Wiriamu

Huh...figures that even when Sauron gets some love he gets no love; it seems like Lego is just out to deny me what I want.

Yeah, I remember thinking that a Doctor Who game would be pretty sick as well, with the TARDIS control room serving as a sort of hub like Diagon Alley does in the Lego Harry Potter games. There would be plenty of material to work with, though I'd probably be more interested in the classic series adaptations than those of the resuscitated franchise. Lego Batman could be interesting, more so if they were to do like Lego Dimensions and use it as an excuse to release even more minifigures not featured in the movie sets...like SAURON. And what's wrong with that? Anything goes, man.

I agree, but we are missing the original Stormtrooper from episodes 4-6. It'd be nice to have that one and then maybe move onto different cannon fodder-type enemies or troops. Like battle droids and rebels. Original Stormtrooper, Droids (R2 and 3PO) and I definitely want to see Boba Fett make an appearance, I know he'll be basically identical to the Jango set, but still, I would personally love to own that one. According to Brickset one of the nine Buildable Figures due for release this year-which includes the second half of the Rogue One line-is going to be "Stormtrooper Commander", which I'm guessing is your basic Original Trilogy Stormtrooper with a command pauldron. Ideally the pauldron will be detachable so that you can get turn him/her into a rank and file Stormtrooper. It would be nice to get more of the Battle Droids and some different Rebel Troopers, like the Tantive IV crew, Hoth Troopers, Endor Troopers, or the Phoenix Squadron Troopers from Rebels. Boba does seem like a pretty obligatory addition given his popularity with the fanbase-something which honestly baffles me-and I think he's got enough elements to distinguish him from Jango to make him interesting. Quite frankly, there are a few Mandalorians who would make nice additions to the line... Probably not exactly as they appeared in Dark Forces, given that said game featured Legends character Kyle Katarn as the guy who steals the Death Star plans, which has been solidly decanonized in film form. However, the designs of a couple of the phases appear to have inspired a couple droid variants from Rebels: http://starwarsrebels.wikia.com/wiki/Imperial_Sentry_Droid http://starwarsrebels.wikia.com/wiki/Imperial_Infiltrator_Droid Not to double post, but we've got the images of the Stormtrooper and Scout Trooper coming out this year: https://www.instagram.com/p/BQpwbAVhXrt/ https://www.instagram.com/p/BQpwerVhsP1/

Couldn't agree more. Sauron>Polka-Dot Man; there's really no contest. Still, at least this way if I take the plunge and buy this monstrosity, I can easily sell off the D-lister to recoup some of the cost.Hopefully, there are one or two summer sets that are still unrevealed, because I would be rather annoyed if Lego passed up another chance to release a second-age Sauron figure, especially since they went out of their way to insert him into a franchise where he doesn't belong. I'd agree, only that he was Barad-dûr, which, y'know, isn't a minifig. I'd have loved Agent Smith, since that was such a great small gag, or Voldemort because, well, why not? The Dark Tower would have made an amazing set, although technically a Sauron figure wouldn't even really figure there since he is known to have appeared in the Prologue scenes. Still, it wouldn't be the biggest stretch for Lego's use of creative license-Fifth Brother in Rex's AT-TE anyone? It would be nice if they could have included Sauron, but I suppose maybe they wanted a bit more color to the set.

Do I know a topic for you: http://www.bzpower.com/board/topic/24178-star-wars/ Endor Leia does strike me as a good candidate for a set; the white dress look doesn't really scream action, though I suppose you could always do her in Hoth Gear. Boba Fett is another good one, along with the other bounty hunters. It'd be nice to get some of the Rebels characters too.

I would also love to learn more about the guardians; it'd be cool to see them in Rebels if the crew could make their way to Jedha. The lack of a staff is disappointing...as is the lack of blinding bag.

The title basically says it like it is: what would you like to see in a new LEGO videogame, whether based on a theme that hasn't yet received a game or full game of its own or on a theme that exists only in your fondest dreams. Apart from the lamented Lego The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies expansion pack/DLC/whatever, tops on my list would probably be a little something I like to call Lego Star Wars: Rebels and Rogues. If you couldn't guess from the title, it would be based both on the Star Wars Rebels animated series and the Rogue One film, with some appropriate elements from other branches of the franchise thrown in for good measure. Personally, I'm not the hugest fan of Lego Star Wars videogames that have come out previously-some of the stuff they included showed poor taste in my opinion, and not just in terms of Lego's over the top slapstick-but my love of both Lego and Star Wars has me hoping for something better. Seeing the casts of Rebels and Rogue One strutting their stuff in Lego form would be just the sort of thing I'd be looking for. If we want to talk themes that don't yet exist, I would have to throw in two cents for a Lego Voltron theme and accompanying game. I'm a fan of most of what's been going on in the new Legendary Defender series, but as it's still fairly new you'd probably want to incorporate it into a game that adapted other elements of the franchise as well.

New one looks cool, although the spike seems...excessive.

That's fine; I actually had to force myself to shorten it down a bit, or else I would've spent all day on Wookieepedia. And to be honest, I forgot about the Magna Guards as well. Heck, one could probably just get away with centering a line around the other Separatist Droids in their entirety. Indeed; the only Clone Wars villain we've really gotten is Grievous, and there are plenty of others we could get from CCBS; Battle, Super Battle, Destroyer, Tactical, Super Tactical, Crab, Magna Guard, Commando-and that's just droids. Yeah, Star Wars does have a voluminous cast from which to draw inspiration; you could probably fill a small book with all the possible characters, whether specific or generic, that you could create. I started a list of characters you could make at one point divided into sets of six, and I think that at one point I got up to around 40 sets of six, including the ones that have been released thus far.

More power to you man.

It was the first issue, and I tried Kopekemaster's tip and was successful. I must say though, I forgot how annoyingly difficult shooting down Nui-Rama on the Kahu is.

Dude, I completely forgot about the Magna Guards; that would make an awesome CCBS set, and Rex would make a fine addition as well. Well Aanchir, I highly recommend it to you; it's one of my favorite pieces of Star Wars mythos, though I know it's not a favorite of everyone by a long shot. Hope you don't mind, Timageness, but I'm going to use your list as a starting point to kind of put together a compilation of what everybody's been saying. Original Trilogy: Boba Fett IG-88 Darth Sidious/Emperor Palpatine Imperial Royal/Shadow Guards R2-D2 and C-3PO Jawa Tusken Raider Princess Leia Han Solo Chewbacca Lando Calrissian Yoda Ackbar Snowtrooper Prequel Trilogy: Darth Maul (Prequel, Clone Wars, or Rebels) Shaak Ti Qui-Gon Jinn Mace Windu Count Dooku Kit Fisto Battle Droid Super Battle Droid Magna Guard Droideka Plo Koon Padme (preferably in Episode I resistance fighter gear) Sequel Trilogy: Old Han Solo Sidon Ithano Old Luke Snoke? (seems like he'd be a pretty plain figure, if huge) Bala Tiik Maz Kanata Clone Wars: Cad Bane Asajj Ventress (Sith Apprentice or Bounty Hunter) Embo Seripas C-21 Highsinger Latts Razzi Savage Opress Captain Rex Pong Krell Commando Droid Fenn Rau Bo-Katan Rebels: Sabine Wren Hera Syndulla Garazeb Orrelios Agent Kallus Ahsoka Tano The Grand Inquisitor Fifth Brother Seventh Sister Eighth Brother Grand Admiral Thrawn Chopper AP-5 Ezra Bridger Kanan Jarrus Garazeb Orrelios Imperial Infiltrator/EXD-9 Imperial Sentry/Dark Troopers Fenn Rau Gar Saxon Mandalorian Super Commando Rogue One: Cassian Andor Orson Krennic Rook Bodhi Imperial Tank Commander Saw Gerrera Imperial Ground Crew (don't think this one's been brought up, but I think it'd be cool) Pao Bistan Admiral Raddus Blue Leader Legends: Lumiya Darth Revan Darth Malak HK-47 Starkiller (Normal, Clone, or Sith Stalker) Kazdan Paratus Maris Brood Durge (alas, I think Durge is best classified as a Legends character now) Sith Trooper Jolee Bindo Bao Dur Rahm Koda Proxy Imperial Jump Trooper Evo Trooper Purge Trooper Dark Felucian Warrior/shaman Rodian Heavy Gunner Kazdan Paratus Hohass Ekwesh and Voort "Piggy" saBinring Funny how what was intended as a thread for all Star Wars sets has turned into mostly a CCBS discussion...

Anyone who follows my topics lately knows that I've been hot on the things that LEGO hasn't given us as yet. I've talked about it with Bionicle, Ninjago, and Star Wars; I may get into Hero Factory if I can think of more than a couple of ideas. But this topic is for everything else: all those lines Lego has produced that, for one reason or another, have had some pretty great set opportunities that have been overlooked. First up on the list is my old friend Middle Earth, i.e. Lego The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Some sets this line really could have used include (in my opinion): War of the Last Alliance/Battle of Mount Doom-essentially the battle from the prologue of The Fellowship of the Ring, complete with Sauron, Second Age Elrond, Elendil, Gil-galad, Isildur, and various troops. Brief it may have been on screen, but certainly pivotal. You could even go all out and turn it into a Death Star-style playset of Mount Doom, including Sauron's forge.Battle of Azanulbizar-rather like the previous set, this is a historical scene that seems like you could get a lot out of it. Apart from recreating a scene from the movie we could get such minifigures as Young Thorin, Azog, Young Balin, Thror, Young Dwalin, and some Dwarf Soldiers and Goblins to boot.Troll Battle-because who couldn't use Bert, Tom, and William?Dol Guldur-a scene where much of the action of The Hobbit Trilogy takes place-whether you like that fact or not-it seems like we could have gotten more out of it, including-potentially-a Thrain minifigure, a fiery Sauron as opposed to the Necromancer, Bolg, and perhaps ghostly versions of the Ringwraiths besides the Witch-King.The Watcher in the Water-while it was only a brief antagonist in The Fellowship of the Ring, the Watcher is one beast of a set that I think would have made a nice addition to the line. It would also be a good place for another Boromir figure and maybe another Pippin.Balrog Battle/The Endless Stair-with how awesome the Balrog is and how cool the video game version in The Lord of the Rings and Lego Dimensions is, it's pretty sad that we never got a physical version.Edoras-a pretty sweet scene from The Two Towers that could include two versions of Theoden, Eowyn, Hama, another Wormtongue, maybe even Gamling and/or Theodred.Oliphaunt Ambush-a chance for you to collect those gigantic beasts of which Samwise Gamgee is so fond, along with Haradrim, maybe some Easterlings, and Faramir and the Gondor Rangers.Battle of Pelennor Fields-a great opportunity to get some missing minifigures and elements such as the Witch-King with helmet, Eowyn, a Fell Beast, Rohirrim Squire Merry, and even Citadel Guard Pippin and Faramir if Lego takes its usual license.The Last Ship-a little tidbit from the finale of The Return of the King, allowing you to get your hands on an elderly Bilbo Baggins, Celeborn, Cirdan, and maybe a couple others.Tom Bombadil-essentially just a Revan-style polybag, since I don't know where you could fit him in with a set given that they're based on the films that he doesn't appear in, unless you do a minifigure line or something. Hm, that could actually be cool-throw in Rosie Cotton, Sauron, all the others we didn't get in sets......honestly, that's the main theme I can think of that doesn't have all the sets I would have wanted to see, but I'm sure there are more out there.

Within a matter of hours Ekimu had arrived at the Temple of Time, a journey that would have taken days without the benefit of his airship. For the first time in over a thousand years he approached the hallowed structure, and could not help but marvel. Okoto had almost entirely changed during the time he had spent in slumber, whether from the cataclysm unleashed by his ancient confrontation with Makuta or through the ravages of time down through the years. But the Temple of Time was unchanged, a tranquil oasis untouched by its surroundings; even the foul hunter Umarak had been unable to breach its sacred boundaries, though the presence of Takua at the time of his attempt had more than a little to do with that. The Golden Fox trotted along at Ekimu's side as he passed the Wall of History, where the names of Protectors past were recorded. It was more than a little disturbing to Ekimu that many of them were unknown to him, and even more that some of those names had been scratched out for shame at betrayals committed by their owners. The two most recent names to have been so marked had been told to Ekimu: Nidhiki, Protector of Jungle, and Tuyet, Protector of Water, whose name had been crossed out only after Takua's recent visit to the temple and confrontation with Umarak. Those two Protectors had been in league, seeking to use their Elemental Masks to impose order on the Okotans; only the noble hearts and actions of their comrades Lhikan, Kanae, Tiro, and Marn* had halted their attempt to seize control of the island. Tuyet, the cunning mastermind, had carefully concealed her role in the matter, leaving Nidhiki to take the fall for their plot; only after she had subsequently fled the island had the truth been learned by her successor Naho, but until the Fire Region Guard had come in search of Takua no one had come to the Temple of Time without pressing business that prevented them from examining the record and marking it accordingly. However, the Wise Master had not come to the temple to consider Okoto's past, but to safeguard it's future: the appearance of the Shadow Spawn wearing Umarak's Hunter Mask was a chilling omen that Ekimu could not decipher himself. Barely glancing at his own carved likeness and the gifts that had been laid at its feet throughout the centuries of his slumber, he entered the temple proper. In no time he had arrived at the vault where the Vahi, the Mask of Time, had always rested, save for the times that he had donned it and that the Protectors had taken it to the Temple's pool of light in order to summon the Toa. However, when Ekimu opened the door, he was stunned by the sight that greeted him. A golden mask did indeed float above large pedestal, but it was not the Mask of Time that Ekimu remembered. Instead of resembling a helmet with several triangular ridges or horns, this mask would cover the wearer's lower face and nose only, leaving the eyes and top of the head exposed. With a start, Ekimu realized that it's shape would fit exactly with that of the Mask of Time he had donned so long ago: somehow, that upper half had been replaced by it's long missing lower half! The Golden Fox's yelp of warning was the only notice Ekimu received before a powerful blow struck his back and sent him flying to the opposite end of the vault, passing mask and pedestal as he did. With a groan he rose up on his hands and knees just in time for the fox to come running up to him, it's small body quivering with terror. Lifting his head, Ekimu spotted the source of his pet's fear and was taken aback. Two tall figure stood in the doorway: one of them was Skull Slicer, who now wore the Golden Mask of Skull Spiders that Ekimu's uncle Karzahni had long ago crafted in his madness. The other, Skull Basher, was wearing his old mask, but it now shone with a sickly green light**. Realizing that Skull Basher had struck him with one of his axes-and mentally expressing gratitude that he had brought along his shield strapped to his back and thus prevented far greater injury being inflicted upon him-Ekimu rose shakily to his feet. "So, Oris and Tera***, your master has seen fit to put you to use after all. Given how miserably you and your superiors, the Lord of Skull Spiders and Kulta, failed him, I am surprised he would call upon you. But then, with the Skull Spiders leaderless, the Skull Raiders buried, and the Shadow Horde destroyed, he can't be too choosy about his pawns, now can he?" The response Ekimu received was the last thing he expected: Skull Basher's eyes shown red, but when he spoke it was the voice of Makuta that issued from his mouth. To Ekimu it was chilling, for even after he had donned the Mask of Ultimate Power his brother's voice had not sounded as harsh and grating as it did now after centuries trapped in the Shadow Realm. "Mock me as you will, brother, you have failed to predict my masterstroke. Yes, you and those accursed Toa, and even the Protectors of this day have thwarted me time and again, and left me imprisoned in the Shadow Realm with virtually no means of escape. "But these victories of yours are mere moments from being inconsequential, my brother-you cannot stop what I have planned. Indeed, you have in truth paved the way for my greatest victory, though you could not have known it. You and the Protectors are the only ones with even a chance of thwarting me now that the Toa have returned to the stars, and the Protectors are busy chasing my Shadow Spawn, fully committed to a hunt that they hope to be for the last remaining threat to Okoto. They thought Skull Slicer destroyed and Skull Basher safely interred, unaware that the former had recovered the Golden Mask of Skull Spiders from the ruins of the Lord's lair beneath Kini Nui. On my orders he freed his comrade and returned to him his mask, which is now infused with my power, and the two of them stowed away aboard your new airship. "Even the Toa have unwittingly played a part in my victory, for these two servants of mine still carry traces of their Elemental Power, enough to fool the Temple of Time into thinking them of your ilk when, in reality, they shall now use the temple's power to fulfill my dreams. And once they do, every triumph you have achieved, every delay you have caused me, every injury you have done to me, shall be recouped many times over. I am really quite pleased-my one true regret at the prospect of escaping the Shadow Realm was that I wouldn't be able to avenge myself on Agarak, his wife and brat, and those other sycophants who fawned over you so long ago. Now, however, I shall be granted that chance." His part as Makuta's mouthpiece played, Skull Basher holstered one of his axes and reached forth to take the Vahi from its pedestal; he then turned and walked out of the vault, heading for the pool of light at the temple's center. Once he had crossed the threshold, the vault door closed, and something happened that astonished Ekimu: the other half of the Mask of Time appeared above the pedestal! Both halves had been hidden in the Temple of Time, it seemed, though as far as any previous visitors had been aware only one could be found. One was always hidden, only appearing if the other was taken from the vault and the door closed, and doubtless would disappear back to its hiding place when the door was reopened. Ekimu could only assume that Makuta had somehow learned of the mechanism while imprisoned in the Shadow Realm, and could only watch in dismay as the Skull Slicer took the upper half. As the door opened again to allow the four-armed monster to exit, Ekimu recovered himself enough to give chase, drawing the Hammer of Power from his back. However, he left his shield where it was, and thus was unprepared when several energy bolts struck him as he exited the vault. To his dismay, it seemed that Makuta had managed to enlist one more old minion in his latest plot. Several meters away stood Likus, former Captain of the Kini Nui Guard and later of the Skull Warriors, her rank denoted by her Golden Skull Mask; she had disappeared after briefly seizing Kopaka's Golden Mask of Ice when Lewa had left the other Toa briefly after their arrival in Kini Nui.**** Unlike her underlings Likus retained the skills in undeath that she had possessed in life, as she had just handily demonstrated. Stunned, Ekimu was left unable to act as Skull Basher and Skull Slicer moved to either side of the pool of light and set the two halves of the Vahi in place above it. With a single glance of contempt at Ekimu and the Golden Fox, who had come running up to his fallen master, Likus leaped up to join them. Standing on three sides of the pool, the trio of villains watched as the two halves of the Vahi floated together and merged, forming a single mask that shown with power. And then, as Ekimu watched in horror, energy flowed from the masks worn by his enemies into the Mask of Time, which responded by releasing a blinding wave of power... Feeling as though no time had passed at all, Ekimu opened his eyes only to find that the Skull Creatures and the Vahi were gone. However, much to his surprise, he was not alone in the chamber with the Golden Fox: the Protectors all stood in various poses, looking as though they had just been in the midst of an intense battle. As they realized the alterations to their surroundings, Ekimu saw that a handful of other Okotans also stood in the room. Unlike the Protectors, each looked as though they had been in the midst of some mundane task, before some effect of the Skull Creatures' actions had caused them all to materialize here. To Ekimu's surprise, he knew at least one of the beings in question: an Okotan somewhat younger than any of the current Protectors who had red armor on his arms and torso but yellow armor on his legs, while his mask was as blue as any Okotan of Water's. This was none other than Takua, which made the elderly Fire Okotan beside him leaning on an old Firestaff and wearing a Mask of Invisibility Vakama, Narmoto's father and Takua's adopted father. Ekimu was unfamiliar with the other three, either by name or by sight, though they all appeared to be around Vakama's age. One was an Okotan of Ice with a Mask of Telekinesis and an ice pick, the next was a villager of Water with a Mask of Translation and a short trident, and the last was an Earth Okotan who bore a drill and a Mask of Night Vision. Kivoda was the first to get a bearing on his surroundings and spot Ekimu. "Master Ekimu! What has happened? The other Protectors and I had caught up to that Shadow Spawn and were fighting it; the next thing we knew we were here, in the Temple of Time!" "Indeed, Kivoda; this is an occurrence which has no parallel, so far as I am aware," remarked Vakama, who bowed to the Mask Maker. "It is a pleasure to finally meet you, great Ekimu, though I wish it were under less troubling circumstances. I was with my grandson Hafan when this strange transition happened, and I am curious as to why only those who now stand here are present." The old Earth Okotan stumped forward, his shoulders bowed with age but his eyes gleaming with wisdom. "I believe I have part of your answer, Brother Vakama. While the past does not contain an incident like the one we are now sharing, I believe that we have all shared an experience that links us and may explain our presence here. I do believe that all of us who now stand here are the only living Okotans who have visited this Temple before; perhaps that is why its power has gathered us here now." "I do believe you are right, Father-as usual," smiled Korgot. "Master Ekimu, this is my father Whenua who preceded me as Protector of Earth." "A pleasure, I'm sure," Ekimu said, bowing his head respectfully. "Of course I have met you before, Takua, and know of your father Vakama. I would guess that you two are former Protectors as well?" Much to Ekimu's surprise, the Ice Okotan responded with a long string of clicks, whistles, growls, and screeches. Izotor groaned before holding up a hand to halt the elder's strange speech. "You must excuse my uncle, Master Ekimu; Nuju speaks only in the languages of the Region of Ice's wildlife. Before, during, and since his time as a Protector he spends most of his time out in the wastes of the Region of Ice. Unfortunately my cousin Matoro, his usual interpreter, is not a Protector, and thus was not brought here; Nuju was merely introducing himself." "Fortunately you are not the only one who understands him, Izotor," chuckled the old Water Okotan. "Master Ekimu, I am Nokama, mother of Kivoda and comrade to Vakama, Nujua, and Whenua during their time as Protectors. Sadly, not all members of our group are with us any longer. Nilkuu's father Onewa sacrificed himself to save a village of the Stone Region from Skull Spiders, while Vizuna's father-" "My father Vazidan passed away shortly after his retirement," Vizuna finished. "He was the second Protector of Jungle to serve alongside Nokama and her generation of Protectors, having taken over the role from my grandfather Matau. Matau was forced to take up the role of Protector earlier than was traditional due to the betrayal of Nidhiki, his uncle; as a result, Vazidan felt duty bound to retain the office for as long as he was able. Forgive my interruption, Lady Nokama; I felt this was something Ekimu should hear from me." Nokama nodded her understanding, but the next person to speak was Takua. "Well, I certainly never thought my little excursion here would have turned out like this. Question is, why am I here and not Kapura or his guardsmen? They did come here to rescue me after my encounter with Umarak." "Yes brother, but they came only as far as the Wall of HIstory; the true boundaries of the Temple of Time only begin past the statue of Ekimu," replied Narmoto. "I left our brother and his men there and entered the temple alone to recover you. We then delivered you into the keeping of Kapura, while Jaller and I went off alone in an effort to pick up Umarak's trail, though we didn't know it was him at the time. Alas, he eluded us by his shadows, and did not trouble us again until the Toa sought out the Elemental Creatures." Clearing his throat, Nilkuu primed his Sandstone blaster. "Now that we've got a guess as to what brought us all here, shouldn't we be asking why? You were coming here, Master Ekimu, to don the Mask of Time and see if you could view a vision of what might be coming. Were you successful?" Shaking his head no, Ekimu explained what had transpired following his parting of ways from the Protectors. All twelve Okotans considered the matter grimly, before agreeing that they needed to try and determine what the Skull Creatures had done. As such, they turned and made their way out of the temple, heading for where Ekimu had parked his airship on the other side of the Wall of History. However, they were soon stunned to see that the Statue of Ekimu was gone...and the Wall of History little more than a heap of rubble. Gripping their weapons Ekimu, Narmoto, Vizuna, and Nilkuu moved ahead while Takua, Izotor, Kivoda, and Korgot helped their respective relatives over the uneven ground. Past the ruined wall, the dozen Okotans found no sign of the airship, and found that the path that had long led up to the temple was broken up, covered in scars that looked to have been left by explosives. However, the defilement of the sacred path was quickly eclipsed as the present and former Protectors, the Fire Region Chronicler, and the Mask Maker looked out into the distance. The Jungle Region, which had been much the same throughout Okoto's history, was unrecognizable, with the wild jungles having apparently been cleared away. Trees were visible in the distance, but they were in ordered rows that Vizuna couldn't help but find revolting. Of course, the hulking forms of Skull Shredders patrolling them was enough to unnerve the entire group. Looking beyond the Region of Jungle to the west, Narmoto could see great clouds of smoke rising from the Region of Fire, far more than he had seen during even the worst eruptions. Kivoda, meanwhile, looked to the north, and saw the Water Region looking almost as hideously changed as the Jungle Region. Most of the many rivers that crisscrossed the region were dammed, and those that weren't appeared black with filth. Smoke rose from the Water Region as wells, both from various hideous structures that dotted the region and from the coast, where a massive port was faintly visible in the distance. Nokama trembled at the sight of her home, prompting Vakama to place a comforting hand on her shoulder as he looked to the Mask Maker. "Great Ekimu...what has happened?" "I...wish I knew, Vakama. Makuta's minions have tampered with the power of Time itself, but what they intended they did not reveal. Regardless, we can see the results; whether they accomplished Makuta's design or not, their actions have left Okoto drastically changed, for I greatly doubt that the other regions have been spared. The halves of the Vahi are gone, and I know of nothing else within the Temple of Time that can aid us. Therefore, we must make our way to Kini Nui...assuming it still stands in this twisted world." Without an airship or other means of transportation, the Okotans were forced to make their way on foot towards Kini Nui. Fortunately the going was relatively easy, as Ekimu, the Protectors, and Takua lent their strength to the older Okotans, who despite their age were hardy. Nuju's Mask of Telekinesis was also an immense help, enabling those without climbing equipment or experience to move more easily up and down slopes. Korgot and Nilkuu made short work of any stones that were too large to go over or around practically, while Vizuna, Narmoto, and Izotor dealt with any dense vegetation. As they traveled, they saw no signs of any other Okotans, but that wasn't to say that they were alone. The foothills leading to the Kini Nui brought the sight of Blossom Foxes, small creatures who had inspired Ekimu in creating the Golden Fox. However, these foxes looked thin and sickly, and fled at the approach of the travelers. They narrowly avoided several hideous Bony Crawlers, and were forced to take what shelter they could find as hideous vultures flew by overhead. Finally, after days of hard travel and living off such meager food as the poisoned land seemed able to provide, the party arrived in the hills surrounding the Kini Nui-but it was not a happy sight. More vultures were visible flying over the city, along with hideous Plague Bats, which Vizuna recognized from the record of the lost Jungle Chronicler Teluli. Even larger bat-like creatures were in evidence as well, with skeletal humanoid bodies and what appeared to be weapons gripped in their claws. The great chasm surrounding the city was crawling with hideous creatures, from Skull Spiders to the towering horned Lortches. However, the life inhabiting the city itself was what really unnerved the group of Okotans as they gazed down upon the city, which was marred by hideous black structures that spouted more choking smoke into the sky. Skull Warriors of various hues were in evidence patrolling the streets, partnered with living creatures of similar stature that Ekimu recognized as Skull Raiders. Under their glaring eyes, Okotans from every tribe could be seen moving through the streets: some running fearfully as though on some urgent errand, others bending underneath heavy loads that it seemed they were not allowed to transport any other way. But as horrible as it was to see so many of their brethren obviously enslaved, there was a more disturbing presence visible at the city. Perhaps a third of the visible Okotans appeared neither fearful nor burdened, but walked about the city as though nothing was amiss. They would pause to allow the Skull Creatures to proceed on their way, but would force other Okotans to halt while they made their way forward. Such behavior would have been enough to mark them, but they also had armor that was a cold silver and a darker purple than that of the Earth Region. Though no members of Okoto knew it, Toa Gali had beheld such Okotans in the Shadow Realm, though the perpetual darkness of that place had obscured the color of their armor. For Ekimu, however, their appearance stirred memories of the long-distant past and made him shiver. "The Shadow Tribe...lives again..." Before Ekimu could say more, Nilkuu had lifted his hand to point towards the highest point in the city. The Forge of the Mask makers was still recognizable, but two major changes had been made. The statue of Ekimu was gone, replaced by the hulking figure of Kulta the Skull Grinder alongside the visage of Makuta in his original form. However, an even more imposing sight was a massive sculpture that had been added to the very top of the Temple of Creation. It was a massive mask, and none of those present save Ekimu had ever seen it whole or in pieces-but there was no mistaking it. The Mask of Ultimate Power. To be continued... *I took the liberty of applying the names of some Mata Nui locations to Lhikan, Tuyet, and Nidhiki's fellow Protectors, as I did their fellow Toa Mangai in my Battle for Spherus Magna epic. **A nod to the translucent green version of the mask from San Diego Comic Con. ***Like Skull Slicer's name, Skull Basher's was a concept for the cancelled BIONICLE 5. ****My way of canonizing the Skull Warrior character animation and adding a bit more interest; Likus wears the Golden Skull Mask from the Villain Pack, though of course she-another change I made-doesn't appear so in said animation. EDIT: I had previously noted Likus' role as the top Skull Warrior merely in notes, but thought I'd add it to the actual text. I had also previously written that only two figures appeared on the back of Ekimu's airship-Likus' inclusion was a last minute impulse-and have edited the text accordingly.

Well, I can't say I'm a fan of this one. Don't get me wrong, the writing is great as usual; I've just never really been a fan of this kind of plotline.

A nice piece of work-worthy of Lego Ideas.

Boooooooo! Honestly Bionicle seems to have all the pertinent ones covered; anything else would be rather overdone.

I prefer to think that the Great Beings are an entirely separate species, or that even if they're related to the Glatorian, they're so far beyond them that you can't really compare the two anymore. Again, it's hard to take this seriously when G1 has effectively been dead for so long; it's kind of like I stopped paying attention to what J.K. Rowling has to say about the Potterverse not long after Deathly Hallows.

Kind of like the majority of stuff J.K. Rowling has come out with since The Deathly Hallows.

There was a previous topic on this, but since it was old and has now been locked I thought I'd pick up a new one. In replaying the classic Mata Nui Online Game, I have found a recurring issue with the Nui-Jaga confrontation in Po-Koro; no matter what I do, I can't take out any of the pillars. Anyone else had any trouble with this? The second issue was addressed by the previous topic: an issue with the Le-Koro flute. It seems that whenever you play it, it sets off a loop in the game that leaves you stuck in the first part of a cutscene, unable to escape. Does anyone know if there's a remedy or a version where this issue doesn't appear?

I had actually thought of doing my own Bionicle Christmas Carol a while back, but actually intended to be serious and with Dume as Scrooge.

No romance in Bionicle: the teenage girl side.

What, no graduation ceremony where Makuta makes a final attempt to take over? No students dealing with truant officer Umarak? In all seriousness, you've done a great job with this story-great blend of Bionicle based humor with high school drama.

A good, sad story indeed; I'm guessing that the Agori aren't living as long as they used to? The idea of someone being the last of their species/people has always been sad; makes me think of the Ents. It would figure that Pridak would survive so long only to be done in by old age, while Kopeke's death seems appropriate-he went to end his days in the place most like his old home. Don't know if it would have happened, but it would have been kind of cool if he'd run into ol' Surel out there... Another great piece of work.

As when you sent me the PM, I do appreciate your kind words and comments. I think the scale of the story is more due to the expansiveness of the Bionicle universe than anything else, though I will admit that the official series never really implemented it on this scale. I've always loved the larger Bionicle universe-stuff like the Hagah that didn't get much story time in the actual series, and really wanted to bring that together in the sort of epic scale battle that the fans had hoped that Journey's End would have been, minus the two absurdly huge robots. I am quite a fan of G2, and while it's nothing on G1 storywise I thought it had many elements, particularly in terms of design and naming, that would fit in well with G1. The Nuva against the Lords always seemed like a natural fight to me, though I must admit that I'm at a loss to describe any such battle of pure Elemental Power at length. Yeah, I figured that the Red Star departure might turn some heads-the whole subject of it being a means by which dead characters are revived has been controversial since it was first revealed. The thing that was most irritating to me about it was that, after Greg made this big reveal that all these characters who were dead are now back, he did some major cutbacks. If you stick with what Greg established, you end up with characters that, to me, are either ones whose deaths are cheapened by this return-such as Lhikan-or characters whose return is just another case of Greg apparently having second thoughts about a plot decision and using this as an excuse to reverse it, such as Botar, Nocturn, or Mavrah, along with a handful of characters who were barely characters as all. I figured "if we're going to have an absurd plot device, let's make full use of it!", barring of course the return of any Makuta, Matoro, and a couple others. I personally have always liked Sidorak's design, and was disappointed by the treatment he got in Web of Shadows; as such I thought it would be good to give him a second chance, though of course I can understand not everybody feeling that way and am glad that the story's apparently good enough that you're willing to overlook it.