“Its lone pilot was a female, lithe and well armed. Be sure she will treat you worse than I do. Her name’s Lariska.”
- Brutaka, Federation of Fear Chapter 4
This is the one platform I haven’t posted my Lariska with full profiling on, because of how destructively critical and downright discouraging some people can be around here, but I’m comfortable to properly put myself out here now. Hopefully I can appeal to you all with this Entry of mine.
EDIT 6 Months later: I was right. I’m still not comfortable here at all. A superglued Mata Brainstalk is more open-minded than a lot of you.
Set of three Protosteel Daggers, two Protosteel Combat Knives, one Protosteel Ninjato, a fully mechanical arm, dark teal armor, and a 99% “replicability”. Why the additional ninjato? Given that the well-armed, quick-thinking Lariska’s in-universe arsenal is composed of daggers, to insinuate her affinity with blades is not a long reach; that is exactly what the longer blade is for-- a longer reach.
Daggers are meant for stabbing, so I chose a deadlier curved blade.
Knives are meant for cutting, so I chose the one constraction piece that looks like a knife a thicker straight blade.
Swords normally can do both, being the noble, versatile weapons they are. However, as this blade’s length and curvature resemble a ninjato’s moreso than it does a katana’s, its purpose is to be merely the longest blade in Lariska’s kit instead of her main weapon.
It’s Fanon Contest time; I’m allowed to include my headcanons.
All pieces used are available in their respective colors, except the Ackar Ankles, Large Knife Blades + their pommels, and the Axles with Stops that I have recolored to Black.
Posed renders make use of colors with increased specular attributes purely for cleaner presentation purposes, while the given .IO files showcase their official color variants. (E.g. Metallic Silver Gears from their official Flat Silver/Light Bluish Gray Variants)
As per story serial Federation of Fear, Chapter 4-- Lariska’s figure is described as “lithe”, or characterized with elegance, flexibility, and grace. Thus, my design, despite the mechanical arm, was constructed with symmetry, near-accurate humanoid proportions, and balance in mind.
Her silhouette makes use of the hourglass body figure to convey her fitness, and thick legs similar to baggy cargo pants, much like Kim Possible, who is also agile and acrobatic. Strong legs are the power behind a solid leap, after all.
… save for marginal error of a pixel or two.
Lariska’s confirmation of donning teal(blue/green) armor was prompted by a query to Greg Farshtey assuming that Lariska “sounded like a red name”, which he debunked. Not a bad Player 2 skin, though.
If you’re wondering about her height “issues” when displayed next to an existing Toa set that you may personally deem as the “canonical height” of its species, kindly refer to “Official Greg Dialogue”, p.195, post 7782, Q.5a:
“The sets only got bigger because of the addition of more points of articulation. The Toa in story are considered to all be the same rough height.”
With all the additional articulation points I’ve applied to this design to support my vision of “lithe humanoid proportions”, her height is completely justified by that logic. Lorewise, she remains “the height of a Toa”. I’ll be keeping my Titan-sized, non-canister Dark Hunter. (:
If you take issue with how it would look in real life compared to your beloved sets, that’s 100% a personal issue that does not diminish the design’s quality by any means, regardless of who you put her next to. No one has the right to define ‘How the Bionicle team would’ve done it if it were released in a certain year’. None of us were freaking there. I’m not obligated to build by anyone’s standards but my own. Let her have this Dimitrescu moment.
Taking into account her acrobatic abilities, I put into consideration her articulation, particularly her limb flexing capabilities. Definitely capable of posing on your shelf or whatnot. Speaking of display and stability:
Regarding the “not-so-ideal build” of the Shins:
I’ve attached an .IO file of a more stable, sturdier Shin design that looks almost exactly the same as the old one, but to keep the spirit and consistency of the presentation, the renders all showcase the version in which the entire idea was conceived ‘before the patch.’ (a.k.a. i already put too much effort in the presentation to change something minimal now)
This extra bit is specifically for the physical builders who wish to recreate the design while adhering to LEGO stability techniques. While the “Old Leg” is also very much legal, possible, poseable, sturdy, and available in its respective colors(sans Ackar Ankles), the Newer Leg has a significantly more firm construction. It’s both a small and big change, depending on how you look at it. Both versions are viable. I just happened to brainstorm a better design 2 years later where nothing detaches when you pull a little too hard(thanks to all the Constraction lessons from a dear friend named WholesomeGadunka). Cheers.
Onto the potentially controversial aspects you may or may not be wondering about–
No, you cannot physically place those pieces in the “eye sockets”; this is merely a visual representation of where I envision her eyes to be on this Vahki Skull-based head design. If Nidhiki as a set utilized that eye technique for its official art, I don’t see why I shouldn’t be allowed to. 
I chose to use a Vahki skull out of pure spite towards everyone who called me and my stuff unoriginal and tasteless, as its usage happens to be reminiscent of Roodaka. Based on my endless scrounging around on the internet for Lariska designs, I’m 100% sure this exact take on Lariska’s head using a Vahki skull base hasn’t been used before now. This isn’t Teal Roodaka; this is my Lariska, and I shamelessly and ingeniuously make that skull look good. 
This head’s design is inspired by Mortal Kombat’s Mileena, and Soul Calibur’s Taki, given that Lariska’s complexion is that of a ninja or assassin. Be safe like Lariska and wear a facemask. 
Gallery
Leg to Body ratio more or less on point.
I used to date a Taekwondo Black Belt; I swear this is how I remember a body contorts when executing a side kick(?). Or was it a Roundhouse? Idk
Side Profile Posed into a Dash, showcasing her silhouette and maximized limb articulation in action.
“Ever so vigilant, the right hand of the Shadowed One gazes over the city skyline.”
Out of the shadows stalks the Dark Huntress.
Shots of the model in real life, courtesy of NightDandy, a friend and proud member of the Spanish Bionicle Community who liked my thing enough to actually order parts and build her. 
(Cue John Carpenter’s Halloween theme)
Obligatory character break shot-- Couch Potato Mode
Final Remarks:
Credits to Swampkryakwa’s Color Pack for my presentation photos, and to forbiddenprojects on Instagram for the Hand Design(I altered it a bit).
I’d prefer not to argue with anyone regarding design choices, nitpicks, lore discrepancies, personal preferences, and height “issues”. I’ll always be open to feedback and constructive criticism, but I urge you to be reasonably kind, considerate, rational, and respectful about it in the discussions below, not just to me, but to anyone else who participates and replies. For everyone’s sake.
Required IO Files
Patch Notes - 3rd Oct.,2022
- IO File updated to accommodate Shin fix
- Thigh-Hip blocked articulation issues fixed
- Top-Heavy issues addressed with piece swaps
Cheers, gathered friends. See you at the Fanon Contests with every ounce of my A-Game. It’s hunting season, and I’m going for blood.
She is, after all, acrobatic, so I think it fits quite well that she’d have strong legs
Besides, I think it’d be quite nice if our literal one-of-a-kind assassin could have some versatile hands to pose with.
I do appreciate you and all the sentiment to defend Lariska’s height; thank you. This issue has silently bothered me for quite a while now, knowing how I tend to ignore what my builds look like next to existing sets because I’ve never really owned any. If anything, sentiments like yours do encourage me to push on with my vision, because at the end of the day…