Kanohi Kraahkan
The Mask of Shadows
Teridax's Great Mask sees the darkness in everyone. That's how it conquered the Matoran universe.
The KanohiKanohiMasks that grant powers and sustain life, they're the most vital artifact in the Matoran Universe. Kraahkan is the Great Mask of Shadows, the sole counterpart to the AvohkiiAvohkiiThe Avohkii is the Mask of Light, a golden mask that granted its wearer the power of Light and the ability to spread understanding. It was worn by Toa Takanuva. and the personal armor of MakutaMakuta (Species)Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate. TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna.. Most fans think it spreads literal darkness or breeds fear as a crude weapon. TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. set the record straight in BIONICLEBIONICLE: Matoran AdventuresA 2002 GBA platformer where you play as one of six Matoran fighting Bohrok across Mata Nui's islands. Legends 7: Prisoners of the Pit. The mask lets him see the darkness inside everyone, all the nasty little things they hide in the shadows of their spirit. That's what makes him truly dangerous.
The Inverse of Light#
The Kraahkan is the AvohkiiAvohkiiThe Avohkii is the Mask of Light, a golden mask that granted its wearer the power of Light and the ability to spread understanding. It was worn by Toa Takanuva.'s dark mirror. Both are unique Great KanohiGreat KanohiThe most common mask type worn by Toa and other powerful beings, forged from the highest-grade Kanoka discs. that shaped the MatoranMatoranThe most abundant species in the Matoran Universe, chosen by Mata Nui to inhabit and maintain his cosmic body. universe. The AvohkiiAvohkiiThe Avohkii is the Mask of Light, a golden mask that granted its wearer the power of Light and the ability to spread understanding. It was worn by Toa Takanuva. brought salvation through light, while the Kraahkan brought dominion through clarity. TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. understood the difference. He didn't need to create evil. He needed to see it in others and weaponize it. The mask doesn't make its wearer a conqueror through raw force. It makes them unstoppable because they see what everyone else is hiding.
More Than Shadow#
TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna.'s own words are the clearest description we have. In Prisoners of the Pit, TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. clarifies that while most think the mask allows him to spread physical darkness or breed a little rage here and there, what it truly does is different: it shows the darkness already inside every being. The Kraahkan is not a tool of raw power. It's a tool of dominion through truth. It doesn't blind you to darkness. It shows him the darkness you already carry. That kind of power doesn't require an army. It requires only one wearer smart enough to use it. TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna. was.
The Reckoning#
The Kraahkan reaches its full significance in BIONICLEBIONICLE: Matoran AdventuresA 2002 GBA platformer where you play as one of six Matoran fighting Bohrok across Mata Nui's islands. Legends 11: The Final BattleThe Final BattleThe convergence of the Toa Nuva, Takanuva, and the Toa Ignika at the Codrex beneath Karda Nui, the second Energy Storm, the reawakening of Mata Nui by the sacrifice of the Ignika's body, and the moment Teridax revealed that he had taken the body for himself., when TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna.'s plan culminates. As Mata NuiMata Nui (Location)An island created by accident on the Great Spirit's face, home to the Matoran for a thousand years. rises from the sea and celebration begins in Metru NuiMetru NuiThe city beneath Mata Nui functions as the Great Spirit's brain, housing the Matoran whose labor keeps the god alive., the stars themselves rearrange into the shape of the Kraahkan. TeridaxTeridaxTeridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna.'s voice echoes across the entire MatoranMatoranThe most abundant species in the Matoran Universe, chosen by Mata Nui to inhabit and maintain his cosmic body. universe. He's already won. He's taken over Mata NuiMata Nui (Location)An island created by accident on the Great Spirit's face, home to the Matoran for a thousand years.'s body and banished the Great Spirit into the Ignika, casting them into space. The mask didn't conquer through force. It conquered through seeing what no one else could face about themselves.
Compiled from primary sources by Lore Fortress editorial. Reviewed by Joe Garratt, Editor-in-Chief.
Sources
- BookBIONICLE Legends 7: Prisoners of the Pit, Teridax's explanation of the mask's true power
- BookBIONICLE Legends 11: The Final Battle, The Kraahkan's role in Teridax's final victory
- ComicBIONICLE Ignition 15: Mata Nui Rising, Teridax's takeover and the Kraahkan's revelation
- VideoBIONICLE: Mask of Light, The mask's first appearance and confrontation with Takanuva
- WikiBiosector01: Kraahkan, Comprehensive mask entry on the official wiki
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Followed from this entry
The Final Battle
The convergence of the Toa Nuva, Takanuva, and the Toa Ignika at the Codrex beneath Karda Nui, the second Energy Storm, the reawakening of Mata Nui by the sacrifice of the Ignika's body, and the moment Teridax revealed that he had taken the body for himself.
Makuta (Species)
Shadowy Antidermis beings and the Brotherhood's elite, Makuta commanded darkness and shaped the Matoran Universe's fate.
Great Kanohi
The most common mask type worn by Toa and other powerful beings, forged from the highest-grade Kanoka discs.
Avohkii
The Avohkii is the Mask of Light, a golden mask that granted its wearer the power of Light and the ability to spread understanding. It was worn by Toa Takanuva.
Teridax
Teridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna.
BIONICLE: Matoran Adventures
A 2002 GBA platformer where you play as one of six Matoran fighting Bohrok across Mata Nui's islands.
Mentioned in13 entries
Every Kanohi Mask and Its Power: the full BIONICLE masks list
Kanohi are the masks of power at the heart of BIONICLE. This list covers every major mask from the Toa Mata's Great masks and the Turaga's Noble masks to the Legendary Vahi and Ignika, with each mask's power and the characters who wore it.
Kanohi Mask of Light and Shadow
A single fused Kanohi formed in Energized Protodermis when Takanuva and Teridax merged into Takutanuva, holding both light and shadow at once.
Kanohi Mask of Scavenging
A Great Kanohi that drained residual life energy from the recently dead, worn by the Makuta Icarax and later carried in powerless form by Vultraz.
Kra
Kra- is the Matoran-language prefix for Shadow, confirmed by the story's writer. Its only appearance in the stories is in the name of the Kanohi Kraahkan, the Mask of Shadows.
Light
The elemental power of Light was the rarest of the elements wielded inside the Matoran Universe, native to the Av-Matoran and, in full form, only ever expressed by Takanuva among the Toa.
Mask of Mutation
The Mask of Mutation was a Kanohi that let its wearer permanently mutate another living being from a distance, a power borne in the Matoran Universe only by Makuta and most notably by Miserix.
Protodermis Sea
The Protodermis Sea, also called the Silver Sea, was the seemingly endless ocean in which the city of Metru Nui floated, crossed by the Toa Metru during the Great Rescue and resting place of more than one lost Kanohi.
Shadow Takanuva
The Toa of Light's two recorded brushes with Shadow: his fusion with Teridax into the dual-element being Takutanuva at the gate to Metru Nui, and the Shadow Leech drain in Karda Nui that left him carrying both Light and Shadow.
Teridax
Teridax orchestrated a thousand-year scheme that ended with him occupying the Great Spirit Robot itself before his death on Bara Magna.
The Final Battle
The convergence of the Toa Nuva, Takanuva, and the Toa Ignika at the Codrex beneath Karda Nui, the second Energy Storm, the reawakening of Mata Nui by the sacrifice of the Ignika's body, and the moment Teridax revealed that he had taken the body for himself.
The Search for the Avohkii: Takua, the Rahkshi, and the Coming of Takanuva
The recovery of the Mask of Light, the death of Jaller, and the transformation of the Chronicler into the Toa of Light at the gate of Mangaia.
The Silver Sea
The vast body of unrefined liquid Protodermis surrounding Metru Nui inside the Great Barrier dome of the Matoran Universe.
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