Ironclad

"Ironclad" is a Dark Hunter and a fallen Toa of Iron.

Early Life
Much of "Ironclad"'s early life is unknown. He was once a Fe-Matoran from the island of Mournah Nui in the Southern Islands. At some point he received a Toa Stone and was transformed into a Toa, along with six other Matoran. The seven named themselves after their island, dubbing themselves the Toa Mournah. He became especially close to the Toa of Stone, Halvor.

First Adventures
After forming their team, the Mournah went about their task of protecting Mournah Nui from various foes. A looming threat was invasion from the neighboring islands, ruled by various warlords who constantly fought for dominance. The most notable attack came from a hulking, spiderlike warlord named Obeliskain and his forces.

Obeliskain and his warband stormed Mournah Nui one night and were countered by the Toa. The battle raged the entire night and into the next day, finally concluding with the one of Obeliskain's lieutenants losing two of his four arms to "Ironclad"'s weapons. The warlord conceded defeat to the Toa and agreed to leave the island alone, though he warned that the other feudal lords would not.

Many years later, the team was locked in combat with a titanic, mutated Tarakava. The creature struck Hurrinai, the Toa of Plasma, and hurled him into a pit of energized protodermis. When the Toa emerged from the pit, mutated beyond recognition and driven mad from his transformation, "Ironclad" attempted to restrain him. Hurrinai battered the Toa of Iron and fled, escaping into the uninhabited regions of the island. Together, "Ironclad" and Halvor created a statue of their friend in the center of the Matoran settlement.

Toa-Dark Hunter War
During the Toa/Dark Hunter War, the team (save the resident Toa of Lightning who remained to protect the island) travelled to Metru Nui. "Ironclad" fought valiantly, helping to drive the Dark Hunters back from Onu-Metru. This was the same battle that caused a Matoran to be transformed into the hideous "Subterranean".

Near the end of the war, Halvor was slain in combat with a pair of Dark Hunters. Though the Hunters were captured not long afterwards, "Ironclad" was enraged and consumed with vengeance. When one of the Dark Hunters taunted him about his friend's death, "Ironclad" snapped and brutally murdered both of the prisoners by shredding their armor with his powers.

Horrified by his actions, the other Toa stripped "Ironclad" of his Toa title and exiled him. Feeling betrayed, "Ironclad" decided to take his chances with the opposing side. The Dark Hunters took him in, along with fellow renegade Toa Nidhiki and the aforementioned Matoran. At the conclusion of the war, they all departed Metru Nui for Odina.

Dark Hunter
The Dark Hunters granted "Ironclad" both a new name and a new appearance. His armor was enhanced, his Kanohi swapped, and his old Toa Tool was discarded for a new weapon. Preferring to be able to fight Toa, "Ironclad" was often sent on missions to populated islands with an active Toa Team.

"Ironclad" was responsible for the deaths of two of his former comrades. He first killed Tayllen while she was traveling across Mournah Nui, and later shot Etheran in the back, so he could not activate his Hau. Auvir and Casatha confronted him not long after the Toa of Air's death and forced him to flee the island.

Due to his status as a Toa of Iron, the Brotherhood of Makuta expressed interest in having him assassinated, much to The Shadowed One's displeasure.

Abilities and Traits
As a Fe-Matoran, "Ironclad" had inaccessible Elemental Iron powers. Upon becoming a Toa, he was granted full access to his natural abilities. This allowed him full manipulation of Iron, including creation, absorption and control of the Element. Some of his preferred uses were shattering armor and breaking Kanohi, though the latter required intense concentration.

Mask and Tools
"Ironclad"'s original Kanohi was the Zatth, the Mask of Summoning. While powerless as a Matoran, the mask transformed into its Great form upon his transformation into a Toa. This Kanohi allowed him to summon random rahi to come to his aid, which lead to the acquisition of his pet bird. The rahi shared a special connection with the Toa, allowing the latter to see through its eyes for brief periods of time.

He carried a mace as his Toa Tool, of a similar aesthetic to the spiked portions of his armor as a Dark Hunter. In addition to simply being a melee weapon, "Ironclad" could use the mace to channel his elemental powers, though he rarely did so.

Once he joined the Dark Hunters, "Ironclad"'s Zatth was swapped for the Kanohi Jutlin, the Mask of Corruption, which allowed him to cause targets to rust and/or corrode. His mace was discarded and his lower right arm was replaced with a Zamor Sphere Cannon. The cannon's projectiles could temporarily nullify the target's abilities, in addition to hurling them to the ground from the sheer impact of the blast.

Trivia

 * "Ironclad" was created for round two of the same contest as Desolator.
 * The Zamor Sphere Cannon was based on the Earth weapon from the DS version of BIONICLE: Heroes, which functioned like a shotgun.

Appearances

 * TBA