Honestly, the first time you step onto Shang Tsung’s island in Mortal Kombat 11, it feels less like a fighting game and more like a twisted version of Myst. You’re just some nameless traveler wandering around with a giant hammer, staring at doors that won't budge and soul canisters that look like glowing green lanterns. It’s overwhelming.
The biggest mistake? Spending every Koin you have on the first twenty chests you see in the Palace Entrance. Don't do that. You’ll end up broke and stuck without the items you actually need to see the cool stuff—like Goro’s Lair or the throne room.
This isn't just about opening boxes. It’s a massive puzzle. To actually "beat" the Krypt, you need to understand how the currencies work and where the key items are hidden. If you’re looking for a specific skin for Scorpion or that one Sub-Zero brutality, you’ve gotta be smart about where you're dropping your cash.
Getting the Essentials: Hammer, Horns, and Blindfolds
You start with nothing. Well, almost nothing. Walk forward and grab Shao Kahn’s Hammer. It’s right there on the pedestal. This is your primary tool for smashing jars (which gives you a tiny bit of Koins) and breaking down weak walls.
The Gem of the Living
Head over to the Warrior Shrine. You’ll see a giant statue of Raiden. Suddenly, a meteor crashes into it and decapitates the god. Typical MK. Smash that meteor with your hammer. You’ll get the Gem of the Living.
Motaro’s Cracked Horn
Now, go back toward the Courtyard. There’s a door near the big gong that needs that Gem. Once you’re through, you’ll find a lever that opens the way to the Cracked Horn of Motaro. You need this horn to open the big wooden doors leading down into Goro’s Lair. This is where the game actually starts getting creepy.
Kenshi’s Blindfold
This is the most annoying and essential item. You’ll find it in Goro’s Lair, specifically in the Jails (coordinates: -6894, -12709). Kenshi’s dead body is just sitting there. Take his blindfold.
When you put it on, you see the "Spirit Realm." You can find invisible chests and breakable walls that aren't there in the normal world. But beware: it drains Soul Fragments while you wear it. If you hear a weird, high-pitched screeching while wearing it, take it off immediately or a ghost will jump-scare you and kill you instantly. It doesn't end your run, but it’s a heart attack you don't need.
The Heart Chests and Shao Kahn Boxes
Most chests in the Krypt are randomized. If I open a 12,000 Koin chest and you open the same one, we’ll probably get different stuff. However, Shao Kahn Chests (250 Hearts) and Scorpion Chests (100 Hearts) are fixed. They are the same for everyone.
If you want the good stuff, you need Hearts. You get these by performing Fatalities and Brutalities in the Towers of Time, or by using Scorpion’s Spear (found in the Armory at -7086, -5242) to pull down hanging corpses in the Krypt.
- Sub-Zero’s Chest: Found in the Armory (-5426, -5804). Costs 250 Hearts.
- Scorpion’s Chest: Located in the Jails (-6864, 1181). Costs 250 Hearts.
- Noob Saibot’s Chest: Tucked away in Goro’s Dining Hall (3464, -2183).
- The 80,000 Koin Chest: This is behind the door of the One Being. To open that door, you need three gems: The Mind, Soul, and Heart of the One Being. You get these by doing 10 Fatalities, 10 Brutalities, and 10 Mercies in the Towers.
Inside that 80k chest is the Heart of Blaze, which you need for the "Sacrifice" puzzle near the Warrior Shrine. Basically, you use it to light a massive cage on fire to unlock even more chests.
The Head Grind: How to Unlock the Throne Room
See those spikes in the Warrior Shrine? Those are for the Severed Heads. This is the ultimate endgame grind. To get a character’s head, you have to perform 25 Fatalities on them in the Towers (it used to be 50, but they patched it because people were losing their minds).
Once you get a head, you impale it on the spike. Do this for 10 characters, and the doors to Shang Tsung’s Throne Room will open. If you do it for all of them, you get some of the rarest gear in the game.
Pro Tip: Don't do this manually. Go to the "Survivor" tower in Klassic Towers. If the first opponent isn't the one you want, exit and re-enter to refresh the lineup. Fight the first guy, do a Fatality, then "Tower Select" to restart. Rinse and repeat. It’s boring, but it works.
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Gambling at the Naknadan Shrine
Once you've cleared the main puzzles, you’ll have millions of Koins with nothing to do. That’s when you go to the Shrine. It’s basically a loot box, but with "mostly" predictable rules.
- 75,000 Koins: This is the sweet spot for Gear. You’ll almost always get two pieces of character gear.
- 100,000 Koins: This gives you Skins. If you’re hunting for those "maskless" variants or the rare elder skins, this is where you spend your life savings.
- Anything less: Usually just Konsumables or banners. Honestly, a waste of time unless you’re desperate for forge materials.
Making Stuff at the Forge
The Forge is sort of a mystery because the game doesn't give you the recipes. You have to find them in chests or just guess.
If you want Shinnok’s Amulet (needed for a puzzle in the Kytinn Hive), you have to craft it. You’ll need the Ensorcelled Demon’s Heart (from pulling down corpses), the Ensorcelled Eye of a Dragon (kill spiders in the hive), and the Ensorcelled Gem of Trapped Souls (found in a 10,000 Soul vault in the Dead Woods).
It costs a lot of fragments. Everything in this game is expensive.
Practical Next Steps for Your Run
Stop opening random chests. Focus.
First, get the Hammer and the Gem. Then, head straight for Goro’s Lair to grab the Spear and the Blindfold. Once you have the Spear, go back to the surface and start "fishing" for hearts by pulling down every corpse you see.
Don't spend Souls on the bridge repair until you've bought the 10,000 Soul canister in the Dead Woods for Shinnok's Amulet. That amulet is a bottleneck for 100% completion. If you're low on cash, remember that the AI fighter in the Towers of Time is your best friend. Set Noob Saibot or Baraka to 30 Grapple/30 Kombo and let them farm while you make a sandwich.
By the time you're done, you'll have enough to finally walk into that Throne Room like you own the place.
To make progress immediately, start your next session by heading to the Survivor Tower and knocking out those 25 Fatalities on your favorite character to get their head spike reward.