Mortal Kombat 1/Scorpion/Introduction

Introduction

Revered Lin Kuei Warrior

"Like his cherished father, Scorpion is dedicated to the Lin Kuei and its defense of Earthrealm. When his father died, Scorpion was bereft. Though he took pride in knowing that his brother, Sub-Zero, would succeed their father as the Lin Kuei's Grandmaster. But Sub-Zero's unprecedented moves to cast off the Lin Kuei's traditional duties have frozen Scorpion's enthusiasm. He fears that he may one day have to battle his brother for control of the Lin Kuei's legacy."

Scorpion is a Rushdown/Mixup ninja with Counterzoning capabilities that excels at playing the neutral/footsies game with mid-range normals and specials that close the distance from the opponent allowing him to start/extend kombos; his B3 is a disjointed 21f Mid-Low with midscreen reach that is unsafe but can be special-cancelled after the 1st hit to remain safe and/or connect into a kombo. Other useful tools include his disjointed s.21 that can be staggered to advance forward and/or hit-confirm, a 9f B2 anti-air, a safe 12f Mid F3 that can lead to juggles, and several aerial kombo strings that cause a ground bounce and/or lead to kombo conversions/extensions. His klassic DB3 Flameport tracks him to the other side of the opponent with a High punch which can be cancelled by using the EX version, while his EX BF2 armor reversal can be made safe or convert into juggles with Kameo assists. Rather than choosing to advance on the opponent, his klassic BF1 Spear tells them to ”GET OVER HERE!” and causes a stun/restand that can start/extend kombos; his (Air) EX Kyo Snag can also pull airborne/juggled opponents closer to allow for kombo extensions. Scorpion’s DB2 is a multi-hitting special that is unsafe but can inflict chip dmg (especially covered by Kameo assists) and is unbreakable in kombos; EX BF4 changes his slow but tracking Low floor-projectile into an unblockable that causes no hit reaction but inflicts damage over time.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Simple, Moldable Kit: Scorpion's kit opens a wide variety of Kameo options for him to choose from. Throw Combos: Scorpion's long throw animation gives a lot of time for multiple Kameos to follow-up and give a throw kombo. Simple Combo Structure: His main kombos consist of looping f32 or his air EX db2 special; his kombos also give him a lot of meter flexibility to either save for breaker or extend further into high damage; Strong Space Control: B3 and Spear offer a high reward for catching faraway opponents off-guard; Hit and Run Expert: Enhancing Teleport on the ground or in the air makes him both a very slippery target to catch and a difficult hunter to shake off; Great Chip Option: Certain Kameo setups can cover the recovery animation on Twisted Kyo (aka "Death Spin"), giving Scorpion a strong chip damage game that requires the opponent to be on point with Flawless Blocks to negate.

Lacks a Grounded Overhead Button: Relies on jump-ins or Kameos in order to get a overhead starter, restricting him to a strike-throw game on the ground; Needs Resource to get started: Will generally require a Kameo or EX special in order to get himself started off throw, b3 cancel, jump-in, or blockstrings.