Something that intrigues me regarding Mordekaiser's character

Malicious Metal·5/16/2016, 8:06:01 AM·38 votes·4,688 views

One thing that struck me when reading through some of the new lore is that the "bad guys" are made to have at least a tragic past or a certain quality to them that can redeem them in some eyes. They're human, they're the subject of inner turmoil and them becoming "evil" is usually bound to a certain tragic event or twisting of mind.

And then there's Mordekaiser. The guy's lacking most of the usual human attributes and drives. He does not seem to love, to hate, to engage in human emotion. All he seems to care for is eternal Conquest and to bring Valoran to its knees, ruling it as a tyrant king with an iron fist. There isn't even a specific goal he seems to want to achieve (other than keeping his bones safe). He does not want to end all conflict by conquering the entire world like Veigar and he does not seem to actively want to destroy every living being.

He's a strange case of a being of pure willpower with only ONE goal in mind. Even when struck down he'll simply resurrect himself and keeps going, this very motivation to conquer all of Valoran being the sole reason for his continuous existence. He does not have any loved ones or friends, he only has puppets and tools he commands, he does not care if they would die for his ultimate goal. But what would happen when he DOES achieve his goal of conquering Valoran? Would his thirst be quenched and his soul finally pass on or would he seek to conquer other worlds and dimensions? Is there even a sliver of humanity left in Mordekaiser or is he just a revenant bound to this very purpose of conquest?

Has he lost what made him human in the wake of his death and subsequent resurrections? Did he lose more and more of his humanity with every time he was struck down and brought back from Oblivion? Is he just an Idea, no longer driven by man's various cravings? Did he just become Conquest personified without even knowing what to do when he finally achieves that single goal?

This may just be me overthinking it. He may just have ulterior motives we do not know about and him conquering Valoran is simply part of a bigger plan. Maybe he's the hero that will stand against the void with Valoran united under his banners?!!?!!! (I sure hope not)

One thing's certain though, Mordekaiser is an interesting character and one who can serve as the main antagonist for many story arcs; A being that lives and thrives on Conquest and whose will to dominate's the driving force behind his machinations. He is League's Version of Sauron.

https://41.media.tumblr.com/9485832d0c7a6d4f84a9f62a9b4ece74/tumblr_o56x7eVo2O1s196e4o1_r1_500.jpg

85 Comments

charcharmunro5/16/2016, 1:32:06 PM18 votes

Him and Jhin are probably the most "Evil because why not" characters. Jhin has some vague tragedy in his lines, but I doubt it's a big deal for him. Morde is just "I want to rule the world or destroy it if I can't", Jhin is just "I like killing." To use a trope name from TVTropes, they're the only two that fall under the "Complete Monster" trope. Void beings and otherworldly sorts don't QUITE count because they're basically evil innately.

Stars Shaper5/16/2016, 1:38:43 PM9 votes

The fact that he has no "redeeming" characteristic is what makes him the perfect Dark Lord. He isn't despicable, he is just going to crush your skull, reap your soul and conquer your land until everything is his.

Compare it to the most recent now-all-villain: Xerath. He had a tragic story and his former goal now has no meaning because "meh, I'm evil now" and even from the Q&A we can't get anything more than that he will repent on his last moments.

About what morde will do after, I envision him ruling his dark army maybe in the search for other places or dimension to conquer. Another chance is that he will take care of inside fights with great joy because this would just show every1 else who is the real emperor.

GreenLore5/16/2016, 10:32:26 AM8 votes

Honestly not all villains need some sort of tragic backstory or deep motivation. Sometimes a character is just a pure monster because he was born like that.

And I think they want Mordekaiser to be this kind of character.

UomoAfide5/16/2016, 10:33:10 AM5 votes

Once he gets updated (one day) i'd really love to hear a reference to this. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdEo_t-iVbM I guess it goes pretty well with who Morde is now.

LordHippoman5/16/2016, 7:32:40 PM5 votes

Mordekaiser is interesting because he was very much from that period of League where there literally was no Lore, and then someone was like "oh shit uh he's a big evil bad man?" and sorta had to run with it. He's evolved a lot, he used to be like, a guy who spread plagues, he used to just hang out in the alleys of Noxus, then the Shadow Isles got revamped with the Elise release and he was moved there...he's had a lot of identities.

For the longest time he was with Shaco and Evelynn in that "They're evil and they're a mystery" camp, but with his new lore, Morde does have a backstory. And it is rad as hell.

Morde's not as, like, detailed a villain as someone like Xerath or Swain. He doesn't have a tragic backstory or a dark past. Mordekaiser is just a really good fighter who was SO GOOD AT KILLING SHIT he made some wizards cast a ritual to make him immortal...and then killed them. And then he continued just destroying everything in his path, literally at one point in his lore on top of a mountain of corpses, with a giant mace called "NIGHTFALL".

Mordekaiser is the cover of a metal album. Mordekaiser is the bad guy you'd see doodled in your old 8th grade textbooks. And that rules, because he owns it, and his lore just runs with it. He's over the top, yes, but it's just fine because his character, his voice, his appearance, they all kinda embrace it.

I'd like to see him in more stories, though, because he's probably got some interesting plans, like the OP brings up and summarizes really well.

Jacknife5/17/2016, 2:24:46 AM4 votes

Tired of tragic backstories to every character you play? Tired of being in the ambiguous gray area when black just looks so much better on you? Join the immortal army of Mordekaiser today! (Therearenobreaksthereisnohopethereisnoend.Afterlife-insuranceisnotguaranteed.Huehuehue.)

Also where did you get that picture? I have scoured all of the google's for reference art and I have never come across that one. I neeeeed it.

Mistress Madoka5/16/2016, 8:09:21 PM4 votes

I imagine Mordekaiser is a Being of Pure Conquest. He's Greedy, Cruel, and fucking awesome. He will keep coming back to Conquer the land untill he has it all. But he wouldn't stop at Valoran. He'd Take all of Runeterra. Then He'd take the whole Runeterran Star System. Then He'd go for the whole damn Galaxy. And then the Universe. And once he had all that, He'd Go Conquer the Void. He'd Subjugate Kindred's Realm of Death, and Gain Immense power. He'd be Unstoppable. And as soon as he had Everything, He'd MAKE more stuff to conquer, because He Literally CANNOT STOP.

Rendarkan5/17/2016, 12:31:49 PM2 votes

Honestly... I think Morde is just bored beyond all reason and decided to say "Screw it I'm gonna make a band, name it Pentakill, then travel the world and catch dragons and shit and be a god damn king."

SociopathFriend5/16/2016, 2:11:41 PM2 votes

I would say Mordekaiser would never be done with conquest. If he takes over the whole world he would be the type who constantly saw (or thought he saw) plots rising up against him- which he would crush. Which would inevitably ensure there would be a plot to rise against him- which he may or may not crush.

But I don't think Morde would ever succeed in taking over the entire world. He's got nothing on champions like AurelionSol Bard Diana Ekko Illaoi Kindred Leona Velkoz He's an undying juggernaut- but he's just not up to the league of these guys. Then again, a lot of league's villains became obsolete with the arrival of some of these people- most of Noxus for example is totally irrelevant in the scope of Void and Shadow Isles.