Hello everyone. This is my first build, but I play Morde more often than not and usually come out with a good score endgame. Of course we've all experienced those games where you end up dying more than you kill, but if you have a decent sense of map awareness and know what your champion is capable of, Morde can be damn near unstoppable end game. While I cant gauge your experience and skill level, this build will certainly give you the tools to not only stay alive, but live long enough to finish champions off in a team fight scenario.

MARKS:

Marks are pretty straight forward in Morde's case. Since all of his abilities scale with AP, Magic Pen Marks would be the most logical choice.

SEALS:

I like to play Morde as a bit of a hybrid tank that can deal substantial amounts of damage while taking it. Having said that, choosing a seal would really have to depend on team composition and your role within it. Seals are pretty versatile in my opinion. I personally like to use ATK Speed, but you could use just about anything. If I had to chose an alternative, I would go with .11 HP Regen/5/lvl (1.98 at 18)x9 =17.82 at 18. Usually I have around 102 HP Regen/5 end game, but every point you can get would be just as helpful.

GLYPHS:

To me there is no alternative in this category. Simply put, the faster your abilities are available for use, the more damage you will essentially deal. Since Morde's shield scales with your damage output, I believe its a No-Brainer.

QUINTS:

Being fairly expensive, Quintessences are probably the most difficult to decide on. Again you would have to use what the situation calls for. The way I play Morde, either flat HP (26 hp per Quint), CDR (1.64% per Quint) or HP/lvl (48.6 at 18) would be my preferences. CDR would probably be the most popular choice.

I almost never deviate from this mastery setup. As the saying goes, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." I go with 9/21/0 simply because I think Morde is at his best as a tank, BUT there have been instances where Ive seen full offensive or even full utility masteries used very well. In my case, I like to stay alive as long as possible. In my eyes 4% damage reduction as well as the ATK Speed/AP boost the Defensive tree yields is almost too good to pass up if you chose to play Morde in a tanking role. As an additional boost, the offensive tree will end up giving you 3% CDR and 15% Magic Penetration. Coupled with end game items, this spec works out very well on Morde.

EARLY GAME

To start I usually grab a regrowth pendant and one potion. I find Morde can be a little vulnerable early on in the game if your not careful. Having the HP regen to counter the HP cost of your abilities early on is key. Next I grab boots as soon as possible, and a few more pots depending on how my lane is progressing. By this time you should be at least level 6 and be ready to gank/assist. I rush Warmogs as fast as possible to maximize the passive stat boosts of the item (4.5 HP .15HP Regen/5 per minion kill AND 45HP 1.5 HP Regen/5 per champion kill). These stats max out at +450HP and 15HP Regen/5 which works out to +1370HP and 45HP Regen/5 total. Now somewhere in between finishing your warmogs you can grab your boots of swiftness if you find your having trouble keeping up with enemies on ganks and kill situations. If your getting kills and assists you'll most likely have the gold to spare.

MID GAME

By now you should definitely have your Warmogs and your boots of swiftness. Next, I like to go Force of Nature. With your initial HP Regen, Adding FoN will increase your survivability substantially. Ultimately you'll be able to push a lane far longer than anyone else and provided your focused first in a fight, give your teammates a formidable chance to win them outright. Try to separate your enemies ranged and melee champions. Cause as much havoc as you can, Morde can harass like no other.

MID-END GAME

Depending on how well my team is doing pushing towers and getting kills, I like to grab Rylais Scepter. The AP/on-hit effects and HP boost are too good to pass up. If you'd prefer something a little more on the defensive side, Id go with a Sunfire Cape or Banshees Veil (whichever defensive stat you need more of). By now you should be able to run around and do just about anything you want. Just don't get caught wandering around jungle by yourself.

Ultimately at the end of the game you should be able to dictate the flow of any fight your in. Morde can easily target one of the squishier champions (ashe, veigar, etc.) and eliminate them from a team fight completely. Like I said before, cause as much havoc as possible. Your ult is a great way to "mark" an enemy for focus fire aswell as finish one off. Remember you gain a portion of their stats if they die. Use it wisely.

Pretty straight forward, I max Mace of Spades as fast as I can followed by Siphon of Destruction. Of course, any time your ult is available it takes priority. While Creeping Death could prove to be useful earlier on in the game, I believe your damage output would still be the most logical choice for a skill-up.

Ive seen many different combos used as far as summoner spells go, but Exhaust/Ignite would be my preference. With cripple, your given that extra .5 second to finish off an enemy or catch up to them as well as 10 magic res and armor reduction, and Ignite is pretty self explanatory. Ignite + Children of the Grave = Win

There you have it. Hopefully if your new to playing Morde you'll get a better idea of what he can do, as well as give you a better understanding of how to play against him. This isn't the ONLY way to play him, but its a pretty good build to start with. Either way, hope it helps.