Hall of the Elders

The Hall of the Elders is a room in the Chozo Ruins. It appears in Metroid Prime.
==Description==
The hall is an area where Samus encounters Chozo Ghosts, and the location of a Chozo Statue. It is a large, arena-like room surrounded by Holobanners and Radiation collectors and houses a Morph Ball tunnel to a Missile Station, multiple White Doors and three Bomb Slots.
They can each be activated with the Wave, Ice, and Plasma Beams, and when used, the room will alter itself to lead to the Ice Beam, an Energy Tank, and the Artifact of World. After each slot has been used, a message saying "A new path has been opened." appears onscreen. There is a Force Field that can be deactivated allowing Samus easier access. When the room is first entered, Samus will only encounter one Chozo Ghost, but if she returns, there will be three.
==Connecting rooms==
*Elder Hall Access (via Blue Door)
*East Furnace Access (via White Door)
*Crossway Access South (via White Door)
*Elder Chamber (via White Door upon activation of the Red Bomb Slot)
*Reflecting Pool Access (via Blue Door)
==Inhabitants==
*1 Chozo Ghost (3 upon any following returns)
==Items==
;Energy Tank
:To collect this, Samus must activate the White Bomb Slot then go into Morph Ball in the Chozo Statue's hands.
==Scans==
;Radiation collector
:"Radiation collector designed to absorb and store solar energy. They appear largely decorative."
;Holobanner (1)
:"The Elder's greatest power lies beyond the second lock."
;Holobanner (2)
:"Chozo runes translated. Holobanner text reads 'The Hall of the Elders.'"
;Chozo Elder statue
:"Identified as statue of a Chozo Elder. According to Chozo lore, these statues served as the watchful guardians of tombs and shrines. Its outstretched hands are empty, as if awaiting an offering."
;Shield
:"Safety shield online. Window secure."
;Inactive Morph Ball Slots
:"Some sort of plug is covering this slot. Minor energy readings indicate that a small explosive device is installed."
;Morph Ball Slot (used)
:"This device was previously activated and shut itself off automatically."
;Bridge
:"Mechanical structure of bridge indicates it can be rotated."
;Wave Beam Slot (before acquiring Wave Beam)
:"The field covering this slot is comprised of a wavelike energy signal."
;Wave Beam Slot (after acquiring Wave Beam)
:"The field covering this slot is comprised of an erratic energy wavelength."
;Ice Beam Slot (before acquiring Ice Beam)
:"The field covering this slot is comprised of an energy signal that appears to be affected by cold."
;Ice Beam Slot (after acquiring Ice Beam)
:"The field covering this slot has temperature qualities similar to ice."
;Plasma Beam Slot (before acquiring Plasma Beam)
:"The field covering this slot is comprised of an energy signal that appears to be affected by heat."
;Plasma Beam Slot (after acquiring Plasma Beam)
:"The field covering this slot is comprised of plasma-based energy."
;Interface Module
:"Safety shield offline. Use caution near window."
;Hope (NTSC only)
:"Chozo script translated.More and more, our tormented minds turn to the Newborn. As the world continues to shift into brutal, disconnected images, she remains inarguably real; a fearless figure delving deeper into this blighted world, unmindful of the terrors that await her. Was she this way before? When we Chozo found her, a fledgling orphaned on a savaged planet, did a warrior’s pulse already beat in her veins, filling her with righteous fury? Our hopes lie with her. We leave these messages for her, that she may find our Artifacts and deliver the world from its evils. Wraiths we may be, but our reach is still long indeed. We shall fight the invaders, and the Poison they would master, until the end."
;Shapeless (PAL only)
:"Chozo script translated.Things bound to earthly shapes are temporal and frail; existing in a single dimension, they are fragile, vulnerable, and ultimately mortal. However, not all things obey this law - shapeless, they wait beyond the realm of perception, emerging only when one arrives who can feel their presence. Such is the will of the Chozo. Our will to defeat the evil seeping into this planet remains forever, desiring only to see the darkness meet its end. Mindless but strong, our will shall never sleep until the Entrusted One arrives to cleanse this land."
==Development notes==
The internal file name of this room is "17_chozo_bowling".u/Bhizzle64 on Reddit
The Hall of the Elders was the first room to be scripted in Metroid Prime, and it was also one of the first to be designed. Retro Studios' designers wanted a room with "bowling" mechanics where a Chozo Statue would push or pull Samus in ball form to solve puzzles and proposed several designs. Zoid Kirsch chose the design that ended up being used, seeing it as a challenge. He spent a month fine-tuning the complex mechanics of the bowling system, which resulted in the room having 300 objects in the world editor. This prompted Kirsch to ask the tools programmers to create a PhotoShop-like layer system, which simplified object use.Kiwi Talkz. "#121 - Zoid Interview (Metroid Prime, Cameras, Scripting, Sequence Breaking , Programming etc.)" YouTube. January 22, 2022. Retrieved July 25, 2022. (starts at 29:35) The layer system was reused in Metroid Prime 2: Echoes and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.
The Elder statue in this room was redesigned by Ashley Rochelle for Metroid Prime Remastered. She said this was her favorite thing to design, and called it "mah boy".Ash (AlpacaAsh). "Thank you so much! I’m an environment artist so I made art for the levels (lots of rocks XD). I worked a lot on the very first level, for example. Lots of look development on environment style. Favorite thing I did was the big boy chozo bowling statue (he’s mah boy)." 10 February 2023 11:32 p.m. Tweet. https://twitter.com/AlpacaAsh/status/1624265066232029186
An unused scan in this room has been found through datamining of Metroid Prime Remastered.
==Trivia==
*The theme of the Hall of the Elders was remixed for the Wall Jump minigame in Metroid Prime Pinball. When entering the Missile Station within the room, the music changes to "General Recharge".
*The Hall of the Golems on Bryyo is similar to the Hall of the Elders.
*Strangely, fire is seen to be emanating from the statue's eyes while the Ghosts are around. There is no known explanation for this.
*The Chozo Elder statue in this room has an unused scan: "Identified as statue of Chozo Elder. Chozo lore indicates these statues protected tombs from evil spirits." Ironically, corrupt Chozo Ghosts are present in the room.
==Gallery==
File:Chozo_manual.jpg|Manual art
File:Mh9GB.jpg|James Dargie
File:Ruins_Screenshot_HD_(5).jpg
Deep Chozo Ruins Screenshot (43).png
Deep Chozo Ruins Screenshot (51).png
Deep Chozo Ruins Screenshot (52).png|One of the solar panels
Deep Chozo Ruins Screenshot (57).png|The three Bomb Slots covered by differing energy fields.
Hall of the Elders.jpg|Samus' perspective
Deep_Chozo_Ruins_Screenshot_(69).png|Samus engages a Chozo Ghost.
File:Deep_Chozo_Ruins_Screenshot_(68).png|A Chozo Ghost generating a powerful magic blast.
MPR NSO icons Final Wave backgrounds and frames.jpg|Icon background based on this room, available through Nintendo Switch Online from March 9-16, 2023.
==References==
Category:Rooms
Category:Chozo Ruins
Category:Missile Stations
Category:Rooms containing Energy Tank(s) in Metroid Prime
Category:Boss Rooms
Category:Rooms containing Lore in Metroid Prime