Earthrealm in Deception.
In the Mortal Kombat series, Earthrealm is the name that is most frequently used for what humans normally call Earth, which is a rocky planet orbiting the Sun.
About Earthrealm
Earthrealm is one of many realms that were formed after the Elder Gods shattered the One Being. In the Mortal Kombat universe, Earthrealm has been the target of frequent attempts at conquest because it is thought to be the jewel of the cosmos and an important universal power node. Because of this, the Elder Gods have appointed a deity to protect the realm from harm. For countless centuries, this task has been entrusted to Raiden, though other gods, such as Fujin, also play a role in it. Furthermore, the Shaolin Temple of the Light was formed to train mortals in martial arts and prepare them to defend their world from evil. More recent organizations, such as the reformed Lin Kuei or the Special Forces, play a similar role. Earthrealm was nearly destroyed millions of years ago in a war between Shinnok and Raiden, and then verged on the brink of collapse during Shao Kahn's short conquest. After his invasion was foiled, Earthrealm served as an inspiration to other conquered realms of the Outworld. Edenia would later rise up, and Nitara's home realm, Vaeternus, would rebel as well.
Native Species
The lush green forests and clean, unpolluted waters of Earthrealm in Mortal Kombat: Conquest.
Technically, all species found on the real Earth are native to it, but two should be highlighted because of their special importance in the Mortal Kombat universe:
- Humans: They were the second intelligent race to evolve on Earthrealm, and share most of their basic characteristics with the people and civilizations from other realms. They tend to live much shorter lifespans and are not as adapted to magic as their counterparts. This is compensated for by their highly advanced level of technology. And "Earthrealmers", as Princess Kitana of Edenia said in Mortal Kombat (2011), are the name of Earthrealm's inhabitants, who are also called Earthlings.
- Saurians (also known as Zaterrans): They were the first intelligent race to populate Earth, but they were nearly wiped out in the war between Shinnok and the other gods. After this war, they chose to emigrate to Zaterra, where they would later be conquered and enslaved by the Outworld.
Governments
Unlike many other realms, Earthrealm does not possess an absolute ruler. Instead, Earthrealmers organize their lives by residing in separate nations, which are ruled by monarchies, communist states, military dictatorships, theocracies, and democratic republics, depending on the nation. Though many nations are developed, such as the United States of America and China, Earthrealm is centered more specifically around villages, perhaps taking place in East Asia. Society is governed by a set of laws, though not to a powerful degree similar to Seido's law enforcement. The laws are enforced by the Special Forces, village guards, and the local police force, depending on the society. For instance, developed countries such as USA rely on the local police force, as in Kurtis Stryker and the S.W.A.T. team, whereas the Special Forces investigate outerworld threats. In local villages, guards keep a watchful eye on the roads at night, especially for the sneaky ninja clan, the Lin Kuei.
Religious, Spiritual, and Moral Practices
Religion, the belief system concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices, values, institutions, and rituals associated with such belief, is largely practiced by many Earthrealm inhabitants. Among many religious and spiritual beliefs and practices is Buddhism, with two known practitioners being the Shaolin monks Liu Kang, the Mortal Kombat champion, and Kung Lao, descendant of the Great Kung Lao and close relative of Liu Kang. Many Mortal Kombat training dojos are found within Earthrealm's villages, used for training individuals to survive in potentially dangerous societies.
Societies and Cultures
Society is the system of organizations and institutions arising from human interaction between humans. Among many Earthrealm societies, one of the more notable is the White Lotus Society, founded by the Thunder God Raiden to train Earthrealmers in Mortal Kombat to kombat other realms´ forces. Under the watchful eye of Raiden, Earthrealm societies are generally peaceful, and many Earthrealm inhabitants fear tyranny. Earthrealm also has a distinguished culture, with tastes in art and manners that are favored by a social group within Earthrealm. Earthrealm is known for the creation of rice wine, said to "put Outworld's liquor to shame." Fishing is also a common activity within the villages, as many inhabitants can be seen carrying fish on spears. Trade is the voluntary exchange of goods and services and is a form of economics. Thus, Earthrealm provides goods and services such as meat, including fish, pork, dogs, and beef, and services such as locksmiths in exchange for koins. Each koin's value is determined by its color. Life expectancy for Earthrealmers is significantly different throughout the world, though much shorter than their Outworld counterparts. The average life span for a human is 78-100 yerars in the Earthrealm for males and females, respectively.
Magical Abilities
Earthrealmers, unlike their outerworldly counterparts, only have little, or oftentimes no, magical ability. When an Earthrealmer does utilize magic, however, it's often in the form of an element associated with Earth. Examples include Liu Kang's, Kai's, and Kobra's fire manipulation abilities, and Kung Lao's wind manipulation abilities. Sonya Blade and Kira are known to manipulate non-elemental magic associated with Earth, which they dub the "Kiss of Death," and Johnny Cage and his daughter Cassie Cage have the ability to toss a "force ball," a ball of gathered energy, and use shadow abilities. Kenshi and his son Takeda have psionic abilities.
Technological Utilization
Earthrealm is shown to be one of the most technologically advanced realms, if not the most advanced. Many Earthrealmers, to counterbalance their lack of or limited experience with magic, use technology and engineering to their advantage. Notable technological users are the Special Forces, who use highly advanced super portals to transport themselves from realm to realm and high-tech weaponry in battle, in which Jax uses a Machine Gun, bionic enhancements, or robotic arms to increase his overall strength. S.W.A.T. team captain Kurtis Stryker utilizes tasers, guns, and grenades in battle to further his likelihood of winning in kombat. Other Earthrealmers perform processes called "robotizations," the transformation of humans into cyborgs to enhance strength and kombat abilities. Known practicer's were the Lin Kuei in their transformations of the robot trio, Cyrax, Sektor, and Smoke, along with Cyber Sub-Zero. Cyrax, Sektor and Takeda Takahashi also use Pulse Blades in battle, swords created primarily with human technology. The Tekunin warrior robots were hand-created by the Earthrealm native Sektor. The Tekunin clan, fluent with technology, constructed a warship to simplify their tasks for world dominance. Kano, leader of the Black Dragon clan, uses an eye laser and, later, hidden stilettos and a Cybernetic Heart Unit. Similarly to Hsu Hao, of the Red Dragon clan, who uses a similar device that doubles as a laser emitter from his breastplate, Mavado, a leader of the Red Dragon clan, uses grappling hooks to maneuver himself quickly around the arena and avoid attacks. Unlike Earthrealmers, many Outworld natives have no trouble performing these tasks by using simple magic without the use of technology. Many natives of other realms, such as outworlders, import weapons and technology from Earthrealm through organizations such as the Black Dragon clan.
Notable Residents
Native
- Special Forces - Cassie Cage, Cyrax, Jax Briggs, Jacqui Briggs, Kenshi, Johnny Cage, and Sonya Blade
- Lin Kuei - Kuai Liang (the younger Sub-Zero/Scorpion in the 3rd Timeline), Bi-Han (the elder Sub-Zero), Cyrax, Sektor, Smoke, Frost
- Shirai Ryu - Hanzo Hasashi (Scorpion), Takeda, Forrest Fox
- White Lotus Society - Kung Jin, Kung Lao, Liu Kang, Kai, Shujinko, Raiden (3rd Timeline Only)
- Matoka Tribe - Nightwolf
- Black Dragon - Jarek, Kano, Kabal, Tremor, Kira, Kobra, Tasia, No Face
- Red Dragon - Mavado, Hsu Hao
- Tekunin - Triborg
- Others - Mokap, Kurtis Stryker
Non-native
- Raiden (1st and 2nd timelines)
- Fujin
- Li Mei (2nd Timeline only)
- Bo' Rai Cho
- Daegon
- Ashrah (3rd Timeline only)
- Sareena (1st and 3rd Timelines)
Outcast
- Shang Tsung (1st and 2nd timelines)
- Erron Black
- Liu Kang, Kung Lao, Kitana, Kabal, Jade, Kurtis Stryker, Nightwolf, and Smoke (as Revenants in the 2nd Timeline)
- Noob Saibot (Bi-Han, revived as a Wraith)
Non-Canon
- Freddy Krueger
- Kratos
- Jason Voorhees
- Predator
- Leatherface
- The Terminator
- RoboCop
- John Rambo
- Homelander
- Omni-Man
Locations
- Arctika
- Bank
- Bell Tower
- Black Dragon Fight Club
- Black Market Alley
- Botan Jungle
- Bridge
- Chamber of Daegon
- Chamber of The Flame (Non-Canon)
- Cyber Lin Kuei Assembly
- Dead Woods
- Destroyed City
- House of Pekara
- Jinsei Chamber
- Krimson Forest
- Lin Kuei Temple
- Red Dragon Caverns
- Refugee Kamp
- Rooftop
- Shang Tsung's Island (partially)
- Shaolin Trap Dungeon
- Shirai Ryu Fire Garden
- Sky Temple
- Special Forces Desert Command
- Subway
- Tank Garage Bunker
- Tekunin Warship
- The Street
- Waterfront
- Wu Shi Academy
- Wu Shi Dragon Grotto
- Yin Yang Island (partially)
Relationships with Other Realms
The invasion of Earthrealm by Outworld.
Earthrealm and Edenia are close allies and have been ever since Earthrealm's warriors freed Edenia from Shao Kahn's rule. The relationship between Liu Kang, the Earthrealm's Mortal Kombat champion, and Edenia's princess Kitana has strengthened that alliance. On the other side, Outworld has tenuous relations with Earthrealm, acting as friend and foe with ever-shifting allegiances due to the changing of Khans. While the Netherrealm and its affiliates are indefinite foes of the Earthrealm, both sides have had their respective rulers attempt to control it at some point.
Trivia
- In earlier games, the Earthrealm was also referred to as the Mother Realm. This may hint at a common origin for all humanoid peoples in the Mortal Kombat universe, but it raises the question of why the people from the 'Mother Realm' are the weakest of all.
- As stated by Princess Kitana in the episode "Sting of the Scorpion" in Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm, in her realm and most others' realms, portals to other domains do not exist, whereas in Earthrealm itself, it is like a way station between all the dimensions. Whether this fact holds true or not in the main series is currently unknown.
- In a 2019 interview, it was confirmed by Ed Boon that the whole Solar System (and even beyond) was still part of Earthrealm, though it was also mentioned that it never contained "the entire universe" and that "there is no physical limit" between what is Earthrealm and what isn't.
- This is contrasted by the scene on Yin Yang Island, an island on the supposed border between the Earthrealm and Outworld.
Gallery
