science

Nightwolf

Nightwolf is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nightwolf rather than just read about it. In short: Nightwolf ( NIGHT-wulf) is a supporting character from the video game series Mortal Kombat, created by Midway Games. He debuted in Mortal Kombat 3 (1995) as a Native American shaman selected to defend the Earth against invading forces from the savage realm of Outworld.

Key takeaways

Nightwolf belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nightwolf to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nightwolf from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nightwolf ( NIGHT-wulf) is a supporting character from the video game series Mortal Kombat, created by Midway Games. He debuted in Mortal Kombat 3 (1995) as a Native American shaman selected to defend the Earth against invading forces from the savage realm of Outworld. In addition to his fighting prowess, Nightwolf possesses magical abilities that allow him to enhance his strength and create weapons. The character has appeared in various media outside of the games, including as one of the central heroes in the animated series Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm (1996), and as a supporting character in the film Mortal Kombat Annihilation. While his portrayal in the franchise has been criticized as a stereotype of Native Americans, his depiction in the rebooted games has received a mixed reception.

Design and gameplay During early development of Mortal Kombat 3, the character was known simply as "Indian" before his name was determined. Ed Boon described him to Video Games & Computer Entertainment magazine in April 1995 (issue #75) as "a very nontraditional Indian. He doesn't swing an axe that he's always holding, like Chief Thunder from Killer Instinct. He doesn't have all of the stereotypical Indian-type things like T. Hawk or Chief Thunder; he doesn't go 'Hoya! Hoya!' and all that." Nightwolf uses a mystical set of weapons (a tomahawk and a bow and arrow) in battle. Nightwolf was portrayed by Midway Games artist Sal DiVita in the game. DiVita said about his casting: "I was just walking around and John [Tobias] said, 'Hey, man, you've got some arms; hey, got a big chest. You want to be a character?' I'm like, 'Sure!' And that's how it happened." According to guides by both Mean Machines Sega and SuperGamePower, the best part about him in the original MK3 was his then-unique ability to deflect any projectile back towards an opponent. Total 64 opined that, once mastered, Nightwolf "is one of the brightest stars" of Mortal Kombat Trilogy, as "none of his moves are seemingly useful at the start, but stick[ing] with him [might] get some great results." Prima Games' official guide for Armageddon gave Nightwolf a poor overall rating of 4/10, stating that the character, "while being a solid punisher character, has a difficult time inflicting heavy damage on opponents." In Prima Games' official guide for the 2011 Mortal Kombat reboot, Nightwolf was judged to be a much-improved character due to his "shoulder and power charge moves [used] to knock down" opponents and his uppercut being "an excellent move to counter jumpers."

Appearances

Mortal Kombat games Nightwolf is introduced in Mortal Kombat 3 as a historian and shaman whose patch of tribal land provides a vital protective area for Raiden's chosen Earthrealm defenders during Shao Kahn's invasion. As his homeland was protected by shamanic magic, Nightwolf would soon be joined by the other chosen warriors. He returned during the events of Mortal Kombat: Deception. In the events leading to the game, he suffered recurring nightmares of the Dragon King Onaga's resurrection. Despite knowing a new threat was coming, he was unable to stop his nightmares from coming true when Reptile transformed into Onaga. His forefathers handed down the means with which he could defeat Onaga, by becoming a "Sin Eater', absorbing the sins of his tribe. He traveled to the Netherrealm, drew Onaga's soul to him, and released his ancestors' absorbed sins to remove Onaga from Reptile and bind the former to the Netherrealm. In Mortal Kombat: Armageddon, having completed his quest, Nightwolf was guided back to Earthrealm by his spirit guides. Along the way, he received visions of a battle where an unknown power was forcing the participating warriors to fight each other. His visions slowly became reality when he agreed to help Johnny Cage and his allies combat the fallen Elder God Shinnok and his forces. While preparing for the battle, Nightwolf was met by Kitana and the spirit of Liu Kang, who was bound to Earth through his bond with her. Despite being weakened by his fight with Onaga, Nightwolf used his remaining magic to relieve Kitana of her burden and took custody of Liu Kang's spirit. In the 2011 reboot, Nightwolf is seen as a participant in the first Mortal Kombat tournament. When Shang Tsung selects him as Scorpion's next opponent, Nightwolf berates Scorpion for his quest for vengeance though the latter accuses the former of dishonoring his people by not seeking vengeance for the injustices they have suffered. Nightwolf proceeds to fight Scorpion, but is defeated and eliminated from the tournament. He is later seen among the Earthrealm warriors who congratulate Liu Kang for winning the tournament, though he is not present during the victory ceremony nor the second tournament. He reappears during Outworld's invasion to recruit Stryker. During the battle, Nightwolf destroys Shao Kahn's Soulnado and survived Sindel's initial onslaught. Ultimately, however, Nightwolf sacrifices himself to destroy Sindel during her second assault, allowing the sorcerer Quan Chi to claim his soul and turn him into one of his underlings. Nightwolf returns in Mortal Kombat 11, with his human self from the 2011 reboot as his default appearance while his revenant form appears as an alternate gear appearance. In his arcade ending, a young Nightwolf -- then known as Grey Cloud -- initially resented his people for selling out to the colonizers and fell in with Kano's Black Dragon crime cartel as a result. However, when Kano asked him to help steal the Matoka's sacred treasures, he refused. Kano mortally wounded him in retaliation, but the Great Spirit saved him and granted Grey Cloud the mantle of Nightwolf. In the DLC story expansion, Aftermath, a past version of Nightwolf joined forces with Shang Tsung and Fujin to retrieve Kronika's Crown of Souls and help Liu Kang restore history. While battling his revenant counterpart during a mission to capture Sindel's revenant and revive her, Shang Tsung drained revenant Nightwolf's soul in retaliation for wounding him. Despite securing the Crown and taking part in assaulting Kronika's keep, Nightwolf and his allies were betrayed by Shang Tsung and Sindel.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Nightwolf: The depiction of Nightwolf in Mortal Kombat 11 (2019) is generally seen as an improvement in his visual design by critics for being less of a stereotype of Native Americans. — The depiction of Nightwolf in Mortal Kombat 11 (2019) is generally seen as an improvement in his visual design by critics for being less of a stereotype of Native Americans.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nightwolf

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nightwolf claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nightwolf before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nightwolf ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nightwolf

In research: Nightwolf appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nightwolf in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nightwolf is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Fictional Apache people, Fictional Native American people in video games, Fictional archers, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nightwolf outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Nightwolf in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nightwolf means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nightwolf out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nightwolf in simple terms?

Why does Nightwolf matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nightwolf?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nightwolf.