Up next on the list ofMortal Kombat Xhistory lessons is Ermac, the crimson master of souls.
Hey, theres a reason hes#6 on the Den of Geek list that ranks the entireMortal Kombatcast!
Ermac began as a legend and an understandable one at that.
With Reptile on the mind, people speculated that Ermac was yet another secret character.
Electronics Gaming Monthlyfeatured a letter from a fan claiming that he and his friend saw Ermac.
A doctored photo was sent in, showing Ermac as a red ninja, doing a victory pose.
Some people took this at face value.
This was also false, but the idea of a fourth ninja stuck around.
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Then again, what the hellisan Ermac?
Occasionally, they would be scrambled.
For instance, CEAMR DOSE NTO EXITS, would pop up at times, meaning ERMAC DOES NOT EXIST.
Ermac finally became a character in 1995sUltimate Mortal Kombat 3, played by John Turk.
Ermacs main ability was telekinesis, which was just one of Scorpions poses accompanied by the opponent flailing around.
Even lazier was Ermacs attempt at a story.
Yes, his ending is summed up with, He exists now.
Thats as far as we got.
Ermac was given the role of one of Shao Kahns lieutenants with his own army of red ninjas.
Otherwise, Ermac did zero of note and even the writers forgot he existed.
He has a soul patch, which is the most fitting thing ever.
Again, hes mostly forgettable with the only notable moment being his fight with Sonya Blade.
Its a very, very, ugly-looking fight scene.
After being chumped out by Sonya, Ermac then splits into a second being, Noob Saibot.
Sonya then snaps Ermacs neck with her ankles.
Bad as it was, it likely helped inspire the one-man-tag-team gimmick that Noob Saibot had inMortal Kombat 9.
Mortal Kombat TrilogyupdatedUltimate Mortal Kombat 3and finally gave Ermac an actual story.
No longer was he just some mysterious guy in red.
That turns out not to be the case when Kahn is canonically defeated by Liu Kang.
Kenshi is able to help free Ermac from the mind-control and gives him free will.
Ermac becomes eternally grateful and briefly mentors Kenshi, teaching him the Telekinetic Slam attack.
Ermac is visited by the ghost of Liu Kang, who asks for help in saving his friends.
They probably werent 100% fighting-wise, but thats still pretty impressive.
Onaga is defeated, but Ermac can sense that theres more to this adventure.
Onaga is merely a puppet for something more fearsome, which weve yet to ever see get revealed.
In the gameMortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks, Ermac appears as a hidden boss.
This includes the Warriors Shrine from the firstMortal Kombat.
His telekinetic powers are given a slight upgrade here.
Hes even able to give life to the other statues and make them fight for him.
He doesnt have much of a role here other than dying along with nearly everyone else.
That brings us toMortal Kombat 9, the big reboot that retells the events of the first three games.
Ermac is introduced late into the first tournament as a major challenge, but Liu Kang defeats him.
Ermac defeats Johnny Cage during theMortal Kombat IItournament, but his big moment comes a bit earlier.
Jax and Sonya meet the second Sub-Zero for the first time and explain his brothers fate.
Just then, Ermac appears before them, claiming that theyve interrupted his slumber.
Jax goes after him, but Ermac uses his telekinesis to pull Jax back and explode his arms.
Its…more noticeable in action.
Without Kahn to solidify the many souls making up Ermac, his mind becomes completely chaotic.
All the various warriors start battling it out for dominance.
Because apparently Shao Kahn has nothing better for him to do.
Youd think Kahn could have just thrown the sword in his closet and called it a day or something.
Kenshi is a ronin from feudal Japan who is told of the sword.
He brashly enters the cave, goes for the sword, and confronts Ermac.
Although Kenshi escapes with Sento, its at the expense of his eyes.
Its a pretty sweet fight scene between the two featuring sword-swinging, hand-to-hand, and telekinesis vs. telekinesis.
Kenshi ends up killing Ermac by impaling him with the sword using his mind.
WithMortal Kombat X, Ermac returns once more.
After all, wouldnt Jerrod just take over as explained in hisMortal Kombat 9ending?
When Ermac takes on Kitana, he remarks in a moment of confusion that he recognizes her somehow.
Considering Kahn and Jerrod are both behind the wheel, its disturbing how ambiguous it is.
No longer is Ermac just an altered Scorpion/Sub-Zero sprite with a lazily-animated psychic attack.
Now hes a floating phantom, surrounded by souls and completely unpredictable.
Just goes to show that even the lamest character can be fixed with a good hook.
For more onMortal Kombat Xand more of these character history lessons,check out our coverage hub.
