Great War
"Our people are the most courageous warriors in all of Mata Nui, and we are not afraid to challenge the Makuta's beasts if we must... but we cannot confront the enemy alone, and I do not have faith in the other cities of Mata Nui. If they do not join with us in the defense, we will all perish, Toa or not!"
— Jaller, Mata Nui Online Game
| Great War | |
| ← DH-BoM WarBohrok Invasion → | |
 The Battle for Kini-Nui, one of the last battles of the war | |
| Event | |
| Witnesses | Matoran on Mata Nui |
| Time | One to 1,000 years after the Great Cataclysm |
| Actions | Matoran create defense forces Rahi attack Matoran |
| Significance | Major |
The Great War, occasionally referred to as the Makuta Wars, was an event in which the Matoran on the island of Mata Nui were constantly attacked by Rahi under the control of Makuta Teridax, who, as detailed in his plan, wanted to prevent the Matoran from returning to Metru Nui prematurely. In response, the Matoran formed military factions, fought back and defended themselves for one thousand years from the Rahi attacks until help in the form of the Toa Mata arrived. The war finally came to a close after the Toa Mata's confrontation with Teridax in his lair.
History
The Dark Time
One year after the events of the Great Cataclysm, Teridax came to the island of Mata Nui and began possessing Rahi through corrupted Kanohi to alter their behavior and assemble an army. After gaining control, he unleashed the dangerous Rahi upon the villages. In response, the Matoran and their Turaga prepared defenses of their own, forming military groups such as the Ta-Koro Guard, Onu-Matoran Ussalry, Sanctum Guard, and the Le-Matoran Gukko Bird Force to protect themselves from Teridax's forces.
Teridax also released his Kraata upon the Matoran, infecting and controlling some of them to fight against the other villagers. The Turaga quickly managed to hunt down and capture many of the Kraata, trap them in Stasis Tubes and hide them away in a Po-Wahi cave. At one point, a major and costly battle erupted within the Charred Jungle, resulting in its total ruin. Another battle raged between the Ta-Koro Guard and an infected Muaka, which lasted two days.
Shadow Plague
Makuta Teridax also attempted to scare the Matoran away from Metru Nui by using the vaporized essence of Shadow Kraata to infect Matoran by air. Although the Plague definitely touched many Matoran, the effect was ultimately too weak and his supply of Shadow Kraata too limited to sustain the attack for long. Due to its impracticality, he abandoned this method to focus on more efficient ways to prevent the Matoran from returning to their city of origin.
Coming of the Toa
Nearing the war's end, the situation looked bleak for the Matoran villagers. The Turaga had been captured by Teridax's Rahi, the Noble Kanohi stored in the villages' Suva had been stolen, and the Vuata Maca trees providing power to the Koro had been poisoned. Takua, a disguised Av-Matoran from the village of Ta-Koro, embarked on a quest passing through all the villages on Mata Nui. He managed to rescue all six of the Turaga, their Badges of Office, collect Vuata Maca Crystals in order to restore the trees to health, and collect the six Toa Stones that had been hidden by the Toa Metru. When Takua gathered the stones together at the Kini-Nui near the end of his quest, the stones created a beacon of light that summoned the adrift Toa Canisters containing the prophesied Toa Mata. The canisters arrived at the shores of Mata Nui shortly afterwards: Tahu in Ta-Wahi, Gali in Ga-Wahi, Lewa in Le-Wahi, Pohatu in Po-Wahi, Kopaka in Ko-Wahi and Onua in Onu-Wahi.
After his arrival, Tahu wandered into the Charred Jungle, but the Guard mistook him for a Rahi, and trapped him. Tahu easily shattered their trap and prepared to fight the Ta-Matoran. Turaga Vakama, recognizing Tahu as a Toa, intervened and informed Tahu of his purpose. The other five Toa also found their way to their respective villages and the Turaga enlightened them. They soon met and started on their quest to look for Great Kanohi that were hidden all over the island, which would supposedly give them the power to defeat Teridax and end his reign of terror. The Toa Mata also assisted the Matoran greatly in driving away the Rahi and reversing the damage caused by them.
Attack on Ga-Koro
An infected Tarakava attacked and nearly destroyed Ga-Koro, forcing the entire population into a hut, which the Rahi sank to the bottom of the sea. Maku escaped, however, and began searching for help. She traveled to Ta-Wahi Beach, hoping for assistance from the Ta-Koro Guard. She came across Takua, who, in response to her pleas, journeyed to Ga-Koro and found a way to raise the hut to the surface. After freeing the imprisoned Ga-Matoran, the Tarakava returned and was subsequently defeated by Gali, who defeated the monster by removing its Kanohi. The Matoran immediately began repairing their village, and the Tarakava was cured and tamed by the Matoran.
Po-Koro Epidemic
Ahkmou, a treacherous Po-Matoran secretly allied with Teridax, began to sell a brand of Kolhii Balls, called Comets, to the other Matoran in Po-Koro. Unknown to Ahkmou's customers, the Comet balls were tainted by Teridax, and they soon fell ill. The effects of the sickness spread through most of the Po-Matoran, causing a frightening pandemic. Takua, with the help of Pohatu, exposed the Comets as the cause of the epidemic and destroyed the location where Ahkmou stored the balls. The remaining Comet balls were carried off to the sea to be disposed of, and the infected Matoran recovered soon after. Ahkmou managed to slip away from the village and hid elsewhere on Mata Nui for a time.
Onu-Koro Lightstone Shortage
In Onu-Koro, a lava flow from Ta-Koro blocked access to the Cavern of Light, causing a shortage of desperately needed Lightstones. The Onu-Matoran attempted to use fire torches as a substitute, but these proved ineffective for warding off Kofo-Jaga, which started raiding Onu-Kora and trade caravans passing through the dark tunnels. The danger was so great that trade all but halted. Because of the efforts of Takua, who managed to repair the lava tubes and restore access to the Cavern of Light, the crisis was resolved.
Battle of Le-Wahi
A raid on Le-Koro, conducted by swarms of infected Nui-Rama, resulted in the capture of most of the inhabitants of the village, including Turaga Matau. Takua traveled to Le-Wahi soon after, accompanied by Taipu the miner. During their hike to Le-Koro, a lone Nui-Rama flew down and abducted Taipu, leaving Takua to enter Le-Koro alone and discover that only a few Le-Matoran remained free.
Upon seeing that the swarms were approaching the village again, the Gukko Bird Force took flight. Kongu asked Takua to be his second on his Gukko, Ka, during the skirmish in the sky, to which Takua agreed. Kongu then led a desperate attack against the Nui-Rama, eventually reaching the Nui-Rama Hive. The attempt at rescue failed, however, since Toa Lewa had been given an infected Kanohi and had taken command of the winged Rahi. After the small resistance was captured, Toa Onua tunneled into the hive and dueled with Lewa in order to remove the infected Kanohi and save the Matoran. Lewa was soon liberated from the influence of the infected mask and helped Onua free all of the villagers by controlling the mind of a powerful Nui-Kopen using his Komau mask.
The Final Battles
Fall of the Tren Krom Break
Some members of the Ta-Koro Guard were assigned to guard the Tren Krom Break, where they were attacked by the infected Rahi there. The Guard failed in their attempt to defend against the Rahi, and many guardsmen were killed as Rahi began to reinhabit the area. As a result, the outpost on the North March was cut off and soon after fell to the Rahi as well. During the battle, Kopeke was frozen into a wall.
As these victories enabled the Rahi to advance upon Ta-Koro, Takua was sent by Jala to investigate the situation at the North March. The Av-Matoran came across Kopeke and used a Heatstone he found to thaw out the Ko-Matoran, who returned to a small chamber near the place.
Battle for Kini-Nui
As the Rahi started massing for a great attack upon the villages, the Toa proceeded to collect their Great Masks of Power and the pieces of the Makoki Stone. The six made plans to journey down into Mangaia and confront Teridax. Instead of summoning every Matoran to defend their villages in preparation for the Rahi siege, the Turaga sent a troop of Matoran to protect Kini-Nui and the opening that the Toa would use to enter Teridax's lair, fearing that if it was left unprotected, the Rahi would follow the Toa inside, causing them to be trapped between Teridax and his forces. Takua led the company to Kini-Nui and witnessed the Toa departing down the tunnel as he and his company stood guard.
The Battle for Kini-Nui began when Infected Rahi started to approach the Kini-Nui. Takua, Kapura, Tamaru, Kopeke, Taipu, Hafu, and Maku fought off several waves with Disks and defeated multiple Rahi. The Rahi assaults grew in strength and numbers, eventually overwhelming the Matoran who stood steady. However the pressure upon the villages had eased itself and the Gukko Bird Force, the Ussalry and the Ta-Koro Guard were able to assist the Company, and repelled the Rahi in a successful battle, in which there were no Matoran casualties.
Battle of Mangaia
Underground, the Toa Mata were attacked by Manas Crabs, Teridax's Rahi guardians. In response, they combined into the powerful Toa Kaita and subdued the multiple Manas. The Toa proceeded to Teridax's lair, but were separated due to Teridax's power. Entering the next chamber, the six Toa met their shadow counterparts, which possessed all of their powers, making them impossible to defeat directly. The Toa Mata eventually realized that the Shadow Toa were the darkness in themselves and reabsorbed them as illusions.
The Toa Mata progressed farther into the chamber and engaged Teridax in a battle, though they were outmatched. Quickly, Tahu discovered that if they combined their Elemental Powers, they had a chance of stopping the Makuta. The Toa proceeded to do so and defeated Teridax as their enemy threatened that he would return. Afterwards, the Toa returned victorious to the surface, signifying the end of the war.
Aftermath
During the bulk of the Great War, frequent Rahi attacks made it travel between villages dangerous. Therefore, the Matoran villages were mostly isolated from each other. When the Toa Mata arrived on the island, passage between villages became more common.
After Teridax's defeat at the hands of the Toa Mata, he was weakened. In order to buy himself time to recover his strength, he created a sonic signal that awakened the Bahrag Queens. Immediately, the Bohrok swarms awoke from their sleep and began a rampage upon the island of Mata Nui. The distraction worked, and the Toa and Matoran's time and attention was soon occupied by fighting to stop the swarms from devastating their home.
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