This is an idea I’ve had for a while but haven’t had time to fully explore. However, with the Tuyet contest soon approaching, I think now is a better time than never to finally look into it and write something up.
First, let’s remind ourselves that all Toa have the same bodies, but the differences in build (Mata/Metru/Inika) are from their armor.[1] When a Matoran transforms into a Toa, what their armor looks like is dependent on what they believe a Toa should look like, usually influenced by Toa they have seen before.[2][3][4][5] This is why Takanuva looks like the Toa Nuva. The only notable exception of this is the Toa Inika, who do not look like the Toa Nuva, the Toa they are most accustomed to. This is most likely due to the unusual method through which they became Toa.
But what about the Toa that were created as such and were never Matoran? As is commonly known by now, Helryx, being the first, was the prototype,[6] resembling the Mata.[7] The Mata were a later prototype build of Toa, evident from the fact that they were simpler than most.[8] There are other Toa that weren’t previously Matoran, such as Orde,[9] but because his appearance is not currently known, it offers nothing new in this discussion.
Greg has stated that most Toa are closest to the Metru or Mata builds,[10] but has said elsewhere that the Metru build isn’t necessarily the most common[11] and that there is no base model.[12]
Either way, the Inika build is almost certainly not a common or standard build for Toa. Even if you disregard the Greg quote above, the only Inika build Toa we have seen are the Inika (as already stated above, are a unique situation), the Mahri (the Inika mutated by the Kanohi Ignika), and the Phantoka and Mistika (which were wearing the Adaptive Armor). There is also Lesovikk who was mutated by Pit Mutagen, and even if him being an Inika build isn’t a result of the mutation, he was part of the first Toa Team, and so the Inika build could be one of the earlier proto-builds of Toa before the Mata and/or Metru became the standard. Jovan being an Inika build supports this as well since he became a Toa at least 100,000 years ago. Some have argued that the Inika build should be the standard for Toa based on the idea that they are modelled after Glatorian. While that would fit nicely, I just don’t see the evidence for that being the case.
There is also Nikila and Krakua, who are custom built Toa and have no definite place in the evolution tree. Nikila can easily be explained as being a fourth type of proto-build. Krakua’s armor is described as “almost like the carvings of ancient heroes Vakama had seen in the Archives” (Time Trap, Chapter 5), and he wasn’t inspired by Helryx.[13] Because the Order of Mata Nui had no other Toa members,[14] any Toa that would have influenced Krakua had to been from or been to the Tren Krom Peninsula, where Krakua originated from. Due to some similarities and being described as ancient, it’s possible that Krakua’s build is an indirect descendant of Nikila’s.
It’s believed by many in the community that since Dume may have had something to do with Lhikan becoming a Toa (Bioncle Encyclopedia Updated), he was the inspiration for Lhikan being a Metru build. However, Greg has suggested that this isn’t the case.[15][16] Dume could still potentially be a Metru build, but not simply because Lhikan is one.
Toa Mangai
The Toa Mangai were a team of 11 Toa, including Lhikan, Tuyet, Nidhiki, and Naho, that was initially formed to deal with the Kanohi Dragon that attacked Metru Nui 4,000 years ago. They came from various places across the MU, but it’s possible some are from the same island or region,[17][18] which could suggest those that do share the same build.
Greg has said it is safe to assume that their armor looked like Lhikan’s.[19] However, it doesn’t make sense for all 11 to have the same build just because they were a team. Not just because they are from different regions, but also the Toa Mangai was not a team formed out of 11 individual Toa, but rather additional Toa were recruited to Lhikan’s current team at the time.[20] At the very least, we have confirmation that the Toa on Lhikan’s original team were the same build, which is reasonable. So the question is: were Tuyet, Nidhiki, or Naho on Lhikan’s team before 4,000 years ago?
For Tuyet, her betrayal was much more devastating to Lhikan than Nidhiki’s because he was close to her.[21] This is confirmed by The Many Deaths of Toa Tuyet.
Lhikan nodded. “There’s been another death. Tuyet, I know you don’t like Nidhiki, so I left him behind. You and I have been friends for thousands of years. We’ve traveled together, fought together, and once almost died together. If you know something about what’s going on, you have to tell me.”
The 11 Toa Mangai first came together 4,000 years ago. Tuyet’s betrayal was 3,500 years ago. 500 years is not “thousands of years.” This is proof that Tuyet was on Lhikan’s original team, and should be a Metru build. Nidhiki, on the other hand, was not personally close to either Tuyet or Lhikan[21] (indicating he was one of the later recruits) and was not from the same region as him,[22] so we cannot say Nidhiki should be a Metru build on the basis of Lhikan being one.
Nidhiki comes from the Tren Krom Peninsula, just like Krakua. It is entirely probable that their armor was influenced by the same Toa, or even perhaps Krakua was influenced by Nidhiki himself.
