Kabal (Mortal Kombat)
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Kabal is a fictional character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series.
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[edit] About Kabal
Kabal was first introduced in Mortal Kombat 3, sporting long, black hair, hookswords, and a respirator. He was a mysterious chosen warrior who survived an attack from one of Shao Kahn's extermination squads. Unknown to his allies, however, he was actually a member of the Black Dragon. At the time of his introduction, he appeared as a force for good, but has since reverted to his evil ways, planning to set himself as the head of the new Black Dragon clan.
[edit] Storyline
Kabal was a member of the Black Dragon, until Shao Kahn's invasion took Earthrealm by storm, and Kabal's soul was spared: he was a chosen warrior, destined to fight against Shao Kahn. Surviving an attack from Kahn's extermination squads horribly mutilated, he was kept alive by artificial respirators and an unbroken will to fight. The events of Shao Kahn's invasion had profoundly changed Kabal; he left behind his life of crime with the Black Dragon and vowed to become a force for good; at least for a time.
Between the events of Mortal Kombat Trilogy and Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, Kabal was wounded severely in battle by Mavado, a leading member of the Red Dragon hoping to wipe out the Black Dragon. Mavado then took Kabal's trademark hookswords as a trophy.
Havik visited Kabal at the brink of death and restored him, and then instructed him to bring back the Black Dragon as a force of anarchy and decay. In spite of his previous experiences fighting alongside his Earthrealm comrades against Shao Kahn's hordes and his vow to help put an end to crime and injustice, he followed Havik's instructions seemingly without hesitation. It is believed he trained with Havik for some years, before going back to Earthrealm and killing Mavado, taking back his hookswords. He then also recruited Kira and Kobra. The three of them joined Havik on Outworld for the events of Mortal Kombat: Deception.
While his reason for recruiting Kira and Kobra as the newest members of the Black Dragon was basically to fill the void left behind by his apparently deceased comrades, Kabal had ulterior motives. Seeing as how the complacency of the former members led to the demise of his clan, Kabal wanted to ensure that his newest recruits were truly worthy of the Black Dragon. He tested their prowess in battle against the enemies of the Dragon King.
In Mortal Kombat: Armageddon's Konquest mode, Kabal confronts the protagonist Taven after Taven had defeated Kobra and several other Black Dragon thugs. Kabal offers him a chance to join the clan, but Taven refuses. They fight, and Taven manages to defeat Kabal, although he doesn't actually kill him.
In Kabal's Armageddon ending, he is able to vanquish Blaze, causing his hookswords to become enchanted with power. He challenges his nemesis Mavado to Mortal Kombat. Kabal overpowers and defeats him easily. Mavado commits hara-kiri and Kabal holds his severed head high atop the pyramid to show the Black Dragon's superiority.[1]
[edit] Combat characteristics
[edit] Signature moves
- Rapid Flash: Kabal runs forward at a very fast speed past his opponent, spinning them in a dizzying state. This sets the opponent up for a free hit. (MK3, UMK3, MKT, MK:D, MK:A)
- Plasma Blast/Gas Blast: Kabal fires a projectile from his mask. (MK3, UMK3, MKT, MK:D, MK:A)
- Sawblades: Kabal summons sawblades from the ground, cutting the opponent. (MK3, UMK3, MKT)
- Nomad's Touch: Kabal thrusts out his hands towards the opponent, and - if they are in range - will be caught in an odd field that draws them in to collide with Kabal, though only the opponent gets hurt when they make contact. (MK:D, MK:A)
[edit] Fatalities
- Inflation: Kabal detaches his respirator and feeds it into the opponent's head, puffing it up like a balloon. As Kabal re-attaches his respirator, the enemy floats upward and an explosion is heard as their bones and organs rain onto the field. (MK3, UMK3)
- Unmasked: Kabal removes his mask, revealing his horribly scarred face. He screams at the player before likewise doing so to his opponent, quite literally scaring him or her to death. (MK3, UMK3)
[edit] Appearances in other media
[edit] Film
Kabal is mentioned along with Stryker in Mortal Kombat: Annihilation as warriors having been captured by Rain, but neither actually appeared in the movie.
[edit] Television
Kabal made one appearance in the 1996 animated series Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm, in which he betrayed Kano and the Black Dragon and befriended Sonya, after she expressed disgust over the prejudice he faced due to his disfigurement. He was voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson.
[edit] Character development
Kabal was nicknamed "Sandman" during production of MK3, because, according to series co-creator John Tobias, his look was inspired by the Tusken Raiders from Star Wars. His original primary weapon consisted of wrist-mounted buzzsaw blades before he was given his familiar hookswords. The swords were first designed for an early plan of Baraka during preproduction of Mortal Kombat II, and were also used as generic weapons that were packaged with select characters in a line of MK action figures that hit the market in December 1994.
In the original plans for Mortal Kombat: Special Forces, a pre-scarred version of Kabal was to be introduced as one of the Black Dragon bosses, but his role was cut after the game underwent several last-minute changes due to time constraints. Screenshots were released and the character model can still be seen in the game, though he was unnamed and was of no special significance. He was given a Southern accent and left the player his hookswords for use. This concept was later used in Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks, where there is an optional mission to rescue Kabal in the wastelands.
[edit] Game information
A strange glitch appeared in the Sega Genesis version of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, in which Kabal's head would be knocked off by no visible means if the player entered the combination for Kabal's MK3 Animality after the "Finish Him!" message was displayed.
[edit] References
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