Mortal Kombat 11 Geras Guide Featuring Grr

The latest entry in the MK franchise, Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate, offers a plethora of characters old and new to play for fun and to compete against other talented players online or in person. But finding a solid character to build from and taking that first step into the world of competitive Mortal Kombat can be challenging. Pro players have to understand their main character, along with a handful of secondaries and nearly every other character in the game's roster, so that they can prepare for their matchups accordingly. But you can always take it one step at a time. Knowing how you play will already be a huge leap in skill.

To help you get started with the time sculpting guardian Geras, we recruited the help of the ever-awesome George "Grr" Foulkes to walk you through everything you need to know to pick up the character and start going to town with that command grab on your opponents.

Grr's Geras Guide

Geras's Best Buttons

The Best Buttons are the key moves for the character. Either as players or opponents, you are likely to want to use or see these in play since they offer the best neutral, anti-air, and pressure value.

• 1 - A pretty standard normal, but save on block and can be followed up by a string or a grab.
• D1 - One of the best pokes in the games at six frames and poses a real threat with its follow-up.
• B2 - A solid normal with forwarding movement that also has a few options after.
• F3 - A fantastic forward advancing normal that can do double duty as an anti-air.
• B4 - An underrated move, a long-range sweep that can buy a lot of space on block.
• D4 - Low poke, though unsafe if you land it, your opponents will be at -17 frames.

Geras's Best Variations

Since players can now use their custom Variations in tournament settings, there is no excuse not to learn what goes well together. So here is Grr's Geras variation specials ranking:

1. Sand Simulacrum (DB3)
2. Shifting Sands (DD1)
3. Quick Sand (DB1)
4. Sand Pillar (DF3)
5. Bed of Spikes (BF2)

Geras's Gameplan

Gone are the days of smashing buttons and spamming that one combo we learned five years ago. Instead, if you want to compete or impress your mates, you have to go into each match with a Gameplan to carry through to victory. Here are your key principles:

• At the start of the round, you want to get a life lead, get that damage in, put them in the back foot and force them to respond. If you do well, keep the pressure. If you had a good scrap but are not confident about maintaining the lead all the way, pull back and start zoning them and punishing their approaches.
• In general, Geras is a mix of grappler and zoner. You can push to close fights, but adapting to what your opponent can do is vital.
• Corners are your happy place.

Geras's Best Strings

No one wins on the back of single punches. Having a memorized list of the Best Strings you can use and change throughout the match will vastly improve your chances of coming out ahead.

• 1, 1
• 1, 1, 1
• 1, 1, 1, 1+3
  • In most situations, you will be safe at a -7 since the final grab, 1+3, won't happen if they block. But don't get used to doing it a lot!
• 2, 4
• 2, 4, 1
  • Since it goes High, low, Overhead with good frames, it can be useful for staggers.
• B2, 2
• F2, 1
• F2, 1, 2
• F2, 2 ,1+3
• F3, 2

Geras's Bread and Butter Combos

Knowing how to adapt to the changing landscape of a fight is important. That is why Combos play a crucial role in letting you shape it and extract the most out of your inputs. Here are the combos you should be looking to pull off:

Mid Screen BnBs:

• F21, BF1, AMP, D2, D2, FjD2, F3, BF2, (HOLD)2
• FjD2, F21, BF1 AMP, D2, D2, Forward jD2, F3, BF2, (HOLD)2
• 1, 1, BF1, AMP, D2, D2, FjD2, DASH, F21, BF2, (HOLD)2
• DB3, F21, DB3 AMP, DASH DASH, F3, BF1 AMP, D2, D2, DASH, F3, BF2, (HOLD)2
• DB3, F21, DB3 AMP, DASH DASH, F3, BF2, (HOLD)2
• DB3, B22, DB3 AMP, Back DASH, DB1U

Corner BnBs:

• F2, 1, 2, 3, BF1 AMP, D2, D2, Back jD2, F3, BF2 
• DB3, F212, 3, DB3 AMP, Fj4, 4, BF2
• DB3, F212, 3, DB3 AMP, Fj4, 4, BF1 AMP, D2, D2, Back jD2, F3, BF2

Geras's Guide Conclusion

Geras has a commanding presence in Mortal Kombat 11. His grabs and setups can be challenging to get right and counter when facing off against him. But thankfully, working through his combos and string won't feel like pounding sand at the beach all day. As a Geras player, Be mindful of your matchups and think about what moves you can and can't get away with in any given fight. The corner isyour friend, as you have plenty of mixup opportunities to secure an early lead and maintain said lead with great zoning.