Tanma

"Who are you anyway? You look like something Solek would dream up."

- Tanma to Lewa, in BIONICLE Legends 9: Shadows in the Sky

Tanma was an Av-Matoran disguised as a Le-Matoran residing in Karda Nui. When in physical contact with a Toa, he could give energy to weapons, like the Midak Skyblaster. He took over as the leader of the Av-Matoran when Kirop became a Shadow Matoran.

History
Tanma was working with Gavla when Gavla was attacked by Chirox. After a short fight, he fled to their village, only to find that the Makuta had corrupted all of his fellow villagers. He fled to the other villages to warn them, but the other villages eventually fell.

Tanma eventually became the leader of the remaining Av-Matoran after Kirop, their past leader, had been transformed into a Shadow Matoran. Once all the surviving Av-Matoran from all the villages in Karda Nui had come together, Tanma directed them to hide in one of their underground shelters. The Makuta then bombarded it from above with Tridax Pods containing Shadow Leeches. During the attack, Tanma wished that Kirop, his good friend, was still there to lead the Av-Matoran. The Leeches couldn't get into the shelter, and they quickly died due to their short life spans. Once the attack stopped, Tanma opened the hatch of the shelter to check to see if it was really over. He spotted not only the Makuta flying away, but he also saw Matoro falling in the waterfall though he didn't know who it was. Somehow he sensed that something big was about to happen and quickly ran back to the remaining Av-Matoran and told them to get down. Seconds later, light flooded through the room. Tanma had closed his eyes by reflex, and thus was not blinded. When he looked outside after the light, he noticed that the Makuta were completely blinded. He realized then that the Av-Matoran now had a chance to fight back, even if it wouldn't do any good.

Tanma and several other Av-Matoran, including Photok and Solek, mounted a strike against the Makuta, who used Shadow Matoran as their pilots. Tanma was attacked by some Shadow Leeches, but fired a Light bolt which destroyed them. Suddenly, the Toa Nuva appeared in the air before them. Lewa then tried to capture a Shadow Leech, but Tanma prevented him from doing it, and accidentally connected to the Toa, sharing his memories of the past. Overwhelmed by the new arrivals, the Makuta then retreated. Tanma and the remaining Av-Matoran brought the Toa Nuva into the shelter, where they discussed the happenings of the past weeks. It was decided that Tahu, Gali, and Onua would go to the Swamp to find the Mask of Life, while the others stayed to help the Av-Matoran.

Later, Pohatu and Photok were lured in a trap and defeated by Chirox. Lewa and Kopaka, with Tanma and Solek, respectively, then attacked the Makuta. Lewa and Tanma were nearly defeated by Antroz, but Lewa used a cyclone to blow him away. When Kopaka and Solek were defeated, however, Lewa decided to escape, saying to Tanma they needed help from the other Toa Nuva.

While some of the Matoran connected with the Toa Nuva, Lewa created a cyclone which caused a Shadow Matoran spy, Kirop, to fall to the ground. The Toa Nuva quickly went to the stalactite where he had fallen and kidnapped him. While Tanma and the Toa Nuva discussed a plan, Kirop, the Shadow Matoran they captured, woke up. Hearing all of this, he blasted through his prison with Shadow energy, and went off to the Shadow Leech Hive, believing that the Toa Nuva were going to destroy it. Kirop was tricked, and the Toa Nuva followed him to the hive. A battle would then follow, which the Toa Ignika joined in. The group was defeated, and taken hostage. Everyone was freed by Pohatu, and a bigger battle ensued, for the Toa Nuva had three keystones, the key to waking the Great Spirit. During the battle, the Makuta noted that, surprisingly, they were losing. Mutran ushered everyone down to the Swamp. Upon going himself, he was caught by the Toa Nuva and Av-Matoran. After forcing him to tell where the Makuta were headed, the Toa Nuva went down to the swamp, with Tanma and their other Av-Matoran partners to assist them. He is now with the other Av-Matoran in Metru Nui where the Toa would meet them after the completion of their mission in the core.

BIONICLE.com Description
Tanma is the leader of the last remaining Matoran of Light. He has grown into the job, learning to make the hard choices in the short time Karda Nui has been besieged. Brave, but not foolish, and wise enough to know the Matoran have to strike and run away if they are going to survive.

The Kingdom
In 'The Kingdom', Tanma became a Toa of Light, but was later killed by Teridax using the power of the Rahkshi Power of Shattering.

Set information

 * Tanma's piece count is 14
 * Tanma's set number is 8944
 * He can attatch to Lewa Nuva and Gali Nuva, though it is not canon in Gali's case.
 * Antroz, Radiak, Lewa and Tanma are parts of the Makuta Spiriah combiner.