How to Brand Orcs and Captains in Shadow of Mordor?

Sneak behind the orc you want to brand.

Rotate the screen until the orc is directly in your sight.

When the orc glows red this means that he is in your range of branding and killing. See how to do the strike from above.

When the Orc glows red the possible options will appear on the screen. Press on the button that says brand and that Orc will fight for you.

After activating orcs you can then give them the command to fight for you by clicking the up arrow (PS4).

To brand a captain you need to weaken him first. Attack the captain until his health goes down then grab him. After grabbing the captain you will be given the option to brand him.

It will be hard to brand a captain in the presence of other orcs as they might attack you while you are grabbing him. Try to isolate the captain first. See how to kill warchiefs.

The branding ability can't be done without learning it. This will happen later in the game, specifically after defeating the black captain and moving to the new area. See how to defeat the black captain.