Q: Are there different kinds of mark in TFT, and how do I tell them apart?

Yes. The tooltip verbs give it away. Timed-charge marks name a duration and a detonation. The charge sits on one enemy for a set number of seconds, then explodes. Its damage grows with what the caster did during that window. Repeat-cast marks name no timer at all. The phrase to look for is a conditional like "if a star has previously fallen on them". It turns a second cast on the same enemy into a much bigger one. Ally-side marks are not applied by damage in the first place. The wording is "use the Mark to grant". You place it on one of your own units, and the payoff is a buff on that unit rather than a debuff on an enemy. Match the verb to the shape and you will know what the mark is waiting for.

Question 1

What does "Mark" actually mean in TFT?

Accepted Answer

Mark is an umbrella term for any custom status the game stamps onto a unit. A later effect can then read or consume that status.

Unlike crowd control or burn, Mark has no single shared rule set. Each marker defines what its own mark does. Three shapes are live:

A timed charge is stuck to one enemy and detonates on its own clock. Its payload is partly built from what the caster landed while it ticked.
A lasting flag sits on an enemy with no timer. It changes what a repeat cast on that same enemy does.
An ally-side mark is the odd one out. You choose which of your own units carries it, outside of combat, and the trait grants that unit a buff unique to it.

Note: Because every mark is bespoke, always read the source ability's tooltip. Do not assume its behaviour from a sibling marker.

Question 2

Are there different kinds of mark in TFT, and how do I tell them apart?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The tooltip verbs give it away.

Timed-charge marks name a duration and a detonation. The charge sits on one enemy for a set number of seconds, then explodes. Its damage grows with what the caster did during that window.

Repeat-cast marks name no timer at all. The phrase to look for is a conditional like "if a star has previously fallen on them". It turns a second cast on the same enemy into a much bigger one.

Ally-side marks are not applied by damage in the first place. The wording is "use the Mark to grant". You place it on one of your own units, and the payoff is a buff on that unit rather than a debuff on an enemy.

Match the verb to the shape and you will know what the mark is waiting for.

Question 3

Do multiple marks from different sources stack on the same target?

Accepted Answer

It depends on whether the marks come from different sources or the same one.

Across different sources, each marking source tracks its own state on the target.

Marks from one ability are not added to another ability's counter.
The payoffs are independent.
One enemy can carry a timed charge from one caster and a lasting repeat-cast flag from another at the same time. Each resolves on its own terms.

Within a single source, repeat applications follow that source's tooltip. Same-type debuff effects in TFT also do not stack. The strongest of the same kind applies for its duration. So for debuff-style or amp-style marks, a second copy of the same kind generally refreshes rather than doubles up.

Note: The ally-side mark sidesteps the question entirely. There is one of it, you put it on one unit, and moving it moves the buff.

Question 4

How long does a mark last on a target?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the marking source. No shared system sets a duration.

A timed charge spells its window out. The current one lasts 4 seconds and then detonates, whether or not anything else has happened.
A repeat-cast flag carries no timer. It stays on that enemy for as long as the enemy is alive, waiting for a second cast to cash it in.
An ally-side mark is not on a clock either. You pick its holder outside of combat, so it is already in effect the moment the round starts. It is not applied during the fight.

Note: Enemy-side marks are in-combat state. They do not carry over between rounds the way permanent stat-stacking does.

Question 5

Can a unit cleanse a mark, or break out of it?

Accepted Answer

Generally, no.

The closest thing in the current item pool grants Unstoppable at combat start. That keeps the holder acting through displacement and disables while it is up. It is a pre-emptive shrug, not a strip that removes a status already applied.

Marks are not crowd control either. They do not prevent the target from acting, they just flag it for a future payoff. So neither pre-emptive immunity nor reactive cleansing touches them.

Note: The reliable counterplay is to neutralise the marker instead. Kill it, or stall its Mana so it never casts again to cash the flag in.

Question 6

Does a mark persist if the marker dies, or get cleared if the target dies?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the mark. Target death does not always clear it.

When the target dies:

The current timed charge writes an exception into its own rules line. If the enemy carrying the charge dies, the charge moves to the caster's new target instead of being wasted.
A repeat-cast flag is plain target-side state and goes with the enemy that carried it. So killing a flagged enemy is what denies the bigger second cast.

When the marker dies, the answer comes per source rather than from one rule:

A flag that only pays out when its own caster casts again needs that caster alive and casting.
An ally-side mark's buff lives on the unit you placed it on. So it leaves the fight when that unit does.

Note: As always, the source's tooltip is the final word for any specific marker.

Question 7

Does a mark change which target the AI prefers to attack?

Accepted Answer

No. A mark on its own does not move a unit up the target priority list.

TFT's targeting AI prioritises closeness. Units attack the closest enemy in range and break ties by their current target.

What a mark can change is the marker's own reach. While the current timed charge is attached, the caster gains infinite range and a large chunk of Attack Speed. So it keeps feeding the charge from wherever it is standing.

Note: Positioning still matters, but for the payload rather than the priority. That charge splits its damage between every enemy within 2 hexes of the target. An isolated target eats the whole blast, and a tight cluster divides it.

Question 8

How do mark-based execute thresholds interact with shields and damage reduction?

Accepted Answer

Shields and damage reduction delay the execute payoff. Execute payoffs read the target's current Health, so anything layered on top of Health delays them.

The clearest current case is an ally-side mark placed on the right holder. Its buff turns any damage that leaves an enemy below 12% Health into an outright kill.

A shield is a temporary Health overlay that absorbs damage before Health is touched. A shielded enemy stays above that line longer and only becomes executable once the shield is drained.
Resistances and Durability do the same job more slowly. They cut how much of each hit reaches Health, so the target crosses the threshold later.

Note: Marks are not damage in themselves, so they do not ignore Armor or Magic Resist on their own. Only the damage instances they amplify or trigger do, and only when those instances are inherently true damage.

Mark

Champions that apply or scale with Marks (4)

Traits that scale with Marks (1)

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Champions that apply or scale with Marks (4) #

Traits that scale with Marks (1) #

Frequently asked questions

Champions that apply or scale with Marks (4)

Traits that scale with Marks (1)