Written by Jennissary, formatting by SightlessKombat.
General notes; Applies to all mesas and seasons:
The Invasions map is oriented like a board game. Your character traverses from node to node, getting through fights, Towers, Test your Might, and Survive challenges to advance to the end of each Mesa. Each season of invasions has 7 Mesas in all.
You can access a brief guide to the audio cues throughout the mode in the accessibility settings menu: near the bottom of the list is a slider for Navigation assistance. Adjust the volume up or down to hear samples of what each of the sounds mean. A high pitched sound for your objective direction (the end of mesa), low pitched sound (path you’ve been before), a slight buzzer sound (locked path) or a click (no path). The objective path will also take you toward nodes which you haven’t unlocked yet, when you currently have the tools to do so. It will not path you toward locked gates which require you to finish the current season first.
When advancing through the mesa, your camera view can sometimes rotate 90 degrees when you move from node to node. This means your view can be flipped, and it’s difficult to keep track of directions. Thankfully, each of the nodes has a unique name, so remember which ones you’ve just walked past to tell when you’re backtracking.
When landing on a node, a new encounter will make a unique fiery sound compared to completed encounters. You can repeat any encounter for additional XP and character mastery.
Mesas:
Each Mesa begins with a brief cinematic giving an overview of the entire Mesa. The Mesas are based on the areas surrounding existing stages, and all fights in the mesa will take place on that particular stage, or a variant of that stage. After the overview cinematic, your character will spawn from a portal. There is only one path forward for several nodes before it forks. You can return to the Mesa select from the pause menu at any time, and do not need to return to the portal at the beginning of the mesa. If you switch Mesas or quit Invasions mode, your character will start wherever you left them on each Mesa.
If you have come across a locked path, that generally means there is a fight you have to complete at that node. Nodes will occasionally have a blocked path which leads to a chest (containing cosmetics), with a word scramble hint. I’d recommend looking up an external season guide for each of these klues. It will usually involve performing a specific finisher at that node.
Near the end of each Mesa is a locked gate, requiring you to find a unique item by exploring other nodes in the Mesa. Once you’ve advanced through this gate, there is usually a final boss before the end portal. Once you’ve advanced through this portal, you have unlocked the next Mesa. You can return to previous Mesas at any time.
Shops and Forges:
Once you’ve discovered a shop or forge, you can teleport back to them from the pause menu, without penalty. Usually there will be two shops on each mesa: a default items shop, and a shop with rotating stock. If you’ve unlocked both, you can teleport between the two shops by selecting “Shop” from the pause menu again. The same goes for teleporting between Forges.
Test Your Might:
These are mash sequences. Mash any face button until you hear a high-pitched, metallic sound. This sound means you are within the target range of a bar which continuously depletes, and gradually fills as you mash. Press R2 to execute while within the target range. Note that the Test Your Might target ranges can be very low or very high, requiring almost no effort or several seconds of mashing to execute. It is possible to mash too much, and to fail if you are above or below the target range. Execute within 15 seconds to succeed.
Also note that the target areas are extremely small, so it’s sometimes best to deliberately go above the bar and wait for it to reach the target area.
Towers:
Towers will consist of 4 levels. The 1st, 2nd, and 4th levels will be standard single-round fights, sometimes with a stage modifier. The 3rd level will usually be a Test Your Might, but can sometimes be a randomized fight instead. You can fail the Test Your Might and still advance up the Tower, but you may miss out on some rewards. Towers are typically optional nodes at dead ends.
Towers are considered a single encounter, so a consumable which applies to the next encounter will apply to all fights within a tower.
Reward Portals:
Near the end of each Mesa, your character will be picked up by a portal in between nodes. This portal will take you to a series of reward chests with no cost. It will transport you to an empty node, where the only path is to the left. Advance left to open an unlocked chest. Once you’ve collected its rewards, advance left again to another portal. Repeat this three times, and you will be transported back to the Mesa.
Fight Modifiers:
Most fights will have stage hazards, called modifiers. To view the description of a modifier, pause the game at any time during the fight. Hover over the move list. Once the screen reader finishes reading the button prompts, it will read the Modifier.
Season-Specific Info
Mesa 1: Tarkatan Colony.
Survive encounter 1
Closest node: “Long Tongue”. Not required to advance (does not unlock any other nodes).
Description: Survive the advancing ice walls by hitting a fire crystal.
Instructions:
select Raiden. Use Raiden’s Electromagnetic Storm Special (down back 3), to create a sphere of AOE damage. This will catch the moving fire crystal as it flies past you.
Once you load into the encounter, dash right ONCE, to center yourself in the stage. By default, Raiden is facing right. Wait briefly between each use of Electromagnetic Storm to more reliably hit the crystal. Down back 3 will slowly push you to the left, so take a single step right on every 2nd or 3rd use.
Survive encounter 2
Closest node, Second shop (selling rotating components or talismans). Not required to advance (unlocks 1 node with an encounter, and a chest with a Liu Kang cosmetic).
Description: dodge lines of acid projectiles which criss-cross the screen.
Instructions:
Next to the second forge is a locked chest requiring an ornate chest key. Teleport back to the first shop to purchase an ornate chest key, then teleport back to the second forge. Unlock the chest to find a consumable called “translucency field”, which makes you immune to projectiles for one encounter.
Teleport back to the second shop, then go left for the second survive encounter. Use the Translucency Field consumable, and you will not need to do anything during the survive encounter. This will unlock one node behind it: a fight with Tanya. Perform five kameo throws (forward throws) during this encounter to unlock the chest behind it (containing the Liu Kang snowy dragon skin). This node is a dead end.
If you have already used, or cannot access the Translucency Field consumable, this Survive encounter will be significantly harder. Select an ice or Acid character, since they have resistance to acid projectiles. Sub-Zero has the highest base health. If you can, use consumables or talismans which increase your base health or acid resistance. Crouching in a corner has the best luck. Projectile patterns are randomized each time, so keep trying!
Mesa 2: Fengjian village
Survive encounter 1 (Jennissary’s Footage Here)
Closest nodes: locked chest (ornate chest key) and 1 good eye. Required to advance (dead end node, rewards the “Madam Bo’s WMD” key item to unlock the final gate of the Mesa).
Description: Projectiles of blood will emerge from the right side, requiring you to alternate ducking and jumping. As the encounter continues, the pace of the projectiles will increase, requiring you to keep a faster rhythm. Late in the sequence, there are several instances requiring you to jump twice. The pattern is the same each time.
Instructions:
Select a fire type character, as they are more resistant to blood damage (examples: Liu Kang, Shang Tsung, Scorpion, Ashrah). Alternate ducking and jumping, using the rhythm in the linked video. Start by ducking.
Survive Encounter 2
Closest node: feeling sparks. Not required to advance (unlocks 1 node with a locked ornate chest). Description: Hide behind the icy shelter to avoid damaging heat waves.
Instructions:
Select Raiden. Use Raiden’s Electromagnetic Storm Special (down back 3), to create a sphere of AOE damage. This will catch the crystal. Once you load into the encounter, stay in place as the first heat wave melts the ice wall. By default, Raiden is facing right. When the whooshing sound dies down, start using Electromagnetic storm. After five uses, dash right twice to stand behind the ice wall. You can also use Raiden’s teleport (down up) to instantly get behind the ice wall. Wait for the whooshing of the heat wave to die down again, then dash left twice or teleport to start using Electromagnetic storm again. (Note that using teleport will change Raiden’s direction of facing each time). Repeat this three times. The 2nd and 3rd round will throw ice balls at you which occasionally freeze you. You’ll just need to ignore these and hope for the best. If you get hit by a second ice ball while already frozen, you’ll be thrown to the left side of the screen. Dash right twice to reach the crystal, then dash right twice again to get to the ice wall. Down back 3 will slowly push you to the left, so take a single step right on every 2nd or 3rd use.
Mesa 3: Fire Temple.
Survive Encounter 1
Closest nodes: Savage Ways, Everybody’s Here Tower. Not required to advance (unlocks 1 node with a locked ornate chest).
Description: Destroy all 30 energy rocks before the 24-second timer runs out. A dome of protection covers the center of the screen. You will spawn on the left side of the dome. A laser will periodically beam down from above, snapping to your location for several seconds. If you are outside the dome, you will die immediately.
Instructions:
Select Liu Kang. Dash right once to center yourself in the dome. Use Cosmic Flame (back forward 1), then Low Dragon (down back 1) while facing right, then repeat while facing left. To clear the rocks above the dome, you’ll need to jump and then hit a Cosmic Flame while facing right, then another while facing left. You can safely perform the ground projectiles while the laser is beaming down, because the dome will protect you. However, the jumping attacks will need to be performed when the laser is not active, as Liu Kang will be hovering above the dome during the entire Cosmic Flame aerial attack.
Survive Encounter 2
Closest Nodes: . Not required to advance (does not unlock any other nodes). Description: dodge lines of dark projectiles which criss-cross the screen.
Instructions:
Use a Translucency field. Alternative: Select an Energy or Magic character, since they have resistance to Dark projectiles (Johnny Cage or Li Mei have the highest base health). If you can, use consumables or talismans which increase your health or Dark resistance. Crouching in a corner has the best luck. Projectile patterns are randomized each time, so keep trying!