Overview
One of the best duelists in the game, Mordekaiser is an AP top laner whose specialty is pulling people into the shadow realm with his ultimate. Unfortunately for enemies, he doesn’t engage them in a children’s card game and instead beats them over the head with a giant mace. Click here for the latest data on his best builds, including Runes, Items, Summoner Spells, and more.
Keys to Remember About Mordekaiser
Being able to land Death's Grasp [E] or not is going to be the difference between a good game or a bad one, so make sure you are careful with it. In Realm of Death [R], for example, it might be easier to walk at opponents first instead of trying to pull them instantly.
There isn't any major trick to using your Realm of Death [R] -- it all comes down to target prioritization. That means it might not be a great idea to continually use it on the 0-10 ADC or support -- sometimes you should remove the strongest person on the other team from the fight instead. You want to help your team have an advantage in the 4v4 outside of your ultimate.
Strengths
When surrounded by multiple enemies, Mordekaiser can pull one of them into his Realm of Death [R], which will give him the opportunity to at least get one kill, if not more once he exits. This makes him a really tricky champion to gank after level 6, as he’s one of the best at turning around a gank into a double kill. The ultimate is also extremely good late game if you’re able to flank a priority target -- you can instantly remove them from the fight and beat them down. It’s also great at plucking junglers away from neutral objectives like Baron and Elder Dragon. Once his items are online, he’s deceptively difficult to kill considering how much damage he brings to the table.
Weaknesses
He has no dashes or ways to easily run at opponents, so he’s reliant on them misstepping or on him finding a good angle to flank from. Even in the confines of his ultimate, against a more mobile champion, he might have a hard time actually running them down, especially if they are smart and save their dash to avoid his Death’s Grasp [E]. Once that ability is down, Morde can sometimes be kited to death without much he can do in return.
Game Plan
Early Game: Look to farm early, as you are a champion whose spike is tied to getting your ultimate online. Once that’s up, and you’re able to chunk enemies out first, you can constantly look for all-ins.
Mid Game: You’ll be very strong at this point, so look for good flank angles to join team fights. Sometimes it’s okay to ultimate a squishy support champion or a jungler instead of beelining for the enemy ADC.
Late Game: Your strategy won’t change much from mid game, though you’ll have more damage, which makes missing your E a little more forgiving. That said, your worth is still largely tied to your ultimate, so make sure you get a kill with it.
