Pillbugs are small, insectoid creatures. They can be found crawling through spaces only accessible with the Morph Ball. When approached, they curl up into balls and roll slightly faster. They inflict little damage, and can be destroyed by being flipped over by a Bomb and then attacking the now vulnerable underside. If Samus has the Boost Ball, she can sometimes use this to destroy them. A boss variation called the Spider Guardian appeared in Metroid Prime 2: Echoes as a Sub Guardian. In Metroid Prime 3: Corruption another variation appeared called the Phazon Pillbug, appearing in the Gel Processing Site and Burrow on Bryyo.
Locations (Metroid Prime 2: Echoes)[]
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Pillbug
Morphology: Pillbug
Cave-dwelling herbivore. Vulnerable to concussion blasts: use them to stun and damage this enemy.
Pillbugs prefer to dwell in dark caverns, though they can exist in lit areas. Navigating with a series of sensitive antennae, they roam through caves in search of moss and fungus. Pillbugs can move rapidly, and will ram unwary targets to clear their paths as they search for food. A Pillbug can be jarred loose from a surface with a concussive blast; doing so reveals its vulnerable belly.
Trivia[]
- Pillbugs bear some resemblance to both real-life pillbugs (also known as woodlice) and prehistoric trilobites.
- Other than a few invading Space Pirates, Pillbugs are the only organic creatures to inhabit the Sanctuary Fortress.
- A much larger variant of Pillbugs appears in Episode of Aether, though none of these size were encountered in the entire game. Considering the nomenclature for similar variants within the game, it's likely that these are Alpha Pillbugs.