Metal Face

Metal Face (, Black Face) is a primary antagonist of Xenoblade Chronicles. He is the first Face Mechon encountered by the party during the invasion of Colony 9.

Appearance and personality
Metal Face is a Face Mechon mostly covered in black armour. The main chassis is split into a torso with a skeletal appearance and a hip composed of a ball and a conical engine, connected by a thin spine. The arms and legs are fairly simple in design, with a set of three-fingered claws for hands. A pair of quater-circular wings is attached to the bottom, and a long cannon is mounted above the head. The actual face is a silvery colour, making it stand out easily. Like other Face Mechon, it can fly between the titans without support.

Metal Face is a card-carrying villain. He has no reason for doing what he does - namely, reckless killings and wanton destruction - aside from because he feels like it and enjoys it. He openly sadistic, relishing in the pain and suffering he causes, and loves to gloat about it and taunt the survivors every chance he gets. He appears to have somewhat of an obsession with the Monado, constantly using it as the focus of his jeering against Shulk and Dunban, and always bragging about how as a Face Mechon he is immune to it.

Story arc
A year after the Battle of Sword Valley, Colony 9 is attacked by Mechon. Among the Mechon is a new configuration, a bipedal form with a face, that demonstrates a strange cunning and extremely resilient form. By itself, the "Mechon with the metal face" takes out an Anti-Air Battery, throws a troop transport at Colonel Vangarre, and blasts apart the last remaining mobile artillery while sustaining no damage but a scuff on its face. He then walks up to the mobile artillery, sizes up its occupant Fiora, and stabs her. All the while, Shulk has been trying to use the Monado to attack him, but unlike all other Mechon he appears to be immune to it. Shulk does manage to get a good stab in the blackened part of its face, but the attack then ends and the Mechon all leave.

Shulk is determined to get revenge on Metal Face in particular, and starts a journey up the Bionis. The two meet again as Shulk exits the Ether Mine, having just defeated Xord. Metal Face ponders how Xord must have been garbage to lose to Shulk's party and proceeds to gloat about killing Fiora, following by rebuffing Shulk's attacks with ease. Dunban and Dickson arrive to help, but Metal Face has no trouble holding them off as well, and taunts Dunban about being a loser. But he is unable to finish them off before a Telethia attacks, distracting him enough for Shulk to find a prime spot and successfully damage his arm through sheer force of will. Metal Face decides to leave.

Metal Face is next seen during the Mechon attack on Alcamoth and Prison Island. He has been repaired and upgraded, with many more spikes and a much cleftier chin among his improvements, and appears to have been given an assignment to use a new spear weapon on something or someone. After fighting through various defences, he locates his target Zanza on Prison Island, and successfully spears him from afar. Shulk and his party are present, which amuses Metal Face, as he gets to fight them as a bonus. After more jeering about Dunban and the Monado, he stabs Emperor Sorean and brags about another kill. However, Shulk seems to have done something to the Monado - it has been powered up so it can now harm Face Mechon, which Metal Face was supposed to stop by killing Zanza, and Metal Face's arm is cut off. Shulk tries to do more damage but is distracted by the discovery that one of the other Faces, Face Nemesis, is being piloted by a not-dead but amnesiac Fiora. Metal Face uses the confusion to escape.

After being repaired, Metal Face watches Face Nemesis leave Mechonis without orders, and makes the connection that it's Dunban's sister. He follows, catching up at Valak Mountain where she is talking with Shulk, and attacks her. Using her as a hostage, he demands that Shulk give him the Monado, and Shulk accepts. Metal Face's chassis opens to reveal Mumkhar, one of Dunban's old friends believed lost after the Battle of Sword Valley. He takes the Monado and reveals that this was pretty much all he wanted for years, to get the Monado and show up Dunban. Melia knocks the Monado out of Mumkhar's grip and a fight ensues in which Dunban easily gets the upper hand, despite all of Mumkhar's boasting about his new body and his enjoyment of being a scumbag. Before a winner can be decided, Egil appears and returns the Mechon to Mechonis.

Metal Face and Mumkhar await the party at the end of Sword Valley. This time, he taunts them over whether the Face Mechon they have to kill are long-lost loved ones or not, which riles up Sharla. Shulk interrupts because of a vision caused by further upgrades to Metal Face: corrosive claws like the anti-ether spears held by the Mass-Produced Faces and used against Zanza. With this in mind, the party fights, and Metal Face is beaten. Dunban tries to finish Mumkhar off, but Shulk convinces him that they don't need to kill Homs when it's the Mechon that are the enemy. Mumkhar rages that he's being minimalized, and continues to attack despite Dunban removing Metal Face's arms. He fires a shot that breaks a decoration off the top of Galahad Fortresss and impales him, trapping him on the floor that proceeds to break off and collapse towards the endless ocean below.

As a boss
Metal Face fights the party several times over the course of the game. Once his true identity is revealed, his nametag changes accordingly.
 * Metal Face (Colony 9 part 1)
 * Metal Face (Colony 9 part 2)
 * Metal Face (Prison Island)
 * Mumkhar (Sword Valley)
 * Spirit - Mumkhar

As a Smash Bros. guest
Metal Face appears as a stage boss on the stage in  and. When the stage changes to night, there's a chance that Metal Face will appear and begin harrassing the combatants.
 * He first picks a place to roost: either center stage, or on the left or right side. If he picks a side, he will fire a cannon blast to destroy the top platform there first.
 * Once placed, he doesn't go out of his way to attack, only using his claws to swipe at anyone who approaches.
 * If he takes enough damage (any attack is effective), he can be defeated, which causes him to explode and fall off the stage. This does damage to all opponents of whoever landed the last hit on him.
 * If he is not defeated by dawn, he leaves, sometimes with one last dashing attack. The stage then reforms if necessary.

Metal Face has a large amount of dialogue, more than many playable characters.