Rahaga/Toa Hagah
The Rahaga are characters in the LEGO BIONICLE universe. There was once a team of heroic Toa called the Toa Hagah, who had been mutated into small, bestial beings. Undaunted, they became hunter-trappers, working to rescue Rahi wildlife from hordes of spider creatures called Visorak. Recently, they were returned to their original Toa Hagah forms.
History[edit | edit source]
The beings known as Rahaga were once an elite team of Toa called the Toa Hagah. The Toa Hagah were charged with guarding Makuta, who had sworn to protect the Matoran people.
However, Makuta had become corrupt, as did the Brotherhood that he was a member of, stealing the Avohkii Mask of Light from its makers and secretly enslaving Matoran. When the Toa Hagah discovered this and realized that the Brotherhood planned to oppose the good that the Mask of Light represented,[1] they rebelled, stealing the mask back from one of their strongholds in the hope that it would be used against Makuta one day. However, four of the Toa Hagah - Gaaki, Bomonga, Pouks, and Kualus - were captured and mutated into small, Rahkshi-faced creatures by Makuta's subordinate Roodaka, who dubbed these new forms "Rahaga". The reason for the name Rahaga is the cross between Rahkshi and Hagah. The name stuck. Norik and Iruini were able to rescue their friends, but they were mutated into Rahaga as well. As a result of this rebellion, the Brotherhood took action before their schemes could be exposed.[2]
Soon afterwards, the Rahaga decided to dedicate themselves to opposing the Brotherhood's armies of Visorak spiders, whom Roodaka was second-in-command of. In whatever lands the Visorak conquered, the Rahaga worked to rescue as much of the Rahi wildlife as possible from their clutches; in this way they learned the ways of Rahi and became master trackers. They also began to search for Keetongu, a mythical Rahi said to be able to counteract any poison, including the Visorak's Hordika venom.
In time, the Rahaga came to the city of Metru Nui, where Keetongu was said to be living. They hid the Mask of Light in the city, and themselves stayed hidden from the population, watching as Makuta put all of the city's Matoran to sleep and then became imprisoned by the Toa Metru. To their horror, they were also forced to watch as the Toa Metru left, leaving the city defenseless. Soon afterward, the Visorak arrived in Metru Nui.
When the Toa Metru returned to the Visorak-controlled city, they were quickly captured and mutated by the Visorak's Hordika venom. The Rahaga then revealed themselves, saving the Toa from certain death, and offered their help in rescuing the Matoran and finding a cure for the mutation.
Toa Vakama eventually gave himself over to the feral side that the mutation unleashed and attacked the Rahaga, delivering five of them over to the Visorak's king, Sidorak. Norik, who was left behind to "deliver a message" to the other Toa, used new information to lead the Toa to Keetongu. Keetongu offered his help in fighting off the hordes, and in the following battle Norik was able to free his fellow Rahaga.
After helping the cured Toa Metru build airships to transport the Matoran to the island of Mata Nui, the Rahaga stayed on Metru Nui helping Turaga Dume to rebuild the city as much as they can. They also travelled from the city often, continuing to aid lands that the Visorak had previously conquered, as well as any others that required assistance. They were present to welcome the Matoran back to Metru Nui, one thousand years after they left.
Recently, the Rahaga went to aid the land of Xia, which was being ravaged by the ongoing battle of two monstrous Rahi - even though Xia was the homeland of their archenemy Roodaka. They arrived to find Roodaka in the custody of their allies, the Toa Nuva, and the Nuva forced her to turn the Rahaga back into the Toa Hagah. The Hagah are now keeping watch over Roodaka and, despite their mutual hatred, protecting her from assassins.
During their time in Metru Nui, the Rahaga compiled a record of Rahi beasts which they had identified, describing specific traits and species-related histories, each accompanied by commentaries from one of the Rahaga. Their intent in this was to preserve information about the Rahi who might soon be rendered extinct by the Visorak. This work came to be entitled Rahi Beasts (in real life, the BIONICLE: Rahi Beasts guidebook), and the Order of Mata Nui is known to have a copy (or possibly the original) in their libraries on Daxia.[3]
Rahaga[edit | edit source]
When Roodaka mutated the Toa Hagah, she gave them Rahkshi-like staffs and faces as a kind of sick joke, and to make sure they could never be heroes again, for no Matoran would accept such repulsive creatures into their society. She named them "Rahaga", as a play on the words "Rahkshi" and "Hagah". All have Rhotuka Launchers on their backs and staffs with special powers; Web of Shadows also portrayed them as having lights on their foreheads that they could use to light their way, but it is unknown if these are canonical.
Whether the Rahaga have the ability to fly is up for debate. The only time in the storyline when this comes into play is when they catch the newly-mutated Toa Hordika in midair; this scene in Web of Shadows showed the Rahaga flying using back-mounted helicopter blades, but this was declared non-canonical due to the fact that the toy sets have Rhotuka Launchers, not propellers.[4] The movie's novelization is silent on the matter,[5] while the same scene in an earlier book describes the Rahaga not as flying but rather as "moving by leaps and bounds", "scaling walls", and "swinging from loose vines".[6] Perhaps the best answer is that the Rahaga can fly by "hooking" their tools into the Rhotuka's magnetic field, allowing them to ride along; as the Toa Hordika did near the end of Web of Shadows.
Norik[edit | edit source]
Norik, the wise leader of his team, uses his fluid movements and soothing voice allow him to charm reptilian Rahi, such as furnace salamanders and other "crawling" creatures. He helped the Toa Hordika find Keetongu, whom Norik thought surely existed. When he is close enough, he uses his staff to distract the creatures until he is ready to trap them with his snare spinner, tangling the limbs of his target. Norik prefers to lead by doing, rather than talking, and appears to be utterly fearless.
Gaaki[edit | edit source]
Gaaki is feisty, independent and at home in the water; and she is always trying to prove she is just as a good a trapper as the other Rahaga. Unfortunately, this has a disadvantage, as she sometimes jumps into situations just to show she can handle them. She uses a staff that she uses as bait to entice swimming Rahi such as Makuta fish and Takea sharks, and then catches them using her floater spinners, sending them to the surface.
Iruini[edit | edit source]
Iruini is a master of camouflage who searches for climbing Rahi among the tangled cables and chutes of Le-Metru. Agile and stealthy, he did not believe in the myth of Keetongu. Though he acts the least intelligent of all the Rahaga, he is patient and skillful, and uses his staff to hypnotize Rahi and his snag spinner to tangle their limbs. Iruini believes that there is much to learn from Rahi, including how to relax and play rather than being so serious all the time.
Pouks[edit | edit source]
Pouks is loud and boisterous; and he believes in plain speaking and taking direct action rather than sneaking around. Pouks is courageous and brave, and he feels he can challenge the largest land Rahi. His mode of attack is capturing the Rahi with his lasso spinners, then he uses his staff to leave an invisible mark so they can be tracked later. He truly loves the massive beasts and can teach others how to befriend them. He was the one who also swayed Krahka to side with the Toa Metru.
Bomonga[edit | edit source]
Bomonga, also known as "Quiet-Night", prefers to work alone, searching for those Rahi who are nocturnal or remain hidden. His staff allows him to detect the presence of Rahi, and his silent spinners can paralyze a Rahi with a touch. Bomonga searches for Rahi under cover of darkness and will sometimes burrow into the earth to wait for the creatures to come near, standing motionless for hours without making a sound.
Kualus[edit | edit source]
Kualus is fiercely protective of all flying Rahi, and even speaks in their language at times, adding clicks and whistles to his sentences; he also taught this language to Nuju. He uses his staff to summon flying creatures like Ice Bats and Gukko. He can also use his staff like a flute, sending a high-pitched signal warning Rahi of danger. His boomerang spinners can latch on to a flying Rahi and bring it to him. He even thinks that Gukko may even be an insult in their language, so he avoids calling them Gukko.
Toa Hagah[edit | edit source]
Before their mutation, the Rahaga were an elite team of Toa appointed to guard the Matoran's protector, Makuta. As signs of their special status, they bore the title of "Toa Hagah" ("Hagah" meaning "guardian" in the Matoran language).
They wear metallic armor and Kanohi masks. The masks are carved to honor past heroes, and therefore their powers do not necessarily match their shapes.
Norik (8763 Toa Norik) was a Toa of Fire who wore silver armor. He mistakenly let his team get overconfident after rebelling against the Brotherhood of Makuta. This left him unprepared for the ambush, forcing him on a rescue mission to save his allies. He is equipped with slowness Rhotuka; a Lava Spear that allows him to fire a stream of lava, melt an object, or solidify lava into rock; and his Pehkui Mask of Diminishment, which lets him shrink to a minimum height of six inches while still maintaining his original level of strength. The Pehkui is carved in the shape of a Noble Kiril, but it is in honor of someone other than Turaga Dume (who also wears a Noble Kiril).
Iruini (8762 Toa Iruini) was a Toa of Air who wore golden armor. He quit the team after they rebelled against the Brotherhood, believing they spent too much time on huge menaces and not enough on ever-present dangers. So he escaped the ambush that took most of his team and allied with Norik on a quest to save Gaaki, Pouks, Kualus and Bomonga from the Visorak. He is equipped with healing Rhotuka; a Cyclone Spear that allows him to blow away hundreds of foes but drains a large amount of his energy; and a Kualsi Mask of Quick Travel, which lets him teleport to any place within his sight. Iruini's mask power actually matches its shape, as it was carved to honor another Great Kualsi wearer.
Gaaki, Pouks, Bomonga and Kualus were Toa of Water, Stone, Earth, and Ice; respectively. Little has been revealed about their equipment, though we can presume that they carried spears and Rhotuka-equipped shields like Norik and Iruini did. Their mask and Rhotuka powers are currently unknown.
Notes[edit | edit source]
- There have been rumors that the toy models of Toa Norik and Toa Iruini were originally intended to be Toa versions of Turaga Dume and Nidhiki, due to identical elements (Fire and Air) and chestplates, and similar faces (both Dume and Norik wear Noble Kiril-shaped masks, and Nidhiki's mutant face is similar to Iruini's Great Kualsi). Series writer Greg Farshtey, however, maintains that any consideration by LEGO to do this was quickly dropped in favor of the Toa Hagah.[7]
- The Rahaga toys all wield staffs. But, in Web of Shadows, however, Norik is the only one wielding his staff.
References[edit | edit source]
General information comes from the BIONICLE Adventures series; see List of BIONICLE media.
- ↑ Official Greg Discussion p. 240 at BZPower forums, post #7172
- ↑ Official Greg Discussion p. 237 post #9461
- ↑ "Creatures" section of "Mata Nui" entry, BIONICLE World
- ↑ Official Greg Discussion p. 214 at BZPower forums, post #6415
- ↑ BIONICLE Adventures #9: Web of Shadows, p. 22-23
- ↑ BIONICLE Adventures #7: Web of the Visorak, p. 100-101
- ↑ Official Greg discussion p. 177 post #5289
Information pertaining specifically to the Toa Hagah comes from:
- The BIONICLE Encyclopedia
- "Appendix: Origin of the Rahaga" in BIONICLE Adventures #9: Web of Shadows
- BIONICLE comic #25
