Key Highlights:
- Complete guide covering Cyrax’s Fatalities, Animality, and Brutalities in Mortal Kombat 1.
- Platform-specific inputs with Input Distance and Execution Difficulty ratings for Fatalities and Animality.
- Brutality requirements include Fighter Mastery ranks, Final Hit conditions, distance requirements, Seasonal Store Brutalities, practical execution advice and video guide.
Quick Links:
Cyrax returned as a playable fighter in Mortal Kombat 1: Khaos Reigns with a completely reimagined New Era design. Rather than becoming a cyborg, this Cyrax remains human and uses an advanced armoured suit, friction-assisted movement and sphere-shaped multitools capable of deploying blades, explosives and Capture Foam.
This guide covers the playable Cyrax rather than the separate klassic Cyrax Kameo already available in Mortal Kombat 1. The playable fighter has two character-specific Fatalities, the Buzz Kill Animality, The Klassic and seven character-specific Brutalities. Five unlock through Fighter Mastery, while Over Here and Kopter Chopper are Seasonal Store Brutalities.
How to Perform Cyrax’s First Fatality in MK1 (Burst Your Bubble)
Input Distance: Jump Distance to Full Screen
Execution Difficulty: Easy
- PlayStation: ⬇️, ➡️, ⬇️, 🅾️
- Xbox: ⬇️, ➡️, ⬇️, 🅑
- Nintendo Switch: ⬇️, ➡️, ⬇️, 🅐
Burst Your Bubble has Cyrax surround the opponent with explosives before trapping them inside rapidly expanding Capture Foam. The bombs detonate inside the foam, freezing the resulting explosion in place before Cyrax shatters what remains with a kick.
The Fatality works from much farther away than older Mid-range descriptions suggest. Establish Jump Distance and there is no need to move closer, with the same input remaining valid all the way to Full Screen.
How to Perform Cyrax’s Second Fatality in MK1 (Bend It Like Bi-Han)
Input Distance: Jump Distance to Full Screen
Execution Difficulty: Easy
- PlayStation: ⬅️, ➡️, ⬅️, 🔺
- Xbox: ⬅️, ➡️, ⬅️, 🅨
- Nintendo Switch: ⬅️, ➡️, ⬅️, 🅧
Bend It Like Bi-Han has Cyrax leap onto the opponent and use her powered footwear to twist their head around before tearing it free. She then kicks the severed head back into the body and crushes it beneath her foot.
Like Burst Your Bubble, the second Fatality has an unusually large long-range activation window. Jump Distance is the closest reliable reference point I found, while moving even farther away does not prevent the Fatality from activating.
Important: Cyrax can also perform the Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Winter Fatalities if they are unlocked on the player’s account. These seasonal Fatalities are not unique to Cyrax and can be performed by other playable fighters.
How to Perform Cyrax’s Animality in MK1 (Buzz Kill)
Input Distance: Sweep Distance to Full Screen
Execution Difficulty: Easy
- PlayStation: ➡️, ⬅️, ➡️, ⬅️
- Xbox: ➡️, ⬅️, ➡️, ⬅️
- Nintendo Switch: ➡️, ⬅️, ➡️, ⬅️
Buzz Kill transforms Cyrax into a giant yellow hornet. The insect drives its stinger through the opponent and injects venom until their head bursts before slicing through the remaining body.
The Animality is extremely forgiving to position. Once Cyrax is approximately Sweep Distance away, Buzz Kill can still activate from anywhere farther across the arena, including Full Screen.
The transformation also fits several parts of Cyrax’s identity at once. Her yellow colour scheme remains intact, while the hornet’s buzzing flight and lethal stinger echo the blades, mobility and cutting technology used throughout her moveset.
For the animal transformation used by every other playable fighter, see our complete Mortal Kombat 1 Animality guide.
All Cyrax Brutalities in Mortal Kombat 1
Cyrax has The Klassic and five character-specific Brutalities unlocked through Fighter Mastery. Bombs Away, Buzz Kill, Foam Party, Pop Goes The… and Cold Hearted unlock at Mastery Ranks 1, 4, 7, 11 and 18 respectively.
Two additional Brutalities, Over Here and Kopter Chopper, are available through the Seasonal Store and sit outside Fighter Mastery progression.
The Klassic
Unlock Requirement: Available by default
- PlayStation: ⬇️ + 🔺
- Xbox: ⬇️ + 🅨
- Nintendo Switch: ⬇️ + 🅧
Final Hit: Uppercut
Additional Condition: Hold Back Punch during the Final Hit.
Cyrax performs the traditional Mortal Kombat uppercut, with one of her sawblade devices helping remove the opponent’s head.
Keep Back Punch held as the Uppercut connects rather than releasing the attack immediately.
Bombs Away
Unlock Requirement: Fighter Mastery Rank 1
- PlayStation: L1 or ⬜ + 🅧
- Xbox: LB or 🅧 + 🅐
- Nintendo Switch: L or 🅨 + 🅑
Final Hit: Zaki Orthodontics (Back Throw)
Additional Condition: Press ⬇️, ⬇️, ⬇️ during the Final Hit.
Bombs Away modifies Cyrax’s Zaki Orthodontics Back Throw. She decapitates the opponent before inserting an explosive device into the remaining body, where its internal sawblade tears through them.
Begin entering the three Down inputs once the Back Throw animation starts rather than waiting until the final part of the throw.
Brutality Variation: Instead of pressing Down three times, hold Up + Back Punch immediately after initiating the Back Throw to trigger the universal MK11-style Screen Throw Brutality.
- PlayStation: ⬆️ + 🔺
- Xbox: ⬆️ + 🅨
- Nintendo Switch: ⬆️ + 🅧
Because Bombs Away and the Screen Throw both begin from Zaki Orthodontics, the follow-up input determines which Brutality activates.
Buzz Kill
Unlock Requirement: Fighter Mastery Rank 4
- PlayStation: ⬇️, ⬅️ + 🅾️
- Xbox: ⬇️, ⬅️ + 🅑
- Nintendo Switch: ⬇️, ⬅️ + 🅐
Final Hit: Sawtooth Kick
Additional Condition: Hold Up during the Final Hit.
Buzz Kill uses Cyrax’s Sawtooth Kick to cut straight through the opponent as the final rotating kick connects.
Hold Up while Sawtooth Kick lands. The directional requirement is separate from the Down, Back input used to start the special, so transition to holding Up once the move is underway.
Foam Party
Unlock Requirement: Fighter Mastery Rank 7
- PlayStation: ⬅️, ➡️ + ⬜
- Xbox: ⬅️, ➡️ + 🅧
- Nintendo Switch: ⬅️, ➡️ + 🅨
Final Hit: Capture Foam
Input Distance: Jump Distance or farther
Additional Condition: Hold Forward during the Final Hit.
Foam Party traps the opponent inside an expanding mass of Capture Foam before Cyrax uses an explosive device to destroy them inside it.
Distance is mandatory here. Capture Foam can hit from closer positions, but the Brutality requires Cyrax to be at least Jump Distance away when the Final Hit connects.
The safest approach I found when trying out the finisher myself is to establish Jump Distance before firing Capture Foam, then continue holding Forward as the projectile reaches the opponent.
Pop Goes The…
Unlock Requirement: Fighter Mastery Rank 11
- PlayStation: 🅧, 🔺
- Xbox: 🅐, 🅨
- Nintendo Switch: 🅑, 🅧
Final Hit: Detonation
Additional Condition: Hold Down during the Final Hit.
Pop Goes The… modifies Cyrax’s short Detonation Kombo, with the explosive device destroying the opponent’s head and upper body.
Complete both attacks normally and hold Down as the Back Punch connects. There is no separate explosive input required after the Kombo.
Cold Hearted
Unlock Requirement: Fighter Mastery Rank 18
- PlayStation: Jump Forward + 🔺, ⬜, 🔺
- Xbox: Jump Forward + 🅨, 🅧, 🅨
- Nintendo Switch: Jump Forward + 🅧, 🅨, 🅧
Required Form: Airborne
Final Hit: Mustard Mk. 1
Additional Condition: Hold Forward during the Final Hit.
Cold Hearted requires Cyrax’s airborne Mustard Mk. 1 Kombo. The explosive finishing hit destroys the opponent before either fighter returns fully to the ground.
The important prerequisite is the jump. Begin with Jump Forward + Back Punch, then complete Front Punch and Back Punch while still airborne.
Once the aerial string has started, maintain Forward through the final Back Punch to satisfy the Brutality condition.
Seasonal Store Brutalities
Cyrax has two additional Brutalities available through the Seasonal Store. Over Here and Kopter Chopper sit outside her five Fighter Mastery unlocks and remain usable once acquired.
Over Here
Unlock Requirement: Seasonal Store
- PlayStation: ⬅️ + 🅧, 🅧, 🅾️
- Xbox: ⬅️ + 🅐, 🅐, 🅑
- Nintendo Switch: ⬅️ + 🅑, 🅑, 🅐
Final Hit: Syntax Error
Additional Condition: Press ⬇️, ⬇️ during the Final Hit.
Over Here modifies Cyrax’s Syntax Error Kombo, destroying the opponent when its finishing strike drives them into the ground.
The Brutality requires only two Down inputs, not the three used by Bombs Away. Enter them while the final Back Kick is connecting rather than waiting until the opponent has already hit the floor.
Kopter Chopper
Unlock Requirement: Seasonal Store
- PlayStation: ⬅️ + 🔺
- Xbox: ⬅️ + 🅨
- Nintendo Switch: ⬅️ + 🅧
Final Hit: Blast Overhead
Additional Condition: Hold Down during the Final Hit. The opponent must have almost no health remaining before the attack connects.
Kopter Chopper turns Cyrax’s Blast Overhead into an elaborate finishing sequence. A device lodged in the opponent opens into a spinning sawblade before carrying them away and exploding off-screen.
The unusual requirement is the opponent’s remaining health. Blast Overhead must connect when they are already critically low, so trying to trigger the Brutality while the attack still needs to remove a substantial amount of health can cause the normal finishing hit instead.
I recommend Holding Down as Blast Overhead connects and use it only when the opponent is already near defeat.
Cyrax Fatalities, Animality, and Brutalities Video Guide
CJR Gaming’s Mortal Kombat 1 Khaos Reigns Cyrax showcase contains The Klassic, all seven character-specific Brutalities, Burst Your Bubble, Bend It Like Bi-Han and the Buzz Kill Animality. It provides a complete visual reference for Cyrax’s current standard finisher collection alongside the inputs and activation requirements above.
Cyrax’s strongest New Era relationships centre on Sektor and the wider Lin Kuei conflict. Sektor personally brought Cyrax into her service before their opposing views pushed them apart, while Sub-Zero’s leadership of the Lin Kuei places him directly within the same conflict. You can continue through our Sektor and Sub-Zero finisher guides for their Fatalities, Animalities and Brutalities.
For the complete playable roster in one place, see our Mortal Kombat 1 Finisher Guide, which brings together every character guide covering Fatalities, Animalities and Brutalities.
