Mortal Kombat 1: Shang Tsung Guide — Moves, Combos, & More…

Shang Tsung is the very first DLC fighter that players could obtain in Mortal Kombat 1, and fans could have gotten the character instantly if they pre-ordered the title. In Mortal Kombat 1, Shang Tsung is just as deadly as ever, seeing as the new Mortal Kombat adaptation has granted Shang Tsung's moveset even more potential with his shape-shifting abilities.

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Shang Tsung can transform between an elderly form and his young form, both of which withhold different moves and abilities to use in battle. Shang Tsung can also transform into an enemy fighter if players are capable of using said fighter's moves. Since Shang Tsung has much more piled onto his arsenal in Mortal Kombat 1, he is one of the hardest fighters to truly master but is also one of the best Kombatants in the game.

Shang Tsung's Moves and Special Moves

Basic Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Spurned God	Square	X	FP	Y
Die-agnosis	Square, Triangle	X, Y	FP, BP	Y, X
Pulse Check	Square, Triangle, Circle	X, Y, B	FP, BP, BK	Y, X, A
Quick Cut	Down + Square	Down + X	Down + FP	Down + Y
Vision Test	Triangle	Y	BP	X
Fatal Incision	Back + Triangle	Back + Y	Back +BP	Back + X
Lovetap	Back + Triangle, Triangle	Back + Y, Y	Back + BP, BP	Back + X, X
Laid Low	Back + Triangle, Triangle, X	Back + Y, Y, A	Back + BP, BP, FK	Back + X, X, B
Up Klaw	Down + Triangle	Down + Y	Down + BP	Down + X
Sinister Strike	X	A	FK	B
Femurder	Down + X	Down + A	Down + FK	Down + B
Facebreaker	Circle	B	BK	A
Kneedler	Forward + Circle	Forward + B	Forward + BK	Forward + A
Kareer-Ender	Back + Circle	Back + B	Back + BK	Back + A
Longfoot	Down + Circle	Down + B	Down + BK	Down + A

Young Form Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Deceptive Slash	Back + Square	Back + X	Back + FP	Back + Y
Snake Oil	Back + Square, Triangle	Back + X, Y	Back + FP, BP	Back + Y, X
Silent Killer	Triangle, Circle	Y, B	BP, BK	X, A
A God's Whimsy	Forward + X	Forward + A	Forward + FK	Forward + B
Die-V	Forward + Circle, X	Forward + B, A	Forward + BK, FK	Forward + A, B
Spin Kick	Forward + Circle, X, Circle	Forward + B, A, B	Forward + BK, FK, BK	Forward + A, B, A

Old Form Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Spurned Man	Back + Square	Back + X	Back + FP	Back + Y
Operation	Back + Square, Triangle	Back + X, Y	Back + FP, BP	Back + Y, X
Reflex Test	Triangle	Y	BP	X
Knee Reverser	Triangle, Circle	Y, B	BP, BK	X, A
Goal Kick	Forward + X	Forward + A	Forward + FK	Forward + B
Power Manifest	Forward + X, Triangle	Forward + A, Y	Forward + FK, BP	Forward + B, X
Board Breaker	Forward + Circle, Square	Forward + B, X	Forward + BK, FP	Forward + A, Y
Nerve Endings	Forward + Circle, Square, Triangle	Forward + B, X, Y	Forward + BK, FP, BP	Forward + A, Y, X
Dissection	Forward + Circle, Square, Triangle, Square	Forward + B, X, Y, X	Forward + BK, FP, BP, FP	Forward + A, Y, X, Y
Age Before Beauty	Forward + Circle, Square, Triangle, Square, Circle	Forward + B, X, Y, X, B	Forward + BK, FP, BP, FP, BK	Forward + A, Y, X, Y, A

Aerial Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Above You	Square	X	FP	Y
Surgery	Square, Triangle	X, Y	FP, BP	Y, X
Major Complications	Square, Triangle, Triangle	X, Y, Y	FP, BP, BP	Y, X, X
Experiment	Triangle	Y	BP	X
Festering Wounds	Triangle, Triangle	Y, Y	BP, BP	X, X
Deadly Kick	X Or Circle	A Or B	FK Or BK	B Or A

Special Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Quick Age Morph	Down + Stance Change	Down + Stance Change	Down + Stance Change	Down + Stance Change
(Air) Quick Age Morph	Down + Stance Change	Down + Stance Change	Down + Stance Change	8Down + Stance Change
Form Stealer*	Forward, Down, Back, Circle	Forward, Down, Back, B	Forward, Down, Back, BK	Forward, Down, Back, A
Perfect Form	Forward, Back, Circle	Forward, Back, B	Forward, Back, BK	Forward, Back, A

Young Form Special Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Straight Skull*	Down, Forward, Square	Down, Forward, X	Down, Forward, FP	Down, Forward, Y
(Air) Straight Skull*	Down, Forward, Square	Down, Forward, X	Down, Forward, FP	Down, Forward, Y
Double Skull*	Down, Back, Square	Down, Back, X	Down, Back, FP	Down, Back, Y
Triple Skull*	Down, Back, Forward, Square	Down, Back, Forward, X	Down, Back, Forward, FP	Down, Back, Forward, Y
Spinning Spikes*	Down, Forward, Triangle	Down, Forward, Y	Down, Forward, BP	Down, Forward, X
Bed Of Spikes*	Down, Back, X	Down, Back, A	Down, Back, FK	Down, Back, B

Old Form Special Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
(Air) Down Skull*	Down, Forward, Square	Down, Forward, X	Down, Forward, FP	Down, Forward, Y
(Air Close) Down Skull*	Down, Forward, Square, Back	Down, Forward, X, Back	Down, Forward, FP, Back	Down, Forward, Y, Back
(Air Far) Down Skull*	Down, Forward, Square, Forward	Down, Forward, X, Forward	Down, Forward, FP, Forward	Down, Forward, Y, Forward
Ground Skull*	Down, Forward, Square	Down, Forward, X	Down, Forward, FP	Down, Forward, Y
(Close) Ground Skull*	Down, Forward, Square, Back	Down, Forward, X, Back	Down, Forward, FP, Back	Down, Forward, Y, Back
(Far) Ground Skull*	Down, Forward, Square, Forward	Down, Forward, X, Forward	Down, Forward, FP, Forward	Down, Forward, Y, Forward
Vicinity Slash*	Down, Forward, Triangle	Down, Forward, Y	Down, Forward, BP	Down, Forward, X
Injection**	Down, Back, X	Down, Back, A	Down, Back, FK	Down, Back, B
Close to Far Triple Ground Skull	Down, Back, Square + Guard	Down, Back, X + Guard	Down, Back, FP + Guard	Down, Back, Y + Guard
Far to Close Triple Ground Skull	Down, Forward, Square + Guard	Down, Forward, X + Guard	Down, Forward, FP + Guard	Down, Forward, Y + Guard

Moves with a '*' can be enhanced with one bar of Super Meter. Moves with '**' can be enhanced with two bars.

Shang Tsung Combos in Mortal Kombat 1

Performing combos with Shang-Tsung requires a lot of patience and practice in Mortal Kombat 1, especially with his newer powers. To conduct the best combos with Shang Tsung, players will want to learn all of his special moves, in both old and young forms.

This is because Shang Tsung relies on the unexpected to land blows on the enemy, which can come from his spikes and projectiles. With his projectiles in hand, Shang Tsung is capable of performing very long combos, such as this 89-hit combo.

"YF" stands for "Young Form" and "OF" stands for "Old Form."

Combos	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Bread-and-Butter	(YF) Back + Square, Triangle, (OF), Forward-Dash, Circle, Ground Skull, Square, Close to Far Triple Ground Skull, (Far) Ground Skull, Ground Skull, (Close) Ground Skull	(YF) Back + X, Y, (OF), Forward-Dash, B, Ground Skull, X, Close to Far Triple Ground Skull, (Far) Ground Skull, Ground Skull, (Close) Ground Skull	(YF) Back + FP, BP, (OF), Forward-Dash, BK, Ground Skull, FP, Close to Far Triple Ground Skull, (Far) Ground Skull, Ground Skull, (Close) Ground Skull	(YF) Back + Y, X, (OF), Forward-Dash, A, Ground Skull, Y, Close to Far Triple Ground Skull, (Far) Ground Skull, Ground Skull, (Close) Ground Skull
Quick 180 Meterless	(YF) Triangle, Circle, Triple Skull	Y, B, Triple Skull	BP, BK, Triple Skull	X, A, Triple Skull
211 Damage - Zone	(YF) Back + Square, Triangle, Forward-Dash, Forward + Circle, X, Circle	(YF) Back + X, Y, Forward-Dash, Forward + B, A, B	(YF) Back + FP, BP, Forward-Dash, Forward + BK, FK, BK	(YF), Back + Y, X, Forward-Dash, Forward + A, B, A
Fatal Blow Combo (YF)	(YF) Back + Square, Triangle, Forward + Circle, X, Fatal Blow	(YF) Back + X, Y, Forward + B, A, Fatal Blow	(YF) Back + FP, BP, Forward + BK, FK, Fatal Blow	(YF) Back + Y, X, Forward + A, B, Fatal Blow
Fatal Blow Combo (OF)	(OF) Far to Close Triple Ground Skull, Back-Dash, Fatal Blow	(OF) Far to Close Triple Ground Skull, Back-Dash, Fatal Blow	(OF) Far to Close Triple Ground Skull, Back-Dash, Fatal Blow	(OF) Far to Close Triple Ground Skull, Back-Dash, Fatal Blow

Shang Tsung Fatalities and Brutalities in Mortal Kombat 1

Shang Tsung has always been one for show and flair in making himself look better than others. This characteristic shows itself throughout Shang Tsung's Fatalities and Brutalities in Mortal Kombat 1, all of which are upmost fascinating and brutal.

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Mortal Kombat 1: All Shang Tsung Fatalities (Video Guide)

Those hoping to learn how to perform all of Shang Tsung's Mortal Kombat 1 Fatalities may benefit from the button prompts and videos contained herein.

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By Tom Bowen

Shang Tsung uses his intelligence in the arcane to defeat his opponents and finish them off, as both of his Fatalities use acids and molten substances to rid them of existence. To unlock the rest of Shang Tsung's Brutalities and Fatalities, fans will want to level up his character mastery.

Fatalities	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
(Close) Side Effects	Back, Down, Down, Circle	Back, Down, Down, B	Back, Down, Down, BK	Back, Down, Down, A
(Mid) Fatality 2	Forward, Down, Back, Triangle	Forward, Down, Back, Y	Forward, Down, Back, BP	Forward, Down, Back, X

Brutalities	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
The Klassic	Down + Hold Triangle	Down + Hold Y	Down + Hold BP	Down + Hold X
Bed Of Spikes	Grab	Grab	Grab	Grab
Chomp Chomp!	Straight Skull	Straight Skull	Straight Skull	Straight Skull
Stick Around	Bed of Spikes	Bed of Spikes	Bed of Spikes	Bed of Spikes
Fire It Up	Down Skull	Down Skull	Down Skull	Down Skull
It Has Ended	Injection	Injection	Injection	Injection

The Best Kameos For Shang Tsung

Shang Tsung relies on his ability to combo the enemy from afar and rapidly punish them for their smallest mistakes. With his projectiles, mid-range attacks, and complex combos, the best partner for Shang Tsung would have to compensate for the areas that Shang Tsung lacks.

Because of that, the best Kameos for Shang Tsung can extend combo strings with projectiles, or propel the amount of damage done to an opponent by helping Shang Tsung end his string. Here are the best Kameos for Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat 1:

Scorpion
Shujinko
Stryker
Sektor
Motaro

How To Play Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat 1

To master Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat 1, fans will need to spend a lot of time in practice mode. Seeing as the character has two different forms with different moves, it can take a little time to get used to each transformation's different skillsets.

Not only that, but Shang Tsung can transform into other opponents, meaning that players may want to get accompanied by the other roster fighters as well. Shang Tsung excels in constantly bombarding the enemy with attacks from mid to long-range, as well as extending aerial strings. Here are some tips for playing Shang Tsung as best as possible in Mortal Kombat 1:

Shang Tsung is primarily a 'zoning' character, meaning he works best from mid to long ranges. Make use of his projectiles to counter and start combos while at longer ranges.
Shang Tsung has a very large moveset full of punish-esque special moves. Constantly bombarding the enemy with these punishes will ensure that the opponent is off their guard.
Putting in some time with the other roster Kombatants will help a Shang Tsung player heighten their skill since Shang Tsung can shape-shift into his opponent.
In Old Form, Shang Tsung can best combo with his Ground Skull moves, all of which string together flawlessly, especially with Kameos like Scorpion.

Mortal Kombat 1

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