Mortal Kombat 11 Joker Guide Featuring LawKorridor

Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate contains many characters, each with its own frame data, strengths, weaknesses, and quirks or tech. Professional players have to learn these to the best of their abilities. Not just for their main characters, but those of their opponents too. In truth, you might not be looking to top the brackets at Evo or NRS this year, but learning the basics and working your way through the roster can pave the way to a more enjoyable competitive experience.

Since everyone at DashFight wants to give you all the tools you will need to improve, we've partnered with the one and only Ali "LawKorridor" Ferdowsi to provide you with the best Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate Joker guide. You can view the full video right below and go over any of the individual sections right here in the text guide. 

LawKorridor's The Joker Guide

The Joker's Best Buttons

The Best Buttons are the key moves for the character. You should try to use them whenever the opportunity presents itself since they offer the best neutral, anti-air, and pressure value.

• D1 – 7 frames and +14 on hit. D1 Backdash also works against some characters.

• F1 – Move with a great stagger that has great frames on hit and is only -8 on block.

• D2 – A safe move that can launch your opponent from great range or push them away on block. Use it liberally. 

• 2 – Probably the best standing 2 in the game. Has pushback and proximity guard. Also has some of the best strings attached to it.

• F2 – A move with four active frames that can be easily used to punish your opponent and not to get punished yourself.

• D4 – A good down hit with +17 frames. It’s -11 on block, but has good defensive options with Jack in the Box.

• B3 & F2 – Some situational buttons for punishes. Don’t use them frivolously.

The Joker’s Best Strings

Single buttons won’t win you the match, so you need to memorize these best strings to win:

• 1,2,1 & 1,2,2 – Autoshimmy and a combo-launcher. Be wary though, the last hit is a high, so substitute it for 2 when needed.

• F1,F1

• F1,4,2 – This allows you to neutral jump or backdash, good variation.

• 2,1

• 2,1,3

• F1,2 – The last hit is an overhead that’s a good stagger and can punish whiffed pokes.

• F2,1,2 – Your go-to string with Krushing Blow.

The Joker’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:

• F1, 4, BF2, AMP, D2, D2 – Good to use when opponents have breakaways.

• F1, 4, BF2, AMP, D2, 1, 2, 1, B4 – The previous combo can be adapted into this when breakaways aren’t there.

• 2, 1, BF2, AMP, 1, 2, 1, F1, 4, 2

• F1, 4, BF2, AMP, D2, 1, 2, 1, F1, 4, 2 – When the opponent is close to being cornered.

The Joker’s Gameplan

Gone is the time of smashing buttons and spamming that one combo we learned five years ago. Nowadays, to stay competitive, you have to go into each match with a Gameplan to carry through to victory. Here are your key principles:

• Your standing tools outrange most characters, so you need to pay attention to spacing and Jack in the Box usage to put yourself in a comfortable position.

• Most characters either try to run away or challenge you, so punish them with 2 or D4, backdash to use more buttons. 

• The Joker has one of the best corner games in MK11, so always try to pressure your opponent to try to get them there.

In conclusion, be patient, don’t get hit by too many pokes and projectiles, pressure opponents in the corner, and don’t be afraid to make reads.