Toa Mata / Toa Nuva

The Toa Mata were the original six heroes of the BIONICLE story, central to the mythology of the Great Spirit Mata Nui.

Here is a breakdown of their creation, purpose, and journey up to their transformation into the Toa Nuva.

The Toa Mata

The team consisted of six individual heroes, each representing a primary element:

Name

Element

Tahu

Fire

Gali

Water

Lewa

Air

Pohatu

Stone

Onua

Earth

Kopaka

Ice

Creation and Purpose

Aspect

Details

Creator

They were created by the Great Beings—the ancient, mysterious masters of science and destiny in the Matoran Universe.

Nature

The Toa Mata were never Matoran; they were created as Toa. They are unique in that they were specifically engineered by the Great Beings and were the first Toa team designed to work as a cohesive unit.

Original Purpose

Their main purpose was to serve as a failsafe for the Great Spirit Robot, the massive bio-mechanical body of Mata Nui. Their ultimate destiny was to reawaken the Great Spirit Mata Nui should he ever fall into an eternal slumber.

The Name

"Toa Mata" (literally "Toa of Mata Nui" or "Mask Warriors") was a name given to them by the Matoran inhabitants of the island. The name was later understood to refer to their mission to awaken the being, Mata Nui.

Journey on the Island of Mata Nui

The Toa Mata's primary narrative began when they were dispatched to the surface of the island of Mata Nui after the Great Spirit Mata Nui was struck down by his brother, the Makuta Teridax, and crashed onto the ocean planet Aqua Magna.

  1. Arrival and Memory Loss (BIONICLE 2001 - Quest for the Masks)

  • The Toa arrived on the shores of the island of Mata Nui in individual canisters, suffering from amnesia and with no knowledge of their mission or each other.

  • They were greeted by the Turaga (the elders, who were once the Toa Metru) and the Matoran villagers. The Turaga guided them, using prophecies to help the Toa realize their destiny: to defeat the Makuta and save the island.

  • To regain their strength and powers, the Toa were told they had to collect the six Great Kanohi Masks scattered across the island. They also had to find and collect the 36 Noble Masks hidden in the wilderness.

  1. The Quest's End and Makuta's Defeat

  • After collecting their masks and their powers strengthened through unity, the Toa descended into the tunnels of Mangaia, the center of Makuta's lair.

  • They faced powerful Rahi (corrupted beasts) and Teridax's final defense, eventually defeating the Makuta in a final confrontation, trapping his spirit in a secure seal. This ended the period of darkness for the Matoran.

  1. The Bohrok Invasion (BIONICLE 2002)

  • Soon after Makuta's defeat, a new threat emerged: the Bohrok, massive swarms of insect-like drones whose sole purpose was to destroy the island of Mata Nui and "cleanse" it to its bedrock.

  • The Toa discovered that the Bohrok were led by six elite drones, the Bohrok-Kal.

  • To combat the new threat, the Toa Mata merged into two more powerful, temporary forms: Akamai, the Toa Kaita of Valor (Tahu, Onua, Pohatu) and Wairuha, the Toa Kaita of Wisdom (Gali, Lewa, Kopaka). Although powerful, they realized they could only defeat the Bohrok by learning to work together as a six-member team.

  • The Toa followed the Bohrok-Kal to the main Bohrok hive.

Transformation into Toa Nuva

The Toa Mata transformed into the Toa Nuva at the very end of their battle against the Bohrok.

  • In the deepest part of the hive, the Toa discovered the Bohrok's power source: six spheres of Energized Protodermis (a powerful, sentient substance that could mutate or destroy).

  • In a dramatic moment, the Toa threw their Golden Kanohi Masks into the Energized Protodermis. As they were standing too close, they were all caught in the massive surge of energy that erupted.

  • The exposure to the Energized Protodermis, in conjunction with their destiny, transformed the Toa Mata, upgrading their armor, tools, and Kanohi masks. They emerged as the Toa Nuva, with enhanced powers and new, more powerful masks.

The transformation of the Toa Mata into the Toa Nuva marked a significant shift in their power, but also immediately led them into one of their toughest battles against an elite enemy force and, soon after, the prophecy of the Seventh Toa.

Here is a look at the Toa Nuva's development and the pivotal events of the Mask of Light era.

The Toa Nuva: Power and Struggle

New Powers and Kanohi Nuva

When the Toa Mata were exposed to Energized Protodermis, their forms, armor, and powers were drastically upgraded. As the Toa Nuva, they gained:

  • Increased Elemental Control: They possessed a much greater quantity of elemental power and better control over it. This allowed them to perform feats like delaying an elemental attack to manifest at a given time or applying more creative uses of their abilities.

  • Kanohi Nuva: Their new masks, the Kanohi Nuva, were significantly more powerful than the original Great Masks. Crucially, the Kanohi Nuva could share their power with any nearby ally, dramatically increasing the team's tactical potential and embodying their new level of unity.

  • New Tools: Their tools were upgraded for increased functionality. For example, Tahu's twin fire swords could also be combined into a lava board for transport.

  • Psychological Shift: The immediate change initially made them more arrogant and prone to internal conflict, as they struggled to adapt to their amplified forms and power.

The Bohrok-Kal Crisis

The Toa Nuva's newfound power was immediately put to the test when the Bohrok-Kal emerged.

  • The Enemy: The Bohrok-Kal were six specialized, silver-armored Bohrok elite, activated as a failsafe in case the main Bohrok swarms were defeated. They were equipped with superior intelligence and advanced weaponry.

  • The Theft: The Bohrok-Kal's mission was to steal the Nuva Symbols—six stone carvings which now contained the essence of the Toa Nuva's elemental power. By possessing these symbols, the Kal effectively drained the Toa Nuva of all their elemental and mask power, leaving them powerless.

  • The Conflict: The powerless Toa Nuva were forced to rely purely on their strategic thinking, teamwork, and physical skills. The Kal planned to use the six stolen symbols, arranging them into a Nuva Cube, to release the imprisoned Bahrag (the Bohrok Queens) and restart the cleansing of Mata Nui.

  • The Victory: The Toa Nuva eventually hatched a plan: they realized the Bohrok-Kal were motivated by a desire to control the immense power of the Bahrag. In the final confrontation, the Nuva tricked the Bohrok-Kal into channeling their own immense, stolen elemental power into the Nuva Symbols. This massive influx of raw energy, combined with the Kal's greedy attempts to control it, caused an overload that disintegrated the Bohrok-Kal and their Krana-Kal, freeing the Nuva Symbols and restoring the heroes' powers.

The Heralding of the Seventh Toa and the Rahkshi

The Mask of Light Discovered

The defeat of the Bohrok-Kal brought a brief peace, but the island was soon thrown into crisis by an unexpected event:

  • The Prophecy: During a Kohlii (Matoran sport) match, the Matoran of Ta-Koro, Jaller and Takua, discovered a mysterious glowing mask in a cave. When brought to the Turaga, it was identified as the Kanohi Avohkii, the Great Mask of Light.

  • The Heralding: The Turaga revealed the existence of a long-standing prophecy: the discovery of the Mask of Light signaled the imminent arrival of a Seventh Toa, the Toa of Light, who was destined to defeat Makuta once and for all and finally awaken the Great Spirit Mata Nui.

  • The Quest: Jaller, the Captain of the Guard for Ta-Koro, was named the Herald of the Seventh Toa and tasked with finding its true wearer. Jaller, accompanied by the cynical Chronicler Takua, set off on a quest across the island of Mata Nui to deliver the Mask to the prophesied hero.

Makuta’s Sons: The Rahkshi

Makuta Teridax, the primary villain, had been secretly watching events unfold from his lair below the island. Alarmed by the emergence of the Toa of Light prophecy, he unleashed his most destructive agents: the Rahkshi.

  • Creation and Role: Makuta referred to the Rahkshi as his "sons," a reflection of the fact that each one was created by placing a piece of his own essence—a worm-like creature called a Kraata—into a robotic shell. The Rahkshi were sentient, highly destructive, and designed to find and destroy the Mask of Light and the Toa who carried it.

  • The Six Rahkshi of Darkness: The six Rahkshi released in the Mask of Light story each embodied a specific dark emotion/power, making them incredibly difficult for the Toa Nuva to fight:

Rahkshi Name

Power/Element

Description

Turahk (Red)

Fear

Induces overwhelming panic and despair in its targets.

Kurahk (White)

Anger

Drives targets into a rage, turning ally against ally.

Lerahk (Green)

Poison

Wields a staff that infects anything it touches with toxic poison.

Panrahk (Brown)

Shattering

Emits sonic blasts that cause matter, particularly stone, to crumble.

Guurahk (Blue)

Disintegration

Wields a staff that can disintegrate objects and armor.

Vorahk (Black)

Weakness

Drains the strength and elemental power of its opponents.

The Journey to Kini Nui

As Jaller and Takua traveled from village to village, they sought advice from the Turaga and evaded the destructive attacks of the Rahkshi. The Toa Nuva fought desperately to protect the Matoran and keep the Rahkshi from interfering with the quest.

The journey eventually led Jaller and Takua to the Kini Nui, the Great Temple at the center of the island. It was here, at the heart of the island where the Toa had made their stand against Makuta before, that the final confrontation began. The six Toa Nuva battled all six Rahkshi in a desperate effort to buy time for Jaller to complete his mission and find the Toa of Light.