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Thunder

UltraTech File - Thunder

Thunder grew up on a Nez Perce reservation in Idaho with his younger brother Eagle. They were the grandchildren of a chief, and their parents were both tribal police officers who encouraged their boys to “walk with the law,” keeping the moral high-ground and refusing to give in to negativity and vice. The brothers studied hard in school and were gifted athletes. Thunder was built like a mountain and played football, while Eagle was a wrestler and amateur boxer.

When Thunder was a teenager he went on a vision quest in the wilderness to seek his weyekin or spirit guide that would help bridge the gap between our world and the Spirit World. A great storm came as he sat upon a mountaintop, bolts of lightning striking all round him. His spirit guide came to him at that moment. Thunder saw a flock of crows appear from nowhere, and one them—a great black bird—spoke to him in his native language. It told him that he would fight an evil monster one day, and that he must begin training in earnest with the traditional weapon of Native Americans—the tomahawk. He became obsessed with keeping his heritage alive after that, studying the Nez Perce language, folklore and even traditional medicine with the elders of his tribe, his goal to one day become a teacher at the local Indian college.

Eagle went on his own vision quest a few years later. He would never tell Thunder what he saw, but soon after he discovered his weyekin he started training to become an ultimate fighter with an almost religious fervor.

When Thunder and Eagle were in their late twenties, their parents were killed under mysterious circumstances. The couple was gunned down outside an Ultratech facility near the reservation—a factory that had been fined repeatedly for polluting the native land. The FBI blamed their deaths on drug dealers, but Thunder and Eagle knew better.

The brothers started trying to build a case against Ultratech, which they suspected was behind the murders. But all of their efforts were thwarted by the powerful megacorp. In a desperate attempt to infiltrate Ultratech, Eagle—now a skilled amateur fighter—entered the first Killer Instinct tournament. Ultratech claimed that the young man was killed in a match, but they refused to return the corpse to Thunder and his tribe for burial.

In a fit of blind rage Thunder drove his car through the gates of the local Ultratech plant. He jumped out of his car and fought the security guards who’d surrounded him, putting a dozen of them in the hospital. He was caught by the tribal police and incarcerated, screaming that he would “Burn Ultratech to the ground.” The charges against him were quickly dropped by Ultratech and he was released from jail. That night the Ultratech facility was set on fire by an arsonist and it was completely destroyed, along with any answers about his parents’ death that might be hidden there. Thunder knew that he was being framed for the fire and fled the reservation on his motorcycle.

He was on the run for nearly a year. Finally, he went into the high desert mountains near a place called Devil’s Landing and did another vision quest, starving himself for a week. A powerful vision came to him and he saw a metal eagle in the sky, calling out his Nez Perce name “Hinmatoon.” When he awoke, Thunder painted himself with the black design of the eagle on his shoulders, then set out for the second Killer Instinct tournament. Here, during one of the fights, he came face to face with the mechanical being called Fulgore—the newest version of Ultratech’s battle cyborg. Thunder’s gut told him that this mechanical aberration was fighting with the same style as his brother Eagle. He wondered if they had somehow extracted Eagle’s consciousness, but he was not able to prove whether or not this was true. Furthermore, he was unable to recover the remains of his brother, and so he continued on what he called the “Path of the Eagle,” vowing to find answers or death.

Thunder’s path led him to a confrontation with Aganos—an ancient war golem who was under the sway of Ultratech. Thunder could sense the conflict inside the creature. He went into a fury, summoning the power of his weyekin and channeling a bolt of lightning, destroying the technology controlling the golem, and thus setting him free. Instantly a strange kinship and telekinetic bond was forged between the two. They embarked on a dual quest: track down Aganos’s enemy—the evil sorcerer Kan-Ra; and break into Ultratech’s labs to search for Eagle’s remains.

Little does Thunder know that he may be forced to ally himself with his hated enemy—Ultratech—in order to face an even more sinister force that threatens both our planet and other dimensions.

The path to truth and justice will be wrought with the corpses of new and more powerful foes, but Thunder does not wish for his new allies to share in this fate. He must train and improve his tribe’s most devastating technique, the Sammamish, as the loss of new friends could be too great for his wounded heart to bear.

Moves List

Special Moves

  • Triplax
    Thunder spins towards the opponent with tomahawks extended.
  • Call of the Earth
    Command grapple where Thunder slams the opponent to the ground. This move is throw invulnerable through active frames.
  • Ankle Slicer
    Takes a step back and lunges forward, chopping at the opponent's leg. This move has low crush until active frames and is throw invulnerable for the first few startup frames.
  • Sammamish
    Thunder launches himself with a head-butt that has projectile and upper body invulnerability on the way up. See follow ups below.
  • Sky Fall
    During Sammamish/Shadow Sammamish, quick somersault attack into a heavy ground stomp that causes a ground bounce. Can be performed after Light, Medium or Heavy Punch Sammamish.
  • Rainmaker
    During Sammamish/Shadow Sammamish, Thunder performs a knee that causes a Flip Out against an airborne opponent. Can be performed after Light, Medium or Heavy Punch Sammamish.
  • Downpour
    During Sammamish/Shadow Sammimish, Thunder performs a dropkick that causes a Hard Knockdown. Can be performed after Light, Medium or Heavy Punch Sammamish.

Shadow Attacks

  • Shadow Triplax
    Powerful version of the Triplax, which hits up to 5 times and has 1 hit of Shadow Armor.
  • Shadow Call of the Earth
    A powerful version of the Call to the Earth which causes a ground bounce, allowing follow up. This move is throw invulnerable through active frames.
  • Shadow Ankle Slicer
    Low, multi hitting Shadow Move. This move is low and throw invulnerable until active frames.
  • Shadow Sammamish
    An invulnerable, multi hitting version of the Sammamish. Can be cancelled into Sky Fall, Rainmaker or Downpour.

Combo Openers

  • Triplax
    Thunder spins towards the opponent with tomahawks extended.
  • Ankle Slicer
    Takes a step back and lunges forward, chopping at the opponent's leg. This move has low crush until active frames and is throw invulnerable for the first few startup frames.
  • Shadow Triplax
    Powerful version of the Triplax, which hits up to 5 times and has 1 hit of Shadow Armor.
  • Shadow Ankle Slicer
    Low, multi hitting Shadow Move. This move is low and throw invulnerable until active frames.
  • Throw Backward
    Thunder grabs his opponent and throws them behind him. Can be used as an Opener or Linker.

Combo Linkers

  • Throw Backward
    Exchange Linker, switches sides with the opponent.
  • Triplax
    Carry Linker, pushes opponent back horizontally.
  • Ankle Slicer
    Damage Linker, does slightly more damage.
  • Shadow Triplax
    Powerful version of the Triplax, which hits up to 5 times and has 1 hit of Shadow Armor.
  • Shadow Ankle Slicer
    Damage Linker that hits 5 times, does slightly more damage.

Finishers

  • Ultra
    A quick and brutal series of attacks, ending with a series of lightning strikes.
  • Stage Ultra
    Only available on certain stages. Requires specific positioning in the arena.

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Access the entire Killer Instinct universe in this definitive edition packed with content from all three seasons.

Every character is here—all 26, including special edition Shadow Jago—plus all 20 stages with visual upgrades and lighting changes. Also included are every song and character trailer in the Killer Instinct archives, never-before-seen concept artwork, an interactive universe map, and exclusive behind-the-scenes videos.