The RoboRiders story takes place in the cyberspace of the Mata Nui Robot’s automated control systems outside the Mata Nui AI. The data processes of these systems are likely very hectic, constantly changing and moving, in order to run a miniature universe, so they are corporealized as inhospitable biomes. The unknown invader was Teridax, taking over the body. The story has no real conclusion because they all died in an unintentional digital genocide when Mata Nui smashed Teridax’ brain with a rock.
Makuta himself did something similar in Time Trap. Greg must really like his “character walks slowly towards opponent while being hit with attacks and not flinching” motif. I don’t blame him, it is always awesome when it happens!
I’ve always wondered how much control the Great Beings (or, in this case Artakha) actually had over all the artificial beings in the Matoran Universe; it seems unlikely that the Great Beings were individually designing every single tiny aspect of every single being.
I’m thinking that there was some degree of “natural growth” in the creation of these beings, which is where any “surprises” in the manufacturing process would come from.
I also find it convenient for the above discussion that, when Artakha was mentioning how Kopaka was “built better”, it was right after a comment about his willpower.
@Wekua This headcanon is pure perfection! In fact, for all we know it might be real It just makes so much sense on so many levels. Mata Nui’s dreams do sound like RoboRiders:
And yes, he dreams now, though he had not done so in the past. Perhaps it is the result of his brush with non-existence, or perhaps something else brought on the images he views. But dream he does – long, torturous nightmares in which darkness claims the world and all who live in it and even the Great Spirit is helpless to prevent it. They are agonizing visions from which he cannot awaken. And so, one of the most powerful beings in existence can do nothing but hope to someday wake up and find his dreams were only dreams… and nothing more.
Actually, we know for a fact this happens: we have the “unique individuals” like Vakama, Kapura and Zaktan.
When a matoran transforms in a toa and a toa transforms into a turaga they take parts from their previous form with them while transforming into their new forms
this hasnt been translated to set form of offical sets but i like to imagine this to help show how they looked before and to help them adjust easier to their new bodies the same works for mutations is well
I just realized fairly recently that the Av-Matoran’s initial mission of colonizing Karda Nui mirrors their eventual goal as Bohrok to “decolonize” the island of Mata Nui.
I can’t think of any way that this would impact the story beyond a neat little contrast, but I’m sure someone could come up with something.
The overall timespan of the story is far shorter, particularly the 100,000 years since the Shattering. 10,000 seems a little less ridiculously vast.
That, or no one on Bara Magna was alive during the Core War. MU beings should be the nigh-immortal ones, not the beings explicitly described as primarily organic.
Who are these ‘prime species’ that Mata-Nui pulled the Barraki from, and why have we never seen any other examples of any of them? I opt to consolidate at least one of them into an existing species—Kalmah is a Skakdi, from before Spiriah tampered with them. This comes primarily from him sharing a torso piece and having a very humanoid face compared to the other Barraki, with a lower jaw as well as prominent white teeth, and head tentacles that could be read as the remnants of a spine.
…and I liked the idea that, because the Skakdi were known to be peaceful, of course Mata-Nui would choose one of them to govern his internal universe, ignorant to how brutal this one would end up becoming. Also Spiriah’s tampering and what this ‘prime species’ eventually became plays nicely into how the Makuta are a corrupting, cancerous influence overall.
No elemental gender distinction.
Or, as has occasionally come up as a headcanon, elements are the Matoran equivalent to genders.
The various powered weapons, such as those used by the Voya Nui Matoran and many Toa, are made from purified protodermis in much the same fashion as kanoka and kanohi.
There are no ‘evil’ races, save for the aforementioned corrupted Skakdi and the Makuta-created Rahi who were explicitly made to be that way. Especially not among the Spherus Magna races; Skrall are just Glatorian, and their superior strength and combat ability is down to formalized, regimented military training and access to marginally better/more reliable nutrition until they were driven further south.
The Matoran of Metru Nui’s work doesn’t seem to directly correlate with any essential function of Mata Nui’s robot body, and so it doesn’t make much sense that them halting would somehow make him fall ill… at least until you choose to interpret it as a form of prayer/tribute, which Mata Nui as a deity-like being feeds off of.
I just thought:
Based on sizes and descriptions, the smaller Rahi are, the more their composition would be either mechanical or organic. For instance, the crabs having a more organic design than a Tarakava, for instance.
Karzahni not only made his mask, in the sense of patched it together, but invented the concept – a “Mask of Demoralization” that shows targets how their plans can fail sound like exactly the kind of insane idea he would come up with. This likely also means that the Olisi cannot be created by conventional Kanohi-making means.
Karzahni could clearly create things that few other beings in the MU could – his failures were not because of being stupid or a poor craftsman. Rather, he was hindered by his twisted and perverse ideas about how to make Matoran better. Also, I definitely read him as the type who blames others and stores up resentment rather than ever addressing his own failings, explaining why his domain went downhill so fast.
He might have had an easier time if Artakha had shared the Mask of Creation with him, as the Great Beings probably intended. Additionally, it would have been a lot easier to repair Matoran without the unexpected wrinkle of them being sentient and self-aware and possessing the capacity to fear and hate him – thereby turning a fixit operation into an adhoc rehabilitation program. Maybe Karzahni was screwed over from the start.
Bonus theory: We know marriage exists in the MU, where it’s a form of political alliance that allows two parties to jointly share power. Sidorak was interested in this form of alliance with Roodaka. The concept didn’t appear otherwise, which in-universe is probably because it wouldn’t be applicable to the goals of most other characters. However, if any other characters did pursue political marriages to consolidate power, the most likely candidates would be the Barraki, back in their League of Six Kingdoms days. So possibly some of the Barraki were married. Probably not to each other, but make of this what you will.
I’m sure no one would want to marry the guy who has hypnotism powers. He’s already pretty scary in that his army was made up of hypnotized Matoran… the thought of him marrying anyone does not bode well for the other person.
It just makes so much sense on so many levels. Mata Nui’s dreams do sound like 
I second that emotion