Metroid Prime

This guide was written, contributed and copyrighted by me by me, known 
here as lighterfluid6. Don't plagiarize, or use this guide giving 
yourself credit. This guide is not to be posted in any website other 
than gamefaqs.com, ign.com and associated websites. To contact me, email 
me at redshift71388@aol.com or IM me at redshift71388 (do not contact my 
previous addresses, ChaosUnit22). If you do contact me, do it only to 
ask for help that you feel isn't covered in my guide, or for any 
constructive criticism and appraisal. Do not, under any circumstance, 
contact me asking me to join your special forum, be part of some special 
group, or make small talk. If you ask a question about the game, make 
sure the guide doesn't cover that. That is all.

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Introduction.

The Chozo are in peril. After centuries of technological advancement and 
deep space exploration, this race of beings had regressed into natural 
simplicity, adopting the fertile planet of Tallon IV as their home, and 
looking inward to reach an enlightened plane of existence. For a while, 
the Chozo lived in harmony with the native creatures, and built their 
homes and temples from the natural materials Tallon IV provided them. 
Soon, the Chozo were able to leave their physical bodies behind and 
exist as omniscient spirits. Then, twenty years ago, a meteor struck 
their planet. Tallon IV was a biological paradise, teeming with unique 
life forms. However, the meteor carried with it a deadly mutagen known 
as Phazon. The Phazon polluted the planet's ecosystem, killing and 
mutating the native species. What the Phazon did not kill, it mutated 
into corrupt new forms. Eventually even the Chozo spirits began to feel 
the Phazon's effects. They either slipped into insanity or disappeared 
to an unknown realm, leaving only their ruins behind. The Chozo spoke of 
a 'Worm' that came along with the meteor. Before their demise, they used 
their once-forsaken technology to seal away the Worm within the meteor's 
Impact Crater, so that only the holder of twelve Chozo Artifacts could 
enter its lair. But this was not enough. Soon after the extinction of 
the Chozo, the Space Pirates arrived, seeking the power of the Phazon 
for their biogenetic experimentations and to rebuild their forces after 
their defeat on Zebes. Their research and mining brought them to the 
Worm, which they called Metroid Prime. Their experiments also took place 
aboard the Space Pirate Frigate, Orpheon, but lately, things haven't 
been going so smoothly for them....

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Walkthrough.

When using this guide, all you really need to know is that important 
items will be in CAPITALIZED print. This includes new Log Book entries, 
power-ups, expansions and more. The walkthrough section of this guide is 
divided into fourteen chapters:

1.	The Space Pirate Frigate.
2.	Obtaining the Missile Launcher.
3.	The Morph Ball.
4.	Toxins at the Ruins.
5.	Fire and Ice.
6.	High Waves.
7.	Phendrana Labs.
8.	Return to the Ruins.
9.	The Gravity Suit.
10.	A Miner Threat.
11.	The Treasure Hunt.
12.	Phazon Corruption.
13.	An Old Friend.
14.	The Worm.

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Chapter 1: The Space Pirate Frigate.

=============

The game of Metroid Prime is the first of the Prime series, which takes 
place between the original Metroid game and Metroid 2: Return of Samus. 
After destroying the Space Pirate base on Zebes, Samus went in pursuit 
of the remaining Space Pirate forces to try and eliminate them once and 
for all. She was able to intercept a distress signal coming from the 
Space Pirate Frigate, Orpheon, in orbit around Tallon IV. Being the 
bounty hunter that she is, Samus moves in to investigate.

The Space Pirate Frigate is the only area in the game that you can't 
revisit again, but you will have a chance to explore the vessel once 
it.... (Sorry, I can't spoil that for you). Nevertheless, some of the 
elusive creatures and information found aboard the Orpheon can only be 
scanned during your initial tutorial run through the ship. If you want a 
full Log Book, scan.

After Samus docks with the frigate, you'll assume control over her. You 
start in the Exterior Docking Bay, a room boxed in with special force 
fields that prevent you from falling off into space. The only way to 
progress is by going through the energy field that bars your way to the 
next portion of the room. The field is powered by four nodes located 
along its side. After you play around and get used to the game's 
controls, target each of the power nodes and blast them with the Power 
Beam to disable them. The shield will deactivate once all four nodes are 
shut down. Walk out to the second section of the room. Your progress 
through this area is also barred by an energy field, again powered by 
multiple nodes. This time however, the nodes are lacking power. You need 
to reenergize the system by scanning the blue control panel on the 
center pillar of the room. Afterwards, shoot all six power nodes to shut 
down the force field. You'll need to look up to shoot the topmost two 
nodes. Now jump up to the third section of the room and follow the 
walkway to a blue door. Shoot the door to open it, and then step inside 
the frigate.

You can skip through these next three small passageways, scanning when 
you need to. In the last potion of the Docking Bay, you can scan the 
holograms on the wall for information about the ship's status. When you 
reach the Air Lock, you won't be able to continue until you re-
pressurize the room. Scan the control panel to do so. You'll know when 
the room is re-pressurized when the floating debris falls to the ground 
and the door ahead glows blue. Continue to the Emergency Evacuation 
Area.

This room is a waste. Whatever happened here ended with several dead 
Space Pirates and the dominating carcass of a large, insect-like 
creature. Before you go too far in, scan the smaller creatures you see 
feeding on the Space Pirate's body to your right. The PARASITE is fairly 
common aboard the frigate; you probably saw a few running beneath the 
floor crawlspace of the last room. Despite that fact, they can only be 
found on the Orpheon, and you'll lose your chance of scanning any for 
your Log Book afterwards. Parasites aren't deadly. Like most enemies, 
you'll suffer minor damage if you make contact with one, but it takes 
only one Power Beam shot to kill them. After dealing with them, head 
around the fire and across the balcony, blasting more Parasites as you 
go. Turn left and prepare for your first real threat, if you can call it 
that. The injured Space Pirate ahead will start shooting you if you get 
too close, so take it out from afar. Because of its injuries, its aim 
will be hindered and it will take only a few shots to put it out of its 
misery. Like all pirates aboard the ship, you won't add it to your Log 
Book if you scan it. Take the door on your right.

The Deck Alpha Umbilical Hall is blocked off by a pile of rubble. Charge 
up your Power Beam and unload onto the debris to clear it. The door at 
the end of the passageway takes you to the Map Facility. As soon as you 
open the door to this room, a short cut-scene will interrupt your fun to 
show you two Parasites fleeing down a small tunnel along the right wall. 
Roll into your Morph Ball and follow them to the small room with the 
glowing hologram. Scan the hologram, before you step into it. When you 
step into a MAP STATION, you can download the schematics for each area 
that the station corresponds to. This station will show you the layout 
of the frigate. There are only four Map Stations in the game, and if you 
download one before scanning it, there will be nothing to scan 
afterwards. Be sure to scan one of them (preferably this one) before 
using all four. After your map is updated, roll back through the tunnel 
and use the door at the end of the Map Facility.

To use the elevator to Deck Beta, scan the control panel and a hologram 
will appear in the center of the lift. Walk into it and you will rise to 
Deck Beta. The first room after the lift, the Deck Beta Conduit Hall, is 
blocked by more rubble, fire and some live wires. Touching the fire will 
harm you. Use your Morph Ball to roll under the rubble, but wait for the 
live wire current to flicker off so that you don't take additional 
damage.

The following room is the first Biotech Research Area. The room houses a 
dormant Parasite Queen contained within the large stasis tank in the 
center of the room. This monstrous creature is not unlike the dead beast 
you saw earlier. The Space Pirates are somehow enhancing regular 
Parasites to grow many times their normal size, mutating them and 
building an army of giant Parasite Queens. But if the Emergency 
Evacuation Area and the distress signal is any clue, you can tell 
something went wrong with their experiments. Anyway, turn left and walk 
around the upper part of the room, cleaning up Space Pirates as you go. 
You'll encounter another crippled individual, as well as another who is 
able to stand and actively attack, but isn't much more of a threat 
anyway. 

When you kill an enemy, it will sometimes leave behind a pickup. Pickups 
glow and make unique whirring hums, and they can be drawn towards you 
using your Charge Beam. Pickups provide energy and restore your 
ammunition. The different types can also be scanned for Log Book 
entries. By now you may have seen the small purple units, or SMALL 
ENERGY units. These restore ten of your health points. In the following 
corridor after the Biotech Research room, turn left for a nasty 
surprise, an AUTO TURRET. These stationary defense weapons are 
programmed to attack whenever they sense you nearby. They fire damaging 
bolts of energy, and it's wisest to quickly dismantle them as soon as 
possible. Don't bother scanning this one yet; just shoot it with a 
missile and scan the yellow pickup it leaves behind, a MISSILE AMMO unit 
(which replenishes five missiles to your Missile Launcher). 

The next room is the Biohazard Containment. Somewhere from the depths of 
this room, you'll have another Auto Turret shooting at you. Luckily, you 
can take cover behind the stasis tank in the room, which contains the 
grisly remnants of a failed Parasite Queen experiment. Flip on your Scan 
Visor and find the computer monitor with the red scan symbol, and scan 
it. It is your first and only opportunity to scan Pirate Data: FALL OF 
ZEBES. It's the only Pirate Data entry that can't be revisited if you 
accidentally miss it, so scan it now! Also, turn to the left and scan 
the control panel along the left wall. This panel will disable the Auto 
Turret. Not all turrets have a corresponding panel to shut them down, 
but it sure makes fighting them a lot easier. Now that the turret is 
pacified, scan it for an easy Log Book entry if you didn't get the last 
one. If you wish, collect data on the rest of the room's creepy-crawly 
contents, and then head to the back of the room. 

Scan the control panel back here to activate the small lift that takes 
you up to the upper level of the room. The top section is made up of a 
balcony that encircles the room. As you travel to the door on the 
opposite end, you'll have to level a few pirates. The first few are 
easy, but the third one is particularly nasty. It hasn't sustained many 
injuries, and it's about as tough to take down as the pirates you'll 
fight later in the game. Don't hesitate to use missiles on it. Collect 
any dropped pickups and head for the door. A final dying pirate will 
attempt to stop you by the door; laugh at him, mop him up and continue. 
Head down the Deck Beta Transit Hall and to the Cargo Freight Lift to 
Deck Gamma. 

The top of the cargo lift is guarded by another Auto Turret. Take it out 
of commission the old fashion way, and then scan the nearby panel to 
activate the lift to Deck Gamma. Enjoy your pleasant ride down; there's 
another vicious Space Pirate at the bottom that will attack. Kill it 
with missiles and then go after the Parasites feeding on the pirate 
carcasses. You should have them scanned by now. If not, do it now 
because the next and final time you see them will be when you're in a 
hurry. After the room has been cleared, scan the panel down here to 
energize the large door ahead. It still won't open unless you use the 
use the device on the floor marked with a spherical hologram. The panel 
told you to insert a metal sphere...like your Morph Ball. Roll into the 
mechanism and the door will open. 

Be quick to destroy the two turrets in the next room. Charge up your 
beam to draw in the Missile Ammo. The door ahead of you opens up just 
like the last one, but we'll worry about that in just a second. Use the 
regular blue door on your left to save your game, using the SAVE 
STATION. Unlike Map Stations, there are plenty of reusable, scan-able 
Save Stations scattered throughout the game. They allow you to save your 
progress and they restore all of your lost health. Give this one a scan 
and then make sure you heal and save. Back outside, scan the control 
panel and use the Morph Ball to open the large door like you did with 
the previous one. The next room is the Reactor Core.

When Samus enters the Reactor Core, she'll be attacked by a live 
PARASITE QUEEN. This mutant beast is your first boss, the first true 
test of your skills. Like all bosses, the very first thing you should do 
when fighting her is scan her. Bosses can only be fought once, and thus 
you only get one chance to scan them. Not only that, but scanning the 
Parasite Queen in particular will prove useful when fighting her. The 
first thing you need to know is that when you target the queen, you'll 
lock on to her fleshy stomach. But after you scan her, you'll discover a 
new weakness in her mouth, and you'll target the mouth from that point 
forward. Yes, you can win without finding this weak spot, but it takes 
longer and it deprives you of her one-shot scan. So go ahead, scan her 
like you mean it. All you need to do to win this battle is shoot her 
repeatedly with Power Beam shots and/or missiles. The trick is that the 
Parasite Queen is perched inside a dual force field system around the 
ship's energy core. The blue field will deflect your shots, but the 
orange field is weak enough to shoot through. In return, the queen can 
attack through both fields. The force fields will rotate around the 
queen, meaning you'll have to practice your strafing techniques to get 
shots in. Lock on to the queen and dash to the sides. This will also 
help you avoid her attacks; she fires jets of volatile acid from her 
mouth. The battle itself isn't all too difficult. Use up your missiles, 
and then feed her Power Beam shots to finish her off. Keep moving in 
order to get a shot through the blue force field. Sometimes the fields 
will scramble, so you will need to wait until they reset themselves. 
Again, this battle shouldn't be too difficult. And if it is, well, 
that's what the Save Station was for.

When the Parasite Queen succumbs, she'll fall into the reactor core, 
destroying herself and the core in the process. With the core gone, the 
entire ship will become unstable and self destruct in seven minutes! 
That means you need to get moving now. Samus's Power Suit, being the 
technological wonder that it is, will tell you to "evacuate immediately" 
while an alarm blares loudly. The door you entered from won't do, but 
luckily there's another door that should be right in front of you. Head 
forward, up the steps and through the passageways. Take the next lift 
back up to Deck Beta. On the way out, scan the panel on the wall in 
front of you to deactivate a hidden Auto Turret. 

Enter Biotech Research Area 1. This is the bottom section of the room, 
not the upper balcony you explored previously. Already, the ship has 
turned into a war zone. The Space Pirates here are trying to subdue the 
awakened Parasite Queen. You won't have to fight either of them; as soon 
as you take a few steps in, a large explosion will kill everything in 
sight. Head behind the stasis tank and up the pieces of rubble to the 
second floor. Turn right and head down to the other door. Three Space 
Pirates will attack you up here. Dispatch the first two with missiles. 
The third might get killed for you by another explosion which will 
reveal a new path through the ventilation systems. The entrance to the 
system is to the right of the door (which you can't use anyway).

Go ahead and use your Morph Ball to quickly make your way through the 
ventilation shafts. Roll into the openings in the walls to continue 
through the tunnels. The shafts are all basically the same, with some 
added turrets along the way (roll out of the Morph Ball to deal with 
them). Most are infested with swarms of Parasites. You'll take damage 
when you roll through them, but it isn't anything to worry over. 
Additionally, you'll reach an area that you'll have to bomb through, and 
another in which the tunnel is blocked off by a large piston. Wait for 
the piston to retract, and then continue before it pumps out again. 
Eventually you will reach the end of the tunnels and emerge in Biotech 
Research Area 2.

It's Ridley! Samus stumbles upon the most intriguing of the Space 
Pirates' research projects, the resurrection of one of their leaders. 
Samus defeated the dragon-like Ridley on Zebes when she destroyed their 
base and the commanding Mother Brain. The survivors of her purge went on 
to revive their winged aggressor and scout for new base locations; hence 
their presence on Tallon IV. The cybernetic-enhanced Meta Ridley will 
break out of his restraints and escape through the ceiling. Now you'll 
notice a chasm blocking your way to the door on the far end of the room. 
To get across, you'll need to implement your Grapple Beam. The Grapple 
Points ahead of you are marked with special Grapple icons. Fire your 
Grapple Beam as indicated and swing across. As soon as you reach the end 
of your swing, let go and then immediately reattach yourself to the 
second Grapple Point, and then swing across to the other side. Enter 
this door and continue.

The next passage has another blue panel that needs scanning. Well, you 
don't need to, but if you don't, there will be another Auto Turret 
raining death upon you. Turn the corner and head towards the lift. Avoid 
the damaging currents of electricity down this passage. When you scan 
the lift's control panel, you'll trigger a cut-scene. A violent 
explosion slams Samus against the wall, damaging her Power Suit. When 
you recover, you'll be at full health, but at the price of losing almost 
all of your gear. That includes the Varia Suit (you'll notice your suit 
looks different), Missile Launcher, Morph Ball (and its bombs), Charge 
Beam and Grapple Beam. Basically, all you have left is your default 
Power Suit, Power Beam, Combat Visor and the Scan Visor. Yay. Now ride 
the lift to Deck Alpha.

The Deck Alpha Mech Shaft is a short passage with a few sharp turns that 
dumps you at the Air Lock. Good news: that's only a room away from 
freedom. However, since you pressurized this room earlier, you need to 
wait a few seconds for it to depressurize so that the door becomes 
active. Dash through the next passage to complete your escape to the 
outer docking bay. If you didn't make it in seven minutes, you'll die 
and be forced to restart at the Save Station (before the boss battle). 
When you step outside, a cinematic will take over.

Samus narrowly escapes from the crumbling Space Pirate Frigate as it 
self-destructs. Meta Ridley has also escaped and is fleeing for the 
nearby planet, Tallon IV. Samus will give chase, but end up losing the 
tracking signal and be forced to continue reconnaissance on foot.

=============

Chapter 2: Obtaining the Missile Launcher.

=============

Samus lands her ship upon the lush rainforests of the planet's first 
major area, the Tallon Overworld. Tallon IV is divvied up into five main 
areas each connected via a system of transport elevators. There is also 
one final area that can be reached at the very end of the game. Tallon 
Overworld is a place characterized by rainy weather, thick vegetation 
and plenty of wildlife, but comparatively little intrusion from any 
civilization. 

You can always return to the Landing Site if you need to use your 
GUNSHIP. Your ship acts as a multipurpose station. It allows you to save 
your progress, restore health and restore any ammunition. You should 
also scan it at some point for a Log Book entry. There are several doors 
leading out of the Landing Site, but of those doors, only three are 
accessible to you right now. Take the door on your right, leading to the 
Canyon Cavern.

When you enter this cavern, several disturbed BEETLES will attack. You 
won't be hurting for opportunities to scan these creatures, but you may 
as well. Beetles are aggressive insects that surface from their 
subterranean dens whenever they sense movement above. They attack you by 
ramming you, so shoot them all before they get that chance. The passage 
on your left takes you to a door, leading to the Tallon Canyon.

The canyon is home to a variety of new species, all of which will add a 
new page to your Log Book. The yellow plantlike object in front of you 
is a SAP SAC. These are only dangerous if you shoot them; they'll 
explode with enough force to harm you or kill any creature that is too 
close. Ruptured Sap Sacs sometimes leave behind pickups and you may even 
get one to leave behind a LARGE ENERGY unit. These health pickups are 
slightly larger than Small Energy units, are red, and heal 20 lost 
health points. If you don't find it now, keep your eye out for it. 
Further down the canyon you will see a waterfall to your left. Crawling 
among the rocks are common creatures called ZOOMERS. Zoomers keep to 
themselves, but can defend themselves with their spikes when necessary. 
They are still fairly easy to destroy though. GEEMERS on the other hand, 
are a bit tougher. You'll find a Geemer above you, crawling around the 
ledge on your right, opposite to the waterfall. Geemers are variants of 
the Zoomer, but are invulnerable to any type of beam weapon except for 
missiles and the late-game Plasma Beam. Lastly, scan the mushrooms 
growing in the corners of the waterfall pond. These are BLASTCAPS, which 
can be shot to reveal pickups. Blastcaps are poisonous though, so after 
you shoot one wait for the toxic gas to disperse before you approach. 
Keep walking towards the half-pipe-shaped rock formation past the 
overhanging bridge. Kill the two Beetles that attack, and then continue 
to the blue door.

The tunnel ahead takes you to a transport. You can easily destroy the 
Zoomers crawling around here by shooting the Sap Sacs nearby. Head 
through the door at the end. This, your first transport, will take you 
to the Chozo Ruins. Scan the bird-shaped control panel and then step 
into the elevator's hologram to ride upward. 

The Chozo Ruins area was once home to the very beings that raised Samus 
as a child. The Tallon Chozo are now extinct, but their crumbling ruins 
are filled with clues and lore as to what led to their demise, and how 
they existed before their way of life was brought to an abrupt end. Walk 
through the next two doors until you reach the Ruins Entrance. There are 
Beetles here to kill. Also, if you have the hint system option turned 
on, you'll get a notification now about strange seismic activity 
occurring deeper within the ruins, in a room called the Hive Totem. That 
is your next destination. Before leaving through the door up ahead, scan 
the shimmering section of wall above it. These weird symbols are pieces 
of Chozo Lore, entries in your Log Book. This piece is Chozo Lore: 
FOUNTAIN. The Chozo Lore pieces each tell a part of the Chozo's story. 
You'll find more as you explore deeper into Tallon IV.

After the introductory cinematic in the Main Plaza, step down into the 
clearing and eliminate the dozen or so Beetles that pop up. The Main 
Plaza connects many sections of the Chozo Ruins together, with many 
doors leading to and from the room. The door you should be interested in 
right now is the far left door at the back of the room. Cross the half-
pipe configuration and head up the steps, and then turn left to find 
your door. You should now be in a tunnel called the Nursery Access. 
After the turn, check out the swarm of insects crawling towards you. 
SCARABS are common throughout the tunnels of the Chozo Ruins, and can be 
quite a nuisance. Like Parasites, they travel in swarms, but differ in 
that they will eventually stop moving to try and block your path. If you 
get too close to them, they explode. Kill them all before proceeding. 
The next tunnel, Eyon Tunnel, is named after its inhabitants: EYONS. 
These organisms look like eyes attacked to the wall. They can 
concentrate energy in the form of a laser beam and shoot it at anything 
in their line of sight. Eyons can't be destroyed without the Charge 
Beam, but you can shut them for a few seconds by simply shooting them. 
After you get past them, head to the next room.

The Ruined Nursery has a Save Station right next to it, but you'll need 
to find a way up to it before you can use it. First, scan the Chozo Lore 
on the opposite wall (EXODUS). To get up on the ledge on your right, 
head to the back of the room and use the steps from there, taking out 
the two Beetles along the way. At the blue door, turn back towards the 
room's center and scan the yellow structures on the ceiling and opposite 
wall. These are HIVES, which are homes to vicious WAR WASPS. The wasps 
will attack you as soon as you get up onto the ledge. Shoot them quickly 
before they attack. They'll hover near you, and then swoop in for a 
ramming attack. You can also use missiles to destroy the Hives before 
the wasps emerge; that way you'll prevent any of them from appearing. 
So, from the blue door, jump to the ledge on the right wall (the wall 
opposite of the entrance door) and locate the door leading to a Save 
Station. Use it, then head back out and go through the other blue door.

You'll be interrupted by a swarm of Scarabs as you pass through the next 
small room, the North Atrium. Kill the swarm, and then proceed to the 
next room. The Ruined Gallery is another Hive infested room. First, take 
out the War Wasps. Then, scan below for a new entry. TANGLE WEED is the 
grassy stuff. Ignore it for now, and make your way across the ledges on 
the right side of the room to the other side where a door is. Head on 
through. 

The path in the Totem Access slopes downwards, patrolled by new 
creatures called PLAZMITES. These fireflies are relatively harmless, and 
are actually beneficial in some areas. Because of the light they emit, 
they can sometimes be your only means of seeing where you're going, so 
shooting them would leave you in the dark. This isn't really a problem 
here, but you should still watch your step when you go through the room. 
The water in the Chozo Ruins is being polluted by an unknown source, and 
its toxicity levels are high enough so that you'll take damage from 
contact with it. The crate in the middle of the room can be opened with 
the Power Beam to reveal pickups. You'll see more of that Tangle Weed 
stuff too. It's harmless, but you'll be slowed down if you try walking 
through it. Anyway, there's a door at the far end of the room that you 
should now head through.

Your goal is reached, for you are now in the Hive Totem. You aren't out 
of danger yet though. Head to the center structure of this slanted room, 
accessed by steps made by collapsed rubble near the toxic water. 
Downhill, to your left, is a metal bridge that spans the toxic pond to a 
glowing item. This is you first power-up, but you'll have to fight for 
it. Once you try and cross the bridge, a cut-scene will interrupt and 
your first mini-boss battle will commence. The large machine above the 
power-up lowers to block your path across the bridge, while the Chozo 
statues to either side of the bridge begin to spill green water into the 
room, trapping you on top of the center island. While the HIVE MECHA 
isn't really a boss, you only get one chance to scan it. Got that? Only 
one chance. Point your scanner below the water level and look for the 
red scan symbol. The Hive Mecha is a mechanical wasp hive designed to 
interact with hive dwellers. This unit houses a nasty new breed of War 
Wasp, the RAM WAR WASPS. When the battle starts, the Hive Mecha will 
release several of these red insects, which will begin to zoom around 
you at high speeds. Make sure to scan one, because like the Mecha 
itself, these only appear this one time. Don't bother trying to get a 
lock on a circling War Wasp. Instead, study your radar and wait for one 
of the yellow dots to stop moving. When one does, look for the hovering 
War Wasp and blast it out of the air before it strikes. When all of the 
wasps have been eliminated, the Hive Mecha will reveal a weak spot. 
Target this red area and give it a few shots of the Power Beam until the 
Hive Mecha closes itself and rotates. The cycle will need to be repeated 
two more times. More wasps will be released each time you damage the 
Hive Mecha. After the third cycle, the Mecha will surrender its captured 
power-up and the water level will recede to normal. Cross the bridge and 
collect the MISSILE LAUNCHER. 

Your trusty missiles will allow you to open the door ahead of you, 
sealed with a MISSILE DOOR LOCK blast shield. Scan the shield first, and 
then blow it apart with a missile. The small chamber beyond contains 
your first ENERGY TANK, which restores all of your energy and increases 
your maximum health capacity by 100. You can also bust up some crates in 
the room to collect Missile Ammo. There is nothing else you can do here 
now, but do take note of that tunnel in the back of the room. Now return 
to the Ruined Gallery.

Destroy the wasp Hive as soon as you enter the gallery. Now, jump down 
to the room's lower level, but don't touch the water. Turn around and 
shoot the Blastcaps, and then fire a missile at the cracked section of 
the wall across the small pond. The wall will crumble and reveal a space 
containing a MISSILE EXPANSION. These items allow you to carry five 
extra missiles. There are 49 expansions in the game, meaning you'll end 
up with a maximum capacity of 250 for the Missile Launcher (the launcher 
itself also provided five of those missiles). Jump back across to solid 
ground and head for the back of the room's lower section. You'll find 
another door with a Missile Door Lock to your right. Bring it down and 
enter to download the Chozo Ruins map via the Map Station. After that's 
done, climb back up to the upper ledges and take the door back to the 
Ruined Nursery. Once you get there, use the Save Station nearby.

=============

Chapter 3: The Morph Ball.

=============

After saving, backtrack to the Main Plaza. Defeat any Beetle opposition 
and head down to the clearing in front of the tree, where the main 
Beetle population lives. Across from the tree is a door covered by a 
Missile Door Lock. Blast it to bits and enter the exposed doorway. The 
tunnel beyond is crawling with Scarabs, as expected. There are in fact 
two swarms that you have to fight through. The door at the end of this 
tunnel takes you to the resting place of your next power-up (that was 
quick, wasn't it?), the coveted Morph Ball.

Climb over the formation ahead of you and hop down into the clearing. 
The Morph Ball in the back of the room is sitting there waiting for you, 
but as soon as you approach it, a wall will rise up from the ground and 
deny you access. At that point, you'll be ambushed by a huge colony of 
vicious Beetles. You can't turn back now, so the only way to make it out 
alive with the Morph Ball is to fight this wave of Beetles. Try to keep 
moving and always stay locked on to a target. Don't think twice about 
using missiles if you can get the Beetles in a cluster, but don't get 
too carried away with them either. A lot of them will drop health, so 
collect that when you can. After you've decorated the floor with every 
last Beetle's guts, the ground will rumble and a new breed of nasty will 
surface from the ground. The angry PLATED BEETLE is another mini-boss. 
Scan it now if you wish, but don't worry if you forget; unlike the Hive 
Mecha, there will be plenty more of these baddies to fight later in the 
game. So how do you fight it? Frontal attacks are useless against the 
Plated Beetle because of the hard shell around its head. The only way to 
damage the bug is to shoot its red backside, but the beetle will always 
do its best to be facing you so that its weakness isn't exposed. The 
only time you can damage it is when it charges. Get reasonably close to 
the bug and wait as it shuffles from side to side. Watch for its 
antennae to twitch, and then dash out of the way. As the beetle charges 
past you, make sure you maintain your lock on it and fire a missile when 
you see its red rear. Whenever the Plated Beetle is about to charge, it 
will twitch its antennae and make a loud shriek. If you run out of 
missiles, pelt it with Power Beam shots when it exposes its weak spot. 
Repeat this process until the beetle dies. Claim your MORPH BALL prize 
after the battle and then use it to exit the room, through the small 
tunnel in the rock structure.

The Morph Ball, in combination with the Missile Launcher, will allow you 
access to new places in Tallon IV. The Morph Ball itself is neat, but 
you're still defenseless with it until you reclaim its explosives. 
Before we get to that though, it's a good idea to collect expansions 
that you previously couldn't get without the two aforementioned power-
ups. 

Go back to the Ruined Nursery and use the Save Station. From here, go 
back to the empty Hive Totem and enter the small room behind the bridge. 
Remember the hole in the back of the room? Roll into Morph Ball mode and 
enter the new path. Navigate through the small maze of pistons and to 
the other side of the tunnel, where you'll be dropped off at a new 
elevator, which leads to a new area known as the Magmoor Caverns. 
Without the Varia Suit, you won't survive long after taking the 
elevator, so ignore it for the moment and use the door on your right. 

The small Vault Access has a piston in the corner that will lift you up 
to a new Morph Ball tunnel. Roll through the set of pipe lines and 
eventually you'll end up at the Vault. There's a large cage in the 
middle of the room that blocks off an expansion, but you need Morph Ball 
Bombs to get that. You can still scan for Chozo Lore: BEGINNINGS, 
though. Use the door on the other side of the room and kill the Beetles 
within the following room, the Plaza Access. The door at the end takes 
you to a part of the Main Plaza that you can't reach from the other 
side, and resting on the ledge is an ENERGY TANK. 

After that's all done, head all the way back to the Tallon Overworld 
area. Reenter it by using the lift on the other side of the Main Plaza 
and Ruins Entrance. Once you get there, stop at the Tallon Canyon. When 
you clear the area of enemies, turn towards the waterfall and hop onto 
the rocks that the Zoomers were crawling on. Climb upwards and then turn 
to face the platform where the Geemer lives. Kill it using a missile, 
and then hop across. From there, turn right and cross the bridge, then 
enter the doorway ahead of you. 

This next cavern is home to a new enemy, a BLOODFLOWER. To kill this 
plant, wait until it hurls a green spore at you. You can target the 
spore and shoot it, which will cause it to bounce back at the 
Bloodflower, killing it. This Bloodflower in particular is easy to kill 
alternatively by hitting the Sap Sacs above it, which will incinerate 
the flower when exploded. Make your way to the other side, avoiding the 
water (it's clean, but it slows you down and prevents you from jumping 
high). Blast the door with a missile and enter the next room.

The Root Cave is huge. Jump or drop down to the very bottom of the 
shaft. There's a Beetle nest down here, so watch out. Fight or flight, 
and head for the door that's down here. This takes you to yet another 
Transport Tunnel, but it leads to the same area as the one back up in 
the Chozo Ruins, so you should wait to take this elevator until you've 
acquired the Varia Suit. You can still grab the MISSILE EXPANSION 
beneath the steamy bridge though, avoiding the sneaky Zoomers as you do 
so. After you grab that, turn back to the Root Cave and climb back up to 
the top using the platforms and tree formations (again, avoid those 
Zoomers). Return to your Gunship at the Landing Site.

You can collect another MISSILE EXPANSION by using the Morph Ball to 
roll underneath the small hole behind your ship. You may want to shoot 
the Tangle Weed down before that so that you can roll through at normal 
speed. Now, go to the other end of the Landing Site. Wade into the small 
pond and locate the cavern to the left of the waterfall. You can also 
get there by rolling into a hidden tunnel along the left side of the 
room, from your ship's point of view. Either way, you should end up 
looking at a new doorway. 

The Waterfall Cavern is home to a few Blastcaps, but nothing too 
threatening. Roll under the rock obstruction blocking your way and exit 
by using a missile on the door on the other side. Prepare your Scan 
Visor before stepping through to the Frigate Crash Site.

The huge clearing that is the Frigate Crash Site is separated down the 
middle by a large pond. You can't cross this pond yet, but you can scan 
one of the two creatures up ahead on the shoreline, guarding a ruptured 
crate. These are jetpack-equipped FLYING PIRATES. Flying Pirates are 
actually very dangerous, and right now they're way out of your league. 
Luckily, these two will flee once they see you, but try to scan them 
before they escape. The reason you'll want to scan them now is because 
when you next fight them, you'll want to devote all of your efforts into 
actually fighting them, not scanning them. They're that deadly. After 
you've spooked them off, turn back towards the Landing Site. There is 
nothing more you can do at the Frigate Crash Site, but if you're 
determined to explore it some more, stay away from the crate that the 
pirates were guarding. It's oozing deadly Phazon, a blue substance that 
will cause heavy radiation damage if you touch it.

From the Landing Site, return to your ship to get your bearings. Facing 
forward from the front of it, and look for a set of mossy stone steps 
above the entrance to the Waterfall Cavern. These lead to a path behind 
the waterfall, and eventually to another blue door. Climb and walk this 
path until you're at the door. Beyond it, scan one of the three new 
creatures crawling on the ceiling. SEEDLINGS are very similar in 
behavior to Zoomers, but they are a bit more aggressive and have the 
ability to launch their spikes at you. Kill them and then shoot the 
Tangle Weed out of your way so you can cross to the next doorway.

After the Temple Hall are the Temple Security Station and the Temple 
Lobby. The lobby is merely an empty tunnel, but the security station 
contains a hologram of some Pirate Data (ARTIFACT SITE) and a Missile 
Door Lock blocking you way. You'll also be shown a short cinematic 
introducing you to the Impact Crater. This is the game's final area, but 
you aren't actually in it right now. This is just the gateway to the 
crater. After passing through the Temple Lobby, you'll be inside the 
Chozo's sacred Artifact Temple.

The Chozo built the Artifact Temple directly over the Impact Crater. It 
was designed to contain a great evil within the crater, and keep out 
anyone who would want to exploit that evil, like the Space Pirates. The 
only way through the temple's ancient seal and to the game's final area 
is by collecting the twelve Chozo Artifacts that act as keys to unlock 
the seal. At the large window up ahead, turn to either side and scan the 
Chozo Lore entries along the far walls: STATUARY and BINDING. The right 
path is blocked by rubble, so turn left and take the path down to the 
outside area of the Artifact Temple. You'll find the first Chozo 
Artifact at the base of the Artifact Temple's central pillar, the 
ARTIFACT OF TRUTH. After you collect it, seven of the pillars around the 
room will activate and allow you to scan them. These pillars provide 
clues as to the whereabouts of the other Chozo Artifacts. Note that when 
you scan a clue, it registers as a Log Book entry. This is misleading; 
the Artifact section in your Log Book doesn't need to be scanned in 
order for the Log Book to be completed. You just need to find them all. 
Still, if you don't know what you're doing, it's a good idea to scan the 
clues to help you during your quest to collect the artifacts. After 
you're done, return to your ship and save your game.

=============

Chapter 4: Toxins at the Ruins.

=============

The Morph Ball is crucial to a bounty hunter who needs to explore every 
last corner of Tallon IV, but you still need a way to defend yourself 
whilst using it. The Morph Ball Bombs fill that void, so it's important 
that you track them down as quickly as possible. Additionally, it's 
about time we return to the Chozo Ruins and clean up the polluted water 
supply, and then find a way through Magmoor Caverns' crushing heat. With 
your Arm Cannon raised, and Scan Visor at the ready, be prepared to take 
down the greater evils that lurk within the Chozo Ruins. It all starts 
at the Main Plaza.

At the back of the Main Plaza, there's a set of steps that lead up and 
around to the left and across the bridge. Watch out for the gap over the 
entrance to the Nursery Access. The bridge is patrolled by a lone War 
Wasp. If it notices you, it will retreat into its Hive at the other end 
of the bridge. More wasps will attack if you try to cross the bridge, so 
shoot the Hives from afar and eliminate the scout. On the other side of 
the bridge, use the door on your right. Use the Morph Ball to make it 
across this winding tunnel, which is blocked in some parts by fallen 
tree branches. Try to roll fast enough so that you can zip by the 
Scarabs before they drop from the ceiling. This tunnel leads to the 
Ruined Fountain.

The Ruined Fountain was clearly named after the stone fountain in the 
back of the room, which is currently spewing sickly green water into the 
air. You will also see Chozo Lore: HATCHLING behind the fountain, and 
several Plazmites flittering through the air. This room is fairly dark, 
and you won't be able to see very well of you gun down all of the 
Plazmites, so keep them alive. You'll need the visibility to get through 
the flooded portion of the room. From where you entered, you'll want to 
reach the door on the left wall, not the one up ahead and to the left 
behind the fountain. To get across, use the stones along the right side 
of the room to get to the back. Avoid the fountain's plagued water and 
jump over to the platform with the desired door. When you reach the 
door, head through and equip your Scan Visor. Turn the corner and 
quickly scan one of the SHRIEKBATS flying at you. These flying creatures 
usually hang from ceilings, but are very territorial. When you approach 
their roosting site, they'll dive-bomb you in a kamikaze fashion, 
accompanied by the high-pitched shriek that earned them their name. Turn 
another corner and open the next door with a missile.

The grand Arboretum contains a large amount of vile water, and a huge 
tree growing right in the middle of the room. Use the platforms around 
the tree to get to the other side safely. Turn left from the door and 
scan the vine-like plant swinging its scythe at you. REAPER VINES grow 
from crevices in the wall and are only dangerous if you get too close to 
them. Just stay out of reach of its deadly blade and you'll never get 
hurt. In instances where you must get past them in order to proceed 
however (like now), just target the vine's eye and shoot it. It will 
retract into its crevice for a few seconds. Only with the Plasma Beam 
can you actually destroy a Reaper Vine. Anyway, shoot down the first two 
and jump onto the platforms in the water. Hop up to the platforms 
surrounding the tree to get to a wooden bridge. Cross the bridge and 
turn left. There are more Reaper Vines growing down this sloped path, 
but you can roll safely past them with the Morph Ball. Use a missile on 
the door down here and go through this next small passage.

This next room is the Gathering Hall. To your right is a path that leads 
to a Save Station, behind the Missile Door Lock. After saving, enter the 
door opposite to the Save Station door, fighting off the Shriekbats and 
Blastcaps in your way. Turn the corner at the Watery Hall Access room 
and shoot down more Shriekbats. At the bottom of the sloped path, just 
about at water level, there's a section of the left wall that's weak 
enough to blast through with a missile. Expose and grab the MISSILE 
EXPANSION behind it, and then continue through to the Watery Hall 
(beware of more Shriekbats as you turn the last corner, and use a 
missile to open the door). 

The Watery Hall is a quick detour, but a highly valuable one at that. To 
your left is a platform with Blastcaps on it. Shoot them and step onto 
the platform. Turn around and scan the symbol on the wall above the 
drainage pipe. There are three more runic symbols in this room that need 
to be activated in order to gain access to your next power-up. Hop 
across to where the Reaper Vine is, shoot it and proceed. Shoot all of 
the Blastcaps on the next long platform and scan the runic symbol 
beneath them. Keep crossing platforms until you can go no further. There 
will be another runic symbol to scan on the wall. Now head back to the 
beginning of the room. Notice the suspended platforms that lead up above 
ground level. Make your way across them, fighting off Reaper Vines as 
you go, until you reach a metal gate with the four runic symbols on it. 
Three of them should be lit up, representing the three you've already 
activated. To your right is the fourth. Scan it and a fifth will be 
revealed on the gate. Scan it to open the gate and gain access to the 
area beyond. Up ahead, grab the CHARGE BEAM and scan Chozo Lore: METEOR 
STRIKE. The Charge Beam is nothing new to you; it lets you charge your 
beam weapons for a more powerful shot. Also, keep in mind that while 
you're charging your shot, the energy from your Arm Cannon will draw in 
any pickups lingering in the air. Use the Charge Beam whenever pickups 
are otherwise out of your reach. Most importantly (at the moment 
anyway), you can now destroy Eyons with a charged shot. Once you collect 
the Charge Beam, six previously-dormant Eyons will trap you inside. 
Destroy them all and head back to the Gathering Hall. 

Now, about those Morph Ball Bombs. Starting from the Save Station at the 
Gathering Hall, face the left door to the Arboretum but jump up onto the 
platform directly above it. Hop platforms as you go around the room, 
shooting Shriekbats and Blastcaps when necessary. When you get to the 
opposite corner (above the Watery Hall Access door), turn around and 
jump onto the platform on the wall behind you, further up. Make sure you 
clear off all of the Blastcaps before hopping over. On the wall ahead is 
a small hole that loops around to the center platform. Kill the 
Shriekbats that swoop down from the opposite doorway, and then jump over 
to the door.

Blast the Shriekbats in the next room and head through the next door. 
Now you will be in a tunnel with a few more Eyons to deal with. Also 
notice the raised section of the tunnel with a sealed Morph Ball tunnel. 
It will provide a shortcut on your way back through the tunnel, so that 
you don't have to mess around with the Eyons. You will now reach the 
next large room, the Energy Core. 

After you defeat the Shriekbat horde, scan the door with the weird lock 
on it, on the opposite end of the room. This is a LOCKED DOOR system, 
and no weapon you have can break the lock. Once you clear the room of 
enemies or accomplish a certain task, the Locked Doors will remove 
themselves from the door they were sealing. Since you can't reach it 
anyway, turn and head down the left wing of the room. Avoid any water 
puddles and Shriekbat attacks. You'll find a Morph Ball tunnel at the 
end of the wing. At the end of this tunnel is the door to the Burn Dome.

Prepare for battle! The Burn Dome is home to a malfunctioning disposal 
unit known as the INCINERATOR DRONE. Like the Hive Mecha, this mini-boss 
is one-of-a-kind, so definitely take a few moments to download its Log 
Book entry. Also like the Hive Mecha, the Incinerator Drone fights 
alongside a unique breed of War Wasp, but very much unlike the Hive 
Mecha, this drone is quite capable of defending itself without the 
wasps. It will attack you by spouting a jet of flames from the two 
nozzles it has on either side. The drone rotates slowly, so just lock on 
and strafe to avoid the flames, or jump over them if you must. The drone 
is invulnerable until it reveals its weak spot, a red light from the top 
of its 'head'. When it raises its head, target the red spot and blast 
away. When the drone takes damage, it will send a jet of flames upwards, 
right into the large War Wasp Hive. As you can imagine, this will anger 
its inhabitants, the BARBED WAR WASPS. While not as numerous as the Ram 
War Wasps, this species has the ability to launch its poisonous stingers 
at you, and then regenerate them for additional barrages. Also, they'll 
appear constantly from their damaged Hive, not just when the drone takes 
damage. As the battle progresses, the Incinerator Drone will get more 
creative with its flamethrowers. It will sometimes spew its flames at an 
angle, preventing you from jumping over to avoid the damage. Just blast 
wasps and avoid the fire as best you can while you wait for the drone to 
reveal its head. Damage the head about three or four times and you'll 
win the battle. Afterwards, the drone will send a final jet of flames at 
the Hive (destroying it) and then self-destruct. The power-up it leaves 
behind is the MORPH BALL BOMB. Now your balls will do some damage. 

Your acquisition of the Morph Ball Bomb upgrade paves the way for new 
opportunity; you can now track down the source of the ruin's polluted 
water and put an end to its filth. Before you take on whatever dangers 
await you though, it's recommended that you backtrack through the ruins 
to collect as many expansions as possible. They'll help you in the near 
future. Your bombs will help you find most of those expansions. In fact, 
there's one in this very room. Along the wall is a covered drainage 
tunnel that can be bombed open to reveal a chamber beyond. Don't worry 
about the water in the ditch; it won't touch you. Roll down the tunnel 
to the hidden chamber and grab the MISSILE EXPANSION. Now exit the Burn 
Dome, and use a bomb-jump (lay a bomb and let it propel you upwards) to 
return through the small tunnel.

When you emerge in the Energy Core, turn left immediately and locate the 
path blocked off by a large, grunting creature. This beast is a STONE 
TOAD. As ferocious as it looks with its curving tusks and large size, it 
is completely docile until you roll into a Morph Ball. When you do, 
it'll inhale you into its mouth and try to eat you. Don't worry though; 
it will spit you out soon enough. When you're in its mouth, lay a bomb 
to give it a nasty case of indigestion. Once he's out of your way, enter 
the chamber behind him. The power core machine in here is currently 
offline. On one wall, you'll find a MORPH BALL SLOT. These round holes 
energize nearby systems when you bomb them. Bomb-jump up to the Morph 
Ball Slot so that it holds you in place, and then feed power to the 
nearby machine with a bomb. As soon as the machine starts working, a 
timer will start, giving you a short amount of time to find the next 
machine. The first will drain most of the water within the Energy Core. 
Roll out to the main part of the room through the hole in the window. On 
the other side of the room, enter the second chamber and repeat the 
bombing process before the timer finishes (when the bleeps start to get 
faster, you only have a few seconds left before the toxic water refills 
the room). When you power the second machine, platforms in the main room 
will lower, allowing you to get to the third and final machine. A new 
timer will start to tick as well. Climb up to the room's entrance and 
then turn around to cross the platforms to the hallway that they lead 
to. Fallow the path to the last machine, and give it power. A second set 
of platforms will descend from the ceiling and make a path to the Locked 
Door, which now unlocks itself. Head back to the main area (at your own 
pace, since the timer has stopped) and use the platforms to get to the 
doorway.

Go through this winding passage to reach the entrance to the Furnace. 
Once inside, roll into your Morph Ball and use the small tunnel. When 
you return with the Spider Ball upgrade, you can explore the rest of the 
furnace by climbing that magnetic rail system. At the end of the tunnel, 
you'll be rewarded with an ENERGY TANK within the Furnace chamber. Now, 
return to the Gathering Hall. Remember, if you want to avoid those Eyons 
in the Energy Core Access, use your bombs to expose the tunnel that runs 
underneath the floor.

Where to now? How about the Watery Hall? Once you get there, climb up to 
the area where you found the Charge Beam and the Eyons. Along the wall 
closest to the entrance, next to an Eyon, you'll find a covered hole, 
just like the one back at the Burn Dome. Bomb it open, and then travel 
through the next set of tunnels until you get to the Dynamo. On the way, 
you'll have to bust down two Missile Door Locks. At the Dynamo, fire a 
missile and the metal covering on the wall to reveal the caged MISSILE 
EXPANSION. Now, head all the way back to the Ruined Shrine, where you 
fought the Plated Beetle. Save and heal at the Gathering Hall if you 
wish.

When you get to the Ruined Shrine, face the back of the room. On the 
right wall is a discolored patch of rock that conceals yet another 
tunnel. Break it with your bombs and collect the MISSILE EXPANSION. 
Watch out for the angry Beetles that still dwell within the shrine. Now 
head to the Ruined Nursery. 

When you get to the Ruined Nursery, notice that along the wall that you 
entered from is some sort of maze. Roll in to Morph Ball form and bomb-
jump to get into the lower section of the maze. You won't make it very 
far in from here, but you can use your bombs to dislodge a sandstone 
block that will cause the metal block above it to fall into place, 
clearing the upper path. Now head to the top entrance to the maze, from 
the upper ledge of the room. Make your way through the maze, dislodging 
the lighter-colored blocks in order to get through. Hopefully you killed 
the War Wasps before going into the wall, or otherwise they'll make your 
job painful as you go. At the end of the maze is a MISSILE EXPANSION. 
Now move on to the Ruined Gallery. 

Eliminate the War Wasps and drop down to ground level. On the right side 
of the room (directly opposite from the door leading to the Map Station) 
is an elevated hole in the wall, just large enough for your Morph Ball 
to roll through. If you check your map you can see that the hole goes 
around back behind the wall and loops back to another hole a little 
farther up. Bomb-jump into the tunnel, and then roll through to get the 
MISSILE EXPANSION. 

Continue through this area of the Chozo Ruins and take the path you took 
before to reach the Vault (go to the Hive Totem and through the door 
where you got your first Energy Tank, then roll through the tunnel until 
you reach the lift. Don't use the lift, but take the door on your right 
and travel through the Morph Ball tunnel). 

The cage in the Vault can be lifted with the Morph Ball Bombs, by using 
the blue circular slots on the opposite side of the structure. These act 
similarly to Morph Ball Slots. Roll into all three slots and use a bomb 
to unlock each one. Of course, to complicate things, they've positioned 
the slots at varying heights and put metal covers on the lower two. Use 
an extra bomb to blow the cover off of the lowest slot, and then bomb 
the inside. Now, position yourself underneath the second slot and bomb-
jump up to it. When you reach the top of your ascent (just about level 
with the slot), plant a second bomb to blow off the cover. Now bomb-jump 
into the slot and energize it like you did the first. The third slot has 
no metal cover, but its height makes it the trickiest to unlock. You 
need to perform a double-bomb-jump in order to reach it, which requires 
some skill and coordination. First, drop a bomb. Right when it is about 
to detonate, drop a second bomb. The first bomb will propel you into the 
air. Drop your third bomb at the peak of your ascent. When you fall back 
to the ground, the second bomb should blast you back upwards, right into 
the third bomb. Now, if you timed it right, you'll fly even higher up, 
enough so that you can enter the final slot and raise the cage. Grab the 
MISSILE EXPANSION, and then return to the Gathering Hall to save. 

By now you should have all 55 missiles and three Energy Tanks that you 
can obtain at this point. From the Gathering Hall, go to the nearby 
Arboretum, the room with the Reaper Vines and the huge tree. The door to 
the Sunchamber is high up in the room, but there's a metal gate that 
will prevent you from using it. This gate is controlled by four runic 
symbols, just like the Watery Hall gate. The symbols are hidden 
throughout the room. First off, go to the wooden bridge on your left, 
and then hop down a platform or two. Look downwards and find the 
platform overgrown with what looks like red Tangle Weed. Shoot the weeds 
out of the way and scan the symbol concealed beneath them. The second 
symbol is on the tree itself, right above the bridge. Now, while facing 
away from the tree when you're on the bridge, turn right and climb up 
along the ledge. War Wasps who've nested on the great tree will 
occasionally emerge to attack. Try to eliminate their Hives before they 
can emerge. Pretty soon, the ledge will get too small for you to walk 
on. Roll into the Morph Ball and slip through the crevice, bombing the 
sandstone blocks in your way. When you emerge from the crevice, scan the 
third runic symbol up ahead by the steps. Climb up these steps and then 
get ready to roll through another crevice. This one is blocked by more 
of that red Tangle Weed, or VENOM WEED, to be more appropriate. Venom 
Weed will hurt you if you touch it, so get it out of the way before 
rolling through. Hop up the steps afterwards and then turn around to 
jump to the platform behind you. Jump over the small bridge and to the 
ledge with the locked runic gate. The final symbol is on the tree behind 
you. With the gate out of the way, use a bomb and a missile to get to 
the next set of rooms.

The next two rooms are the Sunchamber Lobby and the Sunchamber Access. 
Both are small passages filled with Venom Weed and Reaper Vines. Once 
you make it past them, head into the Sunchamber. Once you step inside, 
there will be no turning back.

The boss of the Chozo Ruins is a monstrous weed known as FLAAHGRA. When 
you enter its lair, vines will grow over the door, trapping you inside. 
After you scan Flaahgra, scan one of its spiny tentacles. The FLAAHGRA 
TENTACLES are treated as separate Log Book entries, and like Flaahgra 
itself, they can only be scanned during this battle. Flaahgra is 
unharmed by any form of attack, but you can momentarily stun the 
creature after enough punishment from the Power Beam or Missile 
Launcher. Flaahgra receives energy from one of the solar arrays in the 
room. If you alter the direction of the sunlight by altering the array 
itself, you'll cut Flaahgra's source of power and expose its weakness. 
After smacking Flaahgra around with missiles find the solar array that's 
shining light onto Flaahgra's body and fire shots at the red dot. The 
dish will flip upwards, cutting Flaahgra's solar supply. The great plant 
will momentarily faint and retract its tentacles from the four channels 
around its pool that connect to Flaahgra's base. Roll up into the Morph 
Ball and activate the Morph Ball Slot at the end of the channel before 
Flaahgra wakes up. This will drop Flaahgra's health by a quarter. Now, 
two solar arrays will flip down and revive Flaahgra. You need to repeat 
the process again, only this time you need to take out both of the 
arrays before Flaahgra faints. You'll want to keep stunning Flaahgra as 
well, because it won't take too kindly to you when you start flipping 
the arrays up, and will try to flip them back down. After both arrays 
are flipped, enter one of the three remaining Morph Ball channels and 
bomb the next slot. Afterwards, rinse and repeat, this time flipping 
three arrays before the boss faints. On round four, all four arrays in 
the room will be reflecting light onto Flaahgra. Things get complicated 
here, because you don't have a lot of time while Flaahgra is stunned to 
flip up solar arrays. Stun it when necessary until all four arrays are 
out of commission. Locate the last remaining channel and deliver the 
final bombing blow to the vile boss of the Chozo Ruins. But wait, what 
about Flaahgra itself? It isn't just going to sit and look pretty 
throughout the battle as you try and kill it. It has a few attacks of 
its own, but nothing too deadly until the damage starts to add up. It 
can fire blasts of concentrated solar energy at you from afar, or cut 
you down with its mantis-like scythes if you get too close. Flaahgra 
also has the ability to produce a wall of poisonous vegetation. It uses 
this trick to block you off from any pickups that appear. Also, don't 
get too close to the tentacles, or else they'll slap you around, and 
don't touch the water surrounding Flaahgra, for it is as poisonous as 
ever.

After Flaahgra has wilted into nothingness, the entire water supply 
throughout the Chozo Ruins will purify. The vines blocking the door to 
the Sunchamber Access will remain however, until you have to come back 
later. To get out, use the Locked Door on the other side. To unlock it, 
simply collect your new reward, the VARIA SUIT. Now you can survive in 
areas with high temperatures, like Magmoor Caverns. 

=============

Chapter 5: Fire and Ice.

=============

The time has come to leave the Chozo Ruins behind and explore new areas 
in Tallon IV, each more exciting but more dangerous than the last. The 
road to your next power-up is through the Magmoor Caverns, and the 
quickest way to it is the Transport to Magmoor Caverns North elevator, 
not more than three rooms away from the Sunchamber. Alternatively, you 
can also use the transport by the Root Cave in the Tallon Overworld, but 
who wants to go all the way over there right now? Not me.

The room following the Sunchamber is the Sun Tower Access. It's a fairly 
quiet room, and a small one at that. The first part of the room is empty 
of any wildlife save the Tangle Weed at the far end. Because the water 
here is no longer toxic, you can wade through it in safety. Past the 
Tangle Weed, you'll find a passage on your right that leads to the end 
of the room. The first portion of the passage is blocked off by a stack 
of crates. Blow them open to reveal a mass of pickups inside. Whenever 
you defeat a boss, you'll usually find a great quantity of pickups right 
afterwards to recuperate from the battle. Among the Missile Ammo, you 
should also find a new pickup, ULTRA ENERGY. These yellow units are the 
best healers, restoring one full Energy Tank's worth of health (100 
health points). Scan one, and then continue. 

At the end of the Sun Tower Access, you'll find a new enemy. Scan it. 
This is a PULSE BOMBU, an energy-based life form that hovers in the air, 
dropping charged blasts of energy on anything below it. Because they are 
made of pure energy, they constantly shed the excess energy in the form 
of these blasts. This also means that your current weaponry is useless 
against them. There are only two ways to kill a Pulse Bombu: the Wave 
Beam, and water. Currently, you have no Wave Beam, but if you shelter 
some deep hatred for bombus and you're determined to see the end of this 
one, let it touch the water in the beginning of the room and it will 
blow up. Bombus will attract to you if you hold your Charge Beam; you 
can lure the bombu into the water with it, if you're so inclined. Just 
don't let the thing touch you. Anyway, it's not the end of the world if 
you get hit by it once, so just avoid it and enter the Sun Tower.

The Sun Tower will be a bit more interesting on your return trip later, 
but there really isn't anything you can do in it right now except 
collect a few Log Book entries. Drop down to the very bottom and scan 
Chozo Lore: CONTAIN on the wall. There are also four Hives down here, 
and an additional new Log Book entry to scan, but it's best to deal with 
all that when you come back with the Spider Ball. Head out the door to 
Transport to Magmoor Caverns North, the lift you've been avoiding for so 
long. Use the lift to get to Magmoor Caverns, a new area.

The volcanic cave system of the Magmoor Caverns area acts like a 
crossroad between the bigger areas. While there are a few important 
items to find here, there is no boss of Magmoor Caverns, and none of 
those items are accessible until later in the game. 

The Burning Trail has a large vertical drop right after the entrance, 
just like the Sun Tower. The Varia Suit isn't necessary just yet, but 
this is about as far as you can go without it. If you try and enter any 
subsequent rooms, the crushing heat from the lava will overwhelm you and 
drain your energy quickly. If you need to climb back up the Burning 
Trail shaft, use the moving platforms. At the bottom of the drop, walk 
forward and kill the Shriekbats that attack. (And you thought you were 
through dealing with them. Don't worry; this is the only room in Magmoor 
Caverns that has them). Turn left up ahead and try to locate the door 
with the Missile Door Lock along the left wall. It can get hard to see 
down here with all the steam fogging up your visor. Save and then 
continue through the Burning Trail.

Turn right, kill the bats and then scan the bug on the platform up 
ahead, in the lava. This is a GRIZBY, a creature with a shell that can 
withstand anything you shoot at it, save missiles. Destroy it and cross 
to the other side of the lava pond. The Varia Suit can withstand the air 
temperature of Magmoor Caverns, but it won't protect you against lava or 
flame. 

Kill the two Grizbys in the next room and cross the lava by hopping from 
platform to platform. Jets of flame will spout out from the sides of the 
room every few seconds, so take care to avoid getting burned. There is 
another new creature tunneling just below the ground's surface on the 
other side. This annoying little bug is a BURROWER. The Burrower spends 
its time tunneling just below the surface. When it senses you, it will 
jump up from the ground and spit goop at you. Kill it while it's in the 
air.

The Lava Lake produces an introductory cinematic of the Magmoor Caverns. 
After the intro, a large fire serpent will rise from the lava and 
attack. MAGMOORS are the fiery predators that this area was named after. 
They're rather tough to take down, but aren't really as threatening as 
they look. Sure they can breathe fire, but they flinch every time you 
hit them with something strong. Blast it in the head with a few missiles 
and Charge Beam shots to defeat it. Now turn right and scan one of those 
green mine-like creatures floating through the air. These are PUFFERS, 
gas-filled organisms that burst when shot. They leave behind a cloud of 
noxious gas that lingers in the air for a few seconds. The gas is 
harmful, so wait for it to dissipate before approaching. Start hopping 
across platforms to get to the cave's opposite side. The floating, metal 
goblet-shaped platforms won't be able to maintain your weight, and will 
sink slowly into the lava once you're on them. Move quickly so you don't 
get caught between Puffer gas and the scalding lava. After landing on 
the first stable platform, a second Magmoor will attack. Kill it, and 
then proceed to the other side of the cavern. Head behind the crates and 
drop a Morph Ball Bomb near the rock to expose a tunnel leading to 
another chamber, which is in fact an extension to the Lava Lake. This 
latter half is also filled with Puffers. Cross the platforms here and 
head through the door.

The Pit Tunnel is blocked off by a metal structure in the center of the 
room. When you get the Space Jump Boots, you can leap over the 
obstruction, but for now you'll have to settle with rolling under the 
floor. There's a small space just before the metal portion of the floor 
that you can roll under, but scan one of the TRICLOPS before going 
through. A Triclops is a scavenging insect that usually appears in 
places where you must use the Morph Ball. They gather food in their 
powerful jaws, but won't be able to distinguish your Morph Ball from a 
tasty morsel. When rolling under the floor, drop a bomb near a Triclops 
so that it goes for that instead. If you do get caught by a Triclops, it 
will carry over to the entrance and spit you back out, causing some 
damage. Kill or avoid the trio of Triclops, and then roll out on the 
other side.

The Triclops Pit, named after the Triclops, is a very large cavern 
filled with Triclops and Puffers. When you get to the main area, shoot 
down all of the Puffers. There are a lot, including some guarding the 
path to the door (up ahead, slightly to the left), and more circling the 
rocks on your right. If you want to skip through the room, jump to the 
exit door by crossing the series of platforms. However, if you want an 
expansion, you'll have to find a way to the door on your right, which 
you probably can't see unless you draw up the map. Jump down to ground 
level onto the metal floor. Turn around to face the rock you just leapt 
from, and locate the small cavern. By the entrance, there's a tunnel 
just large enough for the Morph Ball to slip through. This takes you 
underneath the floor. Battle your way through the patrolling Triclops 
horde and head to the back right corner of the floor, behind a large 
rock. Locate the exit tunnel and roll out to find the blue door. At the 
back of the Storage Cavern, you'll find a MISSILE EXPANSION. Roll back 
through the floor, all the way to the beginning of the room. Use the 
left door to exit the Triclops Pit. Enter the Monitor Tunnel, a small 
cavern filled with Puffers. Pop them all and cross the room by using the 
moving platforms. 

Monitor Station, even larger than the Triclops Pit, is the last major 
room in Magmoor Caverns that you'll explore this time through. The large 
metal outpost up ahead is guarded by four Auto Turrets. Try to take the 
three visible turrets out from the entrance door before they notice you. 
Now, eliminate the Puffers scattered throughout the edges of the room. 
Cross over to the door on your left, but ignore it and jump over to the 
center structure. The fourth turret is up on your left. Destroy it 
before it senses you. Now jump over to the left cavern wall by using the 
floating platform, and make your way left up the ledge. At the end, turn 
away from the wall and leap over to the glass bridge running parallel to 
the station. Enter the top floor of the building, where the Space 
Pirates keep their reports on Magmoor Caverns. The metal bridge up here 
takes you to the exit door.

Transport Tunnel A takes you to the Transport to Phendrana Drifts North. 
It's easy enough to get through with your Morph Ball, if you don't plan 
on picking up the hidden Energy Tank. This tank is probably the toughest 
to secure, but they're always worth it. To reach it, you need to perform 
at least three double-bomb-jumps. As if that wasn't tricky enough, the 
locations you must jump up from are made of weakened metal blocks that 
break after being hit twice, and they're the only thing keeping you from 
falling into lava. If you mess up, you'll get burned. Start at the 
beginning of the tunnel and find the first metal block. Double-bomb-jump 
up to the hidden ledge, and roll to the left to find another double-
bomb-jump location. Jump up to the second ledge, and roll to the end. 
Perform the final double-bomb-jump to reach the ENERGY TANK. If you 
can't seem to perfect your double-bomb-jumps, try listening to the 
background music. The drum beat is timed perfectly for when you need to 
drop bombs. Follow the drum pattern, dropping bombs on beats 1, 3 and 4. 
If you do mess up and fall into the lava, use a bomb to get out. After 
you have the tank, roll through the bottom path and take the elevator to 
the icy Phendrana Drifts.

The frozen landscape and frigid temperatures of Phendrana Drifts are a 
striking contrast to the molten caverns and blazing heat of Magmoor 
Caverns. Phendrana is the site of another section of Chozo ruins, a 
Space Pirate fortress and a system of crystalline caverns deep in the 
mountains. As always, stay alert as you encounter new enemies and find 
new treasures.

Move through the Shoreline Entrance and blast the ice walls that block 
the path. The ice can be brought down with a missile or a charged beam 
shot. Step outside when you get to the Phendrana Shorelines. This winter 
wonderland is the hub of the Phendrana Drifts. It's large and it has six 
doors leading to various places, including a Save Station on the 
opposite side. Scan the creatures flying around the room. FLICKERBATS 
fly in cyclical patterns but won't bother you unless you get in their 
way or disturb them. Until you acquire the X-Ray Visor, they're 
practically invulnerable. They possess optical camouflage that renders 
them partially invisible and able to avoid your auto-targeting. This 
also makes scanning them a longer ordeal than usual. In the back of the 
room, near the Save Station, you'll find a CRYSTALLITE. Like Zoomers, 
Crystallites are content with crawling around walls and floors, doing 
their thing. They are covered in a shell of hardened ice that will deter 
all of your weapons except for missiles and the Plasma Beam (the latter 
of which you don't get until the end of the game). After saving, you'll 
want to reach the door on the right side of the room (facing away from 
the Save Station), on a ledge. The door is currently locked, so even if 
you do find a way up to it, it won't do you any good until you scan the 
control panel that unlocks it. The panel is located behind the drainage 
gate on ground level, below the door. Use a missile to take down the 
gate, and scan the panel in the back of the small chamber. Watch out for 
the Crystallite too. With the door unlocked, turn around and head to the 
opposite side of the room. You'll find a ledge on the other side of the 
Save Station that leads up to the door. Blast the Crystallites that get 
in your way as you jump over to the door.

Shoot down the ice formation in the next tunnel and scan the bombu on 
the other side. SCATTER BOMBUS, like Pulse Bombus, are made of pure 
energy and can only be defeated once you get the Wave Beam. These types 
usually block tunnels. They don't drop explosive charges like the Pulse 
Bombus do, and they don't attract to you if you charge your beam 
weapons, but they do emit three electrical energy beams that they rotate 
around them, effectively blocking the tunnel. You can slip between these 
energy tendrils using the Morph Ball. If you get close to a Scatter 
Bombu outside of Morph Ball mode, it will mess with your visor, causing 
static. Do your best to avoid the bombu and get to the end of the 
passage. There's another Scatter Bombu near the end as well.

Ice Ruins East is shaped very similarly to the Watery Hall back in the 
Chozo Ruins. The path will curve to the right, directly into an open 
clearing. Two ferocious BABY SHEEGOTHS will awaken and attack with no 
mercy. Despite being just babies, these beasts are very dangerous and 
tough to kill. The front of their bodies is immune to your attacks, and 
the only weak area they have is their back, which is covered in a layer 
of ice. To expose the fleshy backside of a Baby Sheegoth, blast off the 
icy shell by getting behind it. Like the Plated Beetle, Baby Sheegoths 
will always try and face you in order to protect their weak backsides. 
Baby Sheegoths attack by ramming you, shooting ice blasts at you, and 
freezing you with ultra-cold breath (use the B Button to free yourself 
if you get frozen). Lock on to a Baby Sheegoth and strafe or jump so 
that you face its back. Pound it with ammunition until the pink back is 
exposed, and finish it off with a missile. Anyway, you'll notice that 
the exit door is too high up to reach from ground level. Turn and climb 
the ruined structures along the outside wall. Jump over to the roof of 
the building with two Crystallites on it, and then leap from there to 
the path with an additional Crystallite pair. From here, you can reach 
the doorway.

The Plaza Walkway is home to a group of ICE BURROWERS. Scan them 
immediately, because this is the one room you can find them in, and 
they'll disappear from the game forever shortly. They look and behave 
identically to regular Burrowers, and are defeated in the same manner. 
Take the door at the end to a new portion of the Phendrana Shorelines. 
Walk up the snowy path and enter the next room. This leads to Ice Ruins 
West. Avoid the three Pulse Bombus as you cross.

Ice Ruins West is not all that different from its eastern counterpart, 
in both appearance and predatory inhabitants. Contend with the pair of 
Baby Sheegoths first and head to the very back right corner of the room, 
where you'll find a door with a blast shield. Unlock it with a missile 
and proceed. You can explore the rest of the room when you come back 
with better equipment. Continue through the Canyon Entryway and avoid 
the Scatter Bombus.

Enter the Phendrana Canyon. Hop down to the bridge below and turn around 
to scan the piece of Chozo Lore behind the crates, THE TURNED. Below the 
bridge you are on is a Baby Sheegoth. Hop down to kill the beastie, and 
then walk forward to the edge of the ice canyon. Just before it, locate 
the blue control panel next to a Crystallite. The panel, when scanned, 
will align the platforms in the canyons so that you can cross to the 
tower on the other side. Jump from platform to platform to reach the 
tower, but move quickly because the platforms crumble after a few 
seconds (if you need to restart, scan the blue panel again to realign 
the platforms). At the base of the tower you'll find the BOOST BALL, 
your first completely new power-up. While in the Morph Ball, charge the 
Boost Ball with the B Button and release to gain a burst of speed. You 
can travel quicker with it, and use the half-pipe configurations that 
you've been seeing all over the place. To escape, you'll have to test 
out your new toy. Boost up onto the side of the canyon and use the 
accumulated momentum to reach the right edge of the half-pipe. Follow 
the path back to the entrance, and head back to the Phendrana 
Shorelines. As you step out onto the ledge, Meta Ridley will fly 
overhead....

=============

Chapter 6: High Waves.

=============

Our next stop is back in the Tallon Overworld. You need to return to 
Magmoor Caverns the same way you came out, via Transport to Magmoor 
Caverns West. After taking the elevator to the land of fire, enter the 
Monitor Station and destroy the four perimeter defense turrets. Now head 
down to the door on the lower wall opposite to the door leading to 
Phendrana. This path is a shortcut back to Tallon Overworld. Walk across 
the glass bridge in the Shore Tunnel and enter a cave called Fiery 
Shores. 

Here, you need to hop across the lava pit and avoid the flame jets 
coming from the ceiling. When the jets aren't shooting flames, jump 
across the pit to the larger part of the room. Kill the Magmoor in the 
lava and jump over to the rock with the lone Triclops. In order to get 
through the room safely, you need to roll through the small tunnel in 
the wall, which will dump you further ahead, past the lava. The only 
danger in doing this is the Triclops. If it grabs you, the mean little 
creature will spit you into the lava. Do him in and then use the tunnel. 
Walk through the rest of the room, avoiding the fire spouts and lava 
pools.

In Transport Tunnel B, you'll be immediately attacked by a Magmoor. 
Smash up the serpent and then roll up the stone ledge on the left side 
of the room. Follow the metal track across the lava pit, and don't worry 
about falling off it because you won't. On the other side, go through 
the door and take the transport up to the Tallon Overworld. 

If you didn't explore the area near the Root Cave earlier, there will be 
an expansion under the bridge in Transport Tunnel B of Tallon Overworld. 
Climb up to the top of the Root Cave and make your way to the Tallon 
Canyon. The canyon has a half-pipe near the door to the Chozo Ruins 
transport. Use the Boost Ball to skate up to the top of the half-pipe. 
Kill the prowling Zoomer and walk across the bridge. The Morph Ball 
tunnel on the other side needs bombs to open. Bomb the three sandstone 
walls to get to the Gully.

The Gully leads to the Landing Site. It's very small, but the thick 
undergrowth makes it hard to spot the three Zoomers in the room, until 
it's too late. Use the radar to detect the creatures on your way 
through. When you get to the Landing Site, stay on the ledge and turn 
left. Head along the path and leap over the gaps so that you don't fall 
to ground level. The door on your left at the end takes you inside the 
Alcove, a hidden room containing the SPACE JUMP BOOTS. This new power-up 
allows you to jump doubly high by jumping again while in midair. Use it 
to escape the Alcove, and then save at your ship.

Return to Magmoor Caverns again, the same way you came. Make your way 
through Transport Tunnel B to get to the Fiery Shores. When you get to 
the main part of the room, locate the pair of crates blocking a ramp, 
which looks vaguely like a ribcage. After you destroy the crates, roll 
into ball form and head up the ramp. Bomb yourself up the steps and onto 
a catwalk. Be very careful here. There are no sides to the catwalk and 
you can fall very easily so move slowly. At the end of the catwalk is a 
MISSILE EXPANSION. Drop down onto the platform below but watch out for 
the Triclops. Now make your way to Monitor Station.

At the station, destroy all of the Auto Turrets and Puffers, and then 
make your way to the top level of the structure. Walk on to the bridge 
that leads to Transport Tunnel A then look up to your left. You should 
see a platform. Space Jump onto it and then jump again to the bridge 
directly above the one below that you just jumped from. This bridge 
takes you to the roof of the station. The device in front of the 
computer monitors is a SPINNER. Spinners are similar to Morph Ball Slots 
in that they activate or perform certain functions like raising bridges, 
opening gates and moving platforms. To use a Spinner, enter it in Morph 
Ball form and use your Boost Ball once inside. The fast rotation of the 
ball will power the Spinner and raise the broken bridge that is shown. 
Spin the device until the bridge locks into place.

Leap from the end of the bridge to the new ledge. Turn right and follow 
the ledge to the Warrior Shrine door. This chamber was built long ago by 
the Chozo to honor their warriors. They left behind the ARTIFACT OF 
STRENGTH, resting in the hands of the Chozo warrior's statue. Now return 
to Monitor Station and take the nearby transport back to the Phendrana 
Drifts.

After a quick save next to Phendrana Shorelines, turn left from the Save 
Station and locate the platform suspended in the air by a gas burner, 
closest to the temple. You can use your Space Jump Boots from the edge 
of the pond to reach the platform, which in turn lets you reach the 
temple ledge. The door behind the pillars takes you through a tunnel. 
Smash the ice obstacle and avoid the Pulse Bombu. To prevent it from 
attracting to you, use a missile to break the ice. There are Scatter 
Bombus further down the tunnel as well.

The majestic Chozo Ice Temple contains a new kind of enemy, but first 
you white bugs crawling around the structures on the walls. These are 
ICE PARASITES, rare cousins of the Parasites you found on the Orpheon. 
They are hardier than regular Parasites, so it will be tougher to kill 
one. Ice Parasites are very rare, so take this opportunity to scan it. 
Now start climbing the platforms and ledges around the room, killing the 
Ice Parasites and Crystallites as you go. When you reach the top of the 
Chozo Ice Temple, leap across to an icy hallway decorated with busts of 
revered Chozo individuals. At the end of the hallway, you'll see a 
frozen Chozo statue and a gate on your right, blocking a door. The bust 
on the gate is inscribed with a clue as to how to open it. Scan it, and 
then "seek his twin within this room". The twin is one of the Chozo 
busts in the previous hallway. The statue to find is the replica of the 
Shaman. Once you find it, shoot it with a missile to reveal a Morph Ball 
Slot. The slot will raise the gate blocking the door when activated.

In this next tunnel, get into your Morph Ball and roll into the path. 
You need to bomb the first metal block to access the lower tunnel, where 
two more sandstone blocks support a heavier black stone block. Blast 
away the bottom blocks and the top one will fall into place, clearing 
the path above. Repeat this process again on the other side in order to 
make it through the tunnel.

The final room within the Phendrana ruins is the Chapel of the Elders. 
There are four sealed chamber in all four corner of the room, concealing 
the guardians of the Chozo's sacred chapel. When you try and get to the 
other side of the room, two of the chamber walls will lower and release 
one Baby Sheegoth each. When you kill one Baby Sheegoth, another chamber 
will open and release its captive, meaning you'll have to fight two at a 
time until all four are defeated. After all four die, a terrifying 
fully-grown SHEEGOTH will smash through the wall in the back of the 
room. Sheegoths are scary beasts, and if you thought the babies were 
ill-tempered, wait until you fight this thing. To make matters worse, 
this specimen is even larger than the Sheegoths you may encounter later 
in the game, making it stronger and tougher to kill. The Sheegoth has a 
resilient shell of ice crystals on its back that absorb your beam 
weapons and transfer the energy to the Sheegoths ice blast attacks, so 
don't ever use your Power Beam. The Sheegoth will attack just like its 
babies, by charging you, spitting ice blasts at you and freezing you 
with its breath. The good news is that Sheegoths don't have good 
stamina. Whenever the Sheegoth uses a breath attack, it will 
hyperventilate and be forced to rest for a few seconds. When it does, it 
will emit steam from its ears. This is a good time to use your missiles 
against it. You'll know the Sheegoth is taking damage if it flashes red 
with each hit. This method will take a while, but it's the safest way to 
bring down a Sheegoth. The second way is quicker, but more dangerous. 
Roll into the Morph Ball and pepper the Sheegoth with bombs. If it 
freezes you, free yourself with a bomb. Either way, the Sheegoth will 
eventually keel over and the WAVE BEAM in the back of the room will be 
yours.

Collect the Wave Beam and the health that the Sheegoth left behind, and 
then look for additional pickups inside the crates in the corners. The 
Wave Beam is an electrical weapon that fires three streams of 
oscillating energy. In truth, it isn't really stronger than the Power 
Beam, but it's a lot cooler and has many more uses. It can open purple 
doors, activate energy-bases systems, home in on enemies like a missile, 
and it can rip through mechanical enemies like Auto Turrets and energy-
based foes like bombus. Use the Wave Beam to exit the Chapel of the 
Elders and kill the bombus in the Chozo Ice Temple and Temple Entryway. 
When you reach Phendrana Shorelines, save your game. 

=============

Chapter 7: Phendrana Labs.

=============

The next section of the game puts you deep into Space Pirate territory, 
and it also puts your new Wave Beam to good use. When you return to 
Phendrana Shorelines, you'll find that the place had been taken over by 
a pair of Baby Sheegoths. For the most part, you'll probably end up 
ignoring them though. It is worth noting however, that Baby Sheegoths 
are easier to kill with Space Jump Boots and the Wave Beam. The boots 
let you make a quick leap behind the beasts to get at their backs, and 
the charged Wave Beam will paralyze foes when hit. 

Your new footwear will also provide a few Shortcuts in Phendrana 
Shorelines. From the ledge above the Save Station, you can leap to the 
nearby gas platform and then again to the door to the Ruins Entryway. 
This way, you can get to Ice Ruins West without having to go through Ice 
Ruins East. Also, you can use the pillars in the middle of Phendrana 
Shorelines to leap from the entrance to Ice Ruins East to the Chozo Ice 
Temple. Spiffy. Now, you'll want to go to Ice Ruins West.

After putting down the two Baby Sheegoths, find the building on your 
right that contains a Crystallite and a piece of Chozo Lore (CIPHER). 
Space Jump up to the top of the building. Find the side opening to the 
outer area. You should see a STALACTITE hanging up ahead. Scan this new 
Research entry for your Log Book. There are only a limited amount of 
Stalactites in the game, and you can't scan them after shooting them 
down. Lock on to the Stalactite's fracture point and fire a missile to 
bring down the structure. The downed Stalactite will make a platform to 
the top of the building behind it. To your left is a pair of 
Crystallites. Shoot them and jump to where they just were, and then scan 
the Shriekbats hanging from the cave up ahead. These are ICE SHRIEKBATS, 
and like the Ice Burrowers, they disappear forever after you find your 
next power-up. Scan them before you kill them all, or before they kill 
themselves in their suicide dive-bomb attack. From below their former 
roost, turn right and jump over to the ledge with the Crystallite and 
the purple door. Use the Wave Beam to open it. 

Head through the Courtyard Entryway, which leads to the Ruined 
Courtyard. The entryway tunnel is infested by a group of Scarabs and a 
lone Pulse Bombu. The Ruined Courtyard has a large platform in the 
middle, and your goal is to reach the top of this platform. Turn right 
and activate the Spinner to open the hatches on some of the fountains at 
the top of the room. On the other side of the room, directly across from 
this Spinner, is another Spinner. Activate it to open up the remaining 
fountains and activate a Morph Ball Slot within the room. The slot is on 
a ledge above this Spinner device, and to reach it you must climb atop 
the icebergs down here until you reach the platform. Before you activate 
the slot you may want to eliminate as many Flickerbats as you can so 
that they don't bump into you while you try and make your way through 
the room. You'll have to manually target them in order to kill them. Now 
activate the Morph Ball Slot. Water will start pouring in from the 
fountains, filling the room. The rising water level will also cause some 
of the room's floating icebergs to rise as well, effectively making a 
series of platforms for you to cross. A timer will start, counting down 
until the water level recedes again, so don't dawdle. Hop across the 
icebergs and reach the other side. Directly across the platform with the 
Morph Ball Slot is a platform with a small hole in it. Use your Morph 
Ball to roll inside the hole. Inside this small chamber is an ENERGY 
TANK. Now roll through the hole in the corner and you will emerge near 
one of the Spinners. Wait for the water level to lower before repeating 
the water-filling process. Note that the Courtyard Entryway door will 
lock when the room is full of water, to prevent the neighboring rooms 
from flooding. This time when you jump the icebergs, jump onto the 
platform on the center structure. From there, jump to the rock platform 
sticking out from the wall and then make your way to the top of the 
large center platform. There are three doors up here; a purple door, a 
Missile Door Lock, and another door that you can't use because it lacks 
power. Enter the door with the Missile Door Lock to save your game. Now 
head back out and enter the purple door. Get ready for some heavy Space 
Pirate action.

The Specimen Storage room is the entrance to the Space Pirates' massive 
fortress and laboratory complex. Right from the start, your presence 
will be unwelcome. The Auto Turret in the room can be disabled with the 
scan of a button, to the right of the turret's position. But as soon as 
the turret is down, you'll be attacked by a SHADOW PIRATE. Scan it 
before it gets to you. Shadow Pirates are deadly members of the Space 
Pirate forces that wield cloaking devices, making them perfect 
assailants for areas with low visibility. However, because a Shadow 
Pirate's cloaking gear eats a lot of energy, the pirate is limited to 
melee attacks. Use missiles and the Wave Beam to take this thing down. 
Continue to the door at the far end of the passage once you've killed 
the pirate.

Step into the Research Entrance and immediately target the Auto Turret 
in the back of the room. You don't want this thing shooting at you while 
you deal with the room's remaining dangers. If you step too far in, 
you'll trigger a short cinematic in which a security drone alerts the 
pirates of your intrusion, locking the doors on you on its way out. The 
room will fill with SPACE PIRATES. These are the standard warriors of 
the Space Pirate forces, and the same types you fought on the frigate. 
Back then, they weren't that difficult, but these pirates are fully 
prepared and healthy. Space Pirates are by far the toughest enemies 
you've had to face. They're fast, agile, powerful, tough to kill and can 
even dodge your shots. Don't let them outwit you; use the Wave Beam and 
missiles, which home in on locked targets. The beam will stun a pirate, 
so follow up with a missile while it's paralyzed. After you've killed 
the pirates, head to the back of the room and enter the door on your 
right. This is the Map Station of Phendrana. Download it, and then head 
back outside. To enter the door above you, use the ramp on the opposite 
wall. Kill the two Scatter Bombus in the next tunnel and proceed.

Research Lab Hydra is blocked off by a security force field. Scan the 
blue panel to the right of the field to deactivate it, and then get 
ready to kill pirates. There are a lot in here, partly because this is a 
multi-story room. Activate the lift in the back of the room to reach the 
walkway, and then continue killing pirates until you reach the very top. 
Kill the Auto Turret up here too. After you've cleared out the room, 
head back down to ground level. There are five pieces of Pirate Data to 
scan in this room. Three are at ground level, while the remaining two 
are the very top. They are: PHAZON ANALYSIS, MINING STATUS, SECURITY 
BREACHES, PARASITE LARVA and GLACIAL WASTES. These logs will give you 
some insight into the Space Pirates' bioresearch and mining programs on 
Tallon IV. Also, if you've been following this guide from the beginning, 
you should've just unlocked Image Gallery 1 (in the Main Menu) by 
filling 50% of your Log Book. Hurray! At the top floor of the room, 
locate and shoot the purple door on the ceiling.

Take down the three Auto Turrets in the next cavern. It's worth noting 
that the Wave Beam will have unique effects on mechanical enemies like 
turrets. Rather than exploding like they usually do, a turret defeated 
by the Wave Beam will go haywire and start firing random blasts at 
random thing for a few seconds before finally bursting. Collect pickups 
from the crates in here as well, and then use the purple door up ahead.

The Observatory is being patrolled by half a dozen Space Pirates. One of 
them will drop down from above directly in front of you. After you waste 
them, hop down and head towards the computer terminals on the other side 
of the room. To either side of the blue panel is a computer screen, with 
Pirate Data: PHAZON PROGRAM and Pirate Data: CONTACT, respectively (the 
left log may not appear until you scan the panel). Scan the blue panel 
to activate a Morph Ball Slot as shown. Jump up to the Morph Ball Slot 
by using the platform to the right of the computer area. Activate the 
slot to power another slot, higher up and across the room. Head to this 
slot by using the other platforms around the room, and activate it. This 
will activate the four Spinners at the base of the lower hologram 
projector in the center of the room. Hop down and use all four Spinners 
to initiate the hologram sequence. The upper hologram projector will 
lower and produce a replica of the star system. It depicts several 
orbiting planets, including the two central to the current Metroid 
story; ZEBES and TALLON IV. Scan their holograms to update your Log 
Book. Now, climb to the top of the room using the outer platforms. The 
lowered upper hologram projector will be in position so that you can 
reach the power-up resting on it, the mighty SUPER MISSILE. The Super 
Missile is the Beam Combo for the Power Beam. Charge up the Power Beam 
and then fire a missile while charging to unleash the devastating force 
of five missiles. Not only are Super Missiles powerful, but they can be 
used to break certain materials. Beware though; because they use up five 
missiles per shot, they can eat through your missile reserves quickly. 
After you collect the power-up, use a regular missile to break open the 
door up here with the blast shield over it, which leads to a Save 
Station. Now head across to the purple door to proceed through the 
pirate base.

The next tunnel is home two a few bombus and, oddly enough, a pair of 
Crystallites. Shoot them and unlock the door at the end of the passage. 
The next room is a small elevator that leads up to the Control Tower. 
Scan the blue icon and ride to the top of the tower. Go through the 
purple door up here.

The Control Tower is a pirate outpost at the very top of Phendrana. As 
soon as you enter, a group of pirates will attack. The large crates 
stacked up in this room provide excellent cover for both you and the 
pirates. After you kill them all, two Flying Pirates will enter the 
fray. Flying Pirates are formidable opponents equipped with jetpacks, 
lasers and rockets. They are very agile in the air and tough to kill. To 
worsen the matter, when a Flying Pirate is defeated, it will make a 
last-ditch suicide run towards you, damaging you with the jetpack 
explosion. Hopefully you already scanned these things back by the 
Frigate Crash Site in Tallon Overworld. If not, you'll have to do it now 
while they're gunning at you. A Flying Pirate's agility makes it 
difficult to hit with non-homing weapons like the Power Beam. That's why 
you should stick with missiles, the Wave Beam, or even better, the Super 
Missile. The latter will demolish a Flying Pirate in a single hit. After 
you kill the first two, an additional trio will show up. After they are 
gone, the doors will unlock and you can proceed to the next room, which 
is the elevator tower that takes you back down to the labs. Before you 
go, break all of the smaller crates in the room for pickups.

Exit the East Tower and kill the bombus patrolling the next tunnel. This 
tunnel leads to the second main research lab in Phendrana, Research Lab 
Aether. Walk in towards the stasis tank, and you will be introduced to 
the illustrious METROID. Metroids are the parasitic larvae of creatures 
native to a planet known as SR388. During the Zebes operation, the Space 
Pirates were planning to use Metroids as a new biological weapon. They 
have the ability to drain the life force out of any creature in seconds. 
After you scan the beastie, it will break out of its stasis tank and 
attack. Metroids are tough to kill. Their only true weakness is cold 
temperatures; when you get the Ice Beam, you can freeze a Metroid and 
then follow up with a shattering missile. Until then though, your weapon 
of choice should be the Super Missile. Metroids attack by latching 
themselves onto your face and draining away your energy. If you get one 
on you, roll into a Morph Ball and drop a bomb to shake the Metroid off. 
Also, if you see the Metroid sparkling with energy, don't shoot it 
because it's momentarily invulnerable. After you've pounded the Metroid 
with everything you've got, it will die. You're not in the clear yet 
though; a Space Pirate will jump through the side window and attack.

Like the Research Lab Hydra, Research Lab Aether is a multi-story 
complex with several pirates to kill. There are also five Pirate Data 
logs to scan after all the dust has settled. On the top floor, where the 
Metroid was, scan for Pirate Data: META RIDLEY and METROID STUDIES. On 
the floor below is Pirate Data: PHAZON INFUSION. Finally, METROID FORCES 
and METROID MORPHOLOGY are found on the bottom floor. There are also two 
expansions in here. An ENERGY TANK is trapped inside one of the stasis 
tanks on the bottom floor. Use a missile to break open the glass. The 
second goodie is located along the crossway between floors. Head up from 
the bottom floor using the small lift and walk along the ramp. Ahead of 
you along the ceiling of the bottom floor is a platform that connects to 
a catwalk. Hop onto the platform and roll into your Morph Ball to travel 
across the catwalk. Like the one in Fiery Shores, it requires that you 
move slowly and carefully so that you don't fall. At the end of the 
catwalk is your MISSILE EXPANSION. There's also an additional Metroid 
inside one of the lower stasis tanks, but it won't break free unless you 
break the tank with a missile. After you collect your rewards, blow up 
the stack of crates on the bottom floor and enter the purple door 
beneath them.

The door leads to an access tunnel to the Research Core. Within the 
tunnel you'll be attacked by a new type of beetle, the ICE BEETLE. These 
beetles are similar to the regulars only the have a shell of ice on 
their backs that makes them tougher to kill. They are also rather 
aggressive. There are two Ice Beetles in here to kill. Now move on to 
the Research Core.

The Research Core is a dimly lit room with tight security. The room has 
four levels, and each of the walkways is connected by ramps on the side 
of the room. Be quick to engage the Space Pirate on the top level, 
because the battle will likely alert the two Flying Pirates in the lower 
levels. After defeating all three pirates, scan one of the computer 
terminals on the top level. The monitor marked with a red scan symbol is 
one of the three override controls for the force field in the center of 
the room. Two more controls can be found as you move down to the lower 
levels. On the second level from the bottom, you'll find the second 
control. Finally, scan the computer terminal on the bottom floor to 
fully deactivate the force field. Watch out for the Auto Turrets on the 
bottom floor as well. With the shield down, you can collect the item in 
the center of the room, the THERMAL VISOR. This new visor allows you to 
see in the dark by shading everything in purple, pink or yellow. Heat 
sources like enemies, power-ups and pickups will glow pink or yellow. 
The Thermal Visor is a handy item, but note that it won't work in most 
of Magmoor Caverns, for obvious reasons. After you collect the visor, 
the entire research complex will lose power, leaving you stranded in the 
dark. Quickly switch on your Thermal Visor so that you can battle the 
two Shadow Pirates that attack. Even cloaked enemies like Shadow Pirates 
will be much easier to detect with the Thermal Visor. Now head up the 
ramp that leads to the next level. As you make your way back up to the 
top of the room, three Metroids will breach their containment tanks 
along the wall and attack. Deal with them quickly. At the top of the 
room, you'll notice that the door is lacking power, and won't open. It 
requires energy from the nearby power conduit. Using thermal imaging, 
locate the conduit (the yellow circle right next to the door) and lock 
on to it. Use your Wave Beam to energize the system and restore power to 
the door. Now make your way back out of the labs.

The Ice Beetles in the Research Core Access have been replaced by two 
SENTRY DRONES. These security drones are deadly adversaries that start 
by putting the room into lockdown, meaning both exit doors will be 
locked until you eliminate the drones. They attack with lasers and 
machine guns, and have visor-disrupting abilities similar to those of 
Scatter Bombus. Use the Wave Beam to defeat them quickly, and then make 
your escape.

Research Lab Aether now has an Auto Turret firing at you from the back 
of the room, and an additional turret at the very top, where you first 
fought the Metroid. Speaking of the critters, there are two more live 
Metroids within the stasis tanks on the bottom floor. If you shoot the 
tanks with missiles, the Metroids will break free. Why would you? Well, 
because Metroids attack both friend and foe. They'll not only go for 
you, but they'll also help in eliminating the Shadow Pirates in the 
room. The pirates may in turn be able to weaken or kill some of the 
attacking Metroids as well. Eliminate the leftovers and then climb to 
the top of the room.

Don't stop for anything as you pass through the Control Tower and the 
surrounding tunnels. Make your way back to the Observatory and take the 
opportunity to heal and save at the Save Station. Defeat the Space 
Pirates down below and collect additional health and ammo from crates. 
Kill the Sentry Drones in the Observatory Access cavern as well.

When you reach Research Lab Hydra, eliminate the Auto Turret firing at 
you. Avoid the tanked Metroid and turn your attention to the solid 
stasis tank next to it. The tank is covered in a substance known as 
Cordite, which breaks apart easily with the Super Missile. Shoot the 
tank with a Super Missile to reveal a brand new MISSILE EXPANSION. If 
you want, you can release the Metroid up here and the others on the 
bottom floor to aid you in fighting the Shadow Pirates. Fight your way 
through pirate, Metroid and bombu alike, until you reach the Research 
Entrance.

While this room isn't dark, you still need the Thermal Visor to see the 
Auto Turret and the Shadow Pirates through the mist. Finally, after 
dealing with them, you can pass through the Specimen Storage room to 
escape the dreaded labs. At last, natural light! Now supply yourself 
with Missile Ammo via the crates in the room, and save your game.

You may have trashed the Space Pirates' research facilities and stolen 
their prized Thermal Visor, but one project in Phendrana remains to be 
stopped; their Phazon animation project. Take a break, grab a snack and 
then get ready for a boss battle. 

From the Save Station at the Ruined Courtyard, cross over to the door 
directly across from you. The door requires power from a nearby conduit. 
The conduit is above the door behind an ornamental Cordite sculpture. 
Break open the sculpture's cover with a Super Missile and then use your 
Thermal Visor to target the conduit, and shoot it with the Wave Beam. 
The door will activate and you can now enter the Quarantine Access. Kill 
the Pulse Bombus in here and proceed to North Quarantine Tunnel. Move 
quickly through the Morph Ball tunnel to avoid the annoyingly-placed 
Pulse Bombus and enter the door on the other side.

The vast Quarantine Cave is the site of you third boss battle. Hop down 
from the ledge to begin. The piled boulders in the middle of the room 
will spring to life and form a huge rock behemoth. Meet THARDUS, the 
boss of Phendrana Drifts. Thardus is an animated and sentient golem 
brought to life by the corruptive nature of the Phazon it has been 
infused with. Thanks to the Phazon radiation surrounding the boss, 
targeting it is impossible if you use the Combat Visor. Switch to your 
Thermal Visor after you scan Thardus to get a lock on the boss's 
revealed weak spot. Use a Super Missile or charged Wave Beam blasts on 
the weak spot to cause damage to Thardus. After enough punishment, 
Thardus's Phazon radiation will overload your Thermal Visor, forcing you 
to revert back to the Combat Visor. Now, Thardus's weak spot will be 
glowing blue, and you can lock on to it to continue your attacks. After 
you cause enough pain to Thardus, his weak spot will be destroyed, but a 
new one will be revealed. You need to switch back to the Thermal Visor 
in order to find the new spot. Repeat this process about half a dozen 
times until you go through every major rock on Thardus's body. The final 
weak spot is his head. Sometimes, the larger stones will get in the way 
of his weak point, so wait until you have clear shot before you fire, 
especially if you're using ammo-consuming Super Missile blasts. Twice, 
Thardus will stop the battle to change the local weather. First, he'll 
summon a massive blizzard, and then he'll stop again to calm the storm. 
While the blizzard is raging, it will be difficult to see Thardus and 
your surroundings. Thardus has four different attacks. He'll swing a 
massive fist of boulders at you when you get too close to him. Also, he 
sometimes lobs stones at you. This attack is actually quite useful; if 
you target the approaching boulders and blast them, they'll reveal much-
needed pickups. Just watch out for the burst of Phazon radiation 
following the destruction of each rock. Thardus's third attack is a 
river of ice that he'll conjure to encase you in ice. This attack can be 
avoided if you jump over it. Lastly, his nastiest attack is his rollout 
move, where he rolls up into a tight ball and rolls around the room, 
causing massive damage if he hits you. You can use your Boost Ball or 
Space Jump Boots to avoid the attack. Do your best to avoid Thardus's 
attacks and hang in there until you drop his life bar to zero. While the 
technique is simple, defeating Thardus will take great skill and effort. 

After you defeat Thardus, the great golem will come crashing down and 
reveal his bounty: a bunch of Ultra Energy units, Missile Ammo and the 
SPIDER BALL. The Spider Ball allows you to travel on magnetic rail 
systems while in Morph Ball mode to explore new areas. At any point you 
can scan one of these SPIDER BALL TRACKS for Research entries. After you 
collect everything, use the Spider Ball to climb the rails around the 
room and enter the door that leads to the South Quarantine Tunnel. 
Bypass the bombus and ride the new elevator to the Magmoor Caverns.

=============

Chapter 8: Return to the Ruins.

=============

When you arrive at the south end of Magmoor, turn around and shoot a 
missile at the Save Station door and save. Now walk around the elevator 
and take the opposite purple door. Walk down the passage, but watch out 
for the flame spouts on the ceiling that frequently expel fire. Take the 
purple door at the end.

The Magmoor Workstation contains a hidden Energy Tank, but first you 
must destroy the three Flying Pirates in the room. Hop down to ground 
level and turn on your Thermal Visor. Most areas in Magmoor Caverns are 
too hot for the visor to work properly, but the Magmoor Workstation 
isn't one of them. There are three power conduits in the room that will 
energize the small machine under the entrance door. All three are 
located near the walls, next to the three channels under the floor. 
After you power all three with the Wave Beam, the machine will cool the 
lava in the west channel and form a path under the door to the west 
chamber. Find the opening in the metal grate covering the floor and roll 
through. Watch out for the two Triclops underneath the floor. Roll down 
the west channel until you get inside the chamber at the end. Scan the 
computer terminal on the wall. This will cool the lava in the east 
channel. Roll back through the floor and enter the channel. You don't 
have long before the rock liquefies again, so don't take forever. Repeat 
the process once you're inside the east chamber. The path to the 
northern channel will be exposed, and you'll be given a few seconds to 
reach the chamber before the channel fills with lava again. Inside the 
north chamber, you'll find the ENERGY TANK. Now get out of the floor and 
use the door to the left of the entrance, facing into the room. The 
other door in the room leads to a dead end, so don't even bother.

Scan the PUDDLE SPORE in the South Core Tunnel. Puddle Spores can't be 
defeated, but if you shoot one while its insides are exposed, the clam 
will flip over and you can use it as a platform to cross the pool of 
lava, where you'll have to get rid of two pesky Burrowers. Two more 
Puddle Spores allow you to cross the massive Geothermal Core, the next 
room. Afterwards, enter the North Core Tunnel. Rather than killing the 
Magmoor in this lava pool, shoot the Stalactite above it. You'll kill 
two birds with one stone this way, for the falling structure will crush 
the Magmoor and also provide you with a platform to reach the other side 
of the room.

The Twin Fires room is very similar to the Lava Lake, on the other side 
of Magmoor Caverns. Destroy the Puffers floating around the room and 
shoot down the Stalactite on your right. Use this and the subsequent 
platform to cross the chamber. Kill the Magmoor near the center of the 
room too. As you cross to the room's second chamber, roll into the Morph 
Ball to get past the horizontal flame spouts, which will burn 
constantly. On the other side, bring down the Stalactite to kill the 
Magmoor just like the one in the North Core Tunnel. Cross over to the 
door and avoid the flame spouts on the way out.

In the next room, you won't be able to cross safely unless you use the 
hidden Spider Ball Track. The track starts in a small hole on the right 
side of the room. Follow the track to the end, and enter the Transport 
to Tallon Overworld West. Instead of taking the elevator up to the 
Tallon Overworld, continue your journey through the caverns.

On the way through, you'll notice that the Auto Turrets and Puffers in 
the Monitor Station are gone, replaced instead by two Flying Pirates. 
The same fate has befallen the Puffers at the Triclops Pit as well. Keep 
moving until you reach the larger chamber within the Lava Lake. If you 
shoot the central pillar with a Super Missile, the structure will break 
and a Chozo Artifact will be revealed. Jump over to the pillar and 
collect the ARTIFACT OF NATURE. Afterwards, head through the Burning 
Trail (save if needed) and take the elevator at the top to the Chozo 
Ruins.

From the transport, enter the Sun Tower. Now that you have the Spider 
Ball, you'll be able to properly explore this place and get back inside 
the Sunchamber. Take out the four Hives at the base of the tower to 
avoid War Wasp bombardment. The Spider Ball Track on the far side of the 
room will allow you to ascend to the top of the tower, but the track is 
blocked a little ways up by a runic gate. Locate the four runic symbols 
in the room to move the gate out of the way. Two of them are located 
behind two of the four pillars in the room. The other two are hidden 
behind the Cordite sculptures on the right and left wall. After you scan 
all four, look up past the gate and scan the moving creatures on the 
wall. These are OCULUS. They can't be destroyed and any shot fired at 
them will deflect off into another direction. Climb up the track until 
you reach the broken section. You can continue upwards by bombing 
yourself up to the sandstone block of Spider Ball Track. Just wait for 
the Oculus traffic to pass before doing so. From the block, bomb 
yourself to the track that follows, but make sure you don't mess up. The 
sandstone block will crumble once you bomb yourself up from it. Continue 
until you reach the top of the tower and head through the door.

Ooh! What was that thing? A white, translucent creature will flee down 
the path at the Sun Tower Access. Follow the sound of its screeches and 
use the door on the far end to enter the Sunchamber, where the boss of 
Chozo Ruins once resided.

Now, prepare to fight a nasty new mini-boss, or should I say, three of 
them. Three balls of smoke will emerge from the center of the room and 
take form. They each turn into CHOZO GHOSTS. Chozo Ghosts are the 
corrupt spirits of the Chozo, and will appear to defend the sacred 
locales of the Chozo's ancient civilization. Ghosts are immune to 
natural energies such as fire, ice and electricity. In other words, the 
only weapon that will have any effect on them at all is the Power Beam, 
and the Super Missiles. Chozo Ghosts are also painfully difficult do 
defeat without the X-Ray Visor. They continually appear and disappear in 
between each relentless attack. When the Chozo Ghosts attack, they fire 
blasts of damaging ectoplasm at you that will disrupt your visor if you 
get hit. Try to lock on to a Chozo Ghost and hit it with everything 
you've got before it disappears again. Usually, a charged Power Beam 
shot and a Super Missile will be enough to kill a Chozo Ghost, but it's 
impossible to tell which ghost you've already hit, and it's equally 
impossible to tell where one will pop up next. Sometimes, a Chozo Ghost 
will go for a stronger blast by charging its energy in its hands for a 
few seconds. This is a great opportunity to get a strong hit on a ghost. 
When a Chozo Ghost is defeated, it will depart from existence and 
usually leave behind a decent pickup. After defeating all three, the 
vines blocking the other door will finally disappear, and a new Chozo 
Artifact will appear on top of Flaahgra's carcass. Space Jump over the 
water and collect the ARTIFACT OF WILD, your fourth Chozo Artifact. Now 
head through the unblocked door and through the Arboretum to the 
Gathering Hall, where you can save.

From here you have a choice. You can head up to the Antechamber and 
collect the Ice Beam, or you can take a small detour through the Ruined 
Shrine, to the Tower of Light. Here' you'll find the Beam Combo for the 
Wave Beam. Except for the Super Missile, Beam Combos are entirely 
optional for beating the game, but they're also very cool and powerful, 
so don't miss out on them. From Save Station B, next to the Gathering 
Hall, head to the nearby Ruined Fountain. Remember, all of the water in 
the ruins is clean now, so don't worry about falling in. This includes 
the water spewing out of the fountain. Enter the fountain and roll up 
into the Morph Ball. The water pressure from the fountain will propel 
you up to a Spider Ball Track. Grab onto it, and then follow it behind 
the wall to a MISSILE EXPANSION. Now return to the Main Plaza. 

When you get to the plaza, you can collect two more expansions. After 
killing the War Wasps and the Plated Beetle, aim a Super Missile at the 
large knot on the tree. A hole will be revealed, which you can jump into 
from the upper level of the plaza. The first MISSILE EXPANSION is 
inside. The second MISSILE EXPANSION is at the top of the half-pipe 
underneath the bridge. After collecting both expansions, head to the 
Ruined Shrine.

An expansion remains yet to be collected within the shrine. Face the 
back of the room and use the half-pipe formation to boost up to the left 
ledge. Find the hole in the wall and roll though to find the MISSILE 
EXPANSION. Now boost over to the other side of the half-pipe. The tunnel 
here leads to a section of Spider Ball Track that will take you to a 
purple door. Use the door and navigate through the next tunnel to reach 
the Tower of Light.

The ancient Tower of Light is flooded at its base, but you don't need to 
worry about what's underwater just yet. Leap up to the platform across 
from the entrance, and then thrice more to the first central platform. 
Look around the room, and use the Scan Visor to find weakened sections 
of the tower's support pillars. Three missiles are enough to damage each 
weakened section, and damaging all four will cause the entire tower to 
collapse a bit. The platforms above you will now be within jumping 
distance, so leap onto the first and then turn to scan the PLATED 
PUFFERS that emerge below. Well, you've seen Plated Beetles and you'll 
soon encounter Plated Parasites, so it's only fair that Puffers get 
their own mutant strain of tough-to-kill variants. The armored skin of a 
Plated Puffer can only be ruptured with a missile, but otherwise they 
are identical to the regular kind. They'll usually end up bumping into 
something anyway, so just don't bother wasting any ammo. Continue 
climbing the tower, and repeat the process of destroying the four 
support columns further up. Two of the columns up here have Oculus 
prowling on them, making it just a bit trickier to hit the actual 
structure. After all four of these columns are down, climb up to the 
final set of platforms before the Plated Puffers arrive, and destroy the 
final four columns (this time, all four have Oculus on them). When you 
reach the very top of the tower, collect the WAVEBUSTER. The Wavebuster 
is the Beam Combo for the Wave Beam. It fires a continuous beam of 
devastating energy that automatically seeks out enemy targets, even 
without a lock. However, use it sparingly, for it costs ten missiles to 
fire and five every second to sustain it. Now that you have this 
powerful new weapon at your disposal, return to the Gathering Hall and 
save.

To get to the Antechamber, you'll have to go from the Gathering Hall to 
the Energy Core. As you climb up to the top of the Gathering Hall, equip 
the Thermal Visor. Shriekbats and Blastcaps stick out like sore thumbs 
under thermal imaging, and you can even lock on to the bats while 
they're roosting as well, something you can't do while looking through 
the Combat Visor. At the top of the room, jump up onto one of the red 
cylinders to either side of the door. From there, jump to the platform 
above the doorway, and use a Morph Ball Bomb on the metal grate to 
reveal a MISSILE EXPANSION. Now continue to the Energy Core.

Skip through the Energy Core and through the passage leading to the 
Furnace. When you get there, climb up the Spider Ball Track to the top 
section of the Morph Ball tunnel. The blocks you have to cross over will 
disappear almost as soon as you touch them, so you have to be quick and 
combine your boosting skills with your bombing skills. Boost across the 
blocks and lay a bomb as soon as you hit the solid ledge. Hopefully, by 
the time the last block disappears, the bomb will send you up to the 
ledge. If you mess up, you'll fall to the lower tunnel, which you took 
earlier for an Energy Tank. After crossing, unroll in the main Furnace.

Kill the Beetle army in here and turn right to scan the creatures 
crawling around the Spider Ball Track. These are PLATED PARASITES. They 
have a hard shell that only a Morph Ball's weapons can damage. 
Regardless, without the Power Bombs, you won't be able to reach them 
anyway. You can also scan Chozo Lore: CRADLE on the left wall. Ignore 
the white door up ahead and use the tunnel underneath the Chozo Lore. 
This leads to a passage that connects the Furnace to the Crossway.

The Crossway contains a large half-pipe running almost the entire length 
of the room. Ignore the white door on the right side and hop into the 
half-pipe. At the other end, boost out to get up on the opposite ledge. 
There are three pieces of Chozo Lore here to scan: INFESTATION, WORM and 
HATCHLING'S SHELL. Now turn to the end wall and use a Super Missile to 
break apart the Cordite sculpture. The scan point behind, when scanned, 
will expose a section of Spider Ball Track high above on the right wall. 
Use the half-pipe to boost up to the track, and roll to the end. Use a 
bomb to enter the Morph Ball Slot. This device will reveal a similar 
track on the other end of the opposite wall. Mosey on over to the other 
end of the half-pipe and boost up to the track. The Morph Ball Slot up 
here will bring a piston down from the pipe on the wall. Enter the pipe 
before the timer finishes, and let the piston push you up to the upper 
tunnel. Roll to the end for a MISSILE EXPANSION. Now, boost back over to 
the ledge with the Chozo Lore, and enter the door in the corner with a 
missile. Defeat the Scarabs in the Elder Hall Access and continue.

The Hall of the Elders is sacred in a big way to the Chozo, and as such, 
the place will be guarded by a lone Chozo Ghost. At least you only have 
to deal with one ghost this time, but don't get stingy with the Super 
Missiles. After the ghost is defeated, the statue of the Chozo Elder's 
hands will glow. We'll come back to that; first, jump up to the ledge 
where the entrance door is located and find the Morph Ball tunnel in the 
wall. On the other side of this tunnel, you'll get to use your first 
MISSILE STATION. As you can guess, a Missile Station will restore all of 
your Missile Ammo. Excluding your Gunship, there are only three in the 
game, so always take the opportunity to use one. You should have 105 
missiles by now. Now head back to the main room, and scan Chozo Lore: 
HOPE, behind the statue. Now, jump up onto the statue's waiting hands, 
and roll into the Morph Ball. He'll bowl you across the room and up to a 
Spider Ball Track. Hold the R Button to latch onto the track and follow 
it to a Morph Ball Slot. Activate the slot to energize three brightly-
colored Morph Ball Slots on the other side of the room. Jump up onto the 
platforms near the right side of the room (from the statue's point of 
view) and follow the ledge to the three slots. Each slot is covered in a 
color-coded force field that indicates what beam weapon you have to use 
to access it. Purple goes with the Wave Beam; white goes with the Ice 
Beam; and red goes with the Plasma Beam. You only have one of those now; 
so hit the purple slot and activate it. The bridge structure on the 
floor in front of the Chozo Elder will rotate, creating a new path. Let 
the statue bowl you again to the highest ledge in the room. Follow the 
path to the exit door. Before leaving, scan the panel to deactivate the 
security window, so that if you ever pass through this room again (which 
you will), you can just hop up or down from here.

The large room following this access tunnel is the Reflecting Pool. Take 
note of the ominous Stone Toads along the edges of the pool and enter 
the water. The pool's water is contained by a drain hatch that's made of 
weakened metal. A Morph Ball Bomb will be able to break the hatch and 
drain the entire pool, fish and all. Conveniently, you're left with a 
half-pipe. Use it to boost up to the top level of the room. You can use 
the Stone Toads at the top to your advantage, since they'll try to 
swallow you, but in the process bring you up to the level you want to 
reach (just make sure to kill the toad with a bomb). There are three 
doors up here. Use the two blocked by Missile Door Locks (these are 
probably the final two in the game, so if you didn't scan any of the 
previous ones, do it now or you'll have missed your last chance). One 
door leads to the Antechamber, where you can grab the ICE BEAM. This 
cool weapon lets you freeze enemies and open white