Mordekaiser and the magic of the Duo Jungle

I've been thinking about this for a while, and since it's stuck with me even past the testing of the Nexus Blitz, I felt it might just be worth writing about.

Before I go in, I'd like to throw some context out. I play ARAM only; I don't have a separate account of only the champs I pick because I feel that's against the spirit of the mode. But when I played Summoner's Rift, back when there was the Institute of War, I use to play champions like Shen and Mordekaiser, mingled with the occasional CritPlank (Yeah I rolled the lottery there huh.) As one by one the reasons for playing the mode fell away for me, I went from playing the game every day to only occasional romps with the Rotating Game Mode of the month. Summoner's Rift was no longer the one that I fell in love with, but it was still fun, just not for the reasons I had before.

So imagine my surprise when Nexus Blitz hits the field, being toted as a new permanent mode that is summoner's rift but loose and quick. The claim of dual jungles immediately made me think of my old main, Mordekaiser. I thought to myself, how bad could it be? (I distinctly remember a person cursing me out over locking in Mordekaiser for jungling.)

I'm just gonna say it. Nexus Blitz feels like it was MADE for Mordekaiser or maybe vice versa. It breathes life into a champ that hasn't seen an ounce of much needed love, and was left in a shape that many can and will tell you, is unacceptable.

His W Harvester of Sorrow requires another player or minion. It's... frustrating to say the least, as it's his best ability, you rank it up first, but sets him up in such a way that he's heavily punished for roaming from his lane like other champions. It isolates him as without a minion or ally to tether to, it becomes a moderate heal and a pittance of damage. I don't feel he needs this handicap, seeing as he is one of the last champions in the game without any form of CC, gap closers or escape tools beyond "Kill them first"

So you can see why it just feels so right in a duo jungle. He becomes a complete champion, and he excels at camps that requires two players. Not only that, he is a boon to his ally as well. It's amazing how few people know that Harvester of Sorrow actually heals BOTH the ally target and Mordekaiser for a ridiculous sum. Suddenly having Mordekaiser on your team doesn't feel so awful, as it helps less jungle savvy champs to finish camps with moderate to full life when they would have had to back to fountain.

He's also incredibly versatile when it comes to events, as many of them allow Mordekaiser to become a master of zone denial, again as long as an ally is nearby. (QUICK MENTION: Riot fix the Scuttle Race so that Mordekaiser's W can't grab the ally scuttle and make him zoom to victory.) The smaller map and hefty speed boost at the fountain means one of his major weaknesses, not being able to respond quickly to a surprise teamfight, is effectively solved. Though I would suggest that it might be beneficial to make that an Out of Combat movement speed boost. I've seen a lux chased down by shacos going 80 MPH. It isn't pretty.

The last thing I want to mention is thank GOD there isn't a dragon. There is this unspoken feeling for Mordekaiser players and when a Dragon is killed without you; just... like you failed at something. There was no possible way for you to be there in time, or you couldn't leave your lane unattended long enough to slowly make your way down to a dragon that is likely dead before you even reach midlane. It feels bad, so I'm kind of relieved that there isn't a dragon in the mode (yet).

I'm... not sure there's a point to this beyond feedback. I'm more excited for League than I've been in ages thanks to this mode and I feel you guys(riot) are taking really good steps in the right direction. Beyond the few quirks the mode has (Scuttle, Flame Rings under towers, Teemo getting stuck in enemy territory, No Walking Nexus spawning etc etc) you guys are doing an amazing job.

Last thing: Consider allowing Mordekaiser to just cast his W again alone. Maybe I could find some joy in Summoner's Rift again as a Junglekaiser.