The Leveler is a powerful woodcutting device.
At first, it was meant to cut down the woods that were marked with a red spray, but things took a more serious turn when Hexxus fooled Tony and Ralph to head for FernGully.
As the two of them finally made it there, Hexxus took over the machine after scaring them out of it. In the end the Leveler is destroyed in a magnificent demonstration about the power of nature, it gets ripped off its seams by roots of a tree.
Appearance[]
The Leveler is a large mobile lumber harvester, acting as a mobile lumber mill. It has a pair of extendable arms with long saw blades on each wrist. The hands are used to grab onto trees and cut branches with its sharp fingers-like claws. It is driven by a powerful diesel engine allowing it to operate efficiently. It moves on a pair of spiked treads which give effective traction in the woods. The center of this platform is the harvester unit, a series of saw blades which shave the bark off trees and process the lumber into boards. The interior has a break room, the drivers cabin, and the lumber mill warehouse.
Operation[]
The Leveler is largely an automated vehicle using the latest computer technology, however it still requires at least a crew of two to operate efficiently. Tony and Ralph are well trained to operate the Leveler, though its autonomous systems in movement and mulching trees allow them to have a relatively easy job. The Leveler also requires an additional support team to tag targeted trees, clearing away additional lumber, maintenance and managerial direction.
History[]
The Leveler was brought in by a logging company in the movie to clear a wide swath of forest near Mount Warning. Ralph and Tony were assigned to drive the machine and were joined by a larger team including fellow lumberjacks Pete, Willy and Zak. During the process of marking trees, Zak lagged behind his counterparts, unused to the conditions of the wilderness. He mistakenly marked an ominous tree, not knowing its dark magic contained the very demon of destruction Hexxus. Zak and Crysta were nearly killed when the leveler cut down a nearby tree, only to be saved by Batty.
Following the tree tags, the Leveler soon came upon the ominous tree and began the process of cutting it down. Right away, Ralph and Tony sensed this tree was problematic, as the whole machine shook upon its mulching. Tony scoffed at Ralph's concern that the Leveler was rated to cut down the tree, putting the machine to full power to complete the job. With the tree fully devoured and cut into neat wood products inside the Leveler, Hexxus' essence was freed. He began to crawl around the inner workings of the machine, steadily regaining his strength.
Crysta asked Zak about the nature of the Leveler, and if Humans had anything to do with it. Zak lied, and lead Crysta to believe that the machine was in fact an ancient monstrous enemy of the Humans, and that they could contain and repel the Leveler using 'magic' red marks.
Having regained his basic sludge form from drinking in the toxic fumes of the Leveler, Hexxus marveled at the machine and realized that Humans had been the ones to construct it and let him free. He rescinded his previous contempt for Humans, crediting them to be clever and like minded to his goals of destroying the natural world. Seeing an opportunity to get revenge on Maggi and her tribe of fairies, Hexxus conspired to send the Leveler in the direction of Fern Gully. He tricked Ralph and Tony by impersonating their supervisor over the radio, and told them to head to Fern Gully to clear the area of trees. Ralph and Tony followed his order, planning to let the Leveler run riot over the rainforest all night.
Hexxus gleefully relished in his newfound strength, evolving into a vapor-like form and absorbing more power from the machine, until he loomed over the Leveler like a giant cloud of death.
The Leveler soon became known to the creatures and fairies of Fern Gully, as its arrival was proceeded by leaking oil into the river, and the horrific site of the now barren woodland it left behind. Magi surmised that she alone could not stop the Leveler, as the force of destruction created by mankind was unknown to her magic. Crysta then learned the truth of Humans creating the machine, and a remorseful Zak told the Fairies they should leave to avoid destruction. However, Magi called together all the Fairies, and through a noble sacrifice, dispensed her power among the tribe to fight the Leveler.
After Hexxus frightened Tony and Ralph away, Zak, with Pips' help, quickly entered the driver's cabin in order to turn off the leveler, and just before Hexxus could remove the fairies' tree, Zak successfully turned the leveler off, and after the victory was short-lived and Hexxus reappeared in his real form, Crysta flew down Hexxus' throat and used a magic seed to cause roots to grow out of his body. Hexxus tried to destroy the roots, but despite all his power, he could not stop them from sprouting. This made the other fairies brave enough to fight instead of hide, and they used their magic to help the seed grow. Working together, Crysta and her family caused another tree to grow from inside Hexxus, sealing him AND the leveler together in it and finally keeping Hexxus from threatening the entire rainforest once and for all.
Gallery[]
