispering to Vu): Either she’s actually hiding something big from us, or she’s completely off her ornate Protosteel rocker.Vu (whispering back): Yeah.Xa: How long will this trip take, exactly?Cahdok: We’re not going to spare any flying vehicles just for you guys, so you’ll have to go by boat. It’ll probably take about a week. *points to the top of the map* In order to reach this vast underwater sea, you’ll have to navigate a series of looping tunnels vertically between us and our counterpart island down there. After that, just sail to the southeastern island chain and wait until this elemental power detector goes off the charts. *hands Xa a device with a screen and sensor dish on it*Vu: Hey, why don’t I get one?Xa: Because neither of us trusts you with it.Cahdok: You took the words right out of my mouth. Anyway, you should probably get going now. Good luck… muahahaha.*Cahdok presses a button, opening a hidden door to a long, partially submerged horizontal shaft with a boat floating in the silvery water near the “shore” closest to the three of them.*Xa: Well, that’s… convenient. Come on, Vu. (whispered) The sooner we get out of this dump, the better.Vu: But I don’t know how to swim.Xa: You don’t need to. There’s a boat, remember?Vu: Oh yeah. *climbs into boat*Xa: *climbs into it after him* Does this boat have any kind of propulsion system, or will we just have to row with our shields? Because that would be pretty problematic, considering they have gigantic holes in them.Cahdok: Yes, it has a motor. There should be some controls in the front somewhere.Xa: *reaches around Vu, grasping a small rectangular object and pulling it towards him* An NES controller? Really? Why couldn’t you install something more dignified?Cahdok: D-pad to steer, A to accelerate, B to brake, Start to turn it on, and Select to be quiet and do what you’re told for once.Xa: Good enough for our purposes, I guess. *turns motor on* Well, I guess we can get go—Gahdok: *barges in* HAVE YOU KILLED THEM YET???Cahdok: Darn, the tranquilizers wore off! Okay, Gahdok, calm down. I haven’t killed them, but I have sent them to investigate the elemental energy issue, so they’ll be out of your nonexistent hair for a while.Gahdok: You don’t have any hair either, Cahdok, so don’t mock me for it!Cahdok: I wasn’t mocking you! Look, let’s just go back to managing the Pahrak demolition of the Le-Wahi swamp, alright? That’ll be much more engaging for you. Lots of stuff blowing up!Gahdok: Fine, fine. Now get out of my sight, you two midgets!Xa: Yes, ma’am. *starts piloting the boat down the shaft*Vu: Bye bye.Cahdok: Don’t disappoint me, either of you. And when you find the source of that energy, destroy it immediately!Xa: Well, at least we’ll get to demolish something.END OF EPISODE 2

My very last official set was Stars Tahu, bought and opened in June 2010 if I remember correctly. He was purchased at the same time as Nektann, but I like to think of Tahu as my last set since he's Bionicle's most inconic and famous character. I've bought Lewa Mata, Matau, and a Rahkshi over eBay since then, but I don't really count them. Besides, only Lewa came with a canister, so he was the only one who I technically "opened".

If we assume that 1) harmful radiation does not exist in interdimensional space like bonesiii suggested and 2) this dimension is not the only accessible/safe/"real" one out there and there are a whole lot of different ones, then I would go with the Olmak without a second thought. If you get a little bit creative with its usage, then it's just as powerful as a Legendary mask in many ways. For example, if you had an Olmak but wanted a reliable way to defend against criminals, then you could just open a portal to a dimension where personal forcefields are common and don't require currency to obtain, get one, return to Earth, and use it there. It would be possible to do the exact same thing with almost any item you desired if you had great enough control over exactly where the Olmak's portals lead, effectively giving you all of the masks/weapons/useful tools you'd ever need.Assuming that such control over the Olmak is impossible, though, I'd go with the Mahiki. None of the other non-legendary-or-Olmak masks sound like they would have many practical applications in my life (with the exception of the Komau, but that just seems evil to me). The reason I'd choose a Mahiki if I couldn't have an Olmak is simply because it would keep me endlessly entertained. Shapeshifting, extremely lifelike illusions, and general control over what people (including myself) see and hear just seem like they would never get old.

The Chronicles of Xa and Vu: Episode 1 During the Matoran-Bohrok WarUnderground Bohrok HQ, Level 6, Island of Mata NuiPahrak-Za #723: Order in the court! Order, I say! *slams shield on table like a gavel*Cahdok: Your honor, this pathetic excuse for a member of the swarm has committed an inexcusable act of defiance! I demand that he be punished!Pahrak-Za #723: May I remind you that as a Krana Za, I am gifted with intelligence great enough to act as the judge during this trial—and to know that you are being very stupid right now. Lehvak-Xa #881’s actions will be judged fairly and logically, and he will be treated accordingly by the law.Gahdok: But-Lehvak-Xa #881 (known as Xa from here on): If you ask me, this is a pretty rediculous trial to begin with. All I did was point out one tiny possible flaw in the Bahrag’s strategy-Cahdok: You know perfectly well that you can’t disobey the orders of your queens! We were created by the Great Beings specifically to boss you around!Xa: But all I said was that we should actually try to get rid of the Toa instead of blindly demolishing everything in our path and acting surprised when we’re defeated by one of those overactive pituitary glands of beings whom we didn’t even see coming!Pahrak-Za #723: I’m sorry, #881, but I have to side with the Bahrag on this one. I’m going to have to sentence you to-Gahdok: Throw him to Tahnok-Kal! Wake him up and let him fry the fool’s circuits until he’s as blackened and charred as Cahdok’s brain!Cahdok: HEY!Pahrak-Za #723: -six months of newbie Bohrok training.Xa: You sickening monster.Pahrak-Za #723: #881, we’re both sickening monsters. You and I are nothing more than slugs squished into small, insectoid balls of protodermis. Deal with it.Xa: *sigh* I’ll report to the Onu-Wahi base camp, then.Cahdok: *snicker* This’ll be fun to watch via our secret cameras implanted in every Bohrok shell ever produced.Xa (as he walks out of the courtroom door): Well then, they’re not so secret anymore, are they?Gahdok: Cahdok, you imbecile.---Onu-Wahi Bohrok Base Camp, Trainee Pickup Wing (also underground)Nuhvok-Vu #358 (known as Vu from here on): You’re green. Green is weird.Xa: Listen, 358, I’m going to have to teach you the basics of being a Bohrok and demolishing things for the next six months. You’re going to need me for this, since you were only just formed yesterday. Let’s just get off the subject of my color and get this over with, okay?Vu: Day before yesterday. And green makes you look fat.Xa: Quiet! I don’t want to have to deal with your yammering and your inexperience. If we can get this done quickly, neither of us will have to put up with the other for the full half-year.Gahlok Va #270 (over PA system): Xa-881, you are clear to escort your trainee to the surface of Onu-Wahi and begin elemental focus instruction.Vu: What? Radio guy is confusing.Xa: *sigh* Just… just follow me.---Onu-Wahi Surface RegionXa: Alright, “Vu”. I think it’s pretty obvious that you know how to operate your Bohrok shell physically, so we can jump right to controlling your elemental power. As a Nuhvok, you have the ability to manipulate the ground and cause powerful earthquakes.Vu: Didn’t know that. So how do I make ground go boom?Xa: (He didn’t even know his element before now?) First, concentrate on the spot right in front of you and try to make a little ball of dirt rise up there. We’re going to start with baby steps, ‘kay?*A giant pillar of compressed soil sticks up right under Vu, sending him flying backwards.*Xa: How did that happen?!Vu: Thought about spot right in front of me, like you said. One inch in front, exact.Xa: Common sense, Vu? Ever heard of it? A pillar that size only one inch in front of you is going to slam into you! It’s unavoidable! Besides, you need to learn more precise control. That “little ball” was way larger than it was supposed to be!Vu: Fine. Farther in front.*This time, a pillar appears under Xa and throws him back.*Xa (barely containing his rage): We’re… starting… with… something else.---Ga-Wahi, near Naho BayXa: Alright, Vu, here’s the deal. If you can’t handle the powers of your Bohrok yet, I’ll teach you about something you should be a bit more familiar with: your own natural abilities.Vu: The dragons told me I could fly by spinning, right?Xa: Exactly. As a Krana Vu, you can fly short distances and survey the area by curling into a ball. Oh, and they’re called the Bahrag.Vu: Okay. Bahrag. So what do I do first?Xa: Fold your legs up, press your arms against the sides of your head, rotate your shields down, and thrust your head forward a bit. That should get you spinning.*Vu does as he’s told and immediately launches forward out over the bay.*Vu: *does loop-de-loops of glee* Yay! I’m flying! This is so much fun!Xa: Umm… wow, Vu. That’s great! This training might actually go pretty quickly after all.Vu: Really? I can’t wait! Let’s go tell the Bargah!Xa: Bahrag, Vu. Bahrag. Now all you have to do is hover back over here before you…*Vu suddenly uncurls and plunges down into the water.*Xa: …run out of flight energy. Why must I constantly deal with such morons?!---Po-Koro OutskirtsXa: Let’s try this, Vu. There are no environmental hazards here. There’s no soil, so your powers can’t go out of control. Pohatu’s out dealing with a Kohrak attack on Ta-Koro. There’s no way you could ever screw up this time.Vu: What do I do now, Xa?Xa: In general, don’t do anything so mind-blowingly stupid that an entire squad of Gahlok need to be called in to rescue you. Specifically, walk up to that Po-Matoran and punch it in the face with your shield. We’re going back to ordinary, basic weapon use here.Vu: I see a lot of them. Which one I should punch?Xa: That one to your right, the one with the Kakama. It’s just a pathetic, defenseless Matoran, Vu. It shouldn’t be a threat even to you.Vu: Alright. I will go up to him.*Vu takes a few steps towards the Matoran and is almost immediately knocked on his behind by a Koli ball to the chest.*Hewkii: When are Bohrok going to learn not to mess with me? It’s getting kind of annoying, really.Vu: Ow ow ow ow ow. Matoran are mean.Xa: *faceshield* How am I going to explain this to the Bahrag?END OF EPISODE 1

Saying this might be a bit redundant, but I also consider 2007's final battle my favorite. It's the kind of epic conflict that you knew was coming, but you didn't really have much of an idea of how it was going to play out. I wasn't all that surprised that Matoro used his connection to the Ignika in some way, but I didn't think the frachise in general would have the guts to kill off a very well-developed character like that. I undoubtedly appreciate it that they did, though, as the ending would have been so much less emotionally powerful if Matoro had survived.As for my least favorite final battle, it would have to be the end of the Bohrok-Kal saga, if that counts. The whole "overloading the Nuva Symbols" thing just felt like it came out of nowhere and didn't seem like a natural conculsion to that part of the story, just an unrealistically convenient plot element. It's like the writers thought it would be too hard to think of anything better and just got lazy.

Takanuva accidentally hits the Kohlii ball into the pool of EP in the room, transforming it into a powerful spherical bomb that Takanuva throws at Teridax, shattering his armor. Takutanuva is never formed, Jaller is never revived, and Tahu has to use a Nova Blast to open the door to Metru Nui, incinerating Mangaia in the process. Later, Kapura goes on the mission to find the Toa Nuva after they go missing and becomes the Toa Inika/Mahri of Fire.Tahu activating the Golden Armor.

Matoran Adventures is alright, although the characters don't have the best controls in the world. If you can get used to them, though, it's pretty fun. I'm not sure about the other two, as I don't own them (except for a European copy of Heroes DS that doesn't work on my American system).

I have Maze of Shadows, and I've been stuck in a particular room in the desert section for months, so at this point I'm convinced there's a glitch. It's a pretty fun game overall, though, sort of a puzzle game-RPG combination. It's very satisfying to upgrade the Metru and increase their power in battle. If you happen to have a GBA or DS, I'd recommend getting it.

I was bored.Anyway, let's start by looking at this image of Mata Nui crashing onto Aqua Magna in one of the comics:The red line marks the point on the planet's circumference that is at 0 degrees from our perspective. By looking at the slope of the planet as it leaves our view, we can estimate the portion of the circumference between the image's edge and the red line to be ~22.5 degrees. Looking at a protractor or other measurable circular object for a second will convince you that a completely horizontal line from the 0-degree point to the point directly about the 22.5-degree point is 1/4 of a circle's radius, so we can assume that Aqua Magna's radius is 4x the distance between the red line and the image's edge. I have measured that length and found that it is 722 pixels, so Aqua Magna's radius is 2,888 pixels. In order to convert pixels to feet/miles, we can look at the yellow line, which is the length of the Great Spirit Robot's lower arm (it isn't much closer to the "camera" than the planet, so we probably don't have to worry about illusions of diminishing size). Since we know the height of the Great Spirit Robot (40 million feet), we can look at this pictureand compare the lower arm's length (blue line) to the height of the torso/head section, which is about half the robot's height (green line). Since the green line is 345 pixels-b (we're using the "pixels-b" mesurement because this image is a different scale than the other one) long and the blue one is 145 pixels-b long, we can calculate that 1 pixel-b = 20,000,000 (half the height of the robot)/345 or about 57,971 feet (10.98 miles). Now that we know that, we can determine that the lower arm is 10.98x145 or 1,592.1 miles long. Divide that by 44, the length in pixels of the lower arm in the first image, and we determine that 1 pixel is about 36.185 miles. Multiply that by 2,888 and we get 104,502.28 miles as the approximate radius of Aqua Magna. Now, the only thing we have left to do is look at this imageof the entire system in The Legend Reborn. The orange line (Aqua Magna's radius) is 6 pixels-c long and the purple one (Bara Magna/Spherus Magna's radius, they're the same because the space the other two fragments fill is just two holes on either side) is 56 pixels-c long, so Spherus Magna's radius is 28/3x as great as Aqua Magna's. 104,502.28 multiplied by 28/3 is ~975,354.613, so Spherus Magna's approximate radius is 975,354.613 miles. That is mind-blowingly huge. It's almost 11 times larger than the radius of Jupiter, meaning that it should be impossible for anything, robotic or organic, to live on it, assuming it has more or less the same composition as Earth. Even if we take into account the EP core and assume that EP has a very low density, the planet is still so massive that anything that set foot on it would be instantly crushed. Then again, though, this is Bionicle physics, so I think we can forgive it.I apologize for any errors in my calculations that have gone unnoticed. I have checked it over thoroughly, though, so I doubt any major errors have been made. Regardless of the exact, precise size, though, my point that the planet should be too large for anything to live on still stands. I would appreciate any feedback that people have to give.(Images taken from BS01 and modified with MS Paint.)

Now that I think about it, what you're saying makes a lot of sense. Any fusion, after all, is essentially several beings' power compacted into a single being, and compacting things is just increasing their density (focus) but reducing their volume (area of effect). In simple terms, the fusion would be more powerful than the sum of its parts but couldn't focus on everything at once. That makes it easier to see how, say, all six Barraki acting seperately could bring down two Toa Mahri Kaita but not six individual Toa Mahri.Thank you for welcoming me, by the way, although I'm not actually new here. I used to be "Vikrota: Toa of Randomness" or something like that on the old forum, but I left for a couple of years and I can't access my old account on this new forum.

So I was re-watching the series of cutscenes at the end of MNOLG yesterday when I thought of something. If all it takes to form and maintain a Toa Kaita is three Toa and enough concentration, then why don't we see them more often (besides it getting old in real-life terms, of course)? It makes sense with the Toa Metru, since they probably didn't even know that they could form Kaita, but what about the Inika/Mahri and the Nuva while in Karda Nui? Both would have known about them, the latter because they had formed Kaita themselves and the former because they were once Matoran who probably heard about it from Takua.My best guess as to why Kaita are formed so rarely is that the GBs programmed it into the Toa as--say it with me--a failsafe, only for critical situations such as a battle with a Makuta or with three Bohrok-Kal. They could have given the Toa an instinct of sorts not to form Kaita unless they thought it was absoulutely necessary to prevent them from abusing it in unforeseen ways. Forming Kaita excessively might also be detrimental to a Toa's physical and mental health, preventing them from operating on their own if they're used to being only one-third of an organism.Any other ideas?