Mordekaiser may not be the most popular champion in League of Legends, but he is well-beloved within the community. His unique playstyle attracts many players, including myself.
I’ve been playing Morde ever since Riot Games reworked him and turned him into the Death Overlord we know and love now.
And even though he was rereleased in 2019, many players are still wondering: Is Mordekaiser AP or AD?
Is Mordekaiser AP or AD?
Mordekaiser is an AP champion in League of Legends. He does magic damage with his passive, his Q, and his E ability. Morde’s W and R are utility spells and don’t deal any damage.
Mordekaiser scales with Ability Power, so the more AP he has, the harder his abilities hit.
If you’re just learning to play Mordekaiser, just know that any item in LoL that grants AP is a good item for him.
However, there is an optimal item build for Morde that gives him the highest chances of carrying games in solo queue. And you can scroll down to check it in detail.
But now, let’s take a look at how much damage Mordekaiser’s abilities do and their AP scalings.
Read Also: Urgot AP or AD – Guide
Mordekaiser AP Scaling
Passive – Darkness Rise
After striking an enemy champion or monster with 3 abilities or attacks, Mordekaiser spawns a circle around him that burns all enemies in it for 5 − 15.2 (based on level), plus 30% AP, and 1% − 5% ((based on level) of target’s maximum health) magic damage per second.
Additionally, Mordekaiser’s auto-attacks deal 40% AP bonus magic damage.
Q – Obiltirate
Mordekaiser smashes all enemies in front of him, dealing 5 − 139 (based on level), plus 75 / 95 / 115 / 135 / 155, and 60% of his AP magic damage.
If this ability hits only one target, the damage is increased by 40 / 45 / 50 / 55 / 60%.
E – Death’s Grasp
Morde pulls all enemies toward him in a targeted area, dealing 80 / 95 / 110 / 125 / 140 magic damage, plus 60% of his Ability Power.
In addition, Morde gains Magic Penetration with each rank – 5 / 7.5 / 10 / 12.5 / 15%.
Read Also: Urgot AP or AD – Guide
Can Mordekaiser Go AD?
After Riot Games reworked Mordekaiser, he can’t go AD anymore.
He is an AP champion that only deals magic damage and not physical. Building AD items does nothing for Morde because none of his abilities scales with AD.
And AP items increase the damage of his abilities but his basic attacks too.
In other words, building Attack Damage items on Mordekaiser is pointless. You won’t get any value from having Infinity Edge or Titanic Hydra on Morde.
He is much better with items such as Riftmaker or Zhonya’s Hourglass, so I recommend you stick with his AP build.
Does that mean that you shouldn’t even try AD Mordekaiser?
Not at all! You’re free to do anything you want and build any champion in any way you like. However, AD Mordekaiser was a thing before his rework. Back then, both his Q and E abilities had AD scaling.
And his old ultimate gave 100% of Morde’s AD to the enslaved spirit.
But now, AD Mordekasiser is way too weak to be a thing.
Read Also: Yorick AP Build Guide
What is the Best Mordekaiser Build?
What should I buy on Mordekaiser?
Starting items:
- Doran’s Shield – great for surviving the laning phase against any opponent.
- Health Potion – refills a portion of your HP when you’re damaged.
Core items:
- Riftmaker – increases your self-healing and grants you bonus true damage.
- Zhonya’s Hourglass – gives you bonus Armor and the Stasis effect, which is useful in every situation.
- Demonic Embrace – burns your target for 4 seconds and helps you keep the Riftmaker stacks up.
- Nashor’s Tooth – grants you Attack Speed and makes your basic attacks more relevant.
Situational items:
- Rylai’s Crystal Scepter – applies a slow effect to your enemies so they can’t escape from your passive.
- Thornmail – buffs you up with Armor and applies Grievous Wounds to the attacker.
- Morellonomicon – lowers the healing of your enemies and also puts Grevious Wounds on your enemies.
- Rabadon’s Deathcap – significantly increases your Ability Power in the late game.
Boots:
- Plated Steelcaps – grants you Armor and blocks 12% of the damage caused by auto-attacks.
What runes are best for Mordekaiser?
Rune page:
- Conqueror – increases your damage and your healing while in combat.
- Triumph – restores a portion of your lost HP after scoring a kill or an assist.
- Legend: Tenacity – lowers the duration of crowd control on you, so you can quickly escape any stun, root, or slow.
- Last Stand – allows you to deal more damage while you’re below 60% HP.
- Bone Plating – gives you a damage reduction effect every 45 seconds.
- Revitalize – makes your W’s healing stronger by up to 10% when you’re below 40% Health.
Read Also: Illaoi AP or AD – Guide
Conclusion
As an AP tank/fighter type of champion, Mordekaiser has met a lot of successes on Summoner’s Rift. There aren’t too many champions in the game that can mimic his role, so I definitely recommend you play him.
He’s got an interesting and unique playstlye that can net you some free wins in solo queue.
That said, I hope this post helped you out.Good luck!
