Shadow Pirate

Shadow Pirates are an elite class of Space Pirate encountered by Samus Aran only in Metroid Prime.
==Description==
Shadow Pirates' main strategies are to use stealth combat and surprise tactics. Only a select group of Pirates are allowed to use this advanced cloaking tech, which suggests that Pirates who wish to obtain this gear must pass certain criteria to be eligible. However, the cloaking gear requires a large amount of energy to function, meaning the user cannot wield a Galvanic Accelerator Cannon as Pirates with standard gear can. 
Aside from the cloaking technology's energy demands, a practical reason for the Shadow Pirates not carrying ranged weapons is that firing a weapon would give away a Pirate's position, defeating the purpose of invisibility. The only weapon they possess is a scythe, which they are not afraid to use with aggression. These special Pirates appear in the Phendrana Drifts research lab Glacier One, and in the Phazon Mines.
Shadow Pirates wear large purple helmets that obscure their entire faces – including their eyes – and feature a large translucent blue orb on the Pirate's forehead. The orb's purpose is unknown, but it falls to the ground if a Shadow Pirate is incinerated by the Plasma Beam. A Shadow Pirate's energy scythe is blue, as opposed to a Space Pirate's yellow energy scythe, and also produces a blue trail when swung as opposed to a red trail. Based on one particular Shadow Pirate seen in Research Entrance, a Shadow Pirate's control panel for the cloaked field appears to be located on the left arm.
Due to the gear they wear, Shadow Pirates cannot be frozen by standard uncharged shots from the Ice Beam, though they will still receive damage. Shadow Pirates however can still be frozen from charged Ice Beam shots. They possess roughly 70 HP (Hard/Hypermode).
==Behavior==
Shadow Pirates tend to cling onto ceilings and wait for unsuspecting victims. Once a target is close enough to a Pirate, the Pirate will drop from their position and engage. Shadow Pirates tend to rush their enemies, but they often also move to another position in hopes of gaining the element of surprise again, should the enemy move too far away. The Thermal Visor can be used to spot Shadow Pirates clinging onto the ceilings in Glacier One. Their ceiling strategy can be exploited by Samus: it is possible to lock onto them and shoot them with a Super Missile or other powerful weapon, like the Plasma Beam, for an instant kill before they drop down.
==Revealing Shadow Pirates==
Shadow Pirates are able to render themselves invisible to creatures that see in the standard spectrum of light. As a result of their stealth, they also do not appear in the Combat HUD while the stealth gear is on. However, they can effectively be tracked with the Thermal Visor or the X-Ray Visor. The former is more efficient, as it makes the Shadow Pirates much more visible, especially at a long range. They can also be scanned while frozen with the Ice Beam. Whenever a Shadow Pirate attacks with its energy scythe at close range, the creature's cloaking tech is very briefly down until it finishes attacking. This brief moment allows for lock-ons or quick scanning before the cloaking field returns. 
Sometimes a Shadow Pirate will exude purple waves of energy, most likely as a byproduct of the cloaking gear's energy consumption. This flaw can prove deadly to a Shadow Pirate as the energy flux will briefly expose a Shadow Pirate even to the default Combat Visor.
==Appearances==
Shadow Pirates have only appeared in the original Metroid Prime, though later Metroid Prime series games feature Pirate Commandos, Commando Pirates, and Cloaked Troopers that are likewise capable of turning invisible. It is possible that the technology used by these Pirates, or that of a similar project, was eventually perfected and used by the Commando Pirates of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.
Shadow Pirates can be found in these rooms:
*Specimen Storage
*Research Entrance
*Research Lab Hydra
*Research Lab Aether
*Mine Security Station
*Elite Control
*Security Access A
*Security Access B
==Official Data==
===Logbook entry===
===Metroid Prime and Metroid Fusion: Prima's Official Strategy Guide===
;Shadow Pirate
:"Normally, these pirates have access to cloaking technology, which allows them to become nearly invisible to the naked eye. You can use a Thermal Visor to make them easy to detect and target, but during your first encounter, this enemy's cloaking device must be malfunctioning. Shadow Pirates only use close-range attacks, so try to keep your distance and keep backing up to dodge their attacks."
;Shadow Pirate
:Found In: Phendrana Drifts, Phazon Mines
:Recommended Weapon: Plasma Beam, Ice Beam
:"Shadow Pirates are equipped with high-tech cloaking devices; these suck up so much energy that nothing is left for any long-range weapons. Put on your Thermal Visor to detect Shadow Pirates and shoot them from a distance. Once you hit them with your Plasma Beam, the fire is visible even if they are cloaked. If you prefer, freeze them with an Ice Beam blast and follow it up with a missile." 
===Metroid Prime: The Official Nintendo Player's Guide===
;SHADOW PIRATE
:"Once you grab the Thermal Visor and knock out the lights in the Brig, enemies will descend like locusts. Switch to the Thermal Visor, stay on the ground floor and take out every Space Pirate in sight. You can track the cloaked Shadow Pirates easily if you use the new visor."
===Metroid Prime Official Strategy Guide===
;SHADOW PIRATE
:MORPHOLOGY
:"The Shadow Pirates are Pirate forces that are trained and equipped for stealth operations. A select group of Space Pirates have access to sophisticated cloaking technology. This gear drains high levels of power, however, forcing them to rely solely on melee weapons in battle. Use enhanced detection gear when fighting these units."
:COMBAT TIPS
:"Shadow Pirates can't be detected with the standard visor. Either the Thermal or X-Ray visors are necessary to see these enemies. Luckily the Shadow Pirates cannot fire on Samus from afar, so keeping them at a distance and targeting them with Missiles is an excellent tactic."
===Metroid Prime Official Perfect Guide===
;SHADOW PIRATE
:"You can only lock onto them with the Thermal Visor--this brand of Pirate, very dangerous, utilizes a kind of cloaking device."
==Trivia==
*One Shadow Pirate appears without the ability to cloak, in Specimen Storage right at the entrance to Glacier One. Oddly, the area over its eyes glow with fire like normal Pirates in Prime, despite the helmet covering said eyes entirely. This Shadow Pirate may possibly have a malfunctioning cloaking device, allowing it to be scanned by Samus.
*After the Thermal Visor has been collected, whenever Samus opens one of the the Purple Doors leading back to the Research Entrance, a Shadow Pirate can be seen standing in place in the center of the room with its cloaking field off. However it then will soon notice Samus's nearby presence and will quickly activate the cloaking tech in front of her before engaging in combat. 
==Gallery==
Shadowpirate.png|Metroid Prime model
Phendrana Drifts Screenshot (190).png|Scan
Phendrana_Drifts_Screenshot_(84)_crop.png|A Shadow Pirate without its cloaking gear in use in Specimen Storage.
Cloaked Pirate with Space Pirate.png|A Shadow Pirate (left) with its Gear active.
Space Pirate and Shadow Pirate.png|Shadow Pirates swinging their energy scythes at Samus.
Shadow Pirate Discharge.png|The purple energy discharge that comes with activating the stealth gear.
Shadow Pirate Metroid Energy Drain.png|A Shadow Pirate desperately grips a Tallon Metroid as the Metroid drains the Pirate's energy.
Shadow Pirate Frozen.png|Frozen by the Ice Beam.
Character Gallery - Shadow Pirate.png|Character Gallery model in Metroid Prime Remastered.
Biology - Remastered 20.png|Metroid Prime Remastered artwork
es:Pirata Oscuro
Category:Space Pirates
Category:Pirate Classes
Category:Tallon IV
Category:Phendrana Drifts
Category:Glacier One
Category:Phazon Mines