GregF Answers

[Erebus]

Chatted with Greg Farshtey today. Many questions from this topic were not answered because: 1) I only had an hour and a half with him, 2) there were followup questions, 3) some are being saved for next time, 4) Greg simply does not remember the answer.Please use spoiler tags when discussing the answers to ANY of the questions below.Questions - Text UnderlinedAnswers - Text Grayed

Red StarCan you name anyone other than Mavrah who [is] alive in the Red Star?LhikanBasically, anyone whose body was not disintegrated would be there.So no Matoro, no Brotherhood members, nobody who had no body leftHow long ago was the Red Star broken? From the start, or was it due to the Great Cataclysm?It stopped working quite a while before the events of Mystery of Metru Nui, which is why no one was looking around for Lhikan to come back.Does this mean there are two Hydraxons alive now?Yes, one up there, one down here.Can the Red Star still teleport the dead MU inhabitants to it now that the MU is effectively destroyed, and if not, how was it able to reach the Matoran in canisters in Voya Nui to turn them into the Toa Inika?It can't teleport right now, because the system is broken. As for the Inika, that wasn't teleportation at work, that was electrical discharge.Is there any kind of injury that would bar a being from being revived by the Red Star? Like perhaps a missing limb?No, there simply has to be a body left to work with.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Now what if someone with teleportation powers (like Brutaka with a functional Olmak or Botar) died could they escape the Red Star back to the Matoran Universe?Arguably, yesSo does that mean Botar was too damaged to be saved by the Red Star?No, it simply means that either a ) he reappeared someplace we have not seen him yet, or ...b ) He was sufficiently messed up by the experience of dying and coming back that he doesn't know where he is and isn't focusing on getting back.Does option B often happen to people? How aware are they of their circumstances?Well, the folks encountered on the red star thus far did not seem too together to me.What was the purpose of the red star on the map that Tarduk was following in the web serial?It marked the location of a Great Being facility, the one in which the RS was built.Okay, now what about the mental image of the Red Star that Tren Krom projected right before his death?TK was killed by a Great Being. The RS image served two purposes -- to TK, it symbolized the Great Beings, and ..it was a bit of irony .. as a completely organic being, the RS could not bring him backAs well as the fact that he was on Spherus Magna and the RS could not have brought him back anyways?Well, we don't know that.The RS is keyed in to MU inhabitants.We don't know the fact that he was no longer in the MU would have made a difference. Might have made a difference to his being sent back ...But the RS isn't sending anyone back now anyway.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------VelikaWas Velika in the Kingdom Alternate Universe also a Great Being?YesWhat have White Teridax and Mazeka been up to ever since the MU shut down?Pretty much the same as everyone else -- survival and trying to build a new life in a new place.Could we get a basic idea of Velika's life in the MU before being sent to Karzahni? Did he for example personally know Tren Krom as some theorized? What was his strategy of "observing", and was it intentional that he got damaged to go to Karzahni?Yes. he would have known TK, but I do not think he intentionally got damaged.Any info on what he did before going into the MU, like what GB projects he worked on?No----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------OtherWhat's happening to Lewa right now? Last we saw, he was being held captive by a bunch of plant-armored Agori.Lewa was taken back to their camp, where he discovered they are basically Luddites who blame the GB's tech for the disaster that befell Bara Magna. As it turned out, they were fairly awed by his air power, especially since he wasn't using a machine to produce it ...They still don't fully trust him, but they aren't going to kill him at the moment.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------What happened to the Shadowed One? Last time we saw him, he had disappeared with vials after killing Ancient.TSO is on Spherus Magna, forming a new army around the remnants of the DH and the scum of his new world. They are all in deep cover until the moment is right to strike.Are some of those "scum" guys following TSO from SM such as Bone Hunters or Skrall?YesAnd others we haven't met yetfrom other regions of SMDid he use [viruses] on himself or is he just keeping them as a secret weapon?Secret weapon----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------How did Zaktan survive Teridax's attack prior to his fusion with the other beings?I feel it came down to Zaktan's bizarre nature .. he already survives as a swarm of extremely small creatures ... so when he got exploded ...he basically was surviving as much, much smaller fragments, at the molecular leveluntil he was able to coalesce at least a portion of himself againCan you tell us why he became protodites after being hit by TSO's eyebeams in the first place?Well, not sure how good an answer this is, but my assumption always was he was some kind of a mutant. That is why his body did not react to the beams the way anyone else's would have.So similar to how Vakama was able to see the future? Just a random fluke?Oh, maybe random ... or maybe not. Miight have been intentional in his creation.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------How does the Nuva Cube work? It was created by Artakha and teleported to the Bohrok nest when the Toa Mata formed a Toa Seal around the Bahrag, and has the power to break that Seal...but in a previous quote, it was stated that it could break only that specific Seal. So how does it know the difference between any other Toa Seal and the Seal around the Bahrag, which technically wasn't meant to exist since they should have never been woken up prematurely?First off, I am not sure you can say "wasn't meant" to exist ... MN was full of failsafes. And as for how it knows the difference, it is picking up a combination of the seal's energy and the Bahrag's energies in concert----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Has Vezon gained total control over the Olmak since it has been fused to him?I wouldn't say total, but a lot.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------What is the nature of Toa/Spirit stars inside and outside of the MU? [Toa Mata stars were outside the MU.But the Toa Metru spirit stars were inside the MU.]The inside ones I feel are pretty easy ...I always felt they were some sort of electrical impulse from MN's system ...As far as the outside ones go ...I would think there would have to be some connection to the red star, since it was connected to his system at least peripherally.

Spoiler tags, use them:

[spoiler]text[/spoiler]

[Dorek]

All fantastic stuff ER. Sorry I missed the chat, but I'm down for the next one.

[Click]

Oh, thank you very much Erebus. Now I really hope Greg will finish the serials, I can't wait to see how the situations with Lewa and the Shadowed One will develop! These will all be great to know, but too bad my question didn't get answered. I'm really curious about the rest of the Time Slip Av-Matoran.

[GallifreyanOrigin]

Well, I'm satisfied with the answers to my questions. Glad to finally have some clarity on that tricky little Nuva Cube. :)Additionally, I'm very intrigued by the goings-about of The Shadowed One and by these "Luddite" Agori, as well as the Great Being Facility on the Red Star map. I wonder if that would have come into play during TPTB.

Thanks for pulling this together Er, and thanks to Greg for taking the time to answer these questions.

Edited November 14, 2012 by XyzTheDay!

[Chro]

Excellent information. Thank you Erebus.

Lhikan's alive- saw that one coming, but good to be clarified.TSO's new army seems very intriguing- I can't wait to hear more about that.

I guess I'll edit this with more thoughts later.

[~Xemnas~]

What happened to the Shadowed One? Last time we saw him, he had disappeared with vials after killing Ancient.TSO is on Spherus Magna, forming a new armyaround the remnants of the DH and the scum of his new world. They are all indeep cover until the moment is right to strike.Are some of those "scum" guys following TSO from SM such as Bone Hunters or Skrall?YesAnd others we haven't met yet from other regions of SM

Well, that's some good story material people can use right there! Well, I guess it's time to brace ourselves- the short stories are coming. XP

Edited November 14, 2012 by Toa Xemnas of Crystal

[GSR]

Some interesting stuff here, including some stuff that could make for fertile ground for future fics, even if (as seems almost certain now) we'll not be getting any more canon story outside of these occasional clarifications.

In particular, TSO being up to his old tricks and getting an army together.

Oh, and I'm a bad person for forgetting to do this in the first place, so let me edit it in: thanks as always for pulling this together, Erebus.

Edited November 14, 2012 by GSR

[Kraahlix]

Thanks Erebus. =)

[Constructelf]

Thanks! But you sure there will be a next time soon?

[Chro]

Thanks! But you sure there will be a next time soon?

He didn't specify soon, per se. Just some time in the future when there is an opportunity, I'd think. Edited November 14, 2012 by Chro

[FrozenFlash]

Thanks, Erebus.

It makes me wonder what will happen if Red Star Hydraxon meets Dekar Hydraxon when the star ever gets fixed .

[Fullmetal]

This is all good stuff of course, but what we all really wish he answered was 'when are we going to get new chapters?'

[GallifreyanOrigin]

This is all good stuff of course, but what we all really wish he answered was 'when are we going to get new chapters?'

He probably wouldn't be able to say for sure, considering how busy he is. I mean, he has a kid to look after, Ninjago to write for, his actual job (as Editorial Director, if I recall correctly), and I think he just moved recently, so he still has to get settled in and all that. Edited November 14, 2012 by XyzTheDay!

[The 1st Shadow]

Thanks, Erebus.

Ah, good. So I was right about there now being two Hydraxons! This pleases me. Now we just have to wait for the two to come face-to-face. Also, interesting answer to my Lewa question. I assume it's kinda like the Ewoks with 3PO.

[Makuta_of_Oz]

I always believed TSO would make a great new main villain. Greg's plans for him appear to further confirm my theory.I'm wondering if his new army will still be called the Dark Hunters. Also, will Strakk and Tuma join?

Edited November 14, 2012 by Makuta_of_Oz

[Klak]

Basically, anyone whose body was not disintegrated would be there.So no Matoro, no Brotherhood members, nobody who had no body left

Wait, so does this mean Krika isn't in the Red Star?

[GallifreyanOrigin]

Basically, anyone whose body was not disintegrated would be there.So no Matoro, no Brotherhood members, nobody who had no body left

Wait, so does this mean Krika isn't in the Red Star?

Pretty much.

[Vorahk1Panrahk2]

Man, reading these makes me realize how completely lost I am in the BIONICLE story...Thanks for posting this, Erebus. Even if I have no clue what some of these refer to, it's good to get some storyline tidbits.

[Chro]

Basically, anyone whose body was not disintegrated would be there.So no Matoro, no Brotherhood members, nobody who had no body left

Wait, so does this mean Krika isn't in the Red Star?

Yeah, he was disintegrated, so there's no physical body left to restore him.

[Dual Cee]

Can you tell us witch questions you asked so we know what we have to ask in the futureYou are thanked foreverYou're the best Erebus

Yeeey finally some info about the kingdom

Edited November 14, 2012 by Toa Temporal

[The Iron Toa]

Thank you to Erebus and Greg!

So does this mean for much of the Matoran Universe's history, beings did come back from the dead? And I'm intrigued about these other inhabitants of Spherus Magna that were mentioned. Different tribes or communities of Agori or Glatorian, or different species entirely, I wonder.

[Toa Smoke Monster]

Vezon gaining a lot of control over the Olmak fused to him can't be a good thing. I can just imagine the chaos that will come from that.

But anyway, thanks for posting this, Erebus!

[Taipu1]

All good information, but I'm still disappointed Lhikan is apparently alive. I'm guessing the Red Star teleporter broke before the Many Deaths of Toa Tuyet as well? Otherwise they wouldn't have made quite such a fuss over it.

I always believed TSO would make a great new main villain. Greg's plans for him appear to further confirm my theory.I'm wondering if his new army will still be called the Dark Hunters. Also, will Strakk and Tuma join?

I suppose defeat might have changed him, but I got the impression that Tuma wasn't one for being under anyones command.

Edited November 14, 2012 by Taipu1

[TLhikan]

Lhikan's alive! Woohoo!

-TLhikan

Edited November 14, 2012 by TLhikan

[Mare Tranquillitatis]

Thanks a lot for the great news, Erebus! And thank you Mr. Farshtey, too! I am not totally sure I understood all the news, but I'm still pretty glad that we got them.

Lhikan... somewhat still alive. Yay!As for Zaktan, some guy got it right, aparently.

[The Legendary TNT]

Thanks Erebus!

WOOOOOOOOOO! !!!!! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE SPIRIT STARS! !!!!! WOOOOOOO! !!! !!! I AM ONE OF THE HAPPIEST PEOPLE AROUND RIGHT NOW! !!!!! OK, calm down, just breath...alright, I'm good *clears throte*, OK, so Lewa's alive. That's a relief. There's two Hydraxon's. Awesome! TSO's alive. Thank the Great Beings. Lhikan's alive. What!?!?!?(actually, should have seen it coming) So, could the Toa Inika actually have seen Toa Lhikan on the stair case to the Ignika?

Edited November 14, 2012 by TNT-DJ Vezon

[bohrokmaster]

It would be a good story if Toa Lhikan guided Jaller and his party (Hahli, Nuparu, Kongu, Hewkii and Matoro) and tells them to fulfill their destiny as Toa Inika and save Voya Nui.

Please use spoiler tags. -B6

Edited November 15, 2012 by Black Six

[ARROW404]

Awesome, Erebus!Where did the chat happen, though?

And when/where was Velika revealed to be the GB? I've been gone for about a year, so I missed most of that. And he killed Brutaka and the others??? As for Lhikan being alive, would he be a Toa or a Turaga?

Edited November 14, 2012 by Draezeth

[Meta-Mind]

Thanks for this, Erebus. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who's happy to have some word from GregF about this again.

feel it came down to Zaktan's bizarre nature .. he already survives as a swarm of extremely small creatures ... so when he got exploded ...he basically was surviving as much, much smaller fragments, at the molecular leveluntil he was able to coalesce at least a portion of himself again

So this does seem to bear out my theory... interesting. An interesting twist too.

[Makuta_of_Oz]

Thanks Erebus!

WOOOOOOOOOO! !!!!! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE SPIRIT STARS! !!!!! WOOOOOOO! !!! !!! I AM ONE OF THE HAPPIEST PEOPLE AROUND RIGHT NOW! !!!!! OK, calm down, just breath...alright, I'm good *clears throte*, OK, so Lewa's alive. That's a relief. There's two Hydraxon's. Awesome! TSO's alive. Thank the Great Beings. Lhikan's alive. What!?!?!?(actually, should have seen it coming) So, could the Toa Inika actually have seen Toa Lhikan on the stair case to the Ignika?

Need I remind you, Lhikan's a Turaga now.

[BULiK]

Thanks Erebus!

WOOOOOOOOOO! !!!!! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE SPIRIT STARS! !!!!! WOOOOOOO! !!! !!! I AM ONE OF THE HAPPIEST PEOPLE AROUND RIGHT NOW! !!!!! OK, calm down, just breath...alright, I'm good *clears throte*, OK, so Lewa's alive. That's a relief. There's two Hydraxon's. Awesome! TSO's alive. Thank the Great Beings. Lhikan's alive. What!?!?!?(actually, should have seen it coming) So, could the Toa Inika actually have seen Toa Lhikan on the stair case to the Ignika?

Need I remind you, Lhikan's a Turaga now.

but that does bring up the question: when a matoran becomes a toa or Turaga, what form to they come back in after their visit to the red star?

[fishers64]

Thanks Erebus!WOOOOOOOOOO! !!!!! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE SPIRIT STARS! !!!!! WOOOOOOO! !!! !!! I AM ONE OF THE HAPPIEST PEOPLE AROUND RIGHT NOW! !!!!! OK, calm down, just breath...alright, I'm good *clears throte*, OK, so Lewa's alive. That's a relief. There's two Hydraxon's. Awesome! TSO's alive. Thank the Great Beings. Lhikan's alive. What!?!?!?(actually, should have seen it coming) So, could the Toa Inika actually have seen Toa Lhikan on the stair case to the Ignika?

Need I remind you, Lhikan's a Turaga now.

but that does bring up the question: when a matoran becomes a toa or Turaga, what form to they come back in after their visit to the red star?

I would assume that it would be the form that they died in. Remember, the body is required for revival, which would indicate that the revival would happen in the form of that body, not something else.

[Makuta_of_Oz]

Thanks Erebus!

WOOOOOOOOOO! !!!!! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE SPIRIT STARS! !!!!! WOOOOOOO! !!! !!! I AM ONE OF THE HAPPIEST PEOPLE AROUND RIGHT NOW! !!!!! OK, calm down, just breath...alright, I'm good *clears throte*, OK, so Lewa's alive. That's a relief. There's two Hydraxon's. Awesome! TSO's alive. Thank the Great Beings. Lhikan's alive. What!?!?!?(actually, should have seen it coming) So, could the Toa Inika actually have seen Toa Lhikan on the stair case to the Ignika?

Need I remind you, Lhikan's a Turaga now.

but that does bring up the question: when a matoran becomes a toa or Turaga, what form to they come back in after their visit to the red star?

Pretty sure the same form they came in. They were given a Turaga, they fix a Turaga. Besides, how much do Kestora know of a Toa's life cycle?

[TheSkeletonMan939]

Really awesome. I'm glad Greg hasn't just abandoned it all and is still trying his best to connect with fans.Thanks Erebus. You've earned a virtual high-five from me.

[Makuta Matata]

Thanks Erebus!

WOOOOOOOOOO! !!!!! I WAS RIGHT ABOUT THE SPIRIT STARS! !!!!! WOOOOOOO! !!! !!! I AM ONE OF THE HAPPIEST PEOPLE AROUND RIGHT NOW! !!!!! OK, calm down, just breath...alright, I'm good *clears throte*, OK, so Lewa's alive. That's a relief. There's two Hydraxon's. Awesome! TSO's alive. Thank the Great Beings. Lhikan's alive. What!?!?!?(actually, should have seen it coming) So, could the Toa Inika actually have seen Toa Lhikan on the stair case to the Ignika?

Need I remind you, Lhikan's a Turaga now.

but that does bring up the question: when a matoran becomes a toa or Turaga, what form to they come back in after their visit to the red star?

Pretty sure the same form they came in. They were given a Turaga, they fix a Turaga. Besides, how much do Kestora know of a Toa's life cycle?

Well, Mavrah was a Matoran on the Red Star, which indicates that they wouldn't transform upon reaching the Red Star.

[~Xemnas~]

Ah chain quoting!Anyway...

Hmm... if anyone that died without their body being disentegrated is alive on the red star... Sidorak's alive! *thinks for a moment* ...and the rest of the First Toa Team is alive as well! Erebus, I thank you for this information. :DAnd now there'll be fanfics. Fanfics everywhere.

[Baron Von Nebula]

Hmmm... This new info about The Shadowed One...In the event that Bionicle returns, I could see him as the main antagonist.It's great to find out some of these lingering questions. Thanks, Greg!

[onionfarb]

Wait, so, Botar's replacement really is Botar?And that info about Lewa and TSO make me really wish we were getting it in serials.

[Toa Smoke Monster]

Awesome, Erebus!Where did the chat happen, though?

And when/where was Velika revealed to be the GB? I've been gone for about a year, so I missed most of that. And he killed Brutaka and the others??? As for Lhikan being alive, would he be a Toa or a Turaga?

It was revealed that Velika was a GB in this topic.

[Makuta_of_Oz]

Hmmm... This new info about The Shadowed One...In the event that Bionicle returns, I could see him as the main antagonist.It's great to find out some of these lingering questions. Thanks, Greg!

Not sure if I can say so outside spoiler tags, but I agree 100%.