Toa (Earth-4001)

The Toa are a race of biomechanical beings. Each Toa possessed an elemental powered ability, along with wearing powerful masks known as Kanohi, which enhanced their abilities further.

Each Toa had a specific destiny that they had to try to fulfill in their lifetime. Toa, however, were not predestined to fulfill a certain destiny, and they could fail trying to complete their destiny, or could choose not to. Most Toa also held a moral code that upholds justice and kept one from killing opponents, those who betrayed such codes are no longer considered "Toa".

For the most part, members of Toa Teams all had the same destiny, but in some special cases, such as Matoro, Lhikan, and Lesovikk, a certain Toa has a very different destiny than the rest of his or her team, which usually resulted in all of the team dying or becoming a Turaga before this Toa or the Toa dying or becoming a Turaga before the rest of his team.

The Toa had traditionally worked in teams of six, with each member controlling a different element. However, some Toa have been known to work alone (such as Lesovikk) or in larger groups when necessary (such as in the Toa/Dark Hunter War).

At the peak of the Toa's existence, they numbered around 3,000. But as of Spherus Magna's reformation, the number had fallen to around 50. Of these, 26 are known so far: Tahu Mata, 5 Toa Nuva, 5 Toa Mahri, 6 Toa Hagah, Takanuva, Lesovikk, Krakua, Tuyet, and Helryx. Toa Ignika was a Toa-like being, but not considered a Toa due to being a body created by an intelligent Kanohi. This also includes Mata Nui.

Biology
The earliest Toa in the universe, such as Helryx, Orde, and the Toa Mata, came into being as Toa, either being created directly by the Forerunners or by Artahka, in the case of the Toa Mata. However, most of the later Toa began their lives as Matoran villagers who received Toa Power. Not all Matoran are capable of becoming Toa; they must be destined to do so by the Great Spirit. It has been mentioned by Jerbraz that these destined Matoran often have something off or special about them, as if they are subconsciously aware of their potential for greatness. These quirky traits have been observed in many Toa-to-be. Takua, future Toa of Light, was always wandering about and unusually adventurous. Each of the future Toa Metru were stated to be exceptionally talented and passionate about their jobs. Of the future Toa Inika, Jaller was the extremely brave Captain of the Ta-Koro Guard, Hahli was the shy but skilled second Chronicler, Nuparu was an amazing inventor who created many mechanical wonders, Kongu, like Jaller, was a brave Matoran Commander, Hewkii was the greatest Matoran athlete on the Mata Nui island, and Matoro was the noble and dutiful translator to Turaga Nuju. Krakua had a tendency to whistle, strange because De-Matoran usually dislike loud sounds.

When the Matoran transform into Toa, their armor usually resembles the armor patterns of Toa they have met. This is shown by the Toa Metru looking like Toa Lhikan, and Takanuva looking like a Toa Nuva. The Toa Inika are an exception due to their unique transformation method involving the Red Star.

After becoming Toa, they are much more powerful than their old Matoran selves. They are much taller, growing to over 7 feet tall. They also possess incredible strength, speed, durability, agility, and reflexes. They now have complete access to the dormant elemental powers they possess and their powerless masks become Great Kanohi.

After a Toa has fulfilled their destiny they are often given the choice to willingly give up their power for the greater good. Often it is to bring new Toa into existence. The Toa can infuse a portion of their Toa power into inanimate objects, such as Toa Stones which can transform Matoran into new Toa. Other uses of Toa power have included healing mortal wounds and reviving comatose beings. After a Toa has given up all of their power, they will be transformed into Turaga. Turaga, while still being slightly more powerful than Matoran, are much weaker than they were while Toa. Also their Great Masks transform into weaker Noble Kanohi. As Turaga, their duty is to now lead and guide the Matoran villagers using the wisdom they gained from their experiences as Toa. It is unknown if Toa who did not begin their lives as Matoran can become Turaga, as no known ones have.

Powers & Technology
Toa were best known for their elemental powers, allowing them to have tremendous control over an aspect of the universe such as Fire or Gravity. This included creating the element out of nothing, absorbing it into themselves, and manipulating it in almost any shape or form.

However, Toa had a limited amount of elemental energy--it would recharge eventually, but not for several hours after a large amount of energy had been expended. Though there is a mask that can recharge the Toa's elemental powers instantly. This mask is known as the Mask of Elemental Energy. A Toa was capable of performing a Nova Blast, using all of their elemental energy in one blast. This tended to be a last-resort attack, however, since - depending on the element in question - a Nova Blast could generally cause widespread destruction and death.

Each Toa was also equipped with a Great Kanohi Mask that granted them an additional power. While a Toa could have multiple masks stored away in a Toa Suva that they could switch at will for a variety of powers, most Toa only had one mask that they wore constantly.

Toa were also equipped with personal tools, which were most often swords and other bladed weapons. Although they could use these weapons for melee combat, they were not allowed to kill another being with them. A lot of the time these weapons are used to channel the elemental power of a Toa (such as Kopaka being able to freeze things in place with his Ice Sword) rather than firing it from their hands.

Most Toa also wore protodermic armor that protected them in battle, usually matching the color that represented their element (Toa of Earth wore black armor; Toa of Plantlife wore blue and green armor; etc.). An exception seems to be Toa of Stone, who in addition to brown have been seen with yellow, gunmetal, black, and orange armor. Many wore silver in addition to their main colors, and a few Toa, such as the Toa Hagah and Toa Nuva, wore metallic-colored armor to denote their elite status.

Merging
Toa were known also for their ability to combine two or more Toa into a more powerful form. This ability has also been seen in Bohrok, Bohrok-Kal, Matoran, and Rahkshi. A combination of three Toa was called a "Toa Kaita". Two Toa could also merge into one (see "Prototype"), but this fusion has not been given a name.

So far, only the Toa Mata and Toa Nuva have been seen to form Toa Kaita. The Toa Metru had the potential to merge into Toa Kaita, but had no idea that they actually could; and as Toa Hordika, they presumably did not have the mental focus that such a fusion required. The Toa Inika never did, but it is unknown if the Toa Mahri or Toa Hagah did or will.

Culture
The Toa as a group had a strict moral code: killing intelligent beings was extremely frowned upon. They also typically avoided sneaking around and fighting at night so the Matoran they defended could see their deeds and not become suspicious of them. Betrayal of their opponents was also prohibited.

Breaking the Toa code was punishable by losing the title of Toa and the respect of other Toa. Toa who have done this include Nidhiki and Tuyet. Lesovikk considered himself to have lost the title of being a Toa, due to failing his team during a battle with Zyglak. Several Dark Hunters were formerly Toa, but usually they did not join by will--for example, "Savage" was a former Toa of Earth who joined the Dark Hunters after becoming mutated by Visorak Venom and believing his team had betrayed him.