Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Cinder (Killer Instinct) – DEATH BATTLE! Analysis

Note: This analysis of Cinder covers his appearances from both the original Killer Instinct timeline and the reboot, including the comics and novels. His backstory is based on his reboot counterpart.


Background

At age 31, Ben Ferris left the army after a very successful military career to instead join a paramilitary organization. Hoping to earn more money for his skills, each mission became more and more difficult, but the pay also increased. This included missions for crooked organizations and CEOs that would put Ben on Interpol’s most wanted list. However, one of these missions would change his life forever, as he was requested to steal data from Ultratech about Project Cinder. Ultratech was a global megacorporation known for their popular fighting tournament called Killer Instinct.


Very little information on Ultratech’s secrets were known, and this mystery, along with the danger, made Ben want to partake in the mission even more. He began working undercover at Ultratech, befriending the higher-ups, bugging their gear, anything really to learn more about Project Cinder. Ben had only learned one thing, but this only made him want to complete his mission even more. However, after two months, he was caught and made a prisoner by Ultratech’s artificial superintelligence CEO ARIA.


ARIA knew all about Ben’s plans. She listened to every phone call and viewed all of his military records, but still wanted to hear his version of one of his missions in Afghanistan. While he may have been known as a hero in the army, his missions also ended the lives of innocent civilians, and he didn’t feel any guilt at all over them. This was when ARIA informed Ben that his contacts were a front for Ultratech, and that this was all a test to see how well he could do before getting caught. He actually did a lot better than ARIA expected. This, along with figuring out Ben’s desire was to just grow more powerful, led ARIA to give Ben an offer that would be worth more than any amount of money. Using alien DNA from the telekinetic Glacius, she turned Ben’s body into fiery plasma. Once a man who wanted to show he was the best, now the newly born Cinder just wanted to have fun as one of Ultratech’s most powerful warriors.


More Info

  • Real Name: Ben Ferris

  • Age: 31

  • Height: 6’02” | 188.0 cm

  • Weight: 195.0 lbs. | 88.5 kg

  • Experimented on by Ultratech with Glacius’s DNA

  • Originally going to be named Heatshade or Pyrotech

  • Died in the original timeline to Glacius

  • Appreciates a good fire pun


Equipment

Suit

A suit invented by ARIA that allows Cinder to control his power and unleash it at will, which can be put on and removed at will in an instant. It also most likely helps protect his body from attacks.


Powers & Abilities

Human-Alien Hybrid Physiology

Glacius and his race are telekinetic beings who can manipulate molecular structures to change their bodies based on the environment. With his stolen DNA, this was how ARIA changed Ben’s body to become plasma. This also enhanced Cinder’s strength, speed, and durability, along with making him never hunger and immune to fire and intense heat.


Pyrokinesis

As a result of Ultratech’s experiments, Cinder’s plasma body also grants him the ability to control fire in various ways. As a general note, his fire attacks can set opponents aflame and cause them to take passive damage. The flames linger for only a bit, but if they continue to use the part of their body that’s on fire or Cinder hits them with more fire, they last longer. With fire, Cinder can launch blasts of fire, emit flames from his fingers like a blowtorch, expand flames all around himself, create a fiery explosion around himself, superheat things while melting and setting them on fire through physical contact, or turn the floor into lava that melts opponents in seconds.


Lastly, Cinder has multiple special moves that utlize fire, many of which can be given additional properties through a Fired Up state that is used up after the special move is performed. He becomes Fired Up after eight seconds. The following is a list of all the special moves Cinder can perform with fire:



Flight

Cinder can fly through the air by releasing a constant stream of fire beneath him that propels him.


Invisibility

Cinder can alter his fire’s light and body’s composition to turn himself invisible. When not using the full extent of this, he still leaves traces of his fire, though he can turn fully invisible while in that state. Being turned invisible also grants him intangibility to projectile attacks. If hit by any other type of attack though, Cinder will become visible once again.


Shadow Energy

Cinder, like many other characters, is able to manipulate Shadow Energy to enhance certain special attacks. He can use it to rush forward with a blazing shoulder tackle that hits five times and makes him immune to projectile attacks throughout it with Trailblazer, spray his Inferno attack up and down in a wave to cover many angles at once, hit opponents five times with one kick instead of once with Fireflash, create and throw a gigantic Pyrobomb that makes a super massive explosion when detonated, or generate an even bigger explosion that is more continous with 10 hits with Fission. Using these shadow special moves also does not make him lose his Fired Up state if he’s in it. Lastly, Cinder can perform a Shadow Counter with Shadow Energy, a defensive technique where he protects himself from an opponent who’s attacking him before countering back with a shadow special move.


Pyromania

A special state called an Instinct Mode that Cinder can activate, though it goes away after 15 seconds before needing to recharge. When in it, he stays Fired Up at all times, meaning he can use the additional properties of his special moves in that state more frequently and back-to-back.


Feats

Strength & Attack Potency


Speed


Durability


Scaling


Training & Experience


Weaknesses

One of Cinder’s biggest downfalls is that he’s incredibly cocky and can be caught off guard when he thinks he’s already won. He also has a short temper, which has caused him to fail in the past by making mistakes. Also, if his suit is damaged or destroyed, he becomes unable to control his power at will. Lastly, as a fire-based being, he is susceptible to water and the cold.


Summary

Advantages

  • Is immune to fire and intense heat

  • Can use fire for various purposes, such as causing passive damage to opponents, superheating things through physical contact, or turning the floor into lava

  • His Fired Up state, Shadow Energy manipulation, and Pyromania power up his special moves

  • Can counter attacks from opponents with Shadow Counter

  • Can briefly fly around while intangible with Trailblazer

  • Can set Pyrobombs that he can detonate on surfaces as traps or opponents themselves

  • Can fly around for better mobility

  • Can turn invisible for surprise attacks and to become intangible to projectile attacks


Disadvantages

  • Incredibly cocky to the point that he can be caught off guard if he thinks he’s already won

  • Has a short temper

  • Becomes unable to control his power if his suit is damaged or destroyed

  • Is susceptible to water and the cold

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