Frigate Orpheon



Orpheon is the name of a Space Pirate frigate from which Samus receives a distress signal in Metroid Prime. It is featured at the beginning of the game. The vessel is operated by Space Pirate Science Team as a transport and research vessel and was key in the transportation of Metroid samples from the fallen base of Zebes to the research facilities on Tallon IV. Other than Metroids, the vessel housed various other bizarre species that the Space Pirates were running tests on, most likely for militaristic purposes; the most notable being the Parasite Queen and a reborn Ridley. Phazon could also be found on the frigate. The ship was crippled in orbit due to a fusion core accident (caused by a dying Parasite Queen falling into the Reactor Core). The frigate later crashed into the surface of the planet shortly after Samus defeated the Parasite Queen. Samus would later find the wreckage and have to traverse through it to reach the Phazon Mines.

The Orpheon is where the defeated Ridley was resurrected/rebuilt into Meta-Ridley after his defeat on Zebes. It is also where Samus first encounters him (in his new cybernetic-enhanced form) during her escape from the crippled Orpheon. It is unclear exactly why Meta-Ridley was still aboard as most of the "able-bodied" crew had evacuated six hours before Samus' arrival. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl the Frigate Orpheon stage is based on this area. A Parasite Queen watches from the background and the stage flips occassionally with power occasionally going out (both similar to its crashed state).

Complete Map of the Frigate Orpheon: 

Trivia

 * Three more Parasite Queens are encountered on the Orpheon by Samus (two already dead, one in hibernation, with the fourth being the Reactor Core boss). The first one is encountered in the Emergency Evacuation Area (either killed by the pirates or succumbed to Phazon poisoning). The second is located in Biohazard Containment' (died due to infusion of Phazon Batch 0732.C, it being incompatible with its DNA). The final Queen is found Biotech Research Area 1, in hibernation (it later encountered during Samus' escape from the crippled Orpheon, trying to escape its stasis tank, dying in the process).


 * Scans taken in the Orpheon's map room of the computer screens show that the ship's appearance is similar to that of the Space Pirate Mothership in Metroid: Zero Mission. This may imply that the Pirate Mothership may have been a science vessel or that all Space Pirate frigates (regardless of mission) are similarly shaped.


 * Before the Reactor Core's meltdown, it appears that most of its crew had evacuated the vessel due to the escape of two Parasite Queens (the one Samus defeats in the Reactor Core and the one found dead in the Emergency Evacuation Area). It is likely that some if not most of the crew who fled the Orpheon were members of the Space Pirate Science Team. A small number of the frigate's still living crew remain on board, mainly those unable to evacuate (the injured) and possible those who were either forced (or bravely chose) to remain there (as the Pirates may have also been trying to retake the ship). The injured were likely left behind as they were not longer useful (or beyond help).


 * In the Parasite Queen trophy from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, it is said that the frigate had a nuclear power reactor.
 * Frigate Orpheon is the first of four space stations to be destroyed, followed by Oubliette, Ceres Space Colony, and the BSL Space Station
 * It is possible to let Samus leave the Orpheon without losing her Varia Suit if the player stands in a certain spot when killing the Parasite Queen, Causing the game to allow Samus to escape the Frigate without the cutscene.
 * The Frigate Orpheon Music is a Remix to the theme in Majora's Mask.