With the current uprising meta of top lane tanks, Mordekaiser could give desperate players new hope. With his outstanding ability to push lanes, sustain with spellvamp items through AoE waveclear and deal absurd %Health damage, he is truly a force to be reckoned with. In this article I'll be taking a look at the pros, cons and tips for mastering the master...of metal.

Mordekaiser, the Master of Metal - Image by DismalFiction

A general introduction to Mordekaiser

Mordekaiser is a beefy melee mage with three AoE abilities and a %Health ultimate which also grants a ghost minion of the target. His passive grants him a shield which charges up based on the damage his abilities deal. Not only can he farm up a storm, literally a metal storm, but he can also assassinate nearly any target in one set of cooldowns. With his kit and somewhat low skill cap, he is definitely a champion to take into consideration with the rise of Mundo, Shyvana and other top lane tanks.

Mordekaiser's Q, Mace of Spades, is a melee attack skill that scales off of both AD and AP which can reset your auto attack. Upon striking the target it will launch three projectiles, or 65% more damage if the target is isolated. His W, Creeping Death, is an AoE which surrounds him, granting him 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 / 30 bonus armor and magic resist. Mordekaiser's E, Siphon of Destruction, fires a cone of metal in front of him dealing magic damage. Last and certainly not least is his ultimate, Children of the Grave, which deals 12 / 14.5 / 17% (+ 2% per 100 AP) of target's maximum health in magic damage.

In regards to itemization and what to max, it is match dependent. I choose to max my Creeping Death while taking an early point in Siphon of Destruction and Mace of Spades for a full spell rotation in trades. Two absolute must buys for me are Will of the Ancients and Abyssal Scepter. WotA provides you with great sustain via spellvamp and Abyssal Scepter gives you three essential stats for Morde. Magic resistance, magic penetration and ability power.

Pros and Cons of the 'Kaiser

Let's start with the pros because I feel they outshine the cons by a landslide.

- Easy farming with all basic abilities being AoE
- Fast pushing
- Very good teamfight presence
- Ability to eliminate almost any target in a set of CDs
- Great sustain
- Naturally tanky

Cons

- Falters early game if killed
- Susceptible to ganks
- Upcoming Doran's Shield nerf will hurt his early game even more

Protips & Tricks

- Running Ghost + Flash almost always ensures you escape ganks or catch your target.
- Deep warding their jungle means you can clear their camps while pushed up.
- Build a Morellonomicon against Mundo or high lifesteal champions.
- Rylai's is always better than a Warmog's.
- 9/21/0 masteries make your early game a lot more manageable.
- Your ultimate will heal you for a massive amount.
- Your Q will reset your autoattack.
- You can shield a minion to harass even further under tower/from range.

Conclusion

All in all, Mordekaiser is a highly overlooked champion. While his early game is atrocious, he is definitely a champion that competes with the new meta of tanks. If Overpow's play in the EU LCS wasn't enough then just give it a shot yourself. Besides, think about how manly you're going to look running around as a giant suit of metal.

Thanks for reading and be sure to bring great suffering!