Could Hydraxon's face piece be a mask?

LEGO BIONICLE
21

Unfortunately, Hydraxon’s faceplate is not a Kanohi, and its shape is not even based off a Kanohi.

Source: Official Greg Dialogue | Page 275

This leaves this part somewhat invalid for use as a Kanohi mask in any moc that would represent a character that would normally wear a Kanohi mask. However, there is still a way to redeem this part as being a valid Kanohi shape. Follow me as we delve into the lore of mask making.

Part 1: Mask Powers

These are known facts about mask powers :

  • The power of a Kanohi mask depends on the power of the one or more Kanoka disks used to forge it. Source: Encyclopedia Updated

  • There are 8 basic Kanoka power types. Source: Encyclopedia Updated

  • There are 1 disk power type for each element (these are called Toa Disks and are basically Elemental Disks) Source: Toa Disk - BIONICLEsector01

  • Toa (Elemental) Disks can be combined between each other to create new powers. Source: Chat with Greg Farshtey | Page 717

  • Toa (Elemental) Disks can be combined with the basic 8 types. Souce: Chat with Greg Farshtey | Page 136

  • The order of combination of the Kanoka does not matter. Source: Chat with Greg Farshtey | Page 717

From the numbers of different Kanoka powers that gives us and all the possible combinations of 2, 3, 4, etc more disks together, we get a total of 25165823 combinations. This number excludes combinations that have both Light and Shadow as they have been known to cancel eath other. It is possible that they are not mutually exclusive for the purpose of Kanoka combining however, but that doesn’t matter much. The point is that is an extremely big number. Credits to @Wolk for the computation by the way.

These are known facts about elemental powers :

Here comes the speculation part. Considering Gravity is naturally rare, and if Toa of Magnetism and Iron have all been killed and their population closely monitored by the Makuta, it stands to reason that Toa (Elemental) Disks of at least these three elements would be hard to come by. If at least one type of Kanoka is hard to come by, then all the combinations involving this Kanoka would be hard to try for mask makers. This would easily leave huge holes in the big numbers of possible combinations. These combinations would never have been tried.

I suppose Matoran could create Toa (Elemental) Disks even without a Toa to give it to, but I suspect they would not be likely to do it on a regular basis. However, we know there are smugglers and traders in the MU. Therefore these disks, while hard to come by, could still be obtained if some Matoran would want to invest the extra effort in acquiring it. Think like the misprint masks of 2001 for example. Vakama says “It was the time of my kind, the time of mask makers … those for whom the art of creating great Kanohi Masks from Kanoka Disks was all that we lived for.” in Legends of Metru Nui so I’m sure some intrepid mask makers could acquire those normally very rare disks.

Therefore, the canon rules of mask making would support the discovery of brand new masks powers at any time in the story.

Part 2: Mask Shapes

Now, let’s talk about mask shapes. These are known facts about mask shapes :

  • When designing masks, Matoran mask makers are inspired by shapes that they have previously seen elsewhere. Source: Official Greg Discussion | Page 74

  • In rare occasions, a Kanohi mask can be shaped in the likeness of another Kanohi in honor of a past hero. Source: Web of Shadows, Appendix: Origin of the Rahaga.

Here comes the speculation. By combining the basic idea of the two points above, it seems plausible to me that a Matoran mask maker could decide, upon discovering a new mask power, to shape the mask in the likeness of any shape he might have seen anywhere, including the face of another being. It could be incidental, in the sense that the matoran might think he was inventing a new shape while he would actually be channeling his inspiration from an old memory. This is common in art. Or it could be done on purpose, to honor a past hero.

Imagine a Matoran that nearly died in some circumstances and was rescued by a being that was not wearing a Kanohi. He might have this old, hazy memory of the being saving him right before he fell unconscious and unintentionally shape a mask inspired by this old memory, or he could perfectly remember the face of that being and explicitely decide to honor him. Both cases make sense.

Part 3: Hydraxon

Now, let’s talk about Hydraxon. These are known facts about Hydraxon :

  • He was initially part of the Hand of Artakha and was later recruited into the Order of Mata-Nui by Helryx. Source: Official Greg Dialogue | Page 110

  • The Hand of Artakha was founded with the goal of maintaining peace and pursuing justice in the MU. Some members of the HoA were undisciplined though, and caused massive damage while trying to do good. The organization was forced to disband because it ultimately caused more harm than good. Source: Encyclopedia Updated

Here comes the speculation. Since Hydraxon was recruited into the Order of Mata-Nui by Helryx, it would make sense that we would be one of the more heroic members of the HoA, as opposed to the other, more destructive ones. While the Order of Mata-Nui was a secret order, the Hand of Artakha was not. Therefore, it is possible that Hydraxon was known by at least some people in the MU as being a heroic figure working as a force for good.

Part 4: Conclusion

If you read this far, you probably saw it coming from miles away. From what I could gather from the canon on the the matter, it seems the following scenario would be entirely possible:

  1. Hydraxon is seen as heroic by at least one matoran mask maker while working for the HoA.

  2. That Matoran mask maker discovers a new mask power later on and shapes the mask in the likeness of Hydraxon’s face.

Whether Hydraxon was widely regarded as heroic or not does not matter in practice. He could have inadvertently caused a lot of damage and therefore not being seen as very heroic by most while still saving that particular mask maker at the very last moment before he died. This would be enough for that mask maker to honor Hydraxon with a mask shaped in the likeness of his face or simply be inspired by the memory of the face of that being saving his life.

There, you have it. Hydraxon’s face was not shaped in the likeness of a previously existing Kanohi. However, no canon rule seem to invalidate the possibility that a more recent Kanohi might have been shaped in the likeness of Hydraxon’s face.

Part 5: Call to action

I have made my point about the fact that a Kanohi shaped like Hydraxon’s face would not break the established canon. Now, to actually make it canon. It requires a particular timing. It requires canon contests, of course, which are happening right now.

If we make it so that the winning entry of one of the Toa Hagah contest is wearing Hydraxon’s face as a Kanohi mask, we would have canonized that particular shape as being the shape of a Kanohi of unknown power. That LEGO part representing Hydraxon’s face, previously left out as being just a face or a helmet, would have become a true Kanohi. The Hagah contest provides a unique opportunity to make it work because the mask shapes used by the Hagah are not even linked to the mask powers. This is a one of a kind opportunity to salvage this poor LEGO part and gain one more actual valid Kanohi to use !

What are your thoughts on this ?

Edit: It turns out I made a lof research that were not really needed because Greg explicitely already stated that it would be possible for new masks to be shaped in other shapes, with Hydraxon’s face as being cited as an actual example: Official Greg Discussion | Page 271

8 Likes