Outsider's Mark

The Outsider's Mark is a special brand granted by the Outsider to individuals of his choosing, which gives them access and resistance to an array of supernatural abilities.

The Mark is given without regard for merit to individuals who have piqued the Outsider's interest. Bearers of the Mark can use runes to strengthen their powers and gain new abilities. The Outsider places no conditions on marked individuals, allowing them to use their powers as they see fit. He will, however, occasionally direct marked individuals toward certain actions, such as when he gave Daud the name Delilah and challenged him to solve its mystery.

In The Knife of Dunwall, which takes place during the events of Dishonored (between the Months of High Cold and Hearths of 1837), the Outsider tells Daud that only eight people in the world currently bear his Mark.

Zhukov was not marked by the Outsider. Instead, he carved the Mark into his hand himself, with the same knife used to sacrifice the young man who then became the Outsider. His powers are unrelated to the Mark.

Known Recipients

 * 1803 - Unknown Woman
 * 1807 - Vera Moray
 * 1820 - Daud
 * 1831 - Delilah Copperspoon
 * 1835 - "Lonely Rat Boy"
 * 1837 - Corvo Attano
 * 1852 - Emily Kaldwin

Trivia

 * During The Knife of Dunwall, Corvo is included in the eight people mentioned by the Outsider, despite him not receiving the Mark until a month later. This has been acknowledged as an error by the developers.
 * There appears to be some discomfort associated with receiving the Outsider's Mark, aside from the branding animation that suggests said discomfort. With the Lonely Rat Boy, the hand bearing the Mark began to itch, while Emily described it as "burning from the inside".
 * In Dishonored: The Corroded Man, the mark on Corvo's hand is described as "burning" or tingling with the "electricity of the Void", a feeling that intensifies the more Corvo uses his powers.
 * When their supernatural abilities are used, the Mark on the hands of Corvo, Daud and Emily glow for a brief moment.
 * In Dishonored, Corvo's Mark glows bright yellowish-orange glow with a similar-colored smoke when his powers are in use. Daud's Mark is a darker orange glow with corresponding smoke when his powers are in use. In Dishonored 2, Emily's Mark glow blue with blue smoke, while Corvo's glows white and emit white smoke. If Corvo is chosen as the protagonist and marked for the second time, his mark also glow blue like Emily's but without any smoke.
 * The glow of Daud's Mark grows brighter or dimmer based on the proximity of runes and bone charms when his Void Gaze is employed.
 * In Dishonored, after Corvo and Daud switch powers, their marks also glow and smoke.
 * Marked individuals can see the symbol glow when activated on other marked individuals. Whether or not those not so marked can see this effect is unknown.
 * While Delilah claims to bear an Outsider's Mark on her hand, one is not visible.
 * Those who are marked have increased vitality and can stay healthy for longer than the average person.
 * There exists a secret cult in which members brand themselves with a replica of the Outsider's Mark.
 * People who were not bestowed the Mark by the Outsider can still learn supernatural abilities from those who are, but only in cases where the mark bearer has the power to pass it on. This is the case with Daud's gang of assassins, Granny Rags' apprentice Morris Sullivan, and Delilah's coven of witches. The extent of these abilities varies from one individual to another.
 * The Mark was designed by the artist Charles Bae. Originally, a triskel design was explored, as it referenced the Circle of Life. The three interlocking forms represent the bearer's killer instinct and their ability to be unseen. The mark then evolved to become something more tribal in nature and 'never before seen' as a reference to the Outsider's otherworldy nature.
 * In Death of the Outsider, the Mark is revealed to be the Outsider's real name, written in a language only the dead can read. If Billie Lurk decides to spare the Outsider, the spirit of Daud whispers the name to her, and the Outsider is returned to the land of the living.
 * A severed marked hand can bestow a fraction of the mark bearer's powers upon those who possess it. Such artifacts are very rare, as those who bear the Mark are few.
 * In an early draft of Dishonored, Daud would cut off Corvo's marked hand during The Flooded District mission, and the players can then choose to find and reattach it with the help of the Outsider, or continue the game without any power, in which case Corvo would get a mechanical hand.  This concept was later revisited with Billie Lurk's Black Shard Arm.
 * In the novel The Veiled Terror Dribner, a former member of the Academy of Natural Philosophy, believes that the Outsider's removal from the Void during the events of Death of the Outsider removed the power of the Outsider's Mark and consequently the powers of those Marked by him.