Mortal Kombat 1: Kung Lao Guide

This article is part of a directory: Mortal Kombat 1: Complete Guide

Kung Lao is one of the most famous Mortal Kombat characters of all time and one of the best Kombatants that fans can choose from in Mortal Kombat 1. Now, having grown up with Raiden in Liu Kang's new timeline, Kung Lao has become one of the greatest martial arts talents that Earthrealm has seen and helps Liu Kang overcome Shang Tsung in the game's main story.

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

Here's a guide to complete mastery of Shang Tsung in Mortal Kombat 1.

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By Kai Adler

In terms of gameplay, Kung Lao is efficient at overwhelming the enemy and surprising them when they least expect it. Mastering Kung Lao shouldn't take too long, especially when simply focusing on his easier combos and learning how his special moves work.

Kung Lao's Moves and Special Moves

Basic Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Bruised Knuckles	Square	X	FP	Y
No Silence	Square, Triangle	X, Y	FP, BP	Y, X
Swollen Throat	Square, Triangle, Square	X, Y, X	FP, BP, FP	Y, X, Y
Shaolin Strike	Back + Square	Back + X	Back + FP	Back + Y
Sweep The Foot	Back + Square, Circle	Back + X, B	Back + FP, BK	Back + Y, A
Crushing Palm	Down + Square	Down + X	Down + FP	Down + Y
Open Palm	Triangle	Y	BP	X
Body Blows	Triangle, Square	Y, X	BP, FP	X, Y
Madam El-Bo	Triangle, Square, Triangle	Y, X, Y	BP, FP, BP	X, Y, X
Eight Trigram Palm	Triangle, Square, Triangle, Square	Y, X, Y, X	BP, FP, BP, FP	X, Y, X, Y
Heavy Chop	Back + Triangle	Back + Y	Back + BP	Back + X
Human Weapon	Back + Triangle, Circle	Back + Y, B	Back + BP, BK	Back + X, A
Downward Slice	Forward + Triangle	Forward + Y	Forward + BP	Forward + X
Rising Chi	Down + Triangle	Down + Y	Down + BP	Down + X
Double Down	X	A	FK	B
Knee Buckle	Back + X	Back + A	Back + FK	Back + B
Focuses Footsies	Back + X, X	Back + A, A	Back + FK, FK	Back + B, B
Monastery Mixup	Back + X, Circle	Back + A, B	Back + FK, BK	Back + B, A
Dip One's Woes	Forward + X	Forward + A	Forward + FK	Forward + B
Leg Day	Forward + X, X	Forward + A, A	Forward + FK, FK	Forward + B, B
One More TIme	Forward + X, X, X	Forward + A, A, A	Forward + FK, FK, FK	Forward + B, B, B
Flick Kick	Down + X	Down + A	Down + FK	Down + B
Spinning Heel	Circle	B	BK	A
Get Back	Circle, Circle	B, B	BK, BK	A, A
Shaolin Spin	Back + Circle	Back + B	Back + BK	Back + A
Monk Drop	Forward + Circle	Forward + B	Forward + BK	Forward + A
Step Back	Down + Circle	Down + B	Down + BK	Down + A

Special Moves	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Buzzsaw	Back, Forward, Square	Back, Forward, X	Back, Forward, FP	Back, Forward, Y
Hat Toss	Down, Back, Square	Down, Back, X	Down, Back, FP	Down, Back, Y
Direct Up	Hold Up	Hold Up	Hold Up	Hold Up
Direct Down	Hold Down	Hold Down	Hold Down	Hold Down
Shaolin Shimmy	Back, Forward, Triangle	Back, Forward, Y	Back, Forward, BP	Back, Forward, X
Kung-Kussion	Down, Back, Triangle	Down, Back, Y	Down, Back, BP	Down, Back, X
Shaolin Spin	Down, Up, X	Down, Up, A	Down, Up, FK	Down, Up, B
Extend Shaolin Spin	Hold X	Hold A	Hold FK	Hold B
(During Extend) Move	Hold Back or Forward	Hold Back or Forward	Hold Back or Forward	Hold Back or Forward
(During Extend) Cancel	Down, Down	Down, Down	Down, Down	Down, Down
Soaring Monk	Down, Back, Circle	Down, Back, B	Down, Back, BK	Down, Back, A
(Air) Dive Kick	Down, Back, Circle	Down, Back, B	Down, Back, BK	Down, Back, A

Kung Lao Combos in Mortal Kombat 1

Kung Lao focuses on keeping his opponent at bay while also being efficient at rushing them down with some speedy attacks. Like Liu Kang, especially his previous adaptations, Kung Lao is a very fast offensive fighter, but with abilities to combo the enemy from afar.

Kung Lao also has the power to maneuver easily around the map, making it much easier to catch foes off their guard and delete their HP gauge with some of Kung Lao's devastating combos. Here are some of Kung Lao's combos in Mortal Kombat 1:

Combos	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
Bread-and-Butter	Triangle, Square, Triangle, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) Triangle, Forward-Dash, Back + Triangle, Circle, Forward-Dash, Square, Triangle, Square, Enhanced Kung-Kussion, Circle, Kung-Kussion	Y, X, Y, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) Y, Forward-Dash, Back + Y, B, Forward-Dash, X, Y, X, Enhanced Kung-Kussion, B, Kung-Kussion	BP, FP, BP, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) BP, Forward-Dash, Back + BP, BK, Forward-Dash, FP, BP, FP, Enhanced Kung-Kussion, BK, Kung-Kussion	X, Y, X, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) X, Forward-Dash, Back + X, A, Forward-Dash, Y, X, Y, Enhanced Kung-Kussion, A, Kung-Kussion
340 No Meter	Back + Triangle, Circle, Back + Triangle, Circle, Square, Triangle, Square, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + Y, B, Back + Y, B, X, Y, X, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + BP, BK, Back + BP, BK, FP, BP, FP, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + X, A, Back + X, A, Y, X, Y, Shaolin Shimmy
Corner One Meter	Back + Triangle, Circle, Back + Triangle, Circle, Forward-Jump, Square, Triangle, Circle, Enhanced Dive Kick, Square, Triangle, Square, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + Y, B, Back + Y, B, Forward-Jump, X, Y, B, Enhanced Dive Kick, X, Y, X, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + BP, BK, Back + BP, BK, Forward-Jump, FP, BP, BK, Enhanced Dive Kick, FP, BP, FP, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + X, A, Back + X, A, Forward-Jump, Y, X, A, Enhanced Dive Kick, Y, X, Y, Shaolin Shimmy
One Meter Anywhere	Back + Triangle, Circle, Back + Triangle, Circle, Forward-Dash, Forward + X, X, Enhanced Shaolin Shimmy, Circle, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + Y, B, Back + Y, B, Forward-Dash, Forward + A, A, Enhanced Shaolin Shimmy, B, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + BP, BK, Back + BP, BK, Forward-Dash, Forward + FK, FK, Enhanced Shaolin Shimmy, BK, Shaolin Shimmy	Back + X, A, Back + X, A, Forward-Dash, Forward + B, B, Enhanced Shaolin Shimmy, A, Shaolin Shimmy
One Meter 390	Triangle, Square, Triangle, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) Triangle, Forward-Dash, Back + Triangle, Circle, Forward-Dash, Square, Triangle, Square, Shaolin Shimmy	Y, X, Y, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) Y, Forward-Dash, Back + Y, B, Forward-Dash, X, Y, X, Shaolin Shimmy	BP, FP, BP, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) BP, Forward-Dash, Back + BP, BK, Forward-Dash, FP, BP, FP, Shaolin Shimmy	X, Y, X, Enhanced Soaring Monk, (Air) X, Forward-Dash, Back + X, A, Forward-Dash, Y, X, Y, Shaolin Shimmy

To combo into Kung Lao's Fatal Blow, fans can use Kung Lao's 'Swollen Throat' basic string. This flawlessly cancels into Fatal Blow.

Kung Lao's Fatalities and Brutalities in Mortal Kombat 1

Kung Lao's Fatality victory screen with Stryker

Fatalities in Mortal Kombat 1 are better than never, and fans even have the opportunity to purchase new fatalities in the game's Premium Shop. Kung Lao's Fatalities and Brutalities in Mortal Kombat 1 are exceptionally brutal, especially when using his razor-sharp hat as a tool to finish off his defeated opponents.

Mortal Kombat 1: All Kung Lao Fatalities (Video Guide)

Kung Lao's Mortal Kombat 1 Fatalities are far from the flashiest that the game has to offer, but they're still pretty brutal when all's said and done.

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By Tom Bowen

To unlock even more Fatalities and Brutalities for Kung Lao, fans will want to level up their character mastery, which is done by playing as Kung Lao in different game modes. Here are all of Kung Lao's Fatalities and Brutalities in Mortal Kombat 1:

Fatalities	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
(Mid) Lao'd And Clear	Back, Forward, Back, Circle	Back, Forward, Back, B	Back, Forward, Back, BK	Back, Forward, Back, A
(Close) Fatality 2	Back, Down, Down, X	Back, Down, Down, A	Back, Down, Down, FK	Back, Down, Down, B

Brutalities	PlayStation	Xbox	PC	Nintendo Switch
The Klassic	Down + Hold Triangle	Down + Hold Y	Down + Hold BP	Down + Hold X
Spin Cycle	Grab	Grab	Grab	Grab
Magic Hat	Soaring Monk	Soaring Monk	Soaring Monk	Soaring Monk
Not Holding Back	Triangle, Square, Triangle, Square	Y, X, Y, X	BP, FP, BP, FP	X, Y, X, Y
Hats Off	Kung-Kussion	Kung-Kussion	Kung-Kussion	Kung-Kussion
Grind Away	Buzzsaw	Buzzsaw	Buzzsaw	Buzzsaw

The Best Kameos For Kung Lao

Kung Lao is a character who focuses on very rapid attacks landing successively. At the same time, Kung Lao has options that can take the opponent by surprise, such as his 'zoning' moves.

That said, Kung Lao will want to be paired with a Kameo fighter who can keep up with him and provide extensions to his unique combos. Here are the best Kameo Kombatants for Kung Lao in Mortal Kombat 1:

Goro
Stryker
Shujinko
Cyrax
Sonya Blade

How to Play Kung Lao in Mortal Kombat 1

The key to playing a good Kung Lao in Mortal Kombat 1 is learning all of his moves, practicing his special moves, learning strings, and generally getting a 'feel' for how the character plays in a match. Just like any other character, Kung Lao will need to spend some time in practice mode, but maybe not as much time as other more difficult characters like Geras.

As said before, Kung Lao specializes in rushing down the opponent while also making use of tools that can help players switch things up a bit. This means bringing out his zoning and aerial tools whenever he has a chance. Here are some more tips for playing Kung Lao:

Constantly play on the offense and rush down enemies to use Kung Lao at his best. Kung Lao has tools against punish-based attacks.
When facing zoners or mid-range attackers, Kung Lao has several great special moves like Buzzsaw and Shaolin Shimmy that string together within combos.
Kung Lao's weakest feature is his lack of defensive options and aerial mobility. In that case, players must learn to maneuver around combos and utilize his special moves to make up for his lack of defensiveness.
Kung Lao's best combo starter is (Back + BP, BK). This strings into almost anything, making it a great choice to utilize in the heat of battle.
Shaolin Shimmy is Kung-Lao's best special move (concerning damage output), making it very potent to use at the end of strings.

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