I’ll give this a shot, my mains are Kabal and sub zero.
I only play thin ice sub zero since I think that the unsafe 50/50 vortex that he gets in DoW is not worth losing slide, air axe, and deathcicle barrage. I will explain why; sub zero is a punish character that lives on making your opponent pay for their mistakes.
I’ll start with his strings, b143 is a far reaching high meaning that it is tailor made for whiff punishing and should only be used for that purpose, since being a high it can be ducked and punished. F24 is a decent reaching overhead that should only be used as a counter/punish for the kB that you get from it, just throwing it out is not a smart move as it is hella negative. B321 is a low starter that acts as your hit confirm mid as that move is safe and also has ok range, it’s a little tough to hit confirm as it is pretty quick but I’ve done it. Lastly b21 is your anti air/ mid check as it is safe, has great range, and is great at catching people checking buttons because it is quick and mid hitting. Oh and you should be using 12 x ice ball for quick punishes.
Next his specials.
It’s important that you never just throw them out as they have significant weaknesses. Slide is unsafe and should only be used to go under projectiles, far whiff punishes, and as a damage ender.
Ice ball for hit confirms and projectiles trades, it’s hella unsafe on block/whiff though.
Deathcicle barrage is fantastic for chip but has a long startup so you should only be canceling into it from a string, it is easily interrupted however, if they read it.
Air axe is amazing for space control and counter zoning as it changes your jump arc, but be careful not to get trip guarded.
So with all these tools you notice that he doesn’t have any plus on block moves and his specials are all unsafe. Sub zero is not a pressure character. He controls the space amazingly. And has a tool for almost all situations, as long as you read or react accordingly. You should play lamely, taking as little risk as possible and capitalize in situations where you can catch your opponent over extending.