The 2001 storyline revolved around Makuta Teridax using infected masks to corrupt the Rahi and make them attack the Matoran. That was why the Toa Mata came-to protect the Matoran and their villages. But what about before the Toa showed up? Did the Matoran have any means of defending themselves before then?
In addition, the only reason the Rahi were waging war on the Matoran was because Teridax was corrupting them. Ordinarily, the Rahi (at least, the ones on Mata Nui) wouldn’t be that dangerous. But what if a Matoran got in the crosshairs of a wild, territorial Rahi? Or if a Rahi got, like, the Bionicle equivalent of rabies?
Back in Metru Nui, Kanoka Disks were the primary tool of most Matoran and came equipped with all sorts of powers - reconstitute at random, for example, can scramble the molecular structure of an opponent, completely reforming them into a different shape with the potential to kill them.
However, the Kanoka disks and the mechanisms required to launch them were left behind in Metru Nui when the Toa Metru mirated the inhabitants of the island to Mata Nui. They then developed the bamboo disk, identical in shape and size to the Kanoka, although powerless and light enough to be lobbed by the average Matoran with enough force to combat a Muaka, the apex predator on the island.
In fact, Matoro, who considered himself the furthest thing from a hero, was noteworthy as a Muaka hunter, using the same bamboo disks to take down his prey. It’s only when the same Rahi were captured and corrupted by the Makuta’s infected Kanohi that they became too problematic to handle.
Incorrect; it was just really good timing.
A Muaka is a wild, territorial Rahi. The Matoran acted accordingly.
There is no Bionicle equivalent of rabies, however the Makuta’s corruption via the infected masks made otherwise docile Rahi violent and vicious, and normally antagonistic Rahi became serious threats. In fact, in numerous situations, the Rahi proved too much for the rookie Toa Mata to handle.
Discs was one way. (Although likely ineffective.) Oh Ghid beat me to it
Also I suspect the villages are in fairly strategic locations. Ta-Koro has a drawbridge and walls, Le Koro is up in the trees away from nasty ground dwelling critters and has enclosed dwellings, Po-Koro has a wall and narrow entrance, so on so forth. So the Mataron would have been relatively safe in their homes.
But yeah that last question, idk that would be pretty tough dealing with a grumpy Muaka. I guess like a Tiger, perhaps fire would scare them, Mataron are seen with spears and other blunt trauma objects, so perhaps like Toa they resort to killing if there is no other option. I think the Ta Koro Guard would serve such a purpose at times.
They survived Makuta’s attack for about thousand years.
Turaga used their elemental abilities or staff to hunt Kraata
The Matorans used tools like bamboo discs to defeat fierce rahis
and domesticated gentle rahi, like gukko birds and ussal crabs.
When they were exhausted and reached their limits after a long battle of 999 years,
Takua found Toa stone and summoned Toa Mata to Mata nui Island.
There was a short period where Vakama and Makuta had a truce, as revealed in the end of Time Trap. It was not long, but it probably gave the Turaga enough time to build up defenses such as, as others said, the Bamboo Disks. We also see in MNOG that places like Le-Koro had bird squadrons and the Ta-Koro Matoran are seen to be brandishing weapons like staffs. If you notice, each Koro appears to have defensive measures. (Especially Ta-Koro.)
That, and the Turaga themselves still have limited access to their mask powers and elemental powers, meaning if they must they can still protect the Matoran.
Then again, they did have the Vahki in Metru Nui…which also had Kanoka disks.
Admittedly, I was just using rabies as an example of something that could make a Rahi “go mad.” Though, to be fair, the infected masks did have that effect, like you said.
But Ga-Koro is right at the edge of the beach. That would make it vulnerable to aquatic Rahi. For instance, we saw a Tarakava attack Ga-Koro in MNOG.
Actually, now that I think about it, we do have general guidelines for dealing with dangerous animals in the real world. For instance, when you see a bear, you should stay still and avoid eye contact. And if you’re swimming and see a shark, stay upright and avoid splashing. Perhaps the Matoran have similar guidelines for dealing with wild Rahi?
What with their “guard” that Jaller is the captain of.
And as you said, they were just a programmable version of the disk launchers but with the added staffs, which could completely negate combat in some scenarios. Plus, a lot of the Metru Nui Rahi were no greater than a nuisance, and some were quite tame, making Metru Nui a considerably safer environment.
Yes, you may have noticed the prominent fishing culture as well as the element of water. It’s hard to get closer to that element and also stay on dry land.
Plus, in MNOG II, the village has been updated to extend vertically above the surface of the water.
They do.
A lot of the reasoning for this question could have been solved with a little bit of research. Rahi Beasts is a book published in 2005 by Greg Farshtey and Jeff James which contains plenty of info that would more than readily answer the questions posed here and I recommend you read it.
The Matoran did actually have plenty of weapons. Not only did they have the aforementioned kanoka, but Jaller has a blade in MoL, and the village guards wield polearms that look like weird bidents–they may be intended to function more as man-catchers than deadly weapons, hence the 2 points, which would make them less lethal.
I believe that they also used fake nui kopen to scare off kirikori and in challenge of the rahi they seemed to has an understanding of how to make net traps
@Ghid is right in his answer. I would just add that defending from Rahi attacks" was the very purpose of all the Matoran millitary organizations (such as Ta-Koro guard etc.) and all of Great War (the 1000 years since Great Cataclysm) was just Matoran defending themselves from Rahi.
So yes, they certainly had means to defend themselves, otherwise we wouldn’t have a story.
PS: There were also scarerahi, but those presumably only worked against normal wildlife and not the Makuta-controlled one.
