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Mordekaiser; How was he in life and what lead him to become the Iron Revenant

Malicious Metal·4/2/2018, 4:29:20 PM·8 votes·1,112 views

Recently I've been pondering on a very peculiar topic. We all know of Mordekaiser's cruel conquest of Valoran, his current motivations and all of his wicked deeds throughout history. His influence is well known and present in a lot of champion's lore, with the most recent being LeBlanc's tale.

But what were the events leading to Mordekaiser craving eternal Conquest, what made him shed his mortality to embrace undeath as yet another tool for his war machine?

So, take my hand as I lead you through my personal headcanon, following the child that would become Mordekaiser.

Mordekaiser was born to a warlord's many mistresses. His father being one of the numerous lords who fought over valoran's main continent. In constant war with opposing warbands and upstart nations, Mordekaiser grew up knowing nothing but conflict, intrigue and eternal struggle for domination.

Even as a child he would find himself fighting for his father's recognition as the Warlord had offsprings from countless women, all wanting to grow up to dethrone their father and assume the role of reigning Warlord.

His mother would aid him in that task, being a sorceress of the darker arts that saw potential in the offspring born from an involuntary night in the Warlord's tent. For she had suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Mordekaiser's father, having lost not only her reigning position as a Warband's head sorceress, but also a husband and many children in the process.

Mordekaiser was all that remained and her hatred for her new "husband", taking more wives as he dominated the other Warlords, lead her to shape the child born of this union into the perfect warrior, one who would destroy the man who had taken everything from her and one who would bring peace to these war-torn lands. Simply by dominating everyone and everything that would oppose him.

As the years went by, Mordekaiser would find himself learning much about the dark arts from his mother, taught in applying unholy curses to enemies stronger than him and imbuing his own physical strength with magics that fed off death and torment. Soon his father would come to realize that his son would grow beyond his control and soon threaten his own position as Warlord.

Ordering his men to dispose of this upstart and his mother, he showed weakness and fear in the face of his own child. But instead of his child and mistress' head, he would have his own warrior's skulls thrown at his feet as a bloodstained Mordekaiser would challenge his father for the command of their Warband.

The old, paranoid Warlord stood no chance and was struck down by his own offspring, his hatred fueled by the disdain of his father and the death of his mother.

Using what she had taught him to imbue her soul, and all those who would fall by his hands, to his mace -dubbing it Nightfall, for it shall bring the dusk to the realms of men- Mordekaiser would cast off his name, the one given to him by his father, to take up the moniker of "Mordekaiser".

For a reign of terror would begin, and the child born of hate, raised in constant conflict, reborn in cruelty and forged by his own mother's disdain for his father would rule with an Iron fist.

Mordekaiser should NOT be a redeemable villain in any way, but there should be logic to his tale. He should be relatable and we should be able to see HOW he grew into becoming the Murder Emperor.

This could very well be achieved by giving him a backstory that explains his affinity for the dark arts and his physical prowess while also showing us what circumstances shaped him spirit to crave complete domination and conquest over all that oppose him.

Still, these are just my thoughts and I'd love to heart what others think of WHAT Mordekaiser's backstory should be like.

PS; As always, have some good Metal to accompany you while you read this! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVgUSPttNWs

4 Comments

KuroCaliber4/2/2018, 4:39:23 PM3 votes

Amazing job, malicious. Your story flows quite well

HeresyUntoFedex4/3/2018, 3:37:18 AM2 votes

Story was a bit rough around the edges at times, and I could smell the Mordred inspiration from a mile away , but I do think this could serve as a good backstory for FutureKaiser. But only if he emerged from the womb wearing a baby sized version of his current helmet. And then he gets a little Nightfall shaped rattle too.

Also, having a witch mother who raised him specifically to be an overlord of magic and metal and him crushing his father serves as a decent contrast to Annie, who's also witch mother's absence leads to her tragic incident with her own dad, who had tried his best to raise her as a decent child.

Plus, y'know, Noxus's capital being Morde's old stomping grounds and all just makes the little parallels all the more neat!

Ganondorf4/3/2018, 11:26:30 AM2 votes

I like to think that nothing to a few things were known of him before what makes him so terrifying in legends and tales. It would be like Mordekaiser was created through the horrors of battle. What was called a man with no other purpose than power in all its forms.

It is said in the Leblanc updated lore that she helped the barbarian tribes to defeat Mordekaiser around the time of the Darkin War.

Though they do not often learn the origins of their matron, many have uncovered legends of a pale sorceress who aided the broken barbarian tribes, in their struggle against the infamous Iron Revenant subjugating lands already ravaged by the darkin.

It means that around this time, a lot of powerful beings were at war and that the human race was obviously part of it for their survival. Ascended and Darkin warriors. Runeterra is ravaged by countless wars involving them and mere humans. In the end, Ascended warriors triumphed just as much as humans did because they are still there. The important part is this.

who aided the broken barbarian tribes, in their struggle against the infamous Iron Revenant subjugating lands already ravaged by the darkin.

Humans part of the war were barbarian tribes and our boy Mordekaiser is said to control those lands. What does it means ? Being said that he was once mortal is enough to say that he was human. He was a man in the likes of Sion. Tall and muscular, an unstoppable war machine.

However.

It is also said that it has been centuries since he has been the Iron Revenant and the turning point of the events at the Immortal Bastion. He was no longer human. My point was it could have been better if Morde made a name from those battle. Like, he was actually so strong that he could defeat darkin and ascended warriors. Nothing could stop him. But it is still relevant. Just that he was already the Iron Revenant. If a change was to be made in his lore, I'd like to see this.

When did he became so powerful ? Which events made him so strong then ? It could be the Rune Wars, the most brutal period in the history of Runeterra. Devastation, powerful magic etc etc. Survival of the fittest. Mordekaiser could be from this time. He was so strong and violent that even magic couldn't kill him. Defeating other warlords - enslaving what could be of good use, like mages for instance - gave him newer ressources, such as magic, and it would justify his enchanted Nightfall. Nightfall could be in fact imbued with Rune magic or something. Rune magic is said to shape landscapes, so it could be Nightfall which formed the Immortal Bastion.

I'm focusing on important events to create what made him so strong and terrifying. He needs to be involved with something said to be a large scale horrific event in which he became Mordekaiser. A man that no one knows, or at least, no one to attest about who he was. He was Mordekaiser as a human and had accomplished a lot to earn that title. Rune Wars. Darkin. Ascended. Humans. None of them erased Mordekaiser from history, and now he's waiting the moment when he could finally take over Valoran and the entirety of Runeterra.