The Aphelion is a ship and character in Tools of Destruction, A Crack in Time, All 4 One, Full Frontal Assault, and Into the Nexus. She is a sentient lombax ship that fought against Emperor Tachyon during his invasion of Fastoon. After Ratchet and Clank fixed her, she became Ratchet's ship during his time in the Polaris Galaxy.
There are two words written in Lombax on Aphelion; one reads as "Aphelion" and the second one as "angel".
History[]
Before Tools of Destruction[]
Aphelion was presumably constructed by the lombaxes as a fighter craft, as she was armed, and fought for them on Fastoon. During Tachyon's invasion, Aphelion fought against the drophyds in Tachyon's Imperial Army. She lay down suppressive fire over the Court of Azimuth before the drophyds shot her down using seeker ammo (which she considered "cheating"), in a crash that damaged her memory banks.[1]
Tools of Destruction[]
Ratchet finding Aphelion on Fastoon.
In "Repair the Lombax Ship", after Ratchet and Clank arrived in the lombax ruins of Fastoon, they gathered parts for her to repair her. Aphelion then introduced herself to Ratchet and told her what she knew of the lombaxes, before using her HD-47 Optical Holo-screen to view a Holo-Vite from Captain Qwark inviting them to the Imperial Fight Festival on Mukow.
Shortly after taking off, in "Battle the Space Pirates", on route to Mukow, Aphelion ran into space pirates in the Voron Asteroid Belt. The pirates attempted to steal the ship, but were surprised both by them firing back and the speed Aphelion had, before withdrawing for a team building exercise in the Andromeda System and unleashing Puffy Pants Wallis against them.[2]
After Ratchet and Clank stole from the space pirates on Ardolis, the pirates intercepted them at the Rakar Star Cluster in "Evade the Pirate Fleet" to reclaim the lombax artifact, but withdrew due to being late for a yoga class at Sargasso Sam's meditation station, leaving Iron Crotch Caruso to face them.[3]
Ratchet flying Aphelion into Reepor.
In "Escape from Slag's Clutches", Slag's pirates intercepted Aphelion at the Verdigris Black Hole on the way to Jasindu, deducing from Ratchet's trajectory that it was the location of the Dimensionator. Piloted by Ratchet, Aphelion destroyed their Pegasus Outpost before flying through the black hole to lose them, using the proto shield to make it through. Slag's pirates locked in for Jasindu and left Greasepalms McGee to fight them in the black hole, while they abandoned Ratchet.[4]
During "Return to Fastoon", when Aphelion took Ratchet and Clank back to fight Tachyon on Fastoon again, Aphelion protested being unable to shake the drophyd attacks. Clank suggested jettisoning excess cargo, though Aphelion instead ejected Ratchet and Clank to perform a HALO jump to land.[5]
A Crack in Time[]
Aphelion after being repaired by the Zoni.
Ratchet traveled with Captain Qwark in the Aphelion to the Breegus System. After Aphelion was hit, taking out the ship's grav-o-metric stabilizers, thrusters, and landing flaps, they were set to crash on Quantos until a time anomaly suspended the ship mid-air.[6] Exploring the planet's Zolar Forest, the two found fongoids, who were able to show them Zoni inside the Temple of Zahn. Using a Zoni Vessel granted by them, in "Find the 3 Zoni Necessary to Repair Aphelion", Ratchet collected three. The Zoni not only repaired Aphelion, but upgraded her.
Ratchet and Clank later used Aphelion throughout their adventure in the Breegus System. Aphelion was used to explore multiple different sectors and various moon bases, planets, and depots, complete missions, and fight other foes in dogfights.
All 4 One[]
Aphelion transported Ratchet, Clank, and President Qwark to an awards ceremony in Luminopolis for Galactic President Qwark. This turned out to be a set up for a new plan of attack from Dr. Nefarious. However, after unleashing a Light-Eating Z'Grute upon the city of Luminopolis, his plan went haywire, and Ratchet, Clank, Qwark, and Nefarious himself were forced to work together in order to stop the beast. Following it's rampage on the city, the Light-Eating Z'Grute tore and bit into the Aphelion, impaling her and draining the ship's light-energy.
Full Frontal Assault[]
Aphelion was repaired by Ratchet after he returned to Luminopolis and she became a member of the new Q-Force, stationed on board the Starship Phoenix II.
Into the Nexus[]
During Into the Nexus, Aphelion was towed to planet Yerek by Qwark and used again by Ratchet and Clank while pursuing Neftin and Vendra Prog.
Characteristics[]
Appearance[]
Aphelion is a lombax starfighter. Her design closely resembles that used by Alister Azimuth's own ship seen at various points. Her wings are capable of expanding to an X-shape, presumably in combat mode, while the typical long wings are seen during flight. Her default appearance gives her a dark brown paint job, but in A Crack in Time, her default appearance when upgraded by the Zoni has a bright blue appearance.
Personality[]
Aphelion is a sentient starship. For the most part, Aphelion only provides aid similar to a flight computer, reporting nearby enemies,[7] scanning for suitable landing sights,[8] and reporting on the weather.[9] However, she does have a personality of her own. Namely, she provides snarky comments, such as commenting on Ratchet's flying,[2] calling drophyds "cheats",[1] as offering to make it "look like an accident" after introducing two online dates in space that she finds repulsive.[10]
Equipment and abilities[]
Aphelion is fitted with rapid fire cannons, a missile system which can be charged, and a rear-facing rapid-fire turret piloted by Clank. Aphelion is fitted with a proto shield allowing it to survive inside a black hole.[4] Her thrusters have extremely potent speed, capable of easily reaching 800 cubits a second, something the space pirates had never seen before.[2] She also has landing flaps and grav-o-metric stabilizers for landing.[6]
Aphelion has sensors, including thermal sensors,[11] capable of detecting enemies and other anomalies. She is also fitted with an HD-47 Optical Holo-screen[1] that can play Holo-Vites, infobots placed in a slot, and the galactic map. She is fitted with an ejector seat, used for HALO jumps, and once threatened against Qwark.[6]
After being upgraded by the Zoni, Aphelion had a number of new weapons. This began with the Pulse Cannons, dual Zoni blasters fire energy bolts with surgical accuracy.[12] Later upgrades included the powerful Zoni shield named the Quantum Reflector,[13] the Swarm Rockets that could vaporize most short-range starships,[14] and the Xulian Overthruster for added speed.[15]
Aphelion likely runs on gelatonium, as Azimuth's own ship does.[16]
Gameplay[]
Tools of Destruction[]
The Aphelion in space.
The Aphelion is piloted in three on-rails space segments in Tools of Destruction. In these segments, the player can steer the Aphelion around the screen and move its rapid-fire laser independently, or charge up a multi-target blast that homes in on enemies. The Aphelion is used to battle various space pirate ships, destroy blockading objects, and shoot static defenses such as mines and satellite turrets, as well as bonus targets for gold bolts and cargo containers for raritanium. Each mission includes a short turret segment in which Clank controls the turret behind the Aphelion, culminating in a boss battle.
A Crack in Time[]
The Aphelion in space combat.
The Aphelion is used to travel between planets and moons in sectors throughout the Breegus System, as well as engage in combat against fighters belonging to local hostile factions. It can travel on a horizontal plane throughout each sector and take on space missions, and land on various moons where Ratchet can explore, fight enemies, or accept missions from locals. When in flight, the Aphelion can perform barrel rolls and quick turn-arounds with the 
, and fire its primary and secondary weapons with 
and 
, respectively. Like Ratchet it can use its own Quick Select menu to switch between weapons.
| Zoni | Upgrade |
|---|---|
| — | Impaler Missiles |
| — | Pulse Cannons |
| 6 | Thrustmaster 500 |
| 9 | Harmonic Plating |
| 12 | Ship Tether |
| 15 | Kinetic Demolishers |
| 18 | Plasma Torpedoes |
| 21 | Quantum Reflector |
| 24 | Polarity Plating |
| 27 | Proton Cutters |
| 30 | Swarm Rockets |
| 35 | Xulian Overthruster |
Over time, as more Zoni are collected, the Aphelion will gain new passive and active upgrades, including more health, better thrusters, new weapons, a shield, and the Ship Tether, which is used to complete various mission objectives. The Thrustmaster 500, and later the Xulian Overthruster, are convenient for getting around faster and for escaping from dogfights or closing in on targets. The Quantum Reflector shield serves a similar purpose; although it disables the thruster, it can be used to avoid danger, either when closing in on or escaping from enemies.
In combat, the default Pulse Cannons and Impaler Missiles suffice, but are eventually overshadowed by the Kinetic Demolishers and Plasma Torpedoes. The former will bounce onto nearby enemies, hitting multiple targets at once, whereas the latter deal more damage and lock on faster. The third set of upgrades are the Proton Cutters and Swarm Rockets. The Cutters are twin laser beams that make targeting enemies and sweeping across the battlefield much easier, at the cost of damage. The Swarm Rockets are weaker individually, but as eight are launched at once, their total damage output is actually higher.
Behind the scenes[]
The Aphelion was designed to loosely resemble Ratchet's lombax silhouette.[17]
In PlayStation Move Heroes, Aphelion appears in the background of the Metropolis stage. In PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, Aphelion appears as Ratchet and Clank's level 3 super move; they jump into Aphelion and launch lasers and missiles at enemies from a first-person perspective.
The Aphelion appears in the Insomniac Museum in the 2016 reboot.
Citations[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Tools of Destruction script § "Repair the Lombax Ship (gameplay)"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Tools of Destruction script § "Battle the Space Pirates (gameplay)"
- ↑ Tools of Destruction script § "Evade the Pirate Fleet (gameplay)"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Tools of Destruction script § "Escape from Slag's Clutches (gameplay)"
- ↑ Tools of Destruction script § "Return to Fastoon (gameplay)"
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 A Crack in Time script § "Space is Huge"
- ↑ A Crack in Time script § "Defeat Vorselon's Fighters (gameplay)"
- ↑ Tools of Destruction script § "Search the Cragmite Homeworld (gameplay)"
- ↑ Tools of Destruction script § "Meridian City, Planet Igliak"
- ↑ A Crack in Time script § "Help Introduce Warlock and Snookiebear (gameplay)"
- ↑ A Crack in Time script § "Defeat Vorselon's Fighters (gameplay)"
- ↑ A Crack in Time menu § "Pulse Cannons (--- Zoni collected)"
- ↑ A Crack in Time menu § "Quantum Reflector (21 Zoni collected)"
- ↑ A Crack in Time menu § "Swarm Rockets (30 Zoni collected)"
- ↑ A Crack in Time menu § "Xulian Overthruster (35 Zoni collected)"
- ↑ A Crack in Time script § "Travel to Axiom City, Planet Terachnos (gameplay)"
- ↑ The Art of Ratchet & Clank, p. 160
References[]
- Insomniac Games (2007). Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction [Game]. Sony Computer Entertainment. PlayStation 3.
- Insomniac Games (2009). Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time [Game]. Sony Computer Entertainment. PlayStation 3.
- Insomniac Games (2011). Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One [Game]. Sony Computer Entertainment. PlayStation 3.
- Insomniac Games (2012). Ratchet & Clank: Full Frontal Assault [Game]. Sony Computer Entertainment. PlayStation 3.
- Insomniac Games (2013). Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus [Game]. Sony Computer Entertainment. PlayStation 3.
- Sony Interactive Entertainment (2018). The Art of Ratchet & Clank [Book]. Dark Horse Comics. ISBN 978-1506705729.
- Insomniac Games (2016). Ratchet & Clank [Game]. Sony Interactive Entertainment. PlayStation 4.