Summoners,
First of all I would like to make clear that I'm no pro and that there will be better Mordekaiser players out there than me. this is my take on Mordekaiser and you're free to criticise.

He used to be a very tricky character to play, but ever since he got buffed he became a lot easier to do well with. Mordekaiser used to be a tanky char, but because of the buff he got it's now a lot better to play him with a lot of AP. (He can still be quite tanky, but going full tank with him will be no good.)

The main thing you have to be doing with Mordekaiser early gane is farming. Mordekaiser's fairly weak early-game because his skills cost health to cast. A lot of Morde beginners want their shield to be full all the time, this is however impossible (especially early-game, because it takes too much health to keep the shield up). When laning early with morde you should always keep your distance from the enemy champions (occasionally harrass with siphon of destruction) and keep last hitting minions. All Mordekaiser builds are expensive so keep farming! I always start of with Doran's shield because of the health regen. First trip back to shop you buy boots and some health pods. Once you reach level 6-8 the game is on. By then you should have the hextech revolver. Now you will be able to start pushing, but be extra careful for enemy ganks since you're still quite easy to take down. Mordekaiser really reaches his potential in the higher levels. Once you have Rylai's crystal scepter you'll be unstoppable.

Later I'll talk about team fights.

Pretty self-explainig, magic penetration marks, ability power quints, flat armor seals and MR/level glyphs. Gives you some sustain early-game, but is mostly focused on doing damage. Another viable choice would be health regen seals, that way you can leave out the doran's shield and directly buy boots. (This didn't quite work out for me, but maybe some of you guys would prefer this.)

Clairvoyance: Come on You're not he support are you?

Clarity: Mordekaiser doesn't use mana, so what's the point?

Cleanse: Useful for removing the pesky CC, only recommendable against a heavy CC enemy team.

Exhaust: A viable choice, great for catching up with the faster opponents, shuts down carries.

Flash: The only real substitute for ghost, really useful for quick escapes + allows you to stay in battle longer.

Garrison: I really hate Dominion, if you're aiming for tower defense/offense then this is a good choice.

Ghost: A must have on Mordekaiser, he really needs the extra movement speed to escape. An even better choice than flash.

Heal: When you're new to Mordekaiser this is a great spell to stay alive, for the more expierienced players this will only become a burden if you replace ignite/ghost with it.

Ignite: The biggest asset for Mordekaiser. In combination with Children of the grave you will be a feared character. (don't use the combo on a cleanse user though.)

Promote: Not that useful, maybe to do some extra damage to the turret, but because of the short lifespan of minions not a useful summoner spell.

Revive: Don't take this, ever.

Smite: Jungle Mordekaiser is no good.

Surge: Only situation where this is useful is for trying to get first blood, the effects are minor, not a good choice.

Teleport: Viable when you're solo top. Go to shop and quickly come back. this will give you an advantage over your opponent, but is only useful in the laning phase.

My masteries are aimed to give the best sustain early-game. I did try full offense Mordekaiser, but was quickly irritated by the loss of health regen (again: health regen is essential for Mordekaiser) and the incredible amount of sustain he loses.

Don't go utility, no one goes utility, nobody will ever go utility. I have tried it, but the gold advantage just doesn't cut it.

1.:
I always start of with Doran's shield for the above mentionned reason, viable option are the boots and health pods (allows you to harass more easy).

2.:
First stop: Boots + pods.

3.:
when you have the money immediately go for the hextech revolver (and while you're at it, buy some more health pods).

4.:
Sorcerer's boots and Rylai's crystal scepter are the next priority.

After these steps you can choose what you want to build. I usually go a lot of AP, when the situation requires it I take force of nature/sunfire cape to be more tanky.

Hextech gunblade really benefits Mordekaiser and is definitely worth recommending.
Abyssal scepter is ok too, the MR and AP are really useful.

The only thing worth mentionning here is that you need to evenly level your skill, because of the scaling health cost. Siphon of destruction is your main ability, it's the skill that will keep your shield up and will do most of the damage. (At the end-gane your ult should steal about 50% of the enemy's maximum health and let me tell you, that's a LOT!)

+ Epic farmer.
+ Great damage.
+ Able to rip through the enemy ranks.
+ Amazing pusher.

- Weak early-game.

It's necessary for a Mordekaiser player to know where to be in a team fight. Mordekaiser should never initiate, but rather stay behind. Once the fight is on you should tear their carry apart using Children of the grave + ignite combo. Your creeping death skill is to be used on an allied champion thats being focused, the increased armor and MR should help him stay alive + charge up your shield as well. Once the enemy team flees, chase with ghost and keep using that siphon of destruction whenever you can!

Mordekaiser makes a great backdoorer. while your team distracts the enemy team with pushing mid you can take out the remaining outer turrets. (Communication is crucial!)

If you use your ghost from children of the grave correctly you will be a monster in battle. It takes some time to get used to changing the position of your fingers, but trust me once you get the hang of it you'll get a lot better. You should always send your ghost to the nearest tower and begin taking it down (reason why you should tag the enemy carry with ult).

You control your ghost by holding the Alt button and right-clicking.

Really? I can't imagine jungle Mordekaiser to work...ever.

Since Mordekaiser really needs his summoner spells I can't really fit in smite (which you should always take on a jungler!).

I suspect him te be really weak early in jungle, very vulnerable to anti-jungling. You would have to go back to shop very often because of the health loss --> You will get underleveled --> No effective ganks.

However once you get a little spell vamp I suspect him to do a little bit better. If you're going to try jungle Morde I advize you to have a pull at the first two camps at least and then immediately rush the hextech revolver. (Start of with a cloth armor + 5 health pods)Be especially aware of enemy ganks.

If you want, go ahead and try Morde julgle, but if you're smart stay out of the jungle. Period.

I hope you guys like my take on Mordekaiser. This is my first build so a few tips would be great.