Pirate Militia

Pirate Militia are the weakest Space Pirates in Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. They are first encountered by Samus on the G.F.S. Olympus when it is under attack.

Militia are mostly composed of criminals and slaves. Despite this, they obey their superiors surprisingly well. This is attributed to a rumour that disobedient militia often end up as dinner for higher-ranking Pirates. The Pirate Cargo Drone seems to possess a Militia's head, which could be another cruel punishment among Pirates.

Oddly, their scans state that they are not Phazon-enhanced, yet they are capable of entering Hypermode. However, this is somewhat plausible, as seen in the case of the PED Troopers, who do not have any actual Phazon enhancements to their bodies but instead use an external Phazon supply. This could also be true in the case of the Pirate Militia, though the source of this supply is not visible in their armor. Also, while the render of the Pirate Militia (pictured on the right) does not contain a single trace of Phazon, their model during gameplay portray them with Phazon-coated bodies.

Varieties
Several types of Militia exist in Corruption. Despite having armor and shields, Militia are still very weak.

Pirate Militia
The Pirate Militia are feeble when compared to other Space Pirate varieties, and are stated in initial scans to be disposable, proving that they have small worth to High Command.

These standard Militia units are equipped with weaker beam weaponry than their Trooper brethren. They have a retractable energy scythe for close combat. They lack the Phazon enhancements that standard troopers bear, but seem to have been corrupted anyway (possibly because of the Leviathan impacting their Homeworld). They are also without the new Dash-Jet system and EMP grenades. This made them very vulnerable; they could be dispatched simply with a Charged Beam shot.

Compared to other types of Space Pirates, Militias have very little skin and flesh on them, possibly a result from malnutrition. Their metal limbs, single-bladed scythes, and shoulder rings are reminiscent of the standard Space Pirate type from Prime, as opposed to the more insectoid and clawed troopers of Echoes and Corruption.

Shield Pirate Militia
Shield Pirate Militia are Pirate Militia equipped with the Shield Pirate Trooper's energy shield. The shield protects the user from most small arms fire, but it can be ripped off using the Grapple Lasso or destroyed with Phazon attacks, which turn the Shield Pirate Militia back into a standard Militia. The Pirate's energy can also be drained using the Grapple Voltage. They also need to lower the shield to shoot their guns, so it is possible for Samus to avoid the attack and quickly shoot the Pirate while it is exposed, before it lifts the shield again.

Armored Pirate Militia
The Armored Pirate Militia are Pirate Militia equipped with beam-resistant armor, which makes Missiles more effective against them. Militia possess a lesser muscular bulk than that of the standard Pirate Trooper, so little that the armor looks too big for them. Although their armor is said to be beam-proof, in actuality it is only moderately effective against them and can actually be shattered with a few Charge Beam shots, which is useful when fighting them before the Missile Launcher has been obtained or if Samus is low on Missiles.

Trivia

 * The mechanical-looking bodies of these pirates resemble Ghor's.
 * Scans reveal that disobedient Pirate Militias are rumored to end up as "Dinner" for higher ranking Pirates. Disturbingly, this implies that the Space Pirates are not at all above Cannibalism.
 * These groups are stated to be composed of criminals, though all pirates are technically criminals. (Apparently Space Pirates have their own set of criminal laws even within the bounds of piracy, not unlike many organized crime groups in real life.)
 * Oddly enough, the Militia seems taller than the Pirate Trooper despite being run-down criminals and expendable units.
 * Strangely, Pirate Militias are seen using Hyper Mode although their scans mention that Militias do not receive any Phazon enhancements of some sort. This, however, only occurs in higher difficulties.
 * A Militia is a military group of armed, ordinary civilians, implying that the Pirate Militias - being composed slaves and criminals, are simply given weapons and forced into combat.