Random Kanohi

[Taipu1]

I thought of this question a few days ago and have been searching BS01 fairly fruitlessly (at least pertaining to this topic, I always find everything on BS01 fascinating). However I could not find an explanation for the various Kanohi scattered across Mata Nui (island) that the Toa Mata had to find. How did they get there, I've looked at the Kanohi page, and individual ones as well, the page for the mata and each individual member. I went through 3 separate time line pages, and I can't find why there were Kanohi hidden across the island?Help?

[SolarSurge]

I'm pretty sure the Toa Metru hid them around the island when they were setting up their villages, I don't know why they would do that though because that seems fairly impractical and inconvenient. However I could be wrong.

Edited November 8, 2011 by Solare

[Taipu1]

I'm pretty sure the Toa Metru hid them around the island when they were setting up their villages, I don't know why they would do that though because that seems fairly impractical and inconvenient. However I could be wrong.

I thought of that, it could be right, but like you say, it's impractical, and I couldn't find a record of them doing it on BS01.

[Takatu]

If I recall, the Toa Metru hid them when they arrived. I think their reasoning was to prove the next generation were real and capable Toa, or something.

[Mask Maker Takuna]

The Turaga hid the masks as a kind of training exercise for the Toa. If they had just straight-up given them the masks, the Toa would have had all this power, but no skill to use it with. Through the challenges of retrieving the Kanohi, the Toa also learned how to use their masks. So, despite the fact that it was inconvenient, it actually helped the Toa in the long run.The Kanohi Nuva, however, came from Artakha: he teleported them to various locations on the island after the Toa transformed. I don't recall why, but I believe it was with a similar idea in mind: not just handouts.As for BS01: you could always check Saga Guides or Timelines, or the summaries on individual book/comic pages. And, like you said, even if the stuff you're looking for isn't there, it's always a good read.

[Taipu1]

If the intention of the Turaga was to make sure it wasn't easy for the Toa to get the power of the masks, why did Vakama just hand over the Vahi to Tahu? Seems contradictive...

[Erebus]

Well, it was probably safer for the Vahi to be near the Turaga, and Vakama probably did not anticipate Tahu ever using the mask.

[Makuta_of_Oz]

How about the Kanohi Nuva? They can't've been there when the Toa Mata first arrived, else they'd've found some of them. Were they placed there by the visiting OoMN representative that Teridax killed?

[Erebus]

Takuna pretty much answered that question. The Matoran of Artakha created the masks and Artakha teleported them to Mata Nui.

[Takatu]

Well, the thing with the other masks is, even if Makuta could reach them, why would he need them? The Vahi, on the other hand... Not something you really leave around in a tree somewhere, especially if the majority of the island's beasts are doing his bidding and he tried hard to get it from Vakama before.

[Toa Zaz]

So why do the masks just happen to be the masks Tahu and his team happen to have?

[Just A Dot]

So why do the masks just happen to be the masks Tahu and his team happen to have?

They also brought a set of Noble Masks, so there were more than just Tahu's team's masks.

[Mr. Anon1]

OK, Challenge of the Hordika specifically says that the Metru collected masks from the Great Temple, so that explains why they are on Mata Nui. Still, one asks the following: how did the Kanohi Nuva appear on Mata Nui?

[tomdroidser]

Go forward a few posts: Artahka teleported them to Mata Nui.-Tomdroidser

[Swert]

OK, Challenge of the Hordika specifically says that the Metru collected masks from the Great Temple, so that explains why they are on Mata Nui. Still, one asks the following: how did the Kanohi Nuva appear on Mata Nui?

According to the Kanohi Nuva page, "The first Kanohi Nuva were the Kanohi formed when the Toa Mata transformed into the Toa Nuva and the thirty subsequent Kanohi Nuva made by the residents of Artakha that were teleported to Mata Nui."So, there you go. They were teleported to the island by the residents of Artakha.

[Mask Maker Takuna]

So why do the masks just happen to be the masks Tahu and his team happen to have?

Well, out-of-story, those were the only masks that existed back in 2001, so the sets of course had to have the masks.As for the in-universe explanation: in all we saw of Metru Nui, there were only twelve masks that were popular among the Matoran. Yes, Dume and Nidhiki had other masks than just the twelve from '01, but neither of them were from Metru Nui; their masks came from elsewhere. Every Matoran from Metru Nui that we saw had twelve masks, so it seems that Metru Nui didn't have widespread use of any masks that weren't those twelve. Now, the Toa were originally supposed to go to Metru Nui to awaken Mata Nui, so it would make sense that the masks they wore were the masks of Metru Nui. And when the Turaga took masks from the Great Temple, they would have, by necessity, had to take only those twelve masks.Now, the question in my mind: if they were just grabbing random masks, how did it turn out that the six Noble were the ones the Toa Metru had, and the six Great were the ones the Toa Mata had? I'm wondering if there might have been some prophetic allusion that the Mask Makers who supplied the masks to the temple had access to. The Toa Metru and the Toa Mata were both prophesied; I think that part of the prophecies evidenced themselves in the masks in the Great Temple.Now, bear with me a minute: We know that both teams were prophesied, and that, on Metru Nui, they had knowledge of these two coming teams of Toa. The Toa Metru even had a false group of Matoran, the Great Disk Matoran, that were acclaimed as the prophesied Toa. As for the Toa Mata: in order for the Turaga to know about the Toa Mata, they would have had to found out about them on Metru Nui, since after they turned into Turaga and fled from the Great Cataclysm, they had no contact with either Mata Nui or the rest of the Matoran Universe. However, even in their isolation, they still knew that a prophesied team of Toa were coming.Now, as to how the masks fit in.The masks in the Great Temple referred to two teams of six: one Noble team [the Toa Metru], and one Great team [the Toa Mata]. These groups would be recognized by their masks. The Great Disk Matoran had the six Noble Masks that were in the Great Temple, the same as the true Toa Metru team had. And the Toa Mata, the 'greater' team of Toa, had the six Great Masks in the temple.All right: that turned out better than expected. It just hit me on the fly, so I figured I'd throw it out there, see what people think. I don't have any books or comics, so I'm running on memory when it comes to prophesies - does anyone know anything more specific about the prophesies for either team of Toa? Or maybe more about the Toa Metru collecting masks in Challenge of the Hordika?Also, to add one thing to the Vahi discussion: people have been saying that the Vahi was too important to leave laying around the island, but I think there's a little more to it than that. The entire point of the 2004 storyline was Vakama protecting the Vahi from Makuta; it wasn't the same as the other masks, which Makuta had no desire for and which Vakama had no mission to guard. When he gave the Vahi to Tahu, he might not just have been giving him another powerful tool. I think the Turaga had an ulterior motive: giving the Vahi to the most powerful being he could get to protect it. It wasn't part of Tahu's training, like his other masks were; it was actually another mission for him. Also, like Takatu said, Makuta had no desire for the scattered Kanohi, just the Vahi.

[Taipu1]

I feel Makuta was a bit ignorant if he had no desire to find the scattered kanohi. We know he tried to get the mask of light before it made it to the seventh Toa, I don't see why he woudn't have tried to get the masks before the Toa Mata arrived. He had 1000 years to do it, it's not like he was pushed for time. He new the Matoran prophesies, so he knew that the Toa Mata were a risk.I don't think they could have just taken 12 masks back to Mata Nui either. The 6 Toa also had their own versions of the noble masks, in the MNOLG (Only semi-cannon I know) we see kopaka using a Mahiki and a Huna, Lewa use a Komau, and Onua use a Matatu. Also the Toa Metru must have taken back spare masks for the Matoran, both Kapura and Kopeke changed their kanohi while on Mata Nui, and as far as I know they didn't just do a swap with some other Matoran.

[Takatu]

The difference between the Toa Mata's masks and the Mask of Light was the the former ones didn't herald an individual with powers specifically designed to be a huge threat to his own. Besides, we know in the long run he needed the Mata/Nuva to complete their destiny for him to take over Mata Nui's body, so why deprive them of weapons that would help?

Edited November 10, 2011 by Takatu

[Lewa0111 Nuva]

I don't think it was ever said that the Turaga used the other five Noble Masks; otherwise, why would they bother to hide them around the island just to find them again by themselves? The other Noble Masks were also for the Toa. The only ones the Turaga wore were the ones that had originally been theirs as Toa Metru. Lewa0111 Nuva

[FlutterTree]

Maybe it was done by Makuta as usual? He said something about planning all his setbacks several times.

[bonesiii]

It was the Toa Metru. I know because I theorized it and later saw my theory proven right (except that I said it was Turaga -- technically true, but they weren't yet Turaga at the time). This was also mentioned in one of the books. And Takuna's explanation of the reasoning is correct -- also, this allowed them to whittle down the Rahi before taking on their boss, and get experience specifically with enemies controlled by that boss.In other words, it was the most efficient way, because to rush in unprepared and without having proven themselves into a death trap is inefficient. :PQuestion answered so topic will now be closed.