#antroz

[coldgoldlazarus]

It begins.

[makutaservaela]

Makuta Cuddle Pile

[chugers-entertainment]

@teelguy

RU: Кажется, мы начали забывать полный список лучших персонажей.

ENG: It seems like we've started to forget the full list of best characters.

RU: «CHUGERwayS» Entertainment (официально, по слухам) продолжает скакать по фандомам в поисках какой-либо аудитории и на очереди Биониклы.

ENG: «CHUGERwayS» Entertainment (officially, rumored) continues to jump around fandoms in search of some kind of audience, and Bionicle is next in line.

RU: Понятия не имею, стоит ли расценивать этот пост как гифт, как дань уважения или как спиздил стиль, но это был увлекательный опыт.

ENG: I have no idea whether this post should be considered a gift, a tribute, or a style ripoff, but it was a fun experience.

[chaoskingcornerstone]

Collection of Bionicle mask headcanons

I don't really know the best order in which to start talking about all these so I'll just-

The immoral masks are not just immoral because their powers are bad, but also because they are actually more powerful than great masks. A tier right above but not yet legendary. Why? Because the Makuta totally would.

Some of the immoral masks are mostly immoral because of that increased power, masks like the Komau have powers that can be used in very bad ways but it doesn't get labeled as immoral, meanwhile masks like the Shelek or the Crasz which actually have less ways to be used for evil are practically feared by the Toa because of their power.

They were first created and worn by the makuta (also headcanon) which first made them to be this stronger power level, which was never named and therefore whenever the masks were talked about they were always described as great masks. At some point they gave some of these masks to their Toa Hagah, which were fascinated by how powerful these masks are in comparison to other masks, and started to experiment with the scope of their powers. Eventually, they were tempted to go further with them...to start doing things they probably shouldn't...to do things that were rather...immoral.

Now I came up with this idea because of two other ideas I had. The first being to write Krika in a way that shows his mask power a bit better and shows why the Crast of all masks is considered immoral. The Toa say it's because it repels nature itself, and I liked the idea of actually showing that. Having the Crast passively cause plants to try and bend out of the way when Krika is close, Rahi appear uncomfortable and try to keep a distance, trees warp themselves to the point of damaging themselves to get away.

I then thought it would also be cool if the other immoral masks did the same. Vamprah passively draining some small amounts of energy from his surroundings, Metal around Antrol seemingly rusting faster, everything around our science boys seemingly being quieter, Bitil causing people to have random Déjà-vu and vague visions of random past moments if you're around him long enough.

Then I thought more about Bitils Mohtrek. The Toa say it is an immoral mask because it "violates the laws of time" ...I think this is interesting, because I then questioned, if that applies to the Vahi. And in my headcanon, it does.

The Vahi due to it's incredible power over time and the vast damage it can cause, is an immoral mask, and if used at all it should be used only in circumstances that very specifically require it and under heavy moderation. This doesn't completely apply to the version of the Vahi made by Vakama since it is weaker and therefore he can just give it to Tahu and trust him to not blow up the universe. (I once read a story that implied that the Vahi was made several times before but that each time it was used to reverse time to change something, and this would always unmake the Vahi, it was in that post also pointed out at the end that Vakamas Vahi surviving was unnatural. I have incorporated this into my headcanon with the adition that Vakamas Vahi is incomplete and more on the power level of a great or makuta mask as a result of the great spirit giving Vakama those specific instructions because for whatever reason a different Vahi variation was required instead of the time reverse one, possibly because Makutas plan was going on for so long that it cant be fully reversed and Mata Nui would always fall into a coma, so instead he gave Vakama the plans to make a vahi to use as a tool and as an opportunity to play nuklear chicken with Makuta Teridax. Which is why the Vahi is weaker than the other legendary masks and why it still exists (and why it is only covering half a face) )

The Vahi and the Mohtrek due to their abilities to really fuck up time in a big way are considered immoral.

The same also goes for the other two legendary masks. Most of the ignition trilogy antagonists motives can be summarized with "I want the Ignika so I can do baaaad stuff with it!" and in general my headcanon says that most being in the universe, most importantly toa, will when given very powerful masks and object likely be tempted to use them for their own selfish gain, throw away their morals and abuse the power given to them. There are exceptions of course, toa are only people after all which is why they're tempted in the first place, and of course the status of immoral masks as being hyper dangerous and evil makes most toa cautious around them. Some also just don't give in to selfish temptations to begin with, like I'd imagine Matoro. The Ignika gave Matoro a Tryna, specifically to test his morals after all and Matoro immediately after realizing what horrible mask he is wearing, vowed to only ever use it in emergencies (or if Makuta Teridax is threatening his life and his friends but he didn't really plan that now, did he? :P)

So all legendary masks are immoral and you need to be careful with who you trust to have that power. I'd like to imagine that this is specifically the reason why the mask of life has a consciousness, to test it's potential wearers and if a wearer starts to use the mask for their own selfish goals, act against the wearer on their own to prevent that. This is another reason why I also headcanon that ALL legendary masks have a consciousness. To ensure their wearers don't use them for evil. (Vakamas mask of time could possibly have a less active one due to it's lesser power)

Final idea. Several other existing masks, even if they're not makuta made immoral masks, have this great+ power level that I have mentioned earlier. The first example is the most obvious one, the Kraahkan. While I usually don't lump it together with the other immoral masks, it IS a makuta made immoral mask, which is why it is the most obvious choice and technically shouldn't bee down here, I just wanted to point it out. The Avohkii is also this power level. I heard it was a prototype mask when stolen by the makuta, and I think it makes sense for it to be this level, but also for even Artakha to not be really aware of the power level as it was meant to be a regular great mask that ended up being more powerful. I imagine the Olisi to also be in this category, created specifically to be a special more powerful but not quite legendary mask to be given to Karzahni after he lost the fight for the Mask of Creation, kinda a consolation prize one could guess. Supposedly only the Great Beings can make an Olisi with it being impossible to craft out of kanoka so the chances of other versions of the mask being out there are slim but if there are I'd imagine there are no other versions of it that are this power level.

[godrizza]

The idea popped in my head and I audibly laughed, so 15 minutes later…

[turaga-maxil]

Antroz and his Destral Cycle

“The lights in the lower cabin switched on, to reveal Antroz’s bounty in all its glory. It had been acquired in a skirmish with the Dark Hunters a few weeks prior, and someone had been smart enough to let him know about it.

He felt eagerness bubble within him as he examined it.

The Destral Cycle, as some unimaginative underling had deigned to dub it, was a marvelous sight to behold for Antroz (and likely very few others). The craft had a wide, spoked wheel on the front of it. There were jet engines mounted to the back. It had a brutish simplicity about it that tickled Antroz. The Skakdi had a penchant for making loud, clunky machines. This one was clearly an attempt to break that mold. Antroz lifted the compartment door in the front end of the vehicle. An energy core rested in there, dormant. He reached in, making sure it was secure. Then he let a jolt of electricity loose from his hand, sending it directly into the core. Immediately, it lit up as energy coursed through it. The bike sprung to life, whirring and roaring like a Kikanalo. Antroz smiled.”

Small taste of something I’m writing to go along with this.

[the-bigger-fish]

"We're smokin' filtered lime joints, ya stupid piece of Mega Bloks!"

"I don't give a rip if I go blind, I don't need to see the Mask of Life anyways..."

"I've got Krataa under my skin, I need a screwdriver to get them out!"

"I'm high on 12 Mazekas, ready to beat the sap out of a young Vuata Maca tree...."

"We're smokin' that Voya Nui Canonical Romance 90 Years of Play Protodermis."

"This Zamor Sphere'll send a good Toa straight to Karzahni."

"Caught a broke matoran trying to come up on my Toa Canister, so I skinned his mask alive! AHHHHH!"

"The antidermis has me acting inconsiderate!"

"I have seen the Throwbots. I have seen the Wheels of Roboriders. I was flippin' LEGO Bricks for Ole Kirk Kristensen before you were all a type 1 civilization!"

"We're on that Nynrah Ghost Blaster sippin' on that Bahrag Queen Power Plant Toa Luma Energized Protodermis."

"Me and my good buddy Mata Nui standin' back to back shakin' the very foundations of the universe. Truly, we are an army of two!"

"I balled so hard they thought I was a freakin' Bohrok Swarm!"

"Tied the Toa ops to the back of my Jetrax T6 and dragged 'em around the Kara Nui for 24 hours! Suckers looked like a Happy Meal Toy Master of Disaster after we was done with him!"

"I'm on them Le-Metru County Kanoka Disks!"

"I'm on twelve Great Kanohi smokin' that Tren Krom Tentacle!"

"My shooter a Kohli Head, he look like Gali Mistika."

"This Thornaxx got me movin' like an invasive rahi species!"

"I was in the Jetrax grippin' my Tridax Pods. Snipped the launcher, roamed around Northern Daxia with a cracked 2009 joint!"

"This stuff ain't nothin' to me, man!"

[sepublic]

What if we reimagined all of the other non-Teridax Makuta as eldritch horrors, just as Teridax was initially presented in the early years of Bionicle? What if we used each Makuta as a prompt of sorts; What if THEY were the big villain terrorizing an island, their individual name unknown so they’re just THE Makuta to the local Toa and Matoran? Make each one feel worthy of the title of Makuta, with their depictions in Karda Nui being akin to physical, humanoid avatars meant to interact with others, just as the scheming Teridax is like for the vortex from MNOG?

Like for example, Chirox! You have this swarm of spiders known as the Visorak, led by one massive spider, known as Makuta. The Visorak mutate their victims, before dragging them back to their master.

Makuta is a spider-like entity that emerges from a cave, using his spindly limbs to grapple with and analyze his victims... Potentially drawing upon them for inspiration, before tearing and prying them apart into their base pieces, adding them to his massive collection. From these recycled parts, Makuta creates more Visorak, or dreaded Rahi creatures that wreak havoc on the ecosystem. Like Makuta, they are poison, destruction incarnate; They always inherit his twisted spirit that destroys.

That’s all Makuta does, even when he does create; He inevitably just destroys. Instead of coming up with new things on his own, he relies on Fate to mutate the living into something random, hoping chance will eventually grant him a working design for Makuta to copy. You could say Makuta has no real ideas of his own, and is a gambler, a parasite, betting something will come along for him to take. 

But isn’t destruction the same as creation, isn’t destroying his victims necessary to make things? That’s where the imagery of the spider comes into play; Its long, spindly limbs? They’re fingers. Makuta is not just a spider, he is a hand; The same hand that reaches into the parts bin to make new creations, plays with MoCs before tearing them apart to make something new. Just as Teridax represents the parts bin, Chirox is the builder’s hand, like in the Lego Movie, or Super Smash Bros. 

Each Visorak is like a hand of its own, grabbing victims, reassembling them randomly with mutation. Dragging them back to Chirox, whose hand motif is also inspired from the fact that he is the only Makuta who can fully control his Shadow Hand. And Makuta’s spider-like form? It’s attached to something much, MUCH bigger... It is not just a hand metaphorically, it is a literal hand and when Makuta’s lair collapses around him, it reveals the massive figure he is attached to; His whole, true self, a titan more resembling the Chirox we are familiar with.

The others are different angles and facets to approach the myth, the legend of the Makuta; Different re-imaginings, just as people came up with their own G3 and their own take on Makuta. Just like the Makuta contest we had for G2. Vamprah can represent the animalistic side of Makuta; The raging, kicking, screaming beast he was once described as by Vakama. The apex predator, for if his minions are the Rahi beasts, he is the greatest of them all.

Or Bitil! A temporal entity, haunted by his past selves, constantly summoned by his future self. Always going through different iterations, just as a MoC is frequently edited, redone, rebuilt; You can track his transformation, his evolution across his many selves; Makuta represents the existential horror of the timeline, of the way things change. A ghost of the past, and also a vision of the future. If the Vahi is central to the tale of Bionicle as the Mask of Time, what about Makuta as someone who constantly exploits and distorts this force?

Those are some of my initial ideas. Makuta needn’t always be this faceless force of nature, they can be a humanized figure, like Krika, who can be a sympathetic, tragic villain doomed by the narrative, consigned to his role and aware of it as part of a meta discussion; Miserix is the mighty dragon our knights must slay; The Makuta of Stelt, a land of merchants and commerce, the all-consuming force of corporatism that stifles creativity, or a bargaining devil. Gorast is a fanatical priestess hoping to bring in a new age, Mutran the quintessential mad scientist who played god and flew too close to the sun in his obsession.

Spiriah is a corrupt lord seething over his failures, who transformed and resents his people the Skakdi and must be rebelled against; Tridax is a multiversal collector providing commentary on adaptations; The Vortixx hope to harness the ultimate weapon that is Antroz; Kojol is the arcane keeper of knowledge like Lucifer, who stole the Light of enlightenment from the land of thinkers and is burned for it; And Icarax? A completely straightforward dark lord to conquer, as he always intended to be. Each plays the role of Makuta, as the final villain, the ultimate evil who started this conflict, whom our protagonists must rise to eventually vanquish.