Skull Warriors

The Skull Warriors were the rank-and-file footsoldiers of Kulta the Skull GrinderSkull GrinderThe title borne by Kulta after his alliance with Makuta, marking his role as the wielder of the Mask Stealer Staff, the mask-burner at the Mask Makers' forge, and the first foe to defeat the Toa in single combat on Okoto.'s army on the island of OkotoOkotoOkoto is a world whose known inhabitants include the Toa, the Mask makers, and the Protectors., raised by reanimation from the giant skeletons interred in the graveyards beneath the City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below.. They were ice-aligned undead warriors, individually weaker than the Toa they faced but deployed in numbers, equipped with Freeze Bow Rapid Shooters as their primary ranged weapon and Ice Spears for melee, and capable of extracting elemental energy from Golden Masks. They held the abandoned capital throughout the Toa's first arrival on the island, were defeated in two successive engagements, and supplied the surviving Skull Army with its single most numerous garrison force right through the second campaign against the resurrected KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation..

Origin in the graveyards under the city#

The Skull Warriors did not begin as members of KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation.'s army. They began as the bodies of beings larger than typical OkotansOkotanThe Okotans were the villager population of Okoto, six regional groups corresponding to the island's six elemental regions, who lived through the Battle of the Mask Makers, the long retreat into the lesser villages, and the recovery of the Ancient City after the defeat of Kulta and the revival of Ekimu. who had been buried in the graveyards inside the City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below. during the long pre-cataclysm era of the city's habitation. The graveyards were a known feature of the abandoned metropolis; the City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below. accounts record that at least some of them contained the skeletal remains of beings on a scale unusual for the OkotanOkotanThe Okotans were the villager population of Okoto, six regional groups corresponding to the island's six elemental regions, who lived through the Battle of the Mask Makers, the long retreat into the lesser villages, and the recovery of the Ancient City after the defeat of Kulta and the revival of Ekimu. population. Those skeletons supplied the raw material for the warriors.

The reanimation itself was conducted under KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation.'s authority once the Skull RaidersSkull RaidersThe ancient pirate band that plagued Okoto before the Mask Makers, was driven into the mountains, allied itself with Makuta, was trapped beneath the island by the cataclysm at Capital City, and dug its way back as the Skull Creatures under Kulta. had returned to the surface and made the abandoned capital their forward base. The newly raised warriors retained the size advantage of their original bodies and gained a service alignment to KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation. and, through him, to the MakutaMakuta (2015)Ekimu's brother and rival Mask Maker, who forged the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power and was sealed in the Shadow Realm with Capital City. of OkotoOkotoOkoto is a world whose known inhabitants include the Toa, the Mask makers, and the Protectors., whose Shadow RealmShadow DimensionAn alternate dimension sealed forever after Makuta was pulled in by the Mask of Ultimate Power's destruction, then trapped by the Toa's combined elemental assault. imprisonment was the operational reason the Skull Army was being assembled in the first place. The same graveyards that had received the dead under the original Mask Makers' authority now produced the army that fought against the Mask Makers' surviving brother and the Toa he had summoned.

Element, weapons, and the freezing doctrine#

The Skull Warriors were ice-aligned in operation, a choice that distinguished them from the spider-aligned Skull SpiderSkull SpidersThe arachnid swarm that raided the villages of Okoto, clamped infection masks onto its captives, guarded the City of the Mask Makers under the Lord of Skull Spiders, and broke against the arrival of the Toa. infestation and from the shadow-aligned forces that MakutaMakuta (2015)Ekimu's brother and rival Mask Maker, who forged the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power and was sealed in the Shadow Realm with Capital City. commanded directly from the Shadow RealmShadow DimensionAn alternate dimension sealed forever after Makuta was pulled in by the Mask of Ultimate Power's destruction, then trapped by the Toa's combined elemental assault.. Each warrior carried a Freeze Bow Rapid Shooter as primary armament. The Freeze Bow was a rapid-fire ice weapon designed to deliver sustained suppressive fire across long distances, with the additional functional effect that its impacts froze enemies struck cleanly. The doctrine the warriors used in groups followed from the weapon: open the engagement at range with massed Freeze Bow fire, fix the enemy in place through freezing, and close to melee only after the target had been pinned.

The melee armament was the Ice SpearIce Spear (Kopaka)Kopaka's ice-infused melee weapon in the 2015 BIONICLE reboot, balancing reach with cold-element dominance., the standard secondary weapon of the rank. The spear was reserved for engagements at which the Freeze Bow was no longer practical, that is, after an enemy had closed inside its useful arc. Battlefield reports also confirm that at least one Skull Warrior wielded a Hook BladeHook BladeThe curved cutting weapon issued to the upper ranks of the Skull Army on Okoto, carried by Kulta as a side arm beside the Mask Stealer Staff and wielded in greater numbers by Skull Slicer in the arena., the curved cutting weapon more usually associated with Skull SlicerSkull SlicerA former arena victor who drains masks of their power as Kulta's lieutenant. and with KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation. personally. Hook BladesHook BladesCurved, hooked weapons wielded by Skull Slicer for slashing and catching, with a variant also carried by Kulta. could cut through solid stone and could hook the mask off an opponent's face, which made the warrior carrying one a specialised mask-extraction asset within the wider formation.

The mask-extraction capability#

The most strategically significant capability of the Skull Warriors was the one that linked them to the wider purpose of KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation.'s campaign. The warriors could extract elemental power directly from a Golden MaskThe Six Golden Masks of Power of OkotoThe ultimate elemental Kanohi of Okoto, forged by Ekimu from sacred Elemental Crystals, hidden in shrines across the island, and worn by the Toa as the proof and the instrument of the Prophecy of Heroes., a parasite function that turned an opposing Toa's chief asset into a power source for the attacking warrior. The function paralleled the larger objective of KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation. himself, whose forge attack on the Mask of CreationThe Mask of CreationThe signature Kanohi of Ekimu the Mask Maker, capable of bringing into being whatever its wearer envisioned. Stolen by Kulta the Skull Grinder, reclaimed at the Mask Makers' forge, and worn again in the final defence of Okoto. was an attempt to neutralise EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness.'s primary artefact at scale; the rank-and-file warriors performed the same operation on a smaller scale against individual Toa.

The capability also explained the operational logic of putting low-strength units up against the ToaThe Toa of Okoto: The Six Heroes Summoned to Save the IslandThe six elemental heroes summoned by the Protectors of Okoto, who recovered the Golden Masks, woke Ekimu, fought the Skull Army, and twice banished Makuta to the Shadow Realm. in the first place. Each Skull Warrior was individually weaker than the Toa it faced; what they lacked in strength they made up for in numbers. A small group of warriors could overwhelm a single Toa by mass alone, and once the Toa was pinned, the mask-extraction function turned the captured Golden Mask into immediate elemental fuel for the attacking force. The exchange rate, several warriors per Toa, was acceptable to a command that could raise more warriors from the same graveyards.

The first engagement in the City of the Mask Makers#

The first significant deployment of the Skull Warriors against the ToaThe Toa of Okoto: The Six Heroes Summoned to Save the IslandThe six elemental heroes summoned by the Protectors of Okoto, who recovered the Golden Masks, woke Ekimu, fought the Skull Army, and twice banished Makuta to the Shadow Realm. took place inside the City of the Mask MakersCapital CityThe former main city of Okoto, drawn into the Shadow Realm by the destruction of the Mask of Ultimate Power, leaving the Black Crater on the surface and a ruined court for Makuta in the dark below. after the heroes had recovered their Golden MasksThe Six Golden Masks of Power of OkotoThe ultimate elemental Kanohi of Okoto, forged by Ekimu from sacred Elemental Crystals, hidden in shrines across the island, and worn by the Toa as the proof and the instrument of the Prophecy of Heroes. and crossed the bridge where the Lord of Skull SpidersLord of Skull SpidersAn oversized Skull Spider that guarded the ancient City of the Mask Makers and commanded the rest of its species through the Golden Mask of the Skull Spiders. had been defeated. The ToaThe Toa of Okoto: The Six Heroes Summoned to Save the IslandThe six elemental heroes summoned by the Protectors of Okoto, who recovered the Golden Masks, woke Ekimu, fought the Skull Army, and twice banished Makuta to the Shadow Realm. entered the city in pursuit of the Mask of CreationThe Mask of CreationThe signature Kanohi of Ekimu the Mask Maker, capable of bringing into being whatever its wearer envisioned. Stolen by Kulta the Skull Grinder, reclaimed at the Mask Makers' forge, and worn again in the final defence of Okoto., and the warriors were waiting for them. A second column of Toa had been trapped inside one of the city's separated districts; while LewaLewa, Master of Jungle: The Daredevil Toa of OkotoLewa of Okoto was the Master of Jungle summoned by the Protectors, the rebellious flier who quested for the Mask of Jungle in the Region of Jungle and bonded with Uxar in the second wave. flew off to investigate further, the rest of the team was attacked by a group of skeletal warriors.

The engagement ran short because of LewaLewa, Master of Jungle: The Daredevil Toa of OkotoLewa of Okoto was the Master of Jungle summoned by the Protectors, the rebellious flier who quested for the Mask of Jungle in the Region of Jungle and bonded with Uxar in the second wave.'s return. The ToaThe Toa of Okoto: The Six Heroes Summoned to Save the IslandThe six elemental heroes summoned by the Protectors of Okoto, who recovered the Golden Masks, woke Ekimu, fought the Skull Army, and twice banished Makuta to the Shadow Realm. of Jungle came back in time to engage the warriors directly, broke up their formation, and defeated the group while reporting to the others on what he had seen from above. His subsequent solo reconnaissance, during which he discovered the image of an ancient game carved into stone, led to a second Skull WarriorSkull WarriorsThe undead ice-armed footsoldiers raised from the giant skeletons buried beneath the City of the Mask Makers, deployed by Kulta the Skull Grinder as the numerical backbone of his assault on the abandoned capital of Okoto. ambush against him alone. The pattern that emerged across these first engagements established the Skull Warriors as the persistent presence the Toa had to fight through to reach any objective inside the abandoned city.

While the Toa were engaging the warriors in the streets, the ProtectorsProtectorsThe six elders of Okoto's villages, each wielding elemental powers and guarding their regions before the Toa arrived. made their entry into the city by an alternate route. Their independent infiltration produced the rescue of the Region of JungleRegion of JungleThe rainforest region of Okoto, home of the Jungle Tribe and the Protector of Jungle, ground over which Lewa sought the Golden Mask of Jungle and bonded with Uxar, and the coast from which the Labyrinth of Control rose offshore. archaeologist HarvaliHarvali, the Jungle Archaeologist of OkotoHarvali was the Region of Jungle archaeologist whose disappearance beneath the City of the Mask Makers preceded the second age of Okoto, and whose rescue by the Protectors during the campaign against the Skull Spiders unblocked the bridge that brought the villagers back to the capital., who had been trapped in the underbelly of the city for over a year by the same conditions that had let the warriors occupy the surface. The two operations ran in parallel and converged at the closing engagement against KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation. at the forge.

The post-KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation. remnant and the test of new armour#

The Skull Warriors survived the defeat of KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation. at the forge as a coherent remnant. After the brief expedition that took EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness. and the Toa away from the city to rescue the two captive Stone Tribe children from the Skull Raiders'Skull RaidersThe ancient pirate band that plagued Okoto before the Mask Makers, was driven into the mountains, allied itself with Makuta, was trapped beneath the island by the cataclysm at Capital City, and dug its way back as the Skull Creatures under Kulta. underground city, EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness. returned to his forge and crafted new masks and armour for the ToaThe Toa of Okoto: The Six Heroes Summoned to Save the IslandThe six elemental heroes summoned by the Protectors of Okoto, who recovered the Golden Masks, woke Ekimu, fought the Skull Army, and twice banished Makuta to the Shadow Realm.. The proofing of that new equipment was conducted against a surviving group of Skull Warriors and Skull SpidersSkull SpidersThe arachnid swarm that raided the villages of Okoto, clamped infection masks onto its captives, guarded the City of the Mask Makers under the Lord of Skull Spiders, and broke against the arrival of the Toa. who appeared, after KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation.'s defeat, to threaten the city again. The ToaThe Toa of Okoto: The Six Heroes Summoned to Save the IslandThe six elemental heroes summoned by the Protectors of Okoto, who recovered the Golden Masks, woke Ekimu, fought the Skull Army, and twice banished Makuta to the Shadow Realm. passed the test, the warrior remnant was defeated, and EkimuEkimu the Mask MakerEkimu was the legendary Mask Maker of Okoto, brother of Makuta, and bearer of the Mask of Creation who struck down his brother's tyranny at the cost of his own consciousness. cleared the heroes for the next phase of their assignment: locating the Elemental Creatures and the Golden Masks of Unity.

The Shadow Realm and the final disposition#

The warriors' final disposition was bound up with the Shadow RealmShadow DimensionAn alternate dimension sealed forever after Makuta was pulled in by the Mask of Ultimate Power's destruction, then trapped by the Toa's combined elemental assault. that held MakutaMakuta (2015)Ekimu's brother and rival Mask Maker, who forged the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power and was sealed in the Shadow Realm with Capital City. himself. In the closing phase of the OkotoOkotoOkoto is a world whose known inhabitants include the Toa, the Mask makers, and the Protectors. campaign the Shadow Realm became the catch-basin for the various servants of MakutaMakuta (2015)Ekimu's brother and rival Mask Maker, who forged the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power and was sealed in the Shadow Realm with Capital City. who had not been physically destroyed on the surface, and the surviving Skull Warriors were among the dimension's recorded inhabitants alongside Skull SpidersSkull SpidersThe arachnid swarm that raided the villages of Okoto, clamped infection masks onto its captives, guarded the City of the Mask Makers under the Lord of Skull Spiders, and broke against the arrival of the Toa., Elemental BeastsElemental BeastsThe Lava, Storm, and Quake armies summoned by Umarak the Destroyer from Shadow Traps and the environment of Okoto, raised to distract the Toa while he gathered the fragments of Makuta's Mask of Ultimate Power., and shadowy figures resembling Okotans. Their retreat removed them from the surface as an active threat and left the rebuilding OkotansOkotanThe Okotans were the villager population of Okoto, six regional groups corresponding to the island's six elemental regions, who lived through the Battle of the Mask Makers, the long retreat into the lesser villages, and the recovery of the Ancient City after the defeat of Kulta and the revival of Ekimu. free to return to the City of the Mask MakersCity of the Mask Makers: Home of Ekimu and MakutaThe City of the Mask Makers was a city on the island of Okoto, named for the brothers Ekimu and Makuta who dwelt there before the Battle of the Mask Makers. It fell to ruin and became the lair of the Lord of Skull Spiders before the Toa reclaimed it..

The wider survival of the warriors as an institution depended on MakutaMakuta (2015)Ekimu's brother and rival Mask Maker, who forged the forbidden Mask of Ultimate Power and was sealed in the Shadow Realm with Capital City. himself, and his eventual destruction by the combined elemental discharge that ended the UmarakUmarakUmarak hunted the Elemental Creatures of Okoto until the Mask of Control bound him to Makuta's will and remade him as the Destroyer. crisis closed the line. The forces in the Shadow Realm had no independent command outside his, and the warriors that had been buried in the graveyards under the City of the Mask MakersCity of the Mask Makers: Home of Ekimu and MakutaThe City of the Mask Makers was a city on the island of Okoto, named for the brothers Ekimu and Makuta who dwelt there before the Battle of the Mask Makers. It fell to ruin and became the lair of the Lord of Skull Spiders before the Toa reclaimed it., raised by KultaKultaKulta was the leader of the Skull Creatures, a group native to the island of Okoto, and operated from the City of the Mask Makers. Armed with a Mask Stealer Staff and Hook Blade, he possessed the ability to drain masks of their Elemental Powers and once held both the powerless Skull Mask and the Mask of Creation., and pulled into the Shadow Realm as a remnant ended their second existence in the same dimension that had held the master they had been raised to serve. The graveyards under the city, emptied once for the army and emptied again for the retreat, were the bookends of the entire warrior phase of the Skull Army.