Exsidian

Exsidian was a hard metal mined near IconoxIconoxIconox is a village of the Ice Tribe, situated in the White Quartz Mountains. by the Ice TribeIce TribeOne of Bara Magna's six major tribes, the Ice Tribe produced legendary Glatorian like Strakk and survived the Shattering intact. of Bara MagnaBara MagnaA desert world of tribal warfare and scarce resources, one of three landmasses that formed Spherus Magna., and it was worth enough in the desert to pay off arena debts between villages. It stood up to sand and rust better than other metals, which made it the Glatorian's favourite weapon coating. A small exsidian coin found in a Great Being's laboratory showed Mata NuiMata NuiBuilt by the Great Beings to restore Spherus Magna, Mata Nui sustained an entire civilisation inside his body, was deposed by Teridax, and reclaimed his purpose as a mortal on Bara Magna. the way to the Valley of the Maze, and an exsidian shipment was the cargo at the heart of the serial The CrossingThe CrossingThe Bara Magna serial in which Strakk, Gresh, Kirbold, and Tarduk carried an exsidian shipment from Iconox to Vulcanus along the dangerous northern route and uncovered the first Skrall and Vorox confrontations of the empire era.. (BIONICLE: Mata Nui's Guide to Bara Magna; The Crossing; BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn)

Source and extraction near Iconox#

Exsidian was found in abundance near IconoxIconoxIconox is a village of the Ice Tribe, situated in the White Quartz Mountains., where the villagers of the Ice TribeIce TribeOne of Bara Magna's six major tribes, the Ice Tribe produced legendary Glatorian like Strakk and survived the Shattering intact. mined it. (BIONICLE: Mata Nui's Guide to Bara Magna)

Vulcanus had some exsidian deposits of its own, but only in the distant past, around 15,000 years before the story. Gresh used that history to bluff: to win Strakk's help against the Bone Hunters during the raid on VulcanusVulcanusThe Fire Tribe's settlement on Bara Magna, caught between resources and threats., he told him the village still had rich deposits of high-quality exsidian. (BIONICLE: Raid on Vulcanus)

The metal's toughness was its value. It held up against sand erosion and rust better than other metals, so GlatorianGlatorianTribal warriors of Spherus Magna who settled disputes through arena combat, until the Skrall conquest enslaved most of them. coated their weapons with it to strengthen them, some weapons were forged from it outright, and vehicles such as the Cendox V1 and Thornatus V9 carried exsidian weapons. (BIONICLE: Mata Nui's Guide to Bara Magna; The Crossing)

Function as payment#

Villages on Bara Magna settled their disputes in the arena, and exsidian was one of the ways the results were paid. When AckarAckarVeteran Glatorian of the Fire Tribe and prime fighter for Vulcanus, Ackar served from the Core War through the defence of Spherus Magna., Prime Glatorian of the Fire Tribe, beat GeluGeluGelu is a Glatorian of the Ice Tribe, native to Bota Magna, who formerly served as a secondary Glatorian for the city of Iconox. White and dark blue in color, he wields an Ice Slicer and a Thornax Launcher and resides on the reformed Spherus Magna., the Ice Tribe's Second Glatorian, VulcanusVulcanusThe Fire Tribe's settlement on Bara Magna, caught between resources and threats. won a large amount of the metal. (The Crossing)

Iconox hired StrakkStrakkA profit-driven Glatorian mercenary from the Ice Tribe who fought in Bara Magna's arenas before joining Mata Nui's cause., GreshGreshA young Glatorian of the Jungle Tribe who served Tesara and later joined the alliance that defended Bara Magna during its final crisis., KirboldKirboldKirbold is an Agori of the Ice Tribe, distinguished by white and grey coloring, who serves as a maintenance worker on the reformed Spherus Magna. He carries a blade as his primary tool. and TardukTardukTarduk is an Agori of the Jungle Tribe, distinguished by his dark green and lime coloration. A treasure hunter by trade, he wields claws and spikes and makes his home on the reformed Spherus Magna. to escort the caravan across the desert. The stakes were high: the shipment had to reach Vulcanus to avoid a war. (The Crossing)

The Skrall and the shipment#

Not far into the trip, Strakk tried to talk the others into stealing the exsidian themselves. They refused, and he spent the next stretch at the wrong end of a ThornaxThornaxThornax was a hardy desert fruit native to Bara Magna, eaten unripe as stew and fired ripe from launchers across Glatorian and Skrall ranks. launcher. When the caravan entered the Black Spike MountainsBlack Spike MountainsThe mountain range north of the Bara Magna desert that served as the Skrall homeland after the Shattering, became Baterra hunting ground, and was destroyed when the Mata Nui robot fell upon it., the SkrallSkrallA black-armored warrior species from Spherus Magna that dominated northern Bara Magna under Tuma's rule. stopped it and decided to take the metal. Gresh told them it was a payment for TumaTumaTuma rose from the survivors of the Baterra massacre to rule the Skrall Empire from Roxtus until Mata Nui defeated him in single combat., and while they marched the party to their leader he hit Strakk with an exsidian ingot to cause a distraction and grabbed a launcher. An avalanche in the fight that followed drove the travellers into a tunnel big enough for the caravan. (The Crossing)

Later, chased by MalumMalumFire Tribe Glatorian banished from Vulcanus for trying to kill Strakk in the arena, who took over a Vorox pack in the wastelands of Bara Magna. and his VoroxVoroxThe warrior caste of the Sand Tribe, reduced to feral pack hunters in the wastes of Bara Magna after the collapse of their civilisation in the Core War., the convoy went over the Dark Falls. The wagon was destroyed and the exsidian sank to the bottom of the Skrall River. Strakk tricked a Skrall patrol under StroniusStroniusAn Elite Skrall who earned his name by proving he was worth remembering. into fishing it out and loading it on their own wagon, and as the Skrall tried to leave with it, Gresh, AckarAckarVeteran Glatorian of the Fire Tribe and prime fighter for Vulcanus, Ackar served from the Core War through the defence of Spherus Magna. and KiinaKiinaKiina is a Glatorian of the Water Tribe who served as the secondary Glatorian for the village of Tajun on Spherus Magna. Colored in shades of dark and light blue, she wielded a Vapor Trident and a Thornax Launcher in combat. Following the reformation of Spherus Magna, she continued to reside on the restored world. attacked and made off with the metal. (The Crossing)

The CrossingThe CrossingThe Bara Magna serial in which Strakk, Gresh, Kirbold, and Tarduk carried an exsidian shipment from Iconox to Vulcanus along the dangerous northern route and uncovered the first Skrall and Vorox confrontations of the empire era. and the final fight#

With the Skrall in pursuit, MalumMalumFire Tribe Glatorian banished from Vulcanus for trying to kill Strakk in the arena, who took over a Vorox pack in the wastelands of Bara Magna.'s Vorox cornered the convoy, and Ackar tricked the Skrall into attacking the beasts instead. (The Crossing)

The exsidian itself won the last fight. When TellurisTellurisAn Iron Tribe scavenger and one of the few immune to the Dreaming Plague, reduced to solitary vengeance. attacked in his Skopio XV-1Skopio XV-1Telluris's weaponized mechanical Skopio, a patchwork war machine built to dominate post-Shattering Bara Magna., GreshGreshA young Glatorian of the Jungle Tribe who served Tesara and later joined the alliance that defended Bara Magna during its final crisis. and AckarAckarVeteran Glatorian of the Fire Tribe and prime fighter for Vulcanus, Ackar served from the Core War through the defence of Spherus Magna. shoved ingots of the metal between the vehicle's gears, and its hardness broke them. With Telluris beaten, the group delivered the shipment to VulcanusVulcanusThe Fire Tribe's settlement on Bara Magna, caught between resources and threats.. (The Crossing)

The Great Being's coin#

BerixBerixBerix is an Agori of the Water Tribe who lived on Spherus Magna. A scavenger by trade, he is recognized by his blue and dark blue coloration and carries a Water Sword and shield. collected a coin made of exsidian from the underground laboratory of the Great BeingsThe Great BeingsScholar-inventors of Spherus Magna whose creations shaped the Matoran Universe and whose absence defined the conflicts that followed.. One side carried a map to the Valley of the Maze and the other a picture of the Great Spirit Robot. Mata NuiMata NuiBuilt by the Great Beings to restore Spherus Magna, Mata Nui sustained an entire civilisation inside his body, was deposed by Teridax, and reclaimed his purpose as a mortal on Bara Magna. used it to find the Valley. (BIONICLE: The Legend Reborn; BIONICLE Glatorian 5: Valley of Fear; BIONICLE: Journey's End)