Thardus

Thardus is an enormous rock monster charged with Phazon energy that inhabited Tallon IV in the Phendrana Drifts. It was originally an experiment by the Space Pirates to use Phazon to create sentient creatures out of inanimate objects, but was found quarantined in a cavern in Metroid Prime. This experiment was titled "Project Titan".
==Battle==
Thardus controls the rocks in its domain and the icy weather that resides over the drifts. Its primary attack is to animate three small rocks and cause them to rush at the enemy; these rocks can be destroyed for ammo and energy. It can also slam its fists into the ground and send an Ultrafrigid Beam at Samus, and lastly Thardus will curl up into a ball and attempt to crush the enemy.
To defeat the behemoth, Samus must use the Thermal Visor to locate Thardus's weak spot, then fire at it with a weapon, preferably a single Super Missile. Once Samus hits the spot a few times, Thardus will release enormous amounts of thermal energy as its Phazon core is exposed, making the Visor overload. When using the Thermal Visor, Samus must take caution as her thermal vision can be temporarily impaired by a destroyed charged rock Thardus hurls at her.
Alternatively, Samus can wait until the beast begins to roll around the room. At this point, laying a single Bomb in its path will instantly smash open the weak point. 
Regardless of how the Phazon is exposed, she must then switch back to the Combat Visor and fire at the weak spot. Thardus will continually switch weak spots until the third weak spot is hit. Then it will unleash an ice storm, making it hard to see in the Combat Visor. After the sixth weak spot is destroyed, the creature will dispel the ice storm, so visibility returns to normal. He also noticeably speeds up at this point and will hurl additional rocks, as he only has one more weak point that must be attacked. Samus must continue the process, until the creature explodes once the seventh weak spot (which incidentally takes more hits than the others) is destroyed, leaving behind the Spider Ball. Humorously, a large rock hits Samus in the head after she moves out of the way of the falling boulders, making a sound similar to that of a metal drum.
==In other media==
Thardus also made an appearance in Metroid Prime Pinball, as a boss for the Power Bomb upgrade, and in the Metroid Prime comic, appearing in the Chozo Ruins. A remix of Thardus' battle theme is used for the clash with it in Pinball.
==Official data==
===Official website===
"Thardus is a towering, sentient creature of stone charged with Phazon radiation. Thardus attacks its prey through a variety of well-developed techniques. It can hurl huge boulders at its prey, or curl itself into a gargantuan bone-crushing ball. Thardus is also able to encase its targets in ice, making it an extremely dangerous foe.
Thardus's body consists of dozens of boulders held together through the power of the Phazon's radioactive charge."
===Logbook entry===
===Related scans===
====Map Station (Phendrana Drifts)====
"Project Titan specimen is immobilized in Quarantine Cave. Relocation is recommended due to increased violent activity."
====Research Lab Aether====
"East Quarantine Cave has been secured. Specimen remains in the Quarantine area. All experiments have been suspended pending pacification of area."
"Quarantine specimen exhibits highly aggressive behavior. Its body structure, composed of Phazon ore, appears nearly invulnerable. This has rendered our efforts to train and discipline subject useless."
"Project Titan is suspended indefinitely. Security breaches resulting in massive casualties have occurred. Access is strictly prohibited until further notice."
====Quarantine Monitor====
"Research on Tallon IV is expanding into new areas. Pending stabilization of the Thardus venture, we will expand Inanimation research to include other native Tallon IV materials."
"The taming of Thardus continues. Barring unforeseen setbacks, it can be installed on Phazon mine patrol by Lotus Milestone."
===Metroid Prime and Metroid Fusion: Prima's Official Strategy Guide===
;BOSS BATTLE: THARDUS
:"Thardus is tough. Defeating it requires that you slowly pick away at its stone body, which has seven points that must be destroyed. This is a long fight compared to the bosses you've faced previously.Because of Thardus's stone skin, you won't be able to see its weak spots without the aid of your Thermal Visor. Use the visor to lock on to each weak spot and unload on it with everything you've got. When the stone covering the weak spot is destroyed, the explosion will overload your Thermal Visor, and you'll need to switch back to your Combat Visor.The weak spot appears as a solid chunk of blue Phazon. Continue pounding it with your weapons until the spot is destroyed. It's best to use missiles, Super Missiles, and charged Wave Beam shots. Once a weak spot is destroyed, you must repeat the process once again.TIP: After the third weak spot is destroyed, Thardus summons a snowstorm. The snow reduces visibility and forces you to draw closer to the boss. You can see through the snow by using the Thermal Visor.Thardus has several attacks. It shoots a wave of ice by slamming its fists into the ground. The ice can freeze you, but you can break free by tapping [B]. You can also dodge the attack by strafing to either side while locked onto the boss.When Thardus raises its fists into the air, it summons large boulders from the ground that are hurled at you. Quickly target the boulders and blast them in the air. Not only is this the best way to avoid them, but the boulders also drop power-ups to refill your energy and ammunition. If you're using your Thermal Visor, there's a chance that explosions may overload it. If so, just wait a moment, and it should return to normal.Thardus's last attack involves rolling into a ball and attempting to run you down. This is its most devastating weapon. As soon as Thardus begins to roll up, immediately switch to Morph Ball mode and use the Boost Ball to dodge. Keeping an eye on Thardus is next to impossible, but do your best to avoid it.If you skillfully dodge Thardus's rolling attack and blast the boulders tossed at you, it's possible you might leave this battle with more energy than when you began. Your reward for bringing down the giant is the long-awaited Spider Ball. With it you can ride on magnetic rails by holding [R] in Morph Ball mode."
;Thardus
:Found In: Phendrana Drifts
:Recommended Weapon: Missile Launcher, Charge Beam
:Weak Spot: Varies
:"Thardus is a huge animated ice-and-rock creature infused with Phazon radiation. Because of this, it negates your auto-targeting system. Switch to your Thermal Visor to enable auto-targeting through heat sensing. With your Thermal Visor, you can lock on to Thardus's weak point and fire away. Missiles and the Charge Beam are very effective against Thardus's weak spots. Once the weak spot is destroyed and the Phazon core exposed, Thardus gives off so much heat that it overloads your Thermal Visor. Switch back to the Combat Visor immediately and lock on to its newly exposed Phazon core. Destroy the exposed Phazon with missiles and Charge Beam shots. Once it is destroyed, the heat subsides, and you can put your Thermal Visor back on to find the next weak spot. Tap [B] repeatedly if you are caught in Thardus's ice attack, and use the Morph Ball to avoid it as it rolls around the arena."
===Metroid Prime: The Official Nintendo Player's Guide===
;THARDUS
:THE THERMAL VISOR REVEALS ALL
:"Thardus is massive and very tough, but don't get discouraged. Scan the rock creature with your Thermal Visor to find its weak point--which will appear as an orange glow. Shoot the weak point until your visor malfunctions, then switch back to the Combat Visor. The Wave Beam is a good weapon to choose in this situation."
:ROCK AND ROLL
:"After a bit, Thardus will start chunking rocks in your directions. Lock onto the closest rock with the L Button, shoot it, then switch to the next rock in line. You can also keep shooting Thardus and avoid the rocks."
:FEELING BLUE?
:"After you switch to the Combat Visor, the weak spot will show up as a dull blue glow. Shoot the blue area until Thardus explodes outward and reforms, then switch back to the Thermal Visor and repeat the process six more times."
:DODGEBALL
:"When the boss rolls into a ball and starts careening around the arena, you won't be able to do much but get out of the way. Use the Space Jump Boots to avoid the attack. You can't jump over the rock, but you can spring to the side. Keep at it until you earn the Spider Ball."
===Metroid Prime Official Strategy Guide===
;THARDUS
:MORPHOLOGY
:"Thardus is an animated, sentient creature of stone charged with Phazon radiation. The Phazon radiation given off by Thardus negates Auto-Targeting systems, preventing lock-on. It may be possible to acquire alternate targets with a different Visor. The chaotic nature of Phazon-irradiation leads to instability in its structural integrity. Thardus can encase targets in ice, and its colossal size and strength make it a formidable opponent."
===Metroid Prime Official Perfect Guide===
;BOSS: THARDUS
:"You will need to turn on your Thermal Visor to find Thardus's weak point, at which point you should of course lock on and fire off a Super Missile at it. When you hit the weak spot your Thermal Visor will be overloaded and you'll be left blinded until you switch back to the regular Combat Visor. The Super Missile will have exposed the weak spot to viewing with the Combat Visor, so you can now lock on to it--to attack effectively, you should employ your Charge Beams or Missiles. A Super Missile will do the most damage, but if you miss as a result of Thardus's erratic movements, you'll have wasted five Missiles for nought. His other attacks include rolling himself up toward you at high speed, which does high damage (you can avoid this by rolling and Boosting out of the way), and perpetrating an ever-widening seismic ice shock that you should jump to avoid. As a third attack, Thardus can fling a series of boulders toward your position--his weak spots are most prone at this point--and if you should choose to blast these boulders, you can obtain the errant Energy capsules left behind by the detonation. For all the blindsiding Thardus will inflict upon you, a triumph over his insolence results in finding the Spider Ball."
==Development notes==
Mike Sneath created the model for Thardus based on Greg Luzniak's original concept art. He indicated that despite Thardus' appearance, it was actually easy to model, although he was unable to speak to the challenges of animating it. Thardus consisted of one model, with each part animated separately. The animated particles of snow, dust and rock fragments were added later in production by another artist. Thardus was inspired by Gorignak from Galaxy Quest; Sneath originally revealed this in a 2010 interview with Shinesparkers, but he could not recall the movie. Jack Mathews confirmed it was Galaxy Quest in a 2022 interview, and said Mark Pacini had seen it and came up with Thardus afterwards. (starts at 21:33) In the film, the main character (Jason Nesmith / Commander / Captain Peter Quincy Taggart, portrayed by Tim Allen) comments that Gorignak is "...a rock! It doesn't have any vulnerable spots!".
According to Sneath, Thardus was intended to be fought in a "large lava pit arena" (in the Magmoor Caverns), but it was moved to the Phendrana Drifts due to time constraints. This is supported by a Derek Bonikowski character animation (see below) that depicts Thardus with an orange core instead of blue.
The animation for the rock that hits Samus on the head after defeating Thardus is named "rock_inyoass" in the game's data.Shinesparkers. "Top Facts You Didn't Know About Metroid". December 16, 2022. Retrieved December 16, 2022.
In Metroid Prime Trilogy, very noticeable bloom lighting effects were added to the Thardus battle.
===Derek Bonikowski animation===
290px
==Trivia==
*Scans in Research Core indicate that Thermal Visor technology was used to transport Thardus to the Quarantine Cave.
*In the GameCube version of Metroid Prime, it is possible to defeat Thardus without acquiring the Thermal Visor (this is not possible in the Trilogy release).
*Thardus is very weak to the Plasma Beam, but to obtain it this early Samus must first sequence break to get the Ice Beam (and in European and Japanese regions, the Power Bomb) early. Then she must sequence break in Geothermal Core to actually get to the Beam.
**Thardus does not take any damage from Ice Beam weaponry. 
**Although Wavebuster works correctly, Thardus appears to not take any damage from it.
**If Power Bombs are obtained early, a properly placed bomb will deal massive damage to the Phazon exposed rocks. Strangely, the parts of Thardus that haven't been exposed will glow red and not take any damage (this effect can also be viewed before the fight if a Bomb or Power Bomb is used on the pre-battle pile of rocks via sequence breaking [see below]).
**Thardus is completely immune to the Phazon Beam (via hacking), likely due to the creature itself being made up of Phazon energy. Its small rocks however can be destroyed with the Phazon Beam.
*Thardus has its own battle theme.
*On very rare occasions, a random glitch occurs after the Thardus battle. If Samus looks around, a rock that Thardus throws in the battle will be floating above. Shooting it several times will make it vanish.
*Another rare glitch occurs when Thardus is rolling. When exiting out of rolling, it may sometimes become stuck inside walls, making combat with it much more difficult. Thardus can escape the wall as soon as it rolls once more during battle. 
*In the original GameCube NTSC version of Metroid Prime, if Samus enters Quarantine Cave through the South Quarantine Tunnel before defeating Thardus through sequence breaking, she can perform a Scan Dash to land on top of the pile of rocks that form Thardus without triggering the battle. Samus can then perform another scan dash to reach North Quarantine Tunnel. This is known as the "Thardus Dash" and is a major shortcut.
:*If Samus does not have the Space Jump Boots, she can instead jump on top of the pile of rocks and do a damage boost to reach North Quarantine Tunnel. This is known as the "Thardus Hop" and is much more difficult compared to the dash.
*There is a glitch where if Samus uses the Combat Visor to shoot Thardus rather than locking on with the Thermal Visor, the boss will not use its roll attack.
*Thardus' movements when summoning a storm look nearly identical to its death animation. When the storm dissipates, it can be seen smashing the ground.
==Gallery==
Thardus_crop.png|Thardus standing upright.
Phendrana Drifts Screenshot (202).png|Thardus in an inanimate state.
Phendrana Drifts Screenshot (230).png|Thardus' lightning generation.
Phendrana Drifts Screenshot (237).png|Thardus' weak point seen through the Thermal Visor.
Phendrana Drifts Screenshot (243).png|The creature's core is exposed.
Thardus X-Ray.png|Thardus seen with the X-Ray Visor (via sequence breaking).
Thardus Wall Glitch.png|In rare instances, Thardus may become stuck inside a wall. This glitch can easily be remedied once Thardus rolls once more. 
Samus_defeats_Thardus.jpg|Samus defeats Thardus.
Phendrana Drifts Screenshot (245).png|Thardus collapses.
Thardus Martin L'Heureux.gif|Martin L'Heureux animation
165page14-15.jpg|Metroid Prime comic
Thardus.jpg|Thardus in Metroid Prime Pinball.
Mppinball_07_big.jpg|Thardus in Metroid Prime Pinball
Thardus stuck behind wall in MPR.png|Thardus stuck behind the wall in Metroid Prime Remastered.
Character Gallery - Thardus.png|Character Gallery
Biology - Remastered 14.png|Metroid Prime Remastered artwork
==References==
es:Thardus
it:Thaedus
ru:Тардус
Category:Bosses
Category:Tallon IV
Category:Phendrana Drifts
Category:Chozo Ruins
Category:Mike Sneath
Category:Derek Bonikowski
Category:Recurring Species
Category:Greg Luzniak
Category:Radioactive
Category:Deceased
Category:Giants