Mortal Kombat 1: Best Characters for Beginners | 5 Easiest Kombatants to Pick Up and Play

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5 Best Characters For Beginners In Mortal Kombat 1
Scorpion
Raiden
Liu Kang
Mileena
Baraka

The learning curve for any new fighting game can always seem extremely daunting to new players but those who stick with the genre will find some of the most exciting games in the entire medium. The best way to ease yourself into the genre or a new title is to find a few characters that can ease the learning process whether that be due to their strength or how easy they are to just pick up and play. Mortal Kombat 1 is the latest fighting game to hit the scene and players that want to jump into the game for the first time will want to know a few characters that they will have an easier time learning and improving with. This guide will list 5 of the best characters for beginners and why they are so easy to pick up and start playing in Mortal Kombat 1.

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5 Best Characters For Beginners In Mortal Kombat 1

Since this guide is meant to help beginner players, I will provide insight into each character and some of the moves that make them so versatile. I will be picking characters that have simple strategies of approach and who can stand on their own as fighters with even the most basic knowledge. As I delve into my explanations of each character’s strengths, I will be using some terminology that some beginners might not be familiar with. So, allow me to lay out a few definitions that you will need to know before getting into the characters.

Normals: These are the moves found under the Basic Attacks in the Movelist. These include singular button presses. Some normals also include a directional input but are not motion inputs.
Combo Strings: Also found Basic Attacks, these are the series of button presses that you can hit to perform a combo.
Special Moves. Found in the Special Moves section of the Movelist, these are moves that are done by performing motion inputs, which require you to input a short series of directional button presses followed by another button.
Enhanced: Improved Special Moves that will require you to use bar from your EX meter found at the bottom of the screen under your character’s health bar.
Armor: A protective cover that allows you to take a hit while performing a Special Move, which will prevent the move from being interrupted.
Air Combo: Combo Strings that you can only perform when your character is hitting your opponent in the air.
Launcher: A move that will send an enemy into the air, allowing you to juggle them by performing an air combo or by performing a Combo String or Normal on the ground.
Ground Bounce: Similar to a Launcher, this type of move will see you hit your opponent into the ground and sent back into the air in a juggle state. I will be using this term to differentiate from Launcher as a Ground Bounce will usually put the opponent at your eye level instead of into the air which means that you will need to follow up on the ground instead of the air.
Mix-up: The strategy of forcing your opponent to guess what type of attack is coming next, attempting to get them to block incorrectly in order to break through their defenses. This term will be closely tied to the different types of attacks that you can perform, listed below.
- High: A move that will strike a standing enemy as well as a crouching enemy if they are blocking, but can be ducked if the enemy releases their block and crouches.
- Mid: A move that will strike an enemy in every state on the ground, standing, crouching, and blocking.
- Low: A move that will strike an enemy on the ground but will land a hit if the enemy is standing and blocking, forcing them to block while crouching to protect themselves.
- Overhead: The opposite of a low, this type of move will strike an enemy on the ground but will land a hit if they are crouching even if blocking, forcing them to stand and block.
Knockdown/Hard Knockdown: The state that a player is found in when they are hit to the ground. This will force them to perform an animation to get back on their feet, leaving them vulnerable to incoming attacks.
Okizeme (Oki): A situation in which one player attacks their opponent while the opponent’s character is getting up off of the ground from being knocked down.
Wake-Up Move: Also known as Get-Up moves, this is a type of attack that a player can use right as they get up from a knockdown, usually requiring a bar of meter to provide armor to escape their opponent’s pressure.
Zoning: The strategy of keeping your opponent away from you with projectiles and other tools.

Scorpion

Starting with the longtime poster boy of the Mortal Kombat franchise, Scorpion doesn’t have much of the crazy stuff that we will see in some of the other characters but he has sound fundamentals that will teach players the basics of the game without having to worry about adding on gimmicks or mechanics. In fact, all of the colored ninjas are strong choices as as they all have sound basics and aren’t overly complicated to pick up and play, but out of all of them Scorpion is arguably the easiest to learn and is the first face that a lot of new players will see when they pick up the game so even if they eventually move off the character it is a healthy starting point.

Scorpion has just about every tool that he would need to combat any given situation. His iconic Spear can be used at any point on the ground to pull your opponent right in front of you and, since they are staggered, convert into a full combo. This is great because many of his combo strings can be canceled into the Spear, giving you the chance to get a full combo off of just about any hit that can easily get up to 25%-30% before you even start to look at the possible extensions a Kameo can provide. He also has multiple launchers with the combo string Raising Hell and normal attack Falcon Dragon. When in the air, Scorpion has several strong air combos as well as a Special Move called Kyo Snag which, when enhanced, acts just as the Spear does and allows you to extend your air combo.

Other strong Special Moves that help round out Scorpion’s kit are Flame-Port and Devouring Flame. As the name would suggest, the first of these two is a classic teleport which hits the opponent when not enhanced while the enhanced version allows you to follow up instantly out of the teleport with your own strike. This is a great tool to get around opponents who want to keep their distance and keep interrupting your Spear with projectiles. Devouring Flame is a Low attack that will light the enemy on fire with the enhanced version won’t cause any hitstun but will be unblockable and will cause damage over time. Since Scorpion doesn’t have a traditional projectile, this is the best way to engage an enemy from range since the fire will activate right under their feet.

In addition to these moves, Scorpion’s greatest strength is the reach that many of his moves have. His go-to strings that aren’t his launchers are Hell’s Hook, Inner Pain, and Krackjaw. Inner Pain can lead to the Deadly Assassin string but that move can’t be canceled into a Special Move like Inner Pain can. Krackjaw can also be canceled into a Special Move and while Hell’s Hook can’t be canceled, it does cause a hard knockdown, allowing you to set up your pressure as the opponent wakes up. You can also use Whiplash, the combo string that leads into Hell’s Hook, since this can be Special-canceled.

Out of all of these moves, one of the most useful in Scorpion’s entire kit is the Sweeping Scorpion Tail Normal. This is the farthest-reaching sweep in the game with it being able to reach your opponent from nearly full screen. It also hits the opponent twice and knocks them down. This is a great tool to catch opponents off guard and create an opening to get in if your Flame-Port is getting blocked.

Kameo Suggestions: Frost, Kung Lao, Sektor.

Raiden

The Champion of Earthrealm has one of the higher damage potentials in the entire game. Raiden has arguably the best access to launchers out of the entire cast thanks to just about all of his strings being able to be canceled into his Shocker special move. Players that use a bar of meter will be able to launcher their opponent into the air with Shocker and extend their combo. He also has several other combos that launch on their own and several mix-up options that can help you land that necessary hit. One of his best combo strings is called The Basics, a duo of quick swipe moves that have deceptively good range and can instantly combo into any of your special moves including your Shocker launcher. Without accounting for any further extensions with Kameo Fighters, you will likely be able to get around 30% with The Basics, enhanced Shocker, and one additional combo string and special move.

Raiden also has several Overhead moves, one of which can knock down the enemy and give you Oki while the other is a ground bounce that allows you to follow up with a combo that can be further extended with Shocker. Mix and match these moves along with Throws to condition your opponent and confuse them on which attack you are going to use. This will allow you to break through an opponent’s block and deal the massive damage that Raiden is capable of.

In addition to all of this, Raiden also comes equipped with moves that will aid him in any situation he might get into. He has a chargeable projectile as well as his iconic Electric Fly which will see him fly across the screen from either the ground or the air. This can be used as an offensive attack but can also be used to escape the corner thanks to its far travel distance and recovery time. He also has a teleport that will put him behind the enemy, allowing him to get in close to an enemy that might be trying to keep him away with projectiles.

Kameo Suggestions: Jax, Sareena, Sektor.

Liu Kang

As the Fire God, it only makes sense that a celestial being like Liu Kang would be powerful but the barrier to entry to harness the power of a God is fairly low in Mortal Kombat 1. Firstly, Liu Kang has some of the best projectiles in the game. He has a total of 4 projectiles, 3 of which cover a different part of the screen with the fourth acting as a great get-in tool. While also being a great zoner, he also has some of the best buttons in the entire game making him very oppressive up close. These tools make him deadly at any range.

Let’s begin the breakdown by looking at his ranged options. Cosmic Flame is a High projectile that comes out very fast and can be turned into a Mid if enhanced while also coming out even faster. This move also has an air variant that will see Liu Kang throw out 5 fireballs, juggling an enemy in the air or forcing them to stay on the ground. Low Dragon is a slower-moving projectile that hits Low which can be used to check opponents who continuously duck your Cosmic Flame. Dragon’s Tail is another high projectile that will immediately be followed up with a flying kick by Liu Kang if you hit the opponent even if they block it, allowing you to get in from any part of the screen. Enhancing the Dragon’s Tail keeps it as a High but doesn’t follow up the hit with the flying kick and will instead launch the opponent and give you the chance to extend the combo. All of these moves are extremely versatile and players who want to spend the whole game at a distance can control the screen with their projectiles and can then get in quickly if they feel like it.

Speaking of getting up close and personal, Liu Kang’s Normals and combo strings are some of the best in the entire game thanks to their fantastic advantage on block and the ability to mix and match them to make your opponent scared of responding. Many of Liu’s buttons are either plus or even when your opponent blocks them, meaning that you recover from your animation before their block stun ends. For example, his Bare Knuckles Normal is plus 3 frames on block which means that you will have control of your character to perform another action 3 frames before your opponent when they block this attack. Now, this move is a High, so it can be ducked, which means a skilled player will be able to escape this pressure by simply holding down but this is where his combo strings come in and how mixing different combo strings can keep your opponent pressured and blocking for a long time, especially at lower levels.

Dragon Scales is a combo string that is 0 on block, which means both players gain control back at the same time, and whoever puts out the quicker mover will get the next hit. Of course, this only works in the defense’s favor if they are aware that you are using this move and throw out their quickest move, but there are ways to condition your opponent to keep blocking after this string to get you another opening to do a combo. Dragon Scales is part of a longer combo string called Punishing Palm, which sees you adding one additional attack to the previous string. Mixing between these two moves can confuse the opponent, either getting them to release block early and get hit by the final move of Punishing Palm or keep block long after Dragon Scales is finished, giving you the chance to pressure them once again with another similar string or a grab.

Now, the danger here is that these long strings are negative on block and will put you in danger of getting hit and also can’t be followed up with a combo unless you use specific Kameos, so it’s best to try and condition the opponent with the shorter strings first so that they think they can find an opening and then start to throw in the longer strings to begin your mix up. You can also extend all of the shorter combos by canceling into Special Moves like an Enhanced Dragon’s Tail.

There are many combo strings that this strategy can be applied to with Liu Kang. Dragon Fangs is plus 3 frames on block and leads into Pyromancer’s Gift. The Double Strike Normal, while being negative 3 on block, can lead into The Creator which then leads to Eternal Power. Mixing between these moves. The fact that the move is actually negative can be used to your benefit because players will know that there is a brief opening after Double Strike where they could punish you, causing them to drop their block and get hit by one of the continued strings, thus making this trio and every string in Liu Kang’s arsenal extremely dangerous.

In addition to all of these moves, the Tail Whip combo string is a launcher that can lead to upwards of 30% with a single air combo and the air version of Cosmic Flames. The first part of this string, the Twisted Normal, is negative 4 on block but if you have conditioned your opponent to be worried about letting go of block, you can do some pretty decent pressure with this Mid-attack and then lead into a launcher when they let go of block. All of Liu Kang’s tools can overwhelm an opponent, whether it be from a distance with his plethora of projectiles or his extremely strong pressure game.

Kameo Suggestions: Kung Lao, Sonya, Kano.

Mileena

The Tarkat-infected Empress of Outworld has just about every tool that a player will need to battle against the rest of the cast and deal massive damage off of just a single hit. Mileena’s main strength is her iconic Ball Roll special move. A low that will launch the enemy if they are hit, this move is what every Mileena player will be going for since just about every one of her combo strings can be canceled into the Ball. This means that just about any hit that you land can be canceled into this launcher and can do just under 30% damage with a single air combo without spending any meter or Kameo abilities.

Similar to Raiden, the reason this Ball is so effective is the same as why his Shocker move is so good: Her mix-up capability is some of the best in the whole roster. She has multiple strings that include hits that go High to Low and High to Overhead which will absolutely throw any player not deeply familiar with the differences in these attack animations to be forced to guess whether you will go High, Low, or Overhead. The best strings for this mix-up strategy are Ambitious Strike and Rugsweeper. The second hit of the former is an Overhead while the latter’s second hit goes into a Low. Now, the animation of the first moves for each of these strings, while similar, are different from one another so an experienced player will like be able to block this mix-up. That being said, at both low levels and even many intermediate levels, these two moves along with a few other ones that we will discuss can help you break through even the best defense a player can put up. As I said before, landing a single hit from any of these strings will allow you to convert into a full combo with the Ball Roll.

Another layer on top of her mix-ups is the fact that many of Mileena’s moves cause a hard knockdown and give you strong Oki, giving you the chance to use one of your mix-up strings as the opponent gets back up. This means that after your opponent wakes up from being knocked down, they will be forced to once again guess whether you are attacking High, Low, or Overhead as well as worrying about the potential of a grab. One of Mileena’s best tools in this situation is her Cartwheel Normal. This Overhead move will hit the opponent twice and will knock them to the ground on hit. Not only does this put them back in a situation where they must guess your attack again as they get up, but it can also break through many of the armored wake-up attacks that the opponent can use. She also has a few other moves that can be used to mix up the opponent like Ballerenal Failure and Feral Gases, both of which end with Overhead knockdowns.

All of this is just Mileena’s moves that allow her to pressure her opponent and convert into heavy damage but she has even more tools that can aid her at any part of the screen. Her Straight Sai is a projectile that, while not reaching full screen, is useful for keeping an enemy at mid-distance and conditioning them to block while at a certain distance, giving you a chance to move in and begin your mix. Straight Sais is a High, so she also has Low Sais which will perform the same move but throw the Sais to hit low to check an opponent who is just crouching beneath your other projectiles as well as mix up an opponent by canceling one of the strings that ends in a Overhead before the final hit to hit them low when they are expecting an Overhead. Enhancing Straight Sais will make it full screen as well as lead to a teleport Overhead attack even on block that will catch a lot of new players off guard.

Speaking of teleports, she has two different versions of a teleport move called Teleport Down and Teleport Up. Teleport down is a great wake-up tool as enhancing it will give you armor to absorb an opponent’s attack and will cause a hard knockdown. Enhancing Teleport Up will also give you the chance to perform a full air combo. Outside of being a wake-up tool or combo starter, these tools also help Mileena get around characters that are trying to keep her away, giving her a path to get in close and put her game plan into action.

Kameo Suggestions: Sonya, Styker, Scorpion.

Baraka

The fan-favorite Tarkatan is a dangerous force in Mortal Kombat 1 thanks to his extensive combo strings, strong mix-up game, and most importantly, the unbelievable chip damage that he can dish out. Baraka has a lot of special moves that, when enhanced, will impale the opponent with his blades and cause them to take damage over time. These moves are Bleeding Blade, a projectile that can hit from any part of the screen, and Stab Stab, a Special Move that requires you to be next to the opponent.

Along with this damage over time, Baraka has several long combo strings and Special Moves that will do chip damage unless the opponent performs a Flawless Block. Some combo strings that can deal a lot of chip damage include Gutwrencher, Gurgler, Butcher, and Slaughter House with all of these combos excluding the last one being able to be canceled into the Baraka Barrage Special Move which also can chip away at a blocking opponent’s health. This chip coupled with the damage over time thanks to these other Special Moves can see upwards of 25% of the enemy’s health bar disappearing while they are blocking. While the enhanced version of Stab Stab will only cause damage over time if you hit an airborne enemy, any enhanced Bleeding Blade hit will cause the effect.

In addition to these Special Moves that can quickly eat away at a player’s health, Baraka does have a few additional tools that can be used to break through an enemy’s block so that you can actually land these important bleed moves. Chop Chop is an advancing Special Move that can help you get in on an opponent, allowing you to go under any High projectile or move. Enhancing Baraka Barrage will end the Special Move with a Launcher instead of a knockdown and allow you to continue your combo in the air or get the air version of Stab Stab.

Baraka also has a Normal called Bleeding Foot, a move that hits twice from a single button press which also has two follow-ups in the form of the combos Battle Cry and Warrior’s Fury. The former is a launcher while the latter is a knockdown. Finally, Baraka has an Overhead in the form of Heel Drop which will also function as a ground bounce, providing you with a full combo and the ability to end with the air version of Stab Stab. All of these tools make Baraka easy to pick up thanks to simple inputs to perform multi-hit combo strings and Special Moves as well as very dangerous since a single combo that ends with either Stab Stab or Bleeding Blade and one bar of meter can see you cutting through nearly half of an opponent’s health bar even while they block.

Kameo Suggestions: Cyrax, Scorpion, Kung Lao.

You now know 5 characters that beginners should have no problem picking up and learning as they become acclimated with Mortal Kombat 1. Even as you get a grasp on the game and these characters, don’t lock yourself into any of these characters just because they seem easy. The game has a roster of 23 playable characters and the new Kameo system introduces some of the deepest player expression options in the series so experiment and truly find which of the Kombatants work for you!