Since the original Mortal Kombat hit arcades in 1992, the fighting game franchise has been built around the fiercest fighters in video game history. In over a dozen games, a dizzying array of humans, gods, sorcerers, cyborgs, ninjas and cyborg-ninjas have tested their might in brutal fights to the finish. Whether their battles ended in "Flawless Victories" or gross-out Fatalities, characters like Scorpion, Sub-Zero and Liu Kang became gaming icons thanks to their jaw-dropping, occasionally stomach-churning, fighting moves. The franchise has also developed a surprisingly robust, complex backstory with more warring factions and double-crosses than Game of Thrones. When the Mortal Kombat phenomenon was at its peak, the controversial games inspired government hearings and a pair of cult-classic movies. While several later games were less warmly received, NetherRealm Studios successfully gave the legendary Midway Games franchise a new lease on life with 2011's Mortal Kombat and 2015's Mortal Kombat X.
Now, CBR is counting down the strongest Mortal Kombat fighters ever. In this list, we'll be ranking these Kombatants by a combination of their raw power, fighting skill and what they accomplished in the game's lore. Since we're dealing with the canonical timelines, we won't be including guest fighters like Freddy Krueger or the Predator. We also won't be looking at and of the DC Comics characters from Mortal Kombat vs. The DC Universe. This list will also be sticking to playable fighters, so we won't be mentioning powerhouses like the Elder Gods or the One Being. While every Mortal Kombat match tests these characters' might, this list will determine who sits on top of the Kombat tower once and for all.
30 JOHNNY CAGE
It's easy to write Johnny Cage off as a joke. With his jaded, jokey attitude, the movie star was the least serious fighter in the original Mortal Kombat. Once he realized how serious the Mortal Kombat tournament really was, Cage quickly distinguished himself as one of Earth's mightiest heroes with signature moves like the Shadow Kick.
Since the 2011's Mortal Kombat reboot, Cage has had an even more important role as one of Earth's few surviving champions. With powers he inherited from his Mediterranean warrior-ancestors, he trained a new generation of fighters led by his own daughter, Cassie Cage.
29 KENSHI
Kenshi might be the most successful Mortal Kombat character created in the 21st century. After debuting in 2002's Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, the blind telepathic ninja sliced and diced his way into fans' hearts.
Besides his teleportation and self-duplication abilities, Kenshi telekinetically wields his sword in battle.
Although he usually ends up fighting alongside Earth's heroes, Kenshi is also a loner who's driven by his quest to get revenge on Shang Tsung. Alongside Johnny Cage, Kenshi mentors Mortal Kombat X's young new fighters, including his son Takeda.
28 CASSIE CAGE
Even though she's only appeared in Mortal Kombat X, Cassie Cage has already made a lasting impression on the MK universe. As the daughter of Sonya Blade and Johnny Cage, Cassie inherited her dad's attitude and her mom's dedication to the elite Special Forces.
While Cassie is one of the few Kombatants who uses long-range pistols in her fights, she also shares several signature moves with both of her parents. When her inherited Cage family powers activated, Cassie scored her biggest victory by single-handedly defeating Shinnok, one of the most powerful villains in the entire franchise.
27 TREMOR
When Tremor was introduced in 2000's Mortal Kombat: Special Forces, poorly-reviewed Jax-centric action game, he looked like a brown palette-swapped version of Scorpion or Sub-Zero. Tremor used his ground-manipulating abilities as a general in Kano's Black Dragon mercenary clan.
In Mortal Kombat X, Tremor got a makeover that gave him a bulkier appearance with rocky skin.
Despite his unremarkable beginnings, Tremor is an Earth elemental who can control rocks, manipulate lava and give himself crystal armor. In DC Comics' Mortal Kombat X tie-in comic, Tremor even took out an army by causing an earthquake.
26 KINTARO
When the four-armed Goro debuted as the penultimate boss in the first Mortal Kombat, he seemed like an unstoppable force of nature that represented the inhumanity of Outworld's fighters. So when the developers behind Mortal Kombat II had to top Goro's threat, they mashed-up Goro and a Tiger to create Kintaro.
Descended from a race of Shokan warriors famous for their brutality, Kintaro has a bevy of abilities that make him one of Mortal Kombat's most powerful bosses. Whether he's shooting fireballs, teleporting or hurling his opponents around with his massive strength, Kintaro is always a formidable opponent.
25 SEKTOR
While the first two Mortal Kombat games were filled with various shades of ninjas, Mortal Kombat 3 brought a pair of brightly colored robots into the MK equation. Sektor was a human assassin in the Lin Kuei clan who was turned into a red cyborg.
While the other cyborgs tried to regain their humanity, Sektor embraced his new cybernetic form.
Thanks to his continual cybernetic upgrades, Sektor has a small armor in his body. Besides his wrist-mounted flame-thrower, Sektor can shoot a variety of missiles from his chest. For good measure, he can also turn invisible and teleport.
24 CYRAX
Even though both debuted in Mortal Kombat 3, Cyrax has always been a little more noteworthy than Sektor. The Lin Kuei assassin was hesitant about becoming a cyborg, and he's always retained at least a shred of his humanity. The yellow cyborg even teamed up with Jax and Sonya Blade at one point.
Like Sektor, Cyrax has a variety of devastating weapons tucked away inside his cybernetic body. His signature weapon is an electrified net that can ensnare and injure his opponents. Cyrax also has bombs, teleportation abilities and a chest-mounted buzzsaw at his disposal.
23 NIGHTWOLF
Since he was introduced in 1995's Mortal Kombat 3, Nightwolf has been one of Earth's mightiest Mortal Kombat warriors. He serves as Raiden's chief lieutenant on Earth and is a shaman with a deep understanding of the mystical side of the MK universe.
In combat, Nightwolf can conjure up his signature green tomahawks or a bow with arrows.
Although the stereotypical aspects of his design have drawn criticism, Nightwolf has played a key role in taking down some major villains. He banished the spirit of the ultra-powerful Onaga and sacrificed his life to finish off a hyper-powerful Sindel.
22 RAIN
According to Mortal Kombat co-creator Ed Boon, the purple ninja Rain started out as a nod to his love for Prince and the musician's album/movie Purple Rain. Despite his unremarkable debut in 1995's Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, Rain learned that he was the son of the god Argus and proclaimed himself Prince of Edenia.
While that revelation gave Rain a meaningful place in Mortal Kombat's cosmology, it also makes Rain a half-god. Accordingly, Rain can control water and lightning. With bone-crushing geysers, suffocating water orbs and lightning strikes, Rain is a joke that demands to be taken seriously.
21 GORO
While he might be more of a soldier than a leader, Goro is probably the most famous villain in the Mortal Kombat franchise. Introduced as the sub-boss in the original Mortal Kombat, this four-armed Shokan warrior won nine consecutive Mortal Kombat tournaments.
Those victories made Goro the reigning Mortal Kombat champion for 500 years.
After finally being defeated by Liu Kang, Goro took on a less important, less villainous role in the franchise that diminished his reputation some. Still, the super-strong Goro can defeat opponents in seconds with devastating strikes that still show why he was Mortal Kombat's longest-running champion.
20 SMOKE
As his name might imply, Smoke is an enenra, a supernatural being who's actually made out of smoke. This Lin Kuei assassin was originally a silver ninja who was a hidden character in Mortal Kombat II, but he was turned into a cyborg in his later appearances.
Whether he's a human or a robot, Smoke is one of the fastest, stealthiest fighters in Mortal Kombat. With the abilities to disguise his moves in a haze, turn invisible, teleport and create noxious fumes that leave his opponents coughing, Smoke proves that brute strength isn't the only way to win Mortal Kombat.
19 SUB-ZERO II
After the original Sub-Zero perished in the first Mortal Kombat, his younger brother, Kuai Liang, took over as the franchise's resident ice-making warrior in Mortal Kombat II. Once driven by the need to avenge his brother, Sub-Zero has evolved into one of the franchise's most reliable heroes.
In the series' revised timeline, Sub-Zero was also turned into a cyborg.
As a human, Sub-Zero can famously produce various types of ice blasts that freeze his opponents. While he can also create weapons and ice clones of himself, he's even stronger as Cyber Sub-Zero, who can also teleport.
18 NOOB SAIBOT
While Bi-Han entered the original Mortal Kombat as Sub-Zero, he's spent much more time as the undead warrior Noob Saibot. This shadowy ninja first appeared as a shadowy unplayable character in Mortal Kombat II. Since he was revived by the sorcerer Quan Chi, Saibot has usually served as a general for various villains or as Smoke's partner.
While he lost the ice abilities he had as Sub-Zero, Saibot can control shadow energy and create Spirit Balls that completely disable his enemies. While he can teleport and throw shurikens, Saibot's signature move involves summoning a shadow clone to tag-team his opponents.
17 ERMAC
Ermac began as a glitch on a diagnostic screen in the original Mortal Kombat. After rumors of a red ninja named Ermac floated around for a few years, Ermac finally made his debut in Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3.
This telepathic ninja is made up of the spirits of 1,000 vanquished warriors.
With his devastating force slams and mystic blasts, Ermac is easily the most dangerous telekinetic fighter in the franchise. Although he helped train some of Earth's heroes in the original timeline, Ermac is the villain who used his mental might to "disarm" Jax in the revised timeline.
16 TRIBORG
Since he was only introduced as a downloadable character for Mortal Kombat X in 2016, Triborg is the newest character on this list. This cyborg can perfectly copy the fighting styles of all of the franchise's other cyborgs, including Cyrax, Sektor, Smoke and Cyber Sub-Zero.
So far, Triborg has only been able to use one character's moveset at a time. Still, Triborg is MK's most powerful machine since he has Cryax's nets, Sektor's flamethrowers, Sub-Zero's ice blasts and Smoke's smoke bombs and teleporting abilities at his disposal. While he hasn't accomplished much yet, this robot made a remarkable first impression.
15 SCORPION
Without question, Scorpion is the most famous fighter in Mortal Kombat. Since Hanzo Hasashi debuted in the original Mortal Kombat, Scorpion's chained kunai spear and catchphrase, "Get over here," have become hallmarks of the franchise. This undead Shinai Ryu assassin has floated between the forces of good and evil as an antihero with a deeply held sense of morality.
Besides his famous spear attacks, Scorpion also has several fire-based abilities.
His mask usually hides a fire-spewing skull that torches opponents like Sub-Zero in a toasty finishing move. When combined with his teleporting abilities, Scorpion's attacks are even more unpredictable.
14 SHUJINKO
Even though he won't win any popularity contests, Shujinko defeated one of the biggest threats in the Mortal Kombat universe. Starting with 2005's Mortal Kombat: Deception, Shujinko was supposed to be the new center of the franchise. As a young man, Shujinko was tricked into collecting Infinity Stone-like objects that empowered Onaga the Dragon King.
While he spent a lifetime trying to right that wrong, Shujinko still has the formidable ability to copy the fighting style of any fighter he meets. With a power boost from his fellow Kombatants, Shukinko even managed to stop Onaga from destroying the universe.
13 KOTAL KHAN
Out of all of the characters introduced in Mortal Kombat X, Kotal Khan might be the strongest. After a brutal civil war in the other-worldly Outworld, this Aztec-inspired warrior is currently ruling as that realm's emperor.
In combat, Khan uses South American weapons like a macuahuitl and a tecpatl.
Kotal Khan is powered by sunlight and can summon unimaginably strong beams of sunlight to scorch his opponents. Combined with his raw super-strength and considerable mystical abilities, this puts Khan on par with some of the gods in Mortal Kombat, although his full potential remains largely unfulfilled.
12 SINDEL
If we were only going by Mortal Kombat 3 and her other early appearances, Sindel probably wouldn't have a place on this list. However, Sindel fundamentally changed the shape of the MK universe in 2011's Mortal Kombat. After being resurrected, the former Queen of Edenia and brainwashed mother of Princess Kitana absorbed all of Shang Tsun's powers.
While she's always had a super-sonic scream, tactile hair and energy blasts, Sindel's fighting skills increased dramatically with Shang's abilities. With that power boost Sindel single-handedly took out Jax, Jade, Stryker, Smoke, Kabal, Cyber Suz-Zero and Kabal in a matter of seconds.
11 DAEGON
While 2006's Mortal Kombat: Armageddon featured just about every fighter in the MK universe, it also introduced a pair of siblings, Daegon and Taven. As the son of the Edenian god Argus, Daegon, the younger sibling, is a centuries-old demigod who formed the Red Dragon Clan.
Daegon hunted his brother down so he could save the world and reap the rewards.
While he only appeared as a playable character once, Daegon is still one of the more powerful fighters in Mortal Kombat. As a fire-creating demigod, he had enough power to strike down his ultra-powerful father before he was defeated.