Tourian
From Wikitroid, the Metroid wiki
| “ | Zebes' Tourian is where Chozo and Mother Brain held council. It's also where they influenced possible troop mobilization if required... So, in a way, Zebes was actually the heart of the Federation... Do the Space Pirates know that...? | „ |
Tourian is the main headquarters of the Space Pirates' fortress on Zebes, and the residing place of the Mother Brain. It is almost completely artificial, with structures largely made of metal materials, and corridors formed through metal pipework. Artificial lifeforms such as Rinkas, Zebetites and automated turrets provide defense and security for the Mother Brain, as well as a horde of Metroids, marking their debut appearance. Surprisingly, while this is indeed the main HQ of the Pirates, there were none to be seen in the NES Metroid, but this is later retconned in Metroid: Zero Mission, where a cutscene shows a Metroid outbreak has occured, killing all Pirate personnel; several dried bodies can be seen throughout Tourian. After the defeat of Mother Brain, a time bomb incinerates the facility and reduces it to a metal waste. In Super Metroid, Metroids are once again the main creatures to battle leading up the path to Mother Brain, but whether they broke loose again or were intentionally released is never made clear. Also, Space Pirates seem to populate the Tourian sections found behind Mother Brain's command post. Still, the multiplied Metroids are the main obstacles that make the path to Mother Brain's chamber a very difficult journey.
In the rebuilt Tourian, several native creatures of Zebes reside within a somewhat organic zone of the area, along with the Infant Metroid that Samus brought with her from her mission on SR388. Exposed scaffolding and circuit boards are prominent features in this location, indicating that construction is an ongoing process. The old Tourian can be seen in Crateria.
[edit] Access
Being the primary target area in the Metroid titles it is included in, Tourian cannot simply be accessed on a whim. Several tasks must be completed before access is available to this area:
- Metroid: Defeat Kraid and Ridley to gain access to the Morph Ball bridge, at the end of which is an elevator leading to Tourian.
- Metroid: Zero Mission: Defeat Kraid and Ridley just as in the original, but this version depicts their statues as gateways. The mouths of these statues will open in the circumstances of actual defeat, giving you a pathway to the main Tourian elevator.
- Super Metroid: Defeat Kraid, Phantoon, Draygon, and Ridley. A Gold Statue depicts these four beings, and will sink to the bottom of its cave once all four are defeated.
[edit] Trivia
- It is stated by Samus in Metroid (manga) that Tourian is the place where the Chozo and Mother Brain make decisions that influence the Federation.
- In Metroid: Zero Mission, if the player returns to Tourian after beating Mother Brain, there is a blue-green, highly corrosive liquid that has replaced the lava in Mother Brain's chamber. It is unknown what the substance is or how it got there, but it is severely dangerous to step into, even with the protection of the Gravity Suit. In most probability, it is some sort of waste from the now inactive power systems in the destroyed area. But this same substance is present on board Sector 1 of the BSL Space Station, in the Tourian-like area before Ridley-X.
- Because the door to the room that the Metroid hatchling is in seals after entering, many fans tend to not use the Save Station near Mother Brain, because the door to leave Tourian will be sealed for the rest of the game, and no escape from Tourian before defeating Mother Brain is possible.
[edit] Gallery
 Mother Brain's chamber after the destruction. |
 The old destroyed Tourian, as seen in Super Metroid. |
