Mordecai

Mordecai is Borderlands' "Hunter" class. He relies on damage dealt with precise marksmanship and the use of falconry to defeat enemies and acquire loot.

Background
At the age of 17, Mordecai won an Interplanetary Sharpshooting competition with a revolver. The other competitors, who were using sniper rifles, accused him of cheating and eventually got him banned from the competition for "unsportsmanlike conduct," although many witnesses noted that he didn't display any unsportsmanlike behaviors until after the accusations began. He now travels from planet to planet with his trusty companion Bloodwing, searching for "everything this freaking universe owes me," which Mordecai has defined as a better gun and unlimited cash.

(Information taken from the Borderlands manual)

Gameplay
Mordecai's play style is that of a sharpshooter. He is well suited for ranged combat, being able to have improved accuracy and dealing the most damage with well placed critical hits. Based on how his skill points are distributed he is also able to do high damage with other guns, though most of his skills lead to a preference of sniper rifles and pistols. His melee weapon is a sword, which can also be a tool of great harm. All of these advantages come at the expense of his own durability under fire. Mordecai's active ability calls his bloodwing, a red-eyed alien bird that can be a very helpful companion in the search for the Vault.

His three skill trees are Sniper, which increases his skills with sniper rifles as well as group experience bonuses and accuracy; Rogue, which mainly focuses on increasing the potency of his Bloodwing as well as gaining loot; and Gunslinger, which improves his usage of pistols, as well as his melee weapon. Playing Mordecai involves making extra use of shields and evasive maneuvers, more than any of the other classes. Fighting in close quarters and boss battles can be difficult, while many fights in open areas will be much easier.

Action Skill
Mordecai has a Bloodwing as a pet,a deadly winged predatory bird that can be unleashed upon enemies to damage or kill them.

Bloodwing can be commanded to attack enemies and can also be upgraded for increased damage and speed at higher levels. Bloodwing will attack any target bracketed in the crosshairs when he launches. If Bloodwing is blind-fired it will seek out the nearest target in the general direction it's master was facing in. Bloodwing's attack range is limited however, and more suitable to close combat conditions than for supporting long range sniping.

Bloodwing can be called back before the full duration of his flight expires. If he was called back before he attacked an enemy, he can be reused immediately. Otherwise his cooldown time will commence when the bird returns after a target has been struck.

Bloodwing will never attack the same target twice in a row. A useful tactic when using the Bird of Prey skill is when there are two enemies remaining, The Bloodwing will constantly alternate between the two targets until it's reached its limit. This is especially useful when Crimson Lance Engineers send out their Scorpio turret, which qualifies as an enemy; Bloodwing will then alternate between the Engineer and his turret.

Despite this being a possible drawback to Bird of Prey, combining it with Aerial Impact can daze multiple targets.

Bloodwing Tips

 * 1) Bloodwing can be launched immediately before entering a vehicle and it will continue to follow until the skill timer expires. It will attack enemies near the vehicle as Bird of Prey permits.
 * 2) Bloodwing can become entangled on obstacles, so some care should be taken to ensure it has clear air when launched and called back.
 * 3) Bloodwing can be recalled by pressing the action skill button, returning before the skill duration expires, and interrupting it from attacking any additional targets with Bird of Prey. This can be useful if the health return from Out For Blood is urgently needed.
 * 4) Health returned from Out For Blood occurs when the Bloodwing returns, rather than when it strikes.
 * 5) Bloodwing's Aerial Impact skill combined with Bird of Prey can be useful for getting past areas unharmed, when speed is preferable over combat. Dazed enemies will have trouble hitting targets, making them easier to run past.
 * 6) Bloodwing will only attack enemies that are visible to Mordecai. He will only circle above Mordecai if the hunter is running away or hiding behind cover.
 * 7) Bloodwing can be targeted on a specific enemy. He will prioritise his attack on the enemy that Mordecai has bracketed in his sights.
 * 8) The predator skill can make bloodwing come back in 13 seconds. It is also possible to find a class mod that adds 4 more points to the predator skill, reducing bloodwing recharge time to as little as 1 second. Combined with bird of prey and aerial impact skill, bloodwing can become the primary mode of attack.
 * 9) Bloodwing is the only action skill that will not be cancelled if the character becomes crippled. This means that if Bloodwing is in flight before Mordecai is crippled, it is possible for Bloodwing to damage or kill enemies for a Second Wind. Bloodwing can even attack before the bleedout timer starts, avoiding short bleed out times if needed.

Skill Tree Calculator
Check out the skill calculator at borderlandsthegame.com. Note - this tool is no longer supported by gearbox and will only calculate to level 61.

Borderlands 2
Mordecai is returning to BL2 but as a non-playable character. One of the missions requires players to help Mordecai find his pet Bloodwing.

Quotes
Entering a game
 * "Sure I'll join ya, just leave the big game to me."

Opening a Chest
 * "So, you want me to share huh?"
 * "I'll just take a gander here"
 * "Lady Luck, do be kind."
 * "Satisfaction abounds."
 * "Hmm...So many to choose from."
 * "Hm...What do we have here?"
 * "Don't mind if I do."

Idle
 * "Sure is great, standing here. I LOVE IT!"
 * "Now that you mention it, I DO love standing here doing NOTHING!!!"
 * "How long you gonna admire that dirt?"

Leveling up
 * "Another notch on my rifle."
 * "Can it be? I'm getting even BETTER at this!"

Scoring a Critical Hit
 * "Boom! Hehehehehehe..."
 * "What? You didn't like that?"
 * "Did that hurt?"
 * "Feel it!"

Killing a Badass or Boss enemy
 * "So big, so angry, so dead."
 * "Nothing like a challenging kill."
 * "I don't think he liked me...ahahahahaha!"
 * "Another trophy for my wall."
 * "Not bad, not bad."

Killing an enemy with Bloodwing
 * "Good boy!"
 * "Someone's getting a treat."
 * "Get 'em Blood!"
 * "You like my pet?"
 * "Give 'em hell, Bloodwing!"
 * "That's my boy!"

Killing enemies
 * "you like that?"

Depleting your ammo
 * "I got no bullets!"
 * "Shit, out of ammo!"
 * "Sonofabitch! Out of ammo!"
 * "Someone give me ammo!"
 * "Out of ammo!"
 * "Damn! No ammo."
 * "I need more ammo."

Spawning a Catch-A-Ride vehicle
 * "Let's get our feet out of the dust."
 * "We're going too slow."
 * "Time for a nice, relaxing drive."

Request to swap (Gunner/Driver) seats in a vehicle
 * "You can't hit shit!"
 * "Swap with me!"
 * "That's enough for you! Switch seats with me!"

Issuing a duel challenge
 * "You looking at Bloodwing? They lookin' at you, Blood?"
 * "C'mon, little girl. Make me laugh."

Getting Crippled
 * "Augh! Why? WWHHHYYYYYYYYYYYY!? Erugh..."
 * "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! I NEVER DIE!"

Reviving an ally
 * "What the Hell's wrong with you? Get UP!"
 * "Don't make me pick you up again!"
 * "Don't slip on your blood getting up. C'mon."
 * "I'm not making enough to watch you fall on your face all day. Get up!"

Spotting items
 * "Nice! Check that out!"
 * "Well shit, look at that!"
 * "Look at this!"

Trivia
''"troops will deploy today if all goes to plan. just met a man named mord-ee-kai. dude, eat something ." ''Referencing Mordecai's rather thin build, which also brings up the question of how Mordecai is even supposed to hold sniper rifles and Rocket launchers.
 * Mordecai's character model prior to the game's release was much beefier looking when compared to the final design. Reaver uses this older character model.
 * The name Mordecai may be a reference to a pet falcon named Mordecai (seeing as Mordecai has a bloodwing which is similar to a pet falcon) in the movie "The Royal Tenenbaums" By Wes Anderson.
 * A bug existed in the initial release of Borderlands that enabled the Hunter to spawn multiple Bloodwings at once. The glitch in action can be viewed here.
 * In the Secret Armory of General Knoxx, his wanted poster states his bounty is $1,000,000.00 for "Poaching and possession of an endangered species", and in red handwritten text at the bottom, "another million for that annoying bird".
 * Mordecai's name may also be a reference to Major Alfred Mordecai of the U.S. Ordnance Department, dating from just before the Civil War. Major Mordecai's procurement research and decisions were a major contributing factor to US military philosophy emphasizing superior marksmanship instead of overwhelming firepower.
 * Mordecai is compared to a Truxican Wrestler at the start of the game when Marcus says, "You there, with the sniper rifle and the crazy mask? You look like a Truxican Wrestler moon-lighting as a dominatrix, man!" "Truxican Wrestler" appears to be a play on the words, "Mexican wrestler," as Mexican wrestlers wear matching masks and suits, not too dissimilar to Mordecai's. The name also appears on a melee orientated class mod.
 * General Knoxx makes a comment on Mordecai on his Twitter account:

Mordecai