Akaku Rahi

[xccj]

Okay, so I have this new project. Back in 2001, the Toa Kanohi all came in six different colors. I finally completed my collection of the original 36 Toa Mata masks a while back, but what to do with them? Well, I plan to make a MOC for each of the 36 masks. And to give it a theme, I'm going to use the original six masks to recreate the Toa and use the rest to build various Rahi. This is my Thirty-Six Masks Project.I've built all my Rahi now. Sure, some of them could use some tweaking before Convention Season, but I want to post them online now so that I can get feedback and such. There are too many Rahi for one topic, but I don't want to make individual topics for each MOC (especially when some are lackluster). So instead I'm going to group them by the Kanohi mask they use.Today's are the Akaku Rahi

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I'll just admit it right here; the Akaku Rahi are probably my worst batch. The Akaku mask is just hard to incorporate on an organic creature. It works well on Kopaka, but the asymmetry and technological lenses just don't fit many Rahi. Instead, I tried to either put it on Rahi who were already a little messy, or I threw it on randomly just because the creature needed a mask. But, hey, putting the worst batch up just shows that I can only improve from here.

Skull Monkey

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The Skull Monkey is an awesome name for a not-so-awesome set. It's one of my few very-humanoid Rahi, and is also one of the tallest. The initial idea was to utilize all my Piraka skulls, which worked... but it's still a little messy. But, hey, maybe it's a creature of chaos so messiness goes for it... yeah, who am I kidding? I do like the head though.

Gearbox

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Yes, this Rahi makes no sense. Pretty much, if you take away the mask, arms, and eye-thingies, it would make for an interesting vehicle. The basic idea is that it's an underground Rahi who drives through caves and drills its own new tunnels, but let's be honest; the Makuta were probably a little out of it when they designed this. Still, the cool thing here is that all the gears work with each other, and there are like 26 gears too! When the wheels spin, it causes the front drill to spin, the side blades to twirl, and the mask to loop around. I love the functionality. There are even places where there are gears but the serve no real purpose. But if you ask why I put them there, my answer will be, "Because I can!" Yes, not the best Rahi, but I still like the design.

Preying Mantis

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Okay, the Mantis is an example of something that needs to be tweaked. I was trying to go for a mini look for the legs and body, but then the head turned out too big and proportions just went crazy. (And sadly, this is the second version... the first design was even worst!) I like parts of it (the head, and I liked the leg designs.) But all together, it's just... yucky. Plus, it's a horrible thing to pose. The mask on its back keeps popping off, and it's almost impossible to get it to stand on those legs... I should design something more sturdy. But for now, it's here to fill in a slot.

Rainbow Snake

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I'm fairly pleased with this. See, I had all this awesome Hero Factory armor (namely some in lovely purple and bright green from the Super Hero Constraction sets) so I decided to make a colorful snake. It all worked out brilliantly until I got to the head, and trying to incorporate a mask and snake-ish face at the right scale was tough. (And I wouldn't say I did it well either). So that could be fixed. (To note, the yellow bits beside the mask should be eyes... yeah, I know.)

Vatuka

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The Vatuka is probably my favorite of this batch. The build is a little haphazard, but I think the overall flow works, since the original Rahi is supposed to look like a jumbled pile of stones. The Ben 10 brown pieces worked well, and I added some system rocks and bucket pieces to add texture / more brownness. I really do like how the squat head turned out, even if the neck attachment is a little weird. The Akaku is actually on his back, and for once the asymmetric style of the mask fits in with the jaggedness look of the Rahi as a whole.Anyway, that's it for now. Comments appreciated. Will probably be posting more Rahi topics in the weeks to come. Thanks for looking!

Edited May 24, 2012 by xccj

[Onewa7]

Interesting.I agree with you that the Akaku isn't the best mask for a Rahi. A Pakari or Kakama would have worked better. However, the world of MOCing has no limits, and trying to incorporate an Akaku in a Rahi MOC is hard, but great.Skull Monkey: It looks great, actually, and reminds me of Kardas. What's annoying is that the Akaku looks random here.Gearbox: The Akaku fits well there because the Rahi is kinda mechanical. That's like a Manas. I like it and its blueness.Preying Mantis: Probably my favorite. It just needs pincers.Rainbow Snake: Oh yeah its face looks damaged by acid. It's still a nice idea. If I was you, I'd just add a little more red shells to suit the mask.Vatuka: This one is cool. Reminds me of a golem. And an ape. A golem ape. Good use of Ben 10 pieces.Overall, good job! You managed to incorporate an Akaku in Rahi MOCs. Can't wait to see other Rahi topics. And nice little Matorans btw. http://www.bzpower.com/board/public/style_emoticons/default/cool.png

[Sumiki]

I feel as if the Skull Monkey might be better served as ... not a monkey. By that, I mean that he doesn't look naturally bipedal, and might look better if adapted to all fours. The head and neck is the weakest part of the MOC, but even if you don't or can't strengthen or rebuild the head, at least make the neck a little bit lower down. He really does look like he's sticking his neck out for somebody here.Gearbox is the most interesting of the bunch, and I kind of like it. Sure, it looks a little too on the mechanical side, but props for making all those gears work. That really isn't easy.I'm not sure how much tweaking the Mantis needs. Sure, the proportions of arms and legs are off, but the build and color scheme are pretty solid.Anent the Rainbow Snake ... I'm sure you're well aware of its shortcomings, but allow me this one item of contention: instead of putting the armor on helter-skelter, you could try to gradient them in the actual colors of the rainbow (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet).The Vatuka is definitely my favorite. The Ben 10 parts work wonders on this MOC, and though there are a few small gaps in it, I can't really complain. You've taken some hard-to-use parts and incorporated them well. (Normally I'd gripe about the differences in brown, but it really works for this MOC, as all stone is not the same color.) Well done!

[~garnira returns~]

skull monkey: good job on this one although the akaku seems to be in an awkward position.gearbox: its a good moc but i couldn't tell that it was a rahi when i first saw it. a creature-like head would help.preying mantis: i dont see anything wrong with this but it seems to be begging for some claws.rainbow snake: Maybe not my personal favorite, but there is nothing to gripe about.Vatuka: this one, however, is my favorite. it looks great and uses those "useless" humungosoar lower arms.

Edited March 5, 2012 by ~garnira returns~