Liu Kang

Liu Kang (Chinese: 劉鋼; pinyin: Liú gāng; Wade–Giles: Liu2 Kang1[8] or Chinese: 劉康; pinyin: Liú kāng; Wade–Giles: Liu2 K'ang1[9]) is a fictional character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series by Midway Games and NetherRealm Studios. Depicted as Earthrealm's greatest warrior and champion, he is generally the main hero of the series. He debuted in the original 1992 game as a Shaolin monk with special moves intended to be the easiest to perform. Since his introduction, Liu Kang has appeared in every main installment except Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance (2002). He is also one of the protagonists of the action-adventure spin-off Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks (2005).The character's storyline sees him win the eponymous Mortal Kombat tournament in the first and second games, saving Earthrealm from being conquered by the opposing forces of Outworld. During both the original and rebooted timelines, Liu Kang receives a more villainous depiction after he is killed, appearing as a reanimated corpse in the former and an undead revenant who rules the Netherrealm in the latter. He returns to his heroic role in Mortal Kombat 11 (2019), where he becomes the god of fire.Liu Kang has appeared in various media outside of the games, including as the hero of the 1995 film adaptation and its 1997 sequel Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. Reception of the character has been mainly favorable for his special moves and gameplay, although criticism has been directed towards his Bruce Lee-inspired yells. His characterization in the reboot games has also received praise.

Powers and Abilities

Liu Kang has proven himself to be one of the most powerful characters in the series' span, emerging victorious from every Mortal Kombat tournament he's been involved in. Liu Kang possesses incredible agility, acrobatic skill and martial arts, though the latter is more common. These skills were developed during his training with Bo' Rai Cho, who also taught Kang the Flying Kick technique. It is suggested that Kang meditates regularly in order to keep increasing strength as well as maintain it. Due to his recurring status as the Mortal Kombat champion, Liu Kang hardly seems to age.Liu Kang is commonly associated with the element of fire, which comes in the form of shooting firebound projectiles. He appears to have some degree of control over it as the fireballs sometimes form dragon-like shapes, and has even used the element for finishers as well. Kang also appears to possess a degree of shapeshifting, able to transform himself into a Chinese dragon which includes a serpentine body with small arms. In Shaolin Monks, the form is also revealed to have fire-breathing capabilities, most likely associated with his ability to use fire.Besides his fiery projectiles, he has other abilities related to the element. He can also ignite his limbs on fire to add fire damage to his attacks and teleport in a burst of flames. Liu Kang can also steal what appears to be a person's energy and convert it into a fireball. In MK11, Liu Kang's wraith has assimilated and mastered his former sire Shinnok's mysticism to bolster his own fighting abilities. Having used it to steal his past self's soul in order to strengthen himself even further. He also has the ability to summon and control a massive winged dragon of fire to assist him in combat.In MKX, Liu Kang is shown to be able to manipulate his Yin and Yang energies through the Dualist variation, firing searing hot blasts of light in his Yin state along with healing properties while firing dark energy blasts and strengthening himself through his Yang state. He is also shown firing these dark projectiles in the game's Story Mode.As a reanimated corpse, Liu Kang is incapable of human speech but still retains all of his combat knowledge. He can shrug off lethal blows such as a broken neck and can no longer feel any pain inflicted on him. His zombie physiology allows him to quickly recover from lethal injuries and freely twist and contort his body whilst in combat. He wields two Houan chains that can quickly age people to death if they are caught by its hooks.In MK11, it is revealed that Kronika fears his power alongside Raiden's and thus manipulated the timelines to force the two to fight against each other. Her fears are fully realized when Raiden merges his own essence with Liu Kang's past and present selves, turning him into a Fire God. With this merger, Liu Kang's powers are boosted exponentially, taking down an entire legion of Netherrealm demons in one fell swoop by simply dive-bombing and creating a massive explosion on impact. He has also inherited Raiden's command over lightning and thunder as well as the ability to fly. His power and skill are so much that he is able to best the Elder God Cetrion in single kombat and later defeat Kronika, whose power eclipses that of the Elder Gods, cementing him as one of the most powerful kombatants in the entire franchise. He is also the only person not affected by the full power of the Hourglass even as it was rewinding time back to the prehistoric era.

Signature Moves

Flying kick

Double dragon kick

Dragon Fire

Low Dragon fire

Large fireball

Bicycle kick

Dragon's tail

Shadow bicycle kick

Dragon's roar

Windmill punches

Shaolin flame

Parry

Light metamorphosis

Dark metamorphosis

Dragon fire

Dragon gifts

Shaolin stance

Kusari Slam

Energy parry

Nunchaku stance

Shaolin Vanish