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Characters / Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero

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Mortal Kombat Main Character Index
Original and Reboot Timeline: MK (1992) | MK2 | MK3 | MK4 | Deadly Alliance | Deception | Armageddon | MK vs. DC Universe | MK9 | MKX | MK11
The New Era: MK1
Spin-offs: Mythologies: Sub-Zero | Special Forces
Non-video game: The Movie | Conquest | Defenders of the Realm | 2021 Movie
Individual Characters: Scorpion I (Hanzo Hasashi) | Sub-Zero I/Noob Saibot (Bi-Han) | Johnny Cage | Liu Kang | Raiden | Shang Tsung | Sub-Zero II/Scorpion II (Kuai Liang) | Kitana | Mileena | Shao Kahn/General Shao | Quan Chi

Here we're going to list the characters introduced in the spin-off Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero.

While Quan Chi was originally introduced in Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm, he's included here for the sake of narrative, as this is the game which introduced him to the series proper and explained his role in the main story of the games.

Quan Chi can be found here.
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    Shinnok 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/7fd5f80e3972531086f0efbd65e4a1ba.png
"Tremble before me as I absorb Earthrealm's power!"

Debut game: Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero (Gary Wingert)
Other appearances: Mortal Kombat 4 (Steve Beran), Mortal Kombat: Armageddon (Knute Horwitz), Mortal Kombat 9 (Ken Lally, non-playable), Mortal Kombat X (Troy Baker, English; Idzi Dutkiewicz, Latin American Spanish) and Mortal Kombat 11 (Troy Baker, English; Idzi Dutkiewicz, Latin American Spanish; non-playable), Mortal Kombat: Onslaught (Troy Baker).
Non-video game appearances: Mortal Kombat: Annihilation (Reiner Schöne), Mortal Kombat Legends: Scorpion's Revenge (Robin Atkin Downes), Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms (Robin Atkin Downes), Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (Robin Atkin Downes)

Shinnok is a former elder god and current ruler of the Netherrealm. Originally, he wanted to take Earthrealm for himself to gain immense power. To make sure he could freely enter Earthrealm without being detected, he created a special amulet which discreetly weakened the dimensional barriers. However, with the help of the other Elder Gods, Raiden discovers his plot and defeats him in battle, banishing him to the Netherrealm for good. There, he suffered constant torture until he met the sorcerer Quan Chi. With his help, Lucifer was dethroned and Shinnok became the new ruler with Quan Chi as his arch-sorcerer and right-hand man.

During the events of both Mythologies: Sub-Zero and Mortal Kombat 4, Quan Chi was working to release his master, the banished Elder God Shinnok, from his imprisonment in the Netherrealm. With the assistance of the original Sub Zero, Quan Chi managed to get the amulet and initiate Shinnok's invasion of the realms after Shao Kahn's failed attempt to conquer Earthrealm. He managed to invade Edenia and attack the heavens before Earthrealm's warriors managed to have him banished back to the Netherrealm once more by Raiden.

In Armageddon, Shinnok tricked Taven into helping him, claiming that he was no longer an Elder God for getting involved with the affairs of mortals. He wished for him to defeat the demons that inhabit his throne and he would try to locate Daegon as a reward. He successfully does the task and Shinnok tells Taven that he is most likely in Earthrealm. As he leaves, it is revealed that Shinnok was helping Daegon who was hiding in Netherrealm. In addition, it was Shinnok who alerted the many combatants to the prize at the top of the Pyramid of Argus, telling them that whomever obtained this power would be granted godlike power. His ending reveals that Shinnok created a clone of his own self to assist Daegon in Armageddon. His clone was killed off shortly after defeating Kung Lao, unable to complete his objective.

He makes a brief cameo in Mortal Kombat 9. In Mortal Kombat X, he's launched an all-out invasion of Earthrealm following the events of Mortal Kombat 9 only to be defeated by Johnny Cage. The rest of the game's story revolves around a plot by Quan Chi and D'Vorah to bring him back after 20 years. They succeed (at the cost of Quan Chi's life) and he ends up almost winning, absorbing Earthrealm's Jin Sei and becoming a corrupted version of himself before being stopped by Cassie Cage. His severed immortal head is then used by Dark Raiden as a warning to the new rulers of the Netherrealm, Liu Kang and Kitana.
  • Actually a Doombot/Fighting a Shadow: According to both his Armageddon ending and 9, the Shinnok present in Armageddon was nothing more than a clone sent by the real Shinnok. One of his intros in X references this.
  • Adaptational Attractiveness:
    • Though "attractive" is not the most appropriate word, it is worth noting that he had a more human-like appearance in Annihilation, instead of his pallid look in the games.
    • While he's still got the pale skin in Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms, Shinnok is also much buffer and taller than in the games rather than the gaunt, average-height figure of the games.
  • Ambiguously Evil: Discussed by Raiden in one of his pre-fight intros with Cetrion in 11. When Cetrion claims that Shinnok "embraced" Kronika's designs, Raiden wonders if Shinnok either willingly went with Kronika's plan as an evil fallen Elder God or was compelled into it. Regardless of his opinion on Kronika's machinations, he's still very much malicious out of his own volition, given his various Kick the Dog moments and pettiness towards his enemies; the question isn't so much whether Shinnok is evil, but whether or not he chose to be.
  • Ambition Is Evil: He is described more than once as having an insatiable lust for power, which is what caused his crimes against his fellow Elder Gods. Shinnok may very well be far more brutal than Shao Kahn.
  • Amplifier Artifact/Immortality Inducer: His Amulet and his Amulet Staff. Both are used to drastically increase his powers to the point of nigh-immortality (even beyond his Physical God status).
  • And I Must Scream: He views being trapped inside his amulet as this. At the end of X, he is reduced to a decapitated head by Dark Raiden, unable to communicate but conscious and obviously in pain. 11 doesn't make his situation any better as he gets used as a source of energy for Revenant Liu Kang's armies with no say in the matter.
  • Apocalypse How: Comes close to a Class Z in his Mortal Kombat X arcade ending, as he's awakening the One Being, Mortal Kombat's Greater-Scope Villain, and it results in Cessation of Existence to all. Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms also sees him try for this.
  • Arch-Enemy: To his fellow Elder Gods and Raiden, who cast him into the Netherrealm millennia before the main series started.
    • In Mortal Kombat X Johnny Cage and later Cassie Cage, as the Cage family possesses ancient magic from a mediterranian cult that allowed them to defeat the former Elder God.
  • Archnemesis Dad: He is this to Raiden in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.
  • Artifact of Doom: His amulet is among the most powerful of all mystic talismans within all the realms. Many have sought after it so they can increase their powers drastically, and serves a focal point for the plot of Mortal Kombat X. In Onslaught, it proves to be a crucial item: Shinnok uses it to siphon the powers of Quan Chi and Shang Tsung - and transfer them onto himself.
    Shinnok: All things come to He Who Waits... and I have waited so very long!
  • Asshole Victim: Reduced to a mere head by Dark Raiden at the end of Mortal Kombat X. The story prologue of 11 shows him at his absolute lowest point: chained up within the Jinsei Chamber, forced to look upon that which he desired most but forever beyond his reach, deprived of the amulet which granted him power, and painfully tortured via electrocution by Dark Raiden before the moment he gets decapitated. Given all the shit that he and Quan Chi put the heroes through in 9 and X, it's fair to say his fate was more than deserved.
  • Astonishingly Appropriate Appearance: Befitting a god of death and destruction, he has a corpse-like appearance with completely white eyes and wears muted, dark colors except for a bit of red.
  • Author Avatar: Of a sort. His Mortal Kombat 4 model is based on Midway Games' developer Steve Beran, who also provided voicework for the character.
  • Bad Boss: He demands unwavering faith and loyalty from his followers and will not hesitate to kill anyone who dares to question him. One of his pre-fight animations in X has him casually vaporize one of his own minions for no particular reason other than to intimidate his opponent. Perhaps the worst moment comes in Reptile's non-canon ending in 4; the Saurian pleads with Shinnok to restore his extinct race which Shinnok can very easily do as he is now master of all reality. Shinnok is angered at Reptile for having the gall to ask for a favor and kills him even though Reptile had served him loyally.
  • Batman Gambit: And a Xanatos Gambit too! He pulls off a massively epic one through both Armageddon and MK9 that would have made Tywin Lannister either proud or jealous.
    • Shinnok sets off the Battle of Armageddon by spreading word about the godlike power that could be gained from killing the elemental Blaze, then manipulates demigod brothers Taven and Daegon in their quest to guide them both along opposite paths so they would fight one another instead of working together. Through all this, he's even savvy enough to use a clone instead of personally risking his own neck. The resulting "final battle" between the Forces of Light and Darkness raged out of control until the only two kombatants left standing were a weakened and insane Thunder God (Raiden) and a vicious warrior king who the battle had left sans an army (Shao Kahn). Shao Kahn would go on to ultimately kill both Blaze (after Taven failed) and Raiden, to win Armageddon, presumably following up by conquering the realms and then going mad. With only Shinnok, Taven, Daegon, Shao Kahn, and the disembodied spirit of Lui Kang left alive, nothing short of a Reset Button could stop Shinnok from creating an Enemy Mine to go after Shao Kahn and then picking up the scraps.
    • Miraculously, Raiden had regained some of his sanity and used his Elder God amulet to send a message to his past self from the first MK tournament before suffering the final blow at Kahn's hand, essentially pressing a reset button on the entire series and foiling Shinnok's plan. Except, in a move that ups the gambit level from Batman to Xanatos, Shinnok somehow banked on this by sending his disciple Quan Chi in to position himself into Shao Kahn's inner circle over the course of the first three tournaments in order to work his necromancy on fallen kombatants with impunity. The ensuing alterations in the timeline result in the Forces of Light being almost irreparably crippled, with the three most powerful women of Edenia as well as most of Earth's champions killed and turned into wraiths and thralls for the Netherrealm, and the most powerful obstacle to Shinnok's ascension, would-be Armageddon victor / Outworld emperor / first link in an entire army's immortality chain Shao Kahn, eliminated from existence. By the end of MK9, Shinnok and Quan Chi are poised to begin their invasion once he's set free, with Earthrealm and Outworld FAR more vulnerable to a hostile takeover from the Netherrealm than they were in Mortal Kombat 4/Gold in the original timeline. In either timeline, Shinnok finds himself literally two moves away from becoming the evil king of the universe.
  • The Bad Guy Wins: Zig-zagged and later on, downplayed. Despite weakening the Forces of Light, Shinnok is shown to be trapped in his own amulet by Raiden in the opening moments of Mortal Kombat X. However, this was before the time-skip, and Quan Chi was still on the lam. True to form, Shinnok is freed again and proceeds to corrupt the Jinsei (Earthrealm's life force), but is eventually defeated and foiled after one hell of a struggle. Also, according to a vision shown to Kitana, the one who would've been destined to lead the charge in knocking off Shao Kahn and take power in the fallout of Armageddon in the original timeline was not Shinnok, but Kitana herself, who then would've reigned as Queen of Edenia. But despite his defeat(s), he DOES manages to break his Arch-Enemy Raiden by twisting him into something as evil as himself— the thunder god is now corrupted after purifying the Jinsei of Shinnok's taint, and vows to go on a warpath after the events of X. Lampshaded in the prologue of 11, where he actually praises Raiden for becoming Dark Raiden and "embracing the truth he was exiled for speaking" by wearing his amulet.
  • Big Bad: Of Mythologies: Sub-Zero, Mortal Kombat 4/Gold, and Mortal Kombat X. Next to Shao Kahn he is the second most recurring antagonist of the series.
  • Cain and Abel: The Cain to his sister Cetrion's Abel although they are both villains. Their mother Kronika enforces this trope, using her children as an embodiment of her insane belief that a balanced universe is one where good and evil (Cetrion and Shinnok, respectively) are in constant conflict.
  • The Cameo: In the Sequel Hook of Mortal Kombat 9, foreshadowing his role in X.
  • Card-Carrying Villain: Shinnok proudly embraces his reputation as a god of evil and death.
  • Cessation of Existence: This is what happens in his non-canon ending in Mortal Kombat X, which involves him awakening the One Being, allowing it to destroy all of reality and devour his fellow Elder Gods.
  • The Chessmaster: The Man Behind the Man to Daegon and is trusted by Taven (who is unaware that he had fallen), and pits the two against each other. He seems to have a greater awareness of what is going on than most other heroes and villans, and he chooses to use an avatar for the final battle rather than show up in person. It is revealed in Mortal Kombat 9 that the entirety of that game is a result of his machinations in Armageddon. Quite impressive, though he's as much of an Anti-Climax Boss as a fighter as he ever was (even if, granted, he's not technically a boss).
  • Chekhov's Gun: His Amulet is technically the seventh Kamidogu. If Shujinko had collected the item and placed it on the altar alongside the other relics, it would have been sent to the Elder Gods as Onaga told Shujinko originally. When combined with the Kamidogu, its power would have allowed Onaga to reshape the realms.
  • Complete Immortality: The best that can be done with him is imprisoning him in the Netherrealm or his amulet and hoping he doesn't escape. Or as Raiden to does him at the end of Mortal Kombat X - cut off his head. He won't die, but he won't be able to do much either.
  • The Corrupter:
    • Preys on Daegon's fears of being The Un-Favourite to get him to kill his parents. Also subtly this to Taven, desensitizing him to murder by having him kill everything in the Spire in order to "reclaim" it—complete with repeated orders to "Eliminate" and "Destroy".
    • Also serves as this to Liu Kang, after the latter's Face–Heel Turn in Mortal Kombat X.
    • While only implied in X, 11 reveals that he is this on a much grander scale than anticipated. He was literally made by Kronika to be this. A being made entirely of darkness and evil who brings out the worst in people and manipulates them like puppets to balance out his sister Cetrion. Anyone who is either reborn as a Netherrealm revenant or comes into contact with his essence, be it the corrupted Jinsei or his own amulet, is twisted and warped into the darkest possible opposite of what they once were.
  • Curb-Stomp Battle: Against Raiden, Fujin, Johnny Cage, Kenshi and Sonya Blade, in the first chapter of Mortal Kombat X.
  • Composite Character: Shinnok is Shao Kahn's and Raiden's father in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.
  • Dark Is Evil: A pale skinned fallen Elder God of Death who uses dark energy blasts and necromancy and rules the Netherealm.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Some of his pre-battle interactions with other fighters show that he has a rather dry sense of humor.
    Mileena: You will not have Outworld.
    Shinnok: Apparently, neither will you.
  • Defeating the Undefeatable: As one of the most powerful beings in the series, the very idea of defeating Shinnok is difficult to comprehend. Characters throughout X and 11 constantly lampshade how it's feasible Johnny and Cassie Cage defeated him, or outright refusing to believe it happened.
    Triborg: You defeated the Elder God, Shinnok?
    Johnny Cage: Former Elder God, and yes.
    Triborg: A fool and a liar.
  • Defiant to the End: Subverted in 11, where he continues to praise Raiden for his Face–Heel Turn while Raiden is torturing him after the events of MKX, but his smugness disappears the instant Raiden raises his arm to decapitate him.
  • Dem Bones:
    • Shinnok is able to conjure skeletal constructs of varying sizes, from scythes to giant arms.
    • MKX sees his Necromancer Variation render his forearms with nothing but bare bones up to the elbow yet still functional despite lacking any connective tissue or muscle.
  • Diabolical Mastermind: As a rogue Elder God residing in the Netherrealm and using the inhabitants to carry out his orders, he has shades of this.
  • Ditto Fighter: He could also switch between the other characters' moves with ease in 4. He can be this in MKX, using his Impostor variation.
  • Early-Bird Cameo: Before appearing in 4 and Mythologies, he was alluded to in various character bios and endings in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3.
  • Enemy Mine: Notably, he joins Raiden against the sorcerers in Onslaught. After getting their powers, Shinnok immediately betrays Raiden and seals him into his amulet.
  • Even Evil Can Be Loved:
    • Despite the two of them being polar opposites and natural enemies, Shinnok's sister Cetrion shows some regard and care for her brother after his downfall.
    • Shinnok's mother Kronika seems to have compassion for her son, but, like she does with Cetrion, it's clear that she sees him as a pawn and an instrument to enforce her insane ideas of balance.
  • Everybody Hates Hades: The fallen Satanic Archetype Elder God who rules the Netherrealm, and is an Omnicidal Maniac. Just like his mother wanted him to be.
  • Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Like Quan Chi, he seems genuinely confused as to why some of the revived Revenants fell out of his service and calls them ungrateful despite being told that he and Quan Chi turned them into their minions.
  • Evil Counterpart: To Raiden. while Raiden uses his God powers to help the Earthrealm and spread hope, Shinnok is a fallen Elder God Manipulative Bastard who spreads fear and death, they also both have a special powerful amulet. MKX really hammers the similarities home as while Raiden takes care of Jinsei Chamber, Shinnok corrupts it with just his touch.
  • Evil Is Hammy:
    • FEEL MY POWER!!! FEEL THE FORCES OF DARKNESS!!! He's certainly no slouch in 4 either, FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS, I SUFFERED IN THE BOWELS OF THE NETHERREALM! YOU, THUNDER GOD, ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR MY SUFFERING! NOW THE PITEOUS MORTALS OF EARTH WILL PAY FOR MY GRIEVANCE!
    • Then there's this gem from Mortal Kombat X against Johnny Cage: Miserable WRETCH! Insignificant speck of FECULENT SCUM! HOW DARE YOU?!
  • Evil Laugh: MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
  • Evil Mentor: Serves as this to Daegon and Taven in the original timeline, and to Liu Kang in the rebooted one.
  • Evil Old Folks: Generally looks more aged than his fellow deities, and definitely not a nice guy.
  • Evil Overlord: He is the ruler of the Netherrealm and plans to conquer other realms as part of his revenge against his fellow Elder Gods, especially Earthrealm.
  • Evil Sorcerer: Yet another one, like all the other villains. He can use, among other moves, shape-shifting like Shang Tsung (Mimicry) and large skeletal hands to grab and throw his opponent (Summoned Fiend).
  • Fallen Hero: His backstory as a fallen Elder God. His lust for power is what caused the other Elder Gods to exile him to the Netherrealm.
  • Fate Worse than Death: Is reduced to a mute severed head by the end of MKX. Bonus points that the trope is even called word by word by Raiden.
  • Faux Affably Evil: He's generally calm even when invading other realms, but when pissed off or is in Villainous Breakdown mode, he really gets nasty. And his office-like chatter towards Raiden and Fujin in X is just a veneer for the intense hatred he harbors towards his fellow Elder Gods, who exiled him to the Netherrealm for his crimes against them. When talking to Sub-Zero in Mythologies the tone of his voice is unflappably calm, even gentle. Shinnok's calm demeanor stays intact in Onslaught - even when he successfully traps Raiden in his amulet.
  • Gameplay and Story Segregation:
    • As an Elder God, he's arguably the most powerful force of evil in the entire mythos, but he has a rather lackluster record as a gameplay character, possibly owing to the emphasis on him being a fallen Elder God. In 4, he simply copied his enemies' moves, a clear ripoff of Shang Tsung minus the shapeshifting and not much harder to beat than the other characters. He got a slightly more original moveset in Armageddon and X, but has still yet to compare to the toughest characters in the series on his own. He does powers up for the final fight in X, however, putting his boss incarnation alongside the others in the series.
    • In X, after his defeat, he gets decapitated by Dark Raiden as a warning to Revenant Liu Kang and Kitana, and his head is still alive. Fighting him in Vs. and arcade modes however, subjects him in the same brutal ways as any other character, including decapitation which would kill him.
  • God-Emperor: Fallen Elder God, ruler of the Netherrealm, and plans to rule over all of existence. Although he canonically usurped the Netherrealm from Lucifer, the dynamic is still the same.
  • God of Evil: He's a fallen Elder God and rules over the Netherrealm as one of the main antagonists in the series.
  • Gone Horribly Right: Though he's reduced to a mere living head (fallen Elder God or not, Shinnok is completely immortal) in X, Shinnok does manage to twist his Arch-Enemy Raiden into something just as evil as he himself is. During the story preview for Mortal Kombat 11, he even says this to Raiden's face as the scene takes place before his beheading, which might have been the trigger for Raiden to deliver to him his final fate.
  • Got the Whole World in My Hand: His victory pose in X. His sister Cetrion shares a similar win pose in 11.
  • The Ghost: A brief line in MK1 suggests that Shinnok exists in the New Era, albeit not as an Elder God, but he makes no appearance even though his Amulet does.
  • Greater-Scope Villain: He was manipulating the events of Mortal Kombat 9 from behind the scenes, through his minion Quan Chi. To a lesser extent, he was also this during the events of Armageddon.
  • Hidden Depths: If his interactions with each Guest Fighter in MKX are not the result of possible omnipresence, Shinnok must be into Earthrealm culture to be aware of them.
  • Horns of Villainy: He wears a horned headdress.
  • Hunk: Thanks to animated style of Battle of the Realms, Shinnok appears to be more muscular.
  • I Lied: In Reptile's ending in 4. When he asks Shinnok to hold his end of the deal, the fallen Elder God responds with this:
    Shinnok: A deal? I am not a god of my word, Reptile. All deals are off!
  • I Am the Noun: As he reclaims his powers in Onslaught, he has this to say:
    "I am Shinnok. I am the Elder God. I am THE Elder God!"
  • Immortality Hurts: The crux of his Fate Worse than Death; despite the torture he suffers at Dark Raiden's hands, Shinnok brags that Raiden still cannot kill an Elder God, which Raiden acknowledges to be true... so he cuts off Shinnok's head, leaving him alive, but immobile and in obvious pain as he tries in vain to speak (or scream).
  • Insult Backfire: In X.
    Takeda: Father of All Evil!
    Shinnok: You flatter me.
  • Jerkass God: Just like his fellow Elder Gods, Shinnok is a big douche for a god. Subverted in that he may have been the sole black sheep of all Gods as of 11.
  • Kryptonite Factor: The Cage family's green magic are more than just a fancy effect, it's actually a Mediterranean magic passed down made to protect and strengthen themselves against even the gods. Shinnok obviously didn't know they possessed this so he was defeated by them.
  • Leaking Can of Evil: Implied in the ending of 9. He was able to communicate with Quan Chi and manipulate the events of the game to his favor but, according to him, he is not yet free. By X, he bursts free, twice for good measure.
  • Lean and Mean: He's very skinny compared to most of the cast and is one their nastiest villains.
  • Losing Your Head: A rather horrifying example. This is his fate as of X, as he simply cannot die, and greatly implied by Raiden that he will remain this way.
  • Manipulative Bastard: Pretty much his shtick in Mythologies, although he's Out-Gambitted by Quan Chi, who took the real Dragon Amulet for himself. Also, see Actually a Doombot/Fighting a Shadow above.
  • Monochromatic Eyes: A staple of his appearance.
  • The Movie Buff: Bizarrely, he, of all people, comes across as one in MKX due to being the only fighter to recognize each Guest Fighter. Whether he is omnipresent enough to know who they are due to being a former Elder God, or that he has some serious explaining to do, is up in the air.
  • Muscles Are Meaningless: Possibly the skinniest male character in the franchise and one of the most powerful as a fallen Elder God.
  • Never My Fault: Blames Raiden for the suffering he endured in the Netherrealm, when his attempted invasions on Earthrealm is what caused Raiden to banish him there. And when speaking directly with Elder Gods in Onslaught, he mentions "the most fortuitous of circumstances" preventing his victory over them.
  • Off with His Head!: Decapitates his opponents in some matter during his fatalities and Corrupted Shinnok's victory animation in Mortal Kombat X. He is also decapitated by Raiden at the end of the game, and is shown as an example to the new rulers of the Netherrealm exactly what could happen if they threaten Earthrealm.
  • Omnicidal Maniac:
    • His goal is to consume all the energies of everything. Except Quan Chi, as a reward for his services.
    • As of Mortal Kombat X, he intends to awaken the One Being by merging the realms. This process includes wiping out existence itself, including his fellow Elder Gods. His non-Fatality outro involves him conjuring an image of Earthrealm, grunting "Death to all!" and reducing it to a burnt crisp.
  • One-Winged Angel:
    • In Mythologies, he transforms into a scary-ass demon... thing... as soon as Sub-Zero takes the amulet, but fighting him in this form is optional (and very difficult, though it unlocks a game blooper reel), as a portal leading to the end of the game opens up anyway.
    • Said demon form returns in Mortal Kombat X when he poisons and absorbs the Jinsei's energy, and it is now officially known as "Corrupted" Shinnok.
  • Parental Favoritism: Annihilation shows him favoring Shao Kahn over Raiden.
  • Physical God: Like the other Elder Gods or realm gods, he possesses a more ethereal form, but takes a physical one to participate in mortal events. He may have lost this ability upon his fall.
  • Power Floats: In Mythologies, he floats off of the ground in battle, an element not carried over into his playable appearances.
  • Prophet Eyes: Always has these eyes, which emphasize how soulless and evil he is.
  • Rage Against the Heavens: This is what he intends to do against his fellow Elder Gods for banishing him to the Netherrealm. In his non-canon ending in Mortal Kombat X, the fallen Elder God succeeds in re-merging all the realms to reawaken the One Being, allowing it to destroy all of reality upon the One Being's revival and devour the Elder Gods.
  • Related in the Adaptation:
    • Annihilation shows him as father to Raiden and Shao Kahn.
    • Again in 11, where with Spawn arriving as a Guest Fighter, he is apparently a cousin of Malebolgia.
  • Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Is not happy with his fellow Elder Gods for casting him down to the Netherrealm.
  • Satanic Archetype: Although he canonically usurped the Netherrealm from Satan (well, actually Lucifer), the dynamic is still the same.
  • Sealed Evil in a Can:
    • Cast down into the Netherrealm by Raiden and his fellow Elder Gods eons before the series began, with the means of his escape (his amulet) being guarded by the four elemental gods in their Earthrealm temples. Is finally unsealed in 4 and in X.
    • In MKX, he gets stuck inside his amulet as one. Until he's released, of course.
    • In Onslaught, however, he manages to return the favor by sealing Raiden into his amulet. And then he threatens to do the same to both Shang Tsung and Quan Chi.
  • Sibling Yin-Yang: With his sister Cetrion, who rules over life and light.
  • Sinister Scythe: His Bone Shaper variation in MKX gives him a skeletal one.
  • Sink or Swim Mentor: Implied to subordinates with the "honor" of being directly under his tutelage. He presents himself to Quan Chi in one intro to improve his skills but makes it clear it's a life or death course.
  • The Sociopath: Has the hallmarks of one: He showed no empathy or remorse when betraying his fellow Elder Gods, wants to destroy all realms by awakening the One Being, FAR more brutal and heartless than Shao Kahn, has some shades of a Straw Nihilist, able to manipulate events via proxies such as Quan Chi, has delusions of grandeur after being cast down and wouldn't hesitate to kill anybody if they cross or betray him.
  • Sole Survivor: By the end of 11, Shinnok is the only living Elder God left after Cetrion killed the rest of them and sacrificed herself to empower Kronika.
  • Sore Loser: Clearly expresses this attitude when he gets to meet his brothers and sisters in Onslaught, if this piece of dialogue is any indication.
    Raiden: Please, you must defend us! Shang Tsung and Quan Chi may have already transformed themselves into Elder Gods!
    The Elder Gods: Mortals are no threat, Raiden. None can channel our power. If Shinnok could not topple us, how could they?
    Shinnok: It was only the most fortuitous of circumstances that kept me from victory. Your good fortune has only fed your arrogance!
  • Sorcerous Overlord: With his sorcerous powers and Quan Chi's help, he overthrew Lucifer and became the new ruler of the Netherrealm in his backstory.
  • Stance System: His unarmed stance in Armageddon is Kuo Shou and he can switch to an amulet staff in his armed stance.
  • Stealth Mentor/Treacherous Advisor: To the Elder Sub-Zero in Mythologies, thanks in part to a False Innocence Trick (this is non-canon, though; Scorpion will fight you where you encounter Shinnok instead if you killed him back in the first stage, which is what actually happened). Pulls this again in Armageddon with Taven.
  • Straw Nihilist: Has shades of this as evident in MKX. To quote him: "You [Raiden] poison their hearts with hope," and "Remove the shadow from the light and the shadow grows. The legacy of life is death, Raiden".
  • Tear Off Your Face: One of his brutalities in X where he uses his amulet to tear off his victim's face and puts it over his own.
  • Tempting Fate: In the trailer for ''Mortal Kombat 11', when Dark Raiden threatens to kill him, Shinnok has this to say before being decapitated and left with a Fate Worse than Death:
    Shinnok: (laughs) How, Raiden? Not even you can kill an Elder God.
    Dark Raiden: There are fates worse than death.
  • Time Abyss: Existed before the universe was created making him older than millions-year old Raiden.
  • Underestimating Badassery: His plans in X are seriously derailed by Johnny Cage of all people. He later repeats it with Cage's daughter Cassie.
  • The Unfought: In Armageddon, Shinnok anticipates that every kombatant would perish in the titular battle and sends a doppelganger in his place, so every fight against Shinnok is technically not the real deal.
  • Unwitting Pawn: 11 reveals that he is one to his mother Kronika, the Titan of Time. He was birthed as a force of pure darkness to balance out his sister Cetrion's pure light, and was used to uphold a very twisted form of Balance Between Good and Evil under Kronika's manipulation. He and Cetrion exist so that the realms are eternally thrust into conflict via Mortal Kombat instead of achieving peace and unity. It's possible that even his desire to merge all realms into the One Being is an acceptable outcome by Kronika's standards.
  • Villainous Breakdown: Has a mild one in his intro banter with Johnny Cage in MKX.
    Shinnok: I will rip your insolent tongue from-!
    Johnny Cage: Yeah, yeah, shut up.
  • Voice of the Legion: His corrupted form sounds just as beastly as it looks.
  • Wants a Prize for Basic Decency: Those who loyally follow him are rewarded with their continued existence after Shinnok decimates everything else. In Quan Chi's ending in 4, Shinnok earnestly expects the sorcerer to be grateful for this so-called gift and is outraged when he doesn't unconditionally accept it.
  • What Happened to the Mouse?: His last appearance in 11 has his severed head hooked up to a machine in Revenant Liu Kang's Cathedral before it gets blown up by Sonya's Special Forces. While Kronika does restore the Cathedral afterwards, Shinnok doesn't appear nor is his fate mentioned again. In the next game, Shinnok is only mentioned offhandedly as now being "powerless" in the new timeline, with his status otherwise unknown.
  • White and Red and Eerie All Over: The prominent color of his outfit is red with some blue and gold thrown in, and it goes well with his gaunt, deathly white physique.
  • Wicked Cultured: In contrast to all the other kharacters, Shinnok seems to be something of a movie buff if his recognition of the Xenomorph, Predator, Jason Voorhees, and Leatherface are any indication in MKX.
  • With Great Power Comes Great Insanity: Best seen in his ending in 4. When he tells Raiden about how he will rule all eternity, Raiden says he is mad.
  • Your Brain Won't Be Much of a Meal: In X, he flat-out says that Tremor's soul is not worth harvesting.

    Sareena 

Sareena

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/sareena_mkx.png
"I am not a being of Light. I am a demon of the Netherrealm, a servant of Quan Chi."

Debut game: Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero (Lia Montelongo)
Other appearances: Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition and Mortal Kombat: Armageddon. Kameos in Mortal Kombat: Deception, Mortal Kombat 9, Mortal Kombat X (Danielle Nicolet, English; Xóchitl Ugartes, Latin American Spanish), Mortal Kombat 1 (Kameo) (Mara Junot, English; Kerygma Flores, Latin American Spanish), Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match, (Jennifer Grey, English)

Sareena is one of Quan Chi's personal assassins. She and her two partners, Kia and Jataaka, were ordered to kill Sub-Zero before he reached Quan Chi. They were defeated, but Sub-Zero strangely spared Sareena's life. Later, as Sub-Zero battled Quan Chi, Sareena suddenly appeared and did a Heel–Face Turn by helping him in defeating the sorcerer. After expressing her desire to escape the Netherealm with him, she's shot in the back with a bolt of energy by Shinnok. She collapses into an enraged Sub-Zero's arms and seems to die...

... Turns out after the events of the game that the only thing Shinnok destroyed was her human form. In Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition, it's discovered that her essence was banished as punishment for her betrayal, where she would suffer for years. Some time later, Sareena discovered the portal Quan Chi and Scorpion used to escape the Netherealm.

Shortly after regaining her human form, Sareena encountered the younger brother of the Sub-Zero she met years before. Sub-Zero granted her sanctuary with the Lin Kuei back on Earthrealm. In gratitude, Sareena pledged her loyalty to the clan, swearing to help defend it from its enemies.

In Armageddon, it is revealed that Sareena followed Sub-Zero into the Netherrealm, saving him from being killed by Noob Saibot and Smoke. She and Sub-Zero were victorious, but after the battle, Sareena lost control of her human form and returned to her true demon self. Thinking her to be a threat, Sub-Zero attacked and she fled, not wanting to harm him. However, she was later attacked by Noob Saibot, Smoke, and her former master Quan Chi, who demanded she provide them information about the Lin Kuei. At first, Sareena refused, determined to remain loyal to Sub-Zero. But Quan Chi then cast his dark sorcery upon her, returning her to her human form and then convincing her that she can never be good and that she is simply a pure evil demon. Swayed by Quan Chi's corruption, she agreed to serve him once again. However, she ended up recanting her allegiance when she was spared by Taven and would join the Forces of Light in the Battle of Armageddon.

In the rebooted timeline (post-Mortal Kombat (2011)), she appears as an intelligence source for the Special Forces in the Netherrealm, and aids Jax in a fight against the revenants. She also shows up in Kabal's ending as his wife and the mother of his children.◊

  • Aborted Arc: Word of God dropped a few hints that she had a connection to Reiko, but nothing came of it. All that's known is that they both were once members of the Brotherhood of Shadows and share some design cues, such as the two-toned hair and similar facial tattoos.
  • Amazon Brigade: Was once part of one along with Kia and Jataaka.
  • Ascended Extra: She appeared as a sub-boss in one of the more maligned games in the franchise, yet was popular enough to be given a role in Tournament Edition, Armageddon, and X.
  • The Atoner: Following being spared by Bi-Han, she seeks to renounce her allegiance to the Brotherhood of Shadow and assist the heroes in both timelines.
  • Big Damn Heroes: If you let her live, she pops out during the battle with Quan Chi in Mythologies to deliver the coup de grace. After Deception, she also prevents Noob and Smoke from getting the jump on Sub-Zero.
  • The Cameo: She makes an appearance in the Storymode of X.
  • Bishojo Line: Averted, as it's implied that her true demon form is vastly stronger, but Sareena hates her demonic lineage and will lose control of her actions if she stays in the form for an extended period of time. Sareena assumes human guise out of preference, making this something of an invoked Power Limiter.
    • Informed Ability: That being said, besides the mention of her demon form in her Armageddon bio, it's never been seen in action (possibly justified due to the above), and from what's been discerned, her true form is most likely not a Cute Monster Girl or even an attractive Beast Woman. Also, while likely, it's unknown if Jataaka and Kia have similar demon forms. It's not until her appearance as a kameo in Mortal Kombat 1 that her demonic form is finally seen.
  • Combat Stilettos: Another constant staple of her costumes.
  • Dark Action Girl: She debuts as part of Quan Chi's personal assassin bodyguards in MK: Mythologies, but attempts a Heel–Face Turn at the end of that game by attacking her former master. Becomes a full-fledged Action Girl when the younger Sub-Zero welcomes her in to the reformed Lin Kuei in the first timeline. Returns to being a Dark Action Girl in Mortal Kombat 1, opposing Ascended Demon Ashrah and working with Quan Chi, Nitara and Havik.
  • Dark Is Not Evil: Despite her dark appearance and insistence on continuing to wear the garb of the Brotherhood of Shadows, Sareena has proven herself to be a valuable ally of the heroes and a force for good. In a Break the Cutie moment at the hands of Quan Chi, Sareena is manipulated into believing otherwise, as seen in the quote above.
  • The Dragon: Arguably one to Quan Chi in Mythologies; she's the only one of the trio seen reporting to him.
  • Early-Bird Cameo: Before appearing in Tournament Edition and Armageddon.
  • Facial Markings: Has distinctive black paint around her eyes.
  • Femme Fatale: Subverted. She looks like one but never acts as one.
  • Gorgeous Gorgon: At least her human form is. We've yet to see her true appearance as a demon.
  • Heel–Face Revolving Door: Sareena pulled a High-Heel–Face Turn in Mythologies and returned as an ally to the second Sub-Zero in Tournament Edition. However, in Armageddon Quan Chi coaxes her back into his services after she is attacked by Kuai Liang when he witnesses her demonic form. She pulls a Heel–Face Turn again in her non-canonical ending and is shown on the heroes' side in X.
  • Hell-Bent for Leather: Wears black leather in all her appearances.
  • High-Heel–Face Turn: The one notable female member of the Brotherhood of Shadow, who is also the only one to turn on the group in both timelines.
  • Hooks and Crooks: During her time with the Brotherhood of Shadow, Sareena brandished twin hookswords.
  • I Am a Monster: Loathes her demon form and is briefly manipulated into believing that she can't be good because of her status as such. Younger Sub-Zero doesn't seem to agree.
  • An Ice Person: Her Armageddon ending has her gain ice powers after defeating Blaze. She uses these powers to freeze Quan Chi dead.
  • MacGuffin Guardian: In Mythologies, Sareena guards one of three crystals (the other two protected by Kia and Jataaka) that, when combined together, grants access to a teleporter that sends Sub-Zero to Quan Chi's throne room.
  • Mid-Boss: In Mythologies.
  • Mini-Boss: In Armageddon.
  • Noble Demon: Though she really isn't very demonic.
  • Our Demons Are Different: In Mortal Kombat 1 (2023), her demonic form is finally revealed (although she is only a Kameo fighter): a bald, horned and tailed dark red-coloured body Wreathed in Flames.
  • Red Eyes, Take Warning: In her redesign in 1 (2023), she has blood red irises with black sclera. She is also back to being an antagonist until being rescued by Ashrah in the latter's Arcade ending. In her previous appearances, she was always shown with normal human sclera in her human form.
  • Redemption Equals Death: Or so it seems. It is later revealed that Shinnok merely destroyed her human form.
  • The Mole: MKX introduces her as the Special Forces' informant within the Netherrealm, but is otherwise fairly similar to her personality in previous iterations. She even mentions Bi-Han saving her when arguing with Quan Chi's revenants.
  • Scars Are Forever: In her debut in Mythologies, in Armageddon and MKX, she wears two tattoes over her eyes. However, in Mortal Kombat 1 (2023), she has what appears to be visible burn scars in place of tattoes over her eyes.
  • Ship Tease: With the Elder Sub-Zero in Mythologies. With the Younger in Armageddon. And now with Kabal.
    • Battle Couple: Seems to be played up as the female half of one with the Sub-Zero bros. Not much happens with the elder one, as she only gets to deliver the finishing blow to Quan Chi before Shinnok "kills" her, but she comes to the younger Sub-Zero's defense to help him force Noob-Smoke to flee and in her Armageddon ending, she and Sub-Zero imprison Quan Chi in the Lin Kuei temple. Take note of how Sub-Zero revives her and how she miraculously gains freezing powers in this ending. Coincidence, right?
    • Interspecies Romance: She's a demoness, and the Sub-Zero brothers are mostly human, partially Cyromancer. Kabal, who she ends up with in his MK 11 ending, is completely human.
    • Loving a Shadow: Her semi-sorta there relationship with Sub-Zero the Younger could possibly be seen in this light in lieu of her previous interaction with his brother in Mythologies.
    • Pair the Spares: With Kabal in MK 11. It's never explained how they ever bonded or even met.
    • Rescue Romance: A variation. Part of the reason for her High-Heel–Face Turn was Sub-Zero sparing her life. She then comes to his aid against Quan Chi, and then requests that Sub-Zero take her with him back to Earthrealm. The younger Sub-Zero also grants her asylum with the Lin Kuei and Sareena pledges eternal loyalty to the clan.
  • Sinister Scythe: In Mythologies, she uses a kama as a throwing weapon.
  • Stance System: Ba Shan Fan was her unarmed fighting style in Armageddon.
  • Stripperiffic: All of Sareena's outfits show a lot of skin and she was in the running for possessing the most revealing outfit early in the series' run. Notably, she still retains a rather revealing outfit in Mortal Kombat X despite the game toning down the revealing outfits.
  • Voluntary Shapeshifting: Her "human" form is a disguise that she prefers to appear as, although she's lost control of this on at least one occasion. Possibly crosses over with Shapeshifting Squick and Hot Skitty-on-Wailord Action, seeing as she's Sub-Zero's Implied Love Interest and she's a demon...
  • Yank the Dog's Chain: Her efforts to be freed from her demonic side are often met with failure.
    • Throw the Dog a Bone: Her time with (the younger) Sub-Zero seems to be a complete 180 from the rest of her life, though. Then there's the shot of her happily smiling and holding a puppy with Kabal and their children in his MK 11 ending.

    Fujin 

Fujin

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mk11_fujin_render_0.png
"How many mortals will die before this ends?"

Debut game: Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero (Tony Marquez)
Other appearances: Mortal Kombat 4 (Tony Marquez), Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, Mortal Kombat 9 (Ken Lally, non-playable), Mortal Kombat X (Troy Baker, English; Idzi Dutkiewicz, Latin American Spanish, non-playable) and Mortal Kombat 11 (Matthew Yang King, English; Andrew Moore, Face Model; Idzi Dutkiewicz, Latin American Spanish).

Fujin is one of the elemental gods assigned by Raiden to guard Shinnok's amulet in Mythologies, and the first of them which was challenged by Sub-Zero. He returned in 4 as one of the Earthrealm gods not being destroyed by Shinnok. He assists Raiden in his battle against Shinnok, and after his defeat, he was ascended to the Earthrealm protector status, while Raiden (who chose him as the replacement) was re-promoted to the Elder Gods pantheon.

In Armageddon, he notices a behavior change in his old friend. While Raiden was, technically, in the good guys' side, he also gained a ruthless side after realizing that Humans Are Bastards and revived Liu Kang's corpse in order to send him to do massive manslaughter. In spite of this, Fujin allied with Kung Lao in order to find a way to save both Raiden and Liu Kang. He learns that Johnny Cage is trying to gather the Forces of Light, and there's also a mention of the brothers Taven and Daegon, whose family has been friends with Fujin over the years. Argus (their father) sent them on a quest which was corrupted by evil. Fujin then goes to search for both brothers, hoping to prevent their progress and learn the true purpose of their quest.

In the new timeline, Fujin cameos in Mortal Kombat X defending the Sky Temple with Raiden. In the comic series, he gets attacked by a Kamidogu possessed Raiden and sends Takeda to help Scorpion stop Havik. He does not appear in the main story for 11, but several intros grimly imply he was Killed Offscreen in the crashing of timelines by Kronika's forces. However, he returns in the Aftermath expansion as a playable character for the first time in over a decade and with a story role.
  • A Day in the Limelight: In Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath, he is the focus of Chapter 15.
  • Action Dad: Averted in that he doesn't have children. However, his intros and ending in 11 heavily imply that he wants to be a father.
  • All-Loving Hero: From his ending, after having lived so many lives as mortals, he goes on to use his powers to bring people closer in goodness and give them a chance to have a better life, even the likes of Shang Tsung from the looks of it. He also tries to reach out to Noob Saibot and Mileena in some of his intros, noting to Mileena he can't help but pity her, and telling Noob he shouldn't underestimate the Jinsei's ability to save his soul.
  • Anime Hair: One outfit in 11 gives him a spiky swept-back hairdo making him resemble Vergil.
  • Armor-Piercing Question: Delivers one to Jax when he tries to justify siding with Kronika. He points out that Jacqui is on her way — and the only reason he's back on Shang Tsung's Island is to simply break her heart.
    Fujin: Does that sound like someone who gives a whit about you and your family?
  • Automatic Crossbows: Makes use of a unique crossbow called the "Plasma Crossbow" which fires green bolts made of energy in Mortal Kombat 4, but rarely uses it properly (bar in one Fatality). The bolts can also be shot at a diagonal angle, which allows them to bounce/ricochet. In 11 he gains a new one that is much smaller in scale but fires at a rapid rate. He makes use of it in many of his moves, some of his Brutalities and even in his Fatal Blow.
  • Badass Cape: Somewhat befitting his role as a Wind God, he wore a cape in his introduction in Mythologies. Even more fittingly as the cape and his initial design were from a Halloween costume of The Mighty Thor. Gains it back as an alternative costume in Armageddon, and in some of his skins for 11.
  • BFS: In Armageddon, Fujin's weapon is a large sword called Devastator.
  • Blow You Away: As a Wind God, Fujin uses wind to attack his opponents.
  • Bow and Sword in Accord: In 11, Fujin fights with a sword that he can manipulate using air and he once again uses a crossbow as well.
  • Braids of Action: In Armageddon and 11, his hair is adorned more lavishly than it was back in Mythologies and 4.
  • The Cameo: In 9, in Kratos' ending alongside Raiden.
  • Closet Geek: Fujin really likes Johnny Cage's movies and admits this to him. However, he specifically tells him to say nothing of it, especially to Raiden.
  • Complete Immortality: Like Raiden, he has lived for eons and there is no known way to kill him. If he is destroyed, he eventually reforms.
  • Composite Character: Shinnok is the Wind God in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation.
  • Deadpan Snarker; Playable intros show that Fujin, for as much of a Nice Guy as he is, has one of the sharpest wits out of the cast, on par with Johnny. Even in Snark-to-Snark Combat scenarios, his blows hit especially low.
    Fujin: Is that a smug look you're wearing?
    D'Vorah: This One expects easy victory.
    Fujin: That One is horribly misinformed.

    Kung Lao: What is it like, standing in Raiden's shadow?
    Fujin: I imagine much like standing in Liu Kang's.
    Kung Lao: I have no idea what you mean…

    Fujin: There is nothing here for you. Begone.
    Kano: Rack off, Raiden Lite.
    Fujin: (grinning) Have it your way… Hsu Hao.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: Played for Laughs. Fujin really doesn't take kindly to Kano's pissing habits, threatening to perform a fatality on him for happening to piss into the air than downward on one occasion.
  • Early-Bird Cameo: Before appearing in 4 and Armageddon, he was a Mid-Boss in Mythologies.
  • Fatal Flaw: In 11, there are signs that point to him perhaps being a tad too unwilling to go against his own brother Raiden. Some, like Kotal Kahn, hold his inaction concerning Dark Raiden against him, and his bond with Raiden has led him to unwittingly hand Kronika's crown over to a Shang Tsung disguised as Raiden, not seeing through the sorcerer's treachery until it was too late. It is, however, possible that his giving the crown to Shang Tsung was a knowing action as part of Liu Kang's plan to confront the sorcerer at the hourglass, as Fujin and Liu Kang are shown having a secret conversation at the beginning of the story.
  • Flight: In Mythologies, the player can't throw him to the void. This is how he recovers from his supposed death in that game. Also, he has a torpedo move similar to that of Raiden.
  • Flying Weapon: He can use the wind to maneuver his sword through the air in 11.
  • Foil: To his own brother Raiden.
    • At least in the past, Raiden asserted that as gods they were to remain distant from mortals as to not take away from their divine duties. Fujin defied this and decided to live among mortals, asserting that this sentimentality for mortal life is what makes warriors like him all the stronger for it.
    • Raiden in general acts very professional as a mentor but shows some shades of detachment as a result and is willing to resort to ruthless methods to defend Earthrealm, but Fujin is very personable in his dealings with mortals thanks to spending time in observation among them and thus shows more care and concern for not just Earthrealm to have many more lines he would not cross to save the realms.
    • How the two gods dealt with a turncoat Jax Briggs also differ: Raiden explained Kronika's hand in Jax's fate which gets Jax to realize that he was fighting for the wrong side - while Fujin instead personally relates to Jax in regards to family, using his relationship with his own brother to get through to him.
    • Finally, their own endings also greatly contrast with each other's; whereas Raiden initially banished all emotion from himself to shape history with pure logic before realizing how wrong this choice of action was and worked to reconcile logic and love within himself, Fujin instead is moved by his compassion for people and lives countless lives as virtually all kinds of people to better understand how he can make their lives better. In short, Raiden takes the more logical route first while Fujin takes the more compassionate route instead.
  • Guilty Pleasures: He did not want anyone else to know that he likes Johnny Cage's movies. A pre-match intro with Cassie reveals that Johnny told everyone about it. Fujin was not amused.
    Fujin: Who else knows, Cassandra?
    Cassie Cage: That you are Dad's biggest fan? Uh, everyone.
    Fujin: I told him not to say anything!
  • Heroes Prefer Swords: He's definitely one of the most heroic and selfless characters in the series and his main weapon is the kusanagi, a sword that looks very similar to the Chinese jian.
  • Hoist by His Own Tornado: How he (supposedly) dies in Mythologies.
  • Killed Offscreen: Was attacked by Frost for Cetrion in 11 and was presumed dead.
    • Averted thanks to Aftermath - he survives these encounters.
  • Mentor: He becomes this to Kung Lao, similar to Raiden and Liu Kang.
    • While he's not quite fitting the trope when he's with Takeda, he does outfit him with his signature bladed whips and a skull mask (which is one associated with the Shirai Ryu) before he goes tracking down Havik.
  • Messianic Archetype: Shows shades of this with him being the more compassionate counterpart to the almost clinical Raiden, as he personally relates with Jackson Briggs to save him from condemning himself to Kronika's bidding. This is shown best in his own arcade ending in 11: Using the hourglass to live thousands upon thousands of different lives—encompassing all species, sexes, and faiths—he more deeply understands the joys and suffering of mortals, and with this knowledge lives among them to grant them a better life. The final scene pans out looking very similar to Jesus Christ's "Last Supper" and even includes the villainous likes of Shang Tsung among some heroic faces at the table together in relative peace and happiness.
  • Mundane Utility: He uses his wind powers to fly a kite with his brother Raiden's image on it as his Friendship in 11. Though it ends up working a little too well, and the kite ends up pulling him across the stage.
  • Nice Guy: More so than Raiden. While Raiden is nice in a sense that he is polite and respectful to others, Fujin is more empathetic and less stern than his stoic brother.
  • Not Quite Dead:
    • He's shown being torn asunder by his own tornado in Mythologies, but he's perfectly fine afterward.
    • Various intros in 11 imply that he was Killed Offscreen, but come the Aftermath expansion and he turns up alive and well with Nightwolf and Shang Tsung, explaining that Kronika trapped them all in a place beyond time so they wouldn't interfere with her plans.
  • Not So Above It All: While he's more often than not shown to be more level-headed than Raiden, he is also far more jovial in some of his battle banter (with the addition of throwing out a handful of wind-related puns here and there), and it is implied (by some intro dialogues leaked through datamining) that he's also Johnny Cage's biggest fan.
  • Not the Fall That Kills You…: For one of his throws in 11, he blows his victim several dozen feet into the air, so that they take Fall Damage upon returning to the earth. This is amped up for one of his Brutalities, where he blows them over a hundred feet skyborne, for them to fall back down to earth a few seconds later, in a hearty splash of blood.
  • Physical God: He's the Wind God. He has a more ethereal form, but is required to take a physical one when dealing with mortals.
  • Pungeon Master: Suprisingly enough, Fujin occasionally makes wind puns in his intros.
  • Razor Wind: One of his fatalities in 4 has him use wind to strip the skin off his opponent. 11 gives him a fatality in which he fires two blasts of wind that slice through the opponent's torso.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: Despite his more personable nature, he is the blue oni to Raiden's red as he is better at keeping a cool head under tense situations. This is almost the inverse in their color schemings; Fujin has red colors in most of his appearances whereas Raiden does not do so—at least not until he becomes Dark Raiden where not only does he incorporate some red into his attire his electricity also switches from blue to red.
  • Related in the Adaptation: In 11, his updated bio states that he is Raiden's brother. The original timeline made no indication that he was related to Raiden. Raiden does call him "brother" once in X's story mode, but at the time one could have just assumed he meant "brother-in-arms" rather than his literal sibling.
  • Secret-Keeper: He's the only one who knows of Liu Kang's plan to stop Shang Tsung when he inevitably betrays everyone. The main reason Liu Kang told him alone is to make sure Shang Tsung either keeps his end of the alliance, or acts as a Reliable Traitor, with minimal outside influence.
  • Self-Serving Memory: Before fighting Noob Saibot in Aftermath, Fujin dismisses the idea that Bi-Han defeated him before, claiming that the then-cyromancer ran away. In Mythologies, Sub-Zero did win their fight. Fujin acknowledging his defeat in his intros, however, implies that he remembers the fight just fine, and just didn't want to give Noob the satisfaction of acknowledging their previous fight.
  • Sheath Strike: In 11, Fujin uses his sheath in conjunction with his sword.
  • Shipper on Deck: To Jacqui and Takeda. An intro with Jax shows him disapproving of Jax's refusal to have the two marry and reminds him that Takeda is Kenshi's son and thus, should be trusted.
  • Short-Range Long-Range Weapon: In 4, he could use his crossbow like a club.
  • Sole Survivor: When Shinnok broke free of his Netherrealm imprisonment, he killed the other three Elemental Gods. A wounded Fujin narrowly escaped and would've been felled himself had it not been for the intervention of Liu Kang and Kai.
  • Spin Attack: One of his signature moves is a spin that draws opponents in like a cyclone.
  • Stance System: Lui He is his unarmed fighting stance in Armageddon.
  • Sympathy for the Devil: Despite Noob Saibot being a vile creature of darkness, Fujin pities the man Bi-Han once was and likes the idea of saving his soul, even if Bi-Han himself doesn't.
  • The Bus Came Back: After being unplayable since Armageddon and not showing up in the story since X, Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath gives him not only a role in the story - but the chance to be playable, as well.
  • There Is Another: Whenever Raiden is away, the Jinsei-safekeeping duties fall into his hands. Like when Raiden relapsed into possession by the corrupted Kamidogu, got Fujin impaled and joined up with Havik.
  • Time Abyss: Like Raiden, Fujin has been around for an eon or two.
  • What Happened to the Mouse?: In the first chapter of the MKX story, Fujin aids Raiden in protecting the thunder god's Sky Temple and the Jinsei Chamber it houses from Shinnok's Netherrealm army. He's ultimately knocked out by a blast of dark magic from Shinnok, but is shown to be relatively unscathed after Raiden traps Shinnok within his amulet and accompanies Raiden to consult with the Elder Gods about their next move. At that point, Fujin vanishes from the story, not even resurfacing for Shinnok's second invasion once freed by Quan Chi. However, he is more prominent in the MKX comics. He also finally makes a return in MK11: Aftermath and even becomes a part of its story mode.
  • Wuxia: As a contrast to his brother, his design and moveset in MK11 takes quite a bit of inspiration from Wuxia Wire Fu. With some of his moves such as the ability to walk on the air and even use his ability to manipulate air in conjunction with his sword bringing movies from the genre to mind.

    Lin Kuei Grandmaster 

Lin Kuei Grandmaster

Portrayed by: Michael Garvey
Non-video game appearances: Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms (Paul Nakauchi)

  • Be Careful What You Wish For: He raised his own son (Sektor) to be the perfect killing machine. He got exactly what he wanted.
  • The Cameo: The games strongly implied that the Lin Kuei have a Grandmaster. So far, Mythologies is the only game where we see him. He finally makes a reappearance in Sektor's Arcade ending from 9, as he is Sektor's father.
  • So Proud of You: An extremely twisted variation. He willingly allows his own son to kill him in order to inherit the title of Grandmaster and presents him the Dragon Medallion before he is slain.
  • Unwitting Pawn: This can be applied to the Lin Kuei as a whole in Mythologies.

    Earth God 

Earth God

    Water God 

Water God

Portrayed by: Brian Glynn

    Fire God 

Fire God

    Jataaka 

Jataaka

Portrayed by: Erica Grace (cutscenes), Rachel Herbert (sprites)
Other appearances: Cameo in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon.
Non-video game appearances: Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (Zehra Fazal)

    Kia 

Kia

Portrayed by: Kerri Hoskins
Other appearances: Mini-Boss cameo in Mortal Kombat: Armageddon.
Non-video game appearances: Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match (Grey Delisle)

    Lucifer 

A god or demon who previously ruled the Netherrealm before Shinnok was banished there and promptly took over.

  • Chaos Is Evil: When Shinnok took over one of the first things he did was build a city whereby some degree of civilisation could operate and sorcerers could use their magic, which of course implies that Lucifer didn't really care about doing any such thing.
  • Eviler than Thou: On the receiving end of this from Shinnok.
  • The Ghost: Never actually shows up in any game and has only been briefly mentioned in passing by other characters.
  • God of Evil: One character mentions that he is of the same species as Raiden, so presumably he is literally an evil god (unless Satan Is Good is put in effect).
  • Satan: Seems to be this, given his name and status as (former) ruler of the Netherrealm, which is basically the MK equivalent of Hell. What else they has in common, if anything, remains to be seen.
  • What Happened to the Mouse?: What happened to him after being overthrown is never elaborated upon.

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