Mortal Kombat 1 - Invasions "The Spectre" Shang Tsung's Lab Mesa Guide

Mortal Kombat 1 Invasion mode looks to provide players with season content in an interesting new format for the franchise. Unlike the franchise's previous entry called Krypt, Mortal Kombat 1’s single-player focused content presents a table-top-like game for players to explore, find secrets, and eventually unlock more cosmetics through its Seasonal Koins system and chests.

Throughout these guides, we will be exploring the details of Invasions, how to complete them, tips and tricks, and what rewards you can expect on the season of the Spectre.

The Story

The first season of Invasions provides a very simple story. Hanzo Hasashi, the Scorpion in most other timelines, has been hopping from timeline after timeline, looking for one in which he can be with the love of his life, Harumi.

Eventually, in finding Liu Kang’s timeline and seeing Harumi has found love in Kuai Liang, he becomes enraged, vowing to end this timeline.

Invasions Mesas Guides

If you want to revisit some of the other mesas, here are all our detailed guides on each:

• Fengjian Village
• Sun Do Festival
• Tarkatan Colony
• Shang Tsung's Laboratory
• Living Forest
• Fire Temple

Shang Tsung's Laboratory

To access Shang Tsung’s laboratory, you must complete and defeat the prior mesa boss in the Tarkatan Colony. Here you can find our detailed guide on said mesa.

The Laboratory is located on Sun Do's outskirts, somewhere between the capital city and the Outworld desert. This is where Baraka leads the group of Earthworld defenders to confront Shang Tsung in the hopes of capturing the sorcerer alive and bringing him back to Liu Kang. The mesa only covers the nicer facade that Shang Tsung constructed to mislead Empress Sindel and not the underground testing facilities where Reptile served as a slave.

Like all other mesas, you will fight a small group from the game’s base roster during your travels across the Laboratory's four floors. You can use this information and the elemental table to pick your best fighters and tailor them to the area if you so wish. You can also visit the Wu Shi Academy anytime to maximize your power and buy level-up and respec items.

Laboratory's First Floor

The Laboratory has one of the quickest entries to the Netherstone Gate areas, starting just one node away; it is also one of the most extensive ones to this point. Like all other Netherstone areas, you will first need to defeat the final boss of this invasion season to earn the quest item tied to it.

This area also has the only chest portal of the mesa, so you will for sure want to get back here after invasions to enter it. The Chest portal transports you to a short linear path with chests; opening each one will result in palettes, consumables, gear, or other seasonal rewards. So you don't want to miss out on that if you want to have a complete collection.

Laboratory's Second Floor

If this is your first time through, you will go to the left and up the stairs to the second floor. At your first fork, going right will lead to the area’s first klue node. “Frisky”, with the klue “Another Test Subject”. To complete the klue, you will want to use Shang Tsung’s fatality at the end of the fight. After, you will have access to the chest.

Remember that you can always check what nodes you have or have not cleared by the path's color leading to them. Uncleared paths are marked in green, cleared ones in light blue and paths you can’t move into in red. You can also follow the green arrow for directions as to the quickest route to the end of the mesa.

If you hang right again at the next fork, you will eventually find yourself at the first Forge. Meanwhile, through the main path, you will eventually find yourself a nice Kollector Shop and the stairs to the third floor.

Laboratory's Third Floor

Once up, you are basically in one giant circle of nodes. If you want the quickest path, then keep to the left, and you will eventually face the miniboss of this mesa General Shao in the node Kahn't Talk. However, if you want to explore the area fully, going right will eventually lead you to two other chests for the taking.

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Laboratory Fourth Floor

At the very top of Shang Tsung’s laboratory, you will find his study and a magnificent astrological structure, seemingly showing the various realms of the world. Once again, going left will lead to the mesa boss and the end of the laboratory. At the same time, going right rewards you with a chest first.

The final boss of the mesa is Havik. Like always, the mesa boss’ first phase is just a normal fight with no modifiers. In his second phase, Havik will give himself a blood aura. For his final phase, he will gain blood armor and cause blood to rain blood.

After Shang Tsung’s Laboratory

Once you have defeated Havik, you will have an open path to the next mesa portal, sending you to The Living Forest, where souls of the Outworld rest. At this point, you are more than halfway through the invasion mode.

At this point, you should be swimming in talismans, relics, consumables, and some elements to use in the forge. If you wish, you can go to the Gateway Portal to play through some of the towers.