Highlander/Main

> *"Like the rocks that break the waves, Highlanders have weathered many storms. Ancient alliances kept their lands safe but their owes have come due. They join our war out of obligation but they are not to be underestimated. Their claymore is the heaviest sword ever wielded. It can cut down even the most armored warrior. The elements battering their lands have made them strong. War has made them deadly."*
>
>

## Highlander/Main

* Pic
* Gif

## Stats

### Sprint Speed

5.5 m/s

**Highlander** are a playable hero in For Honor.

## Overview

The Highlander is not a typical hard-headed Viking. Ancient alliances and obligations have pulled them into this war, otherwise they would have remained guarding their homelands. They can stay in a defensive posture and stand toe to toe with the fiercest of warriors, weathering the flurry of blows with their claymore... until they see a momentary weakness and then they pounce, displaying their true strength and speed revealed with sweeping strikes and heavy blows. They are never going to be the first to jump into battle, as they will plan each move and always be ready to counter. The mountains have made them hard and resilient; war has made them deadly.

## Armor

Highlanders have most of their armor covered by their clothes but some scale armor can be seen. They have a fur cape and a metal head band. Their pauldrons and greaves are made of leather and they wear their signature kilt.

## Weapon

**Claymore** - The heaviest and longest sword on the battlefield. It slashes through the defenses of the opponent's shield and armor like butter.

## Trivia

* Though a part of the Viking faction, the Highlander appears to be of Celtic heritage (primarily Scottish and Irish) and only assists the Vikings due to ancient alliances between the two people.
	+ The Highlander may also draw some inspiration from the Gallowglass, Norse-Gaelic mercenaries famously known for their use of the Claymore.
* The term "Claymore" originates from the Scottish *claidheamh-mór*, which translates either to "great sword" or "broadsword"
	+ The term was first documented in reference to the basket-hilted swords of the 18th century favored by Highland warriors.  Its name was in reference to the size relative to the contemporary small sword.
	+ Though older, the two-handed sword (*claidheamh dà làimh*) of medieval Scotland began to be called a Claymore in the 19th century retroactively.  However, some debate exists within the historical and martial arts communities over the legitimacy of this terminology.
	+ While the official description says the Claymore is capable of cutting through armor, actual Claymores are unable to cut through steel armor, although it is able to cut through leather or cloth.
	+ It is worth noting that the Highlander's Claymore is larger than its historical counterparts. The weapon more closely resembles an exaggerated form of the 16th century Greatsword, a weapon more associated with the German *Landsknecht*. Combat-ready examples rarely exceeded 8 pounds and traditionally functioned as a lightweight Area Denial weapon in the hands of professional bodyguards.
* Highlander's fighting style is likely inspired by an exaggerated form of German Longsword, similar to the Warden.
	+ Defensive form:
		- Highlander's Light Openers are based on the Half-Sword, a technique where a swordsman holds his sword by the blade, allowing the weapon to be used in a manner akin to a spear. This offered superior point control, especially necessary when faced against heavily armored opponents.
		- His Side Guards are based on a variant of *Vom Tag* (From the Roof). However, this guard is traditionally used to set up an overhead cut, or block the same from an opponent. Highlander instead adopts *Mittelhut* (Middle Guard) before performing a *Mittelhau* (Middle Hew) as his Heavy Opener.
		- His Top Guard is based on *Zornhut* (Wrath Guard), a stance mainly used to set up *Zornhau* (Wrath Hew). Highlander however, adopts a more pronounced *Vom Tag* guard just prior to performing a *Zornhau* as his Heavy Opener.
	+ Offensive Form:
		- Highlander's Side guards are likely based on *Nebenhut* (Near Guard), a stance able to set up a rising diagonal cut (*Unterhau*), rather than the horizontal strike used by the Highlander
		- Highlander's Top guard is not featured in any preserved treatise. However, it does resemble one of the stances of Siegfried Schtauffen, a fictional *Landsknecht* fighter from the Fighting game series *Soul Calibur*.
* Before Marching Fire, the Highlander alongside the Shaman were the only Heroes in *For Honor* to not have some kind of headgear or mask that obscures their face.
* Although Highlander is gender-locked to be Male in the game, an order quote from the Rite of Champions event makes note of the existence of female Highlanders.
	+ "With her dying breath, Andraste the Highlander honored Lachlan with this sword."
* Description errors:
	+ Originally, the official website mistakenly said "the Highlander is not a *'head'*-headed Viking." This error was fixed afterwards.
	+ The names of the Highlander's executions and the Gladiator's were switched at release but was corrected later on.
* The phrase, "Dunmaghlas," said by the Highlander when he enters his Offensive Stance, is a Scottish war cry that can be traced back to the Highland Scottish clans.
	+ "Touch not this cat" is a common motto motif for Highland clans, one of such being the MacGillivray who is mistaken for having the motto of "Touch not the cat but a glove," which actually belongs to multiple clans, such as the Macpherson and Mackintosh.
		- One of the writing staff for the game is a descendant of the MacGillivray.
	+ Dunmaghlas (also written as "Dunmaglass") is the Anglicised name of an estate and multiple chief-castles in Scotland.
	+ The phrase can be understood in two ways: as a motto or as a battle-cry dedicated to the Clan Seat. The two are not one and the same.
		- As a motto, the phrase can be translated as "touch not the cat when its claws are out," or to put it in the context of the Highlander, "Do not try to challenge a Highlander that is ready to fight."
		- As a battle-cry, it refers to Dunmaglass as the Clan Seat, the home of the Clan. In Scottish Gaelic, it is written as "Dùn Mac Glais" and literally means in this context "for the fortress of the sons of Glas."
* The Highlander's voice actor is Ólafur Darri Ólafsson.
* The name for the signature "Aonaibh Ri Chéile" is the motto of Clan Cameron and translates to "let us unite."
* The emote "Par-5" refers to a golf term for a hole that is expected to take an expert golfer 5 strokes to complete. For most golf courses, a par-5 is the longest hole; par-6 holes exist but are rare.
* Moveset:
	+ "Tirna Nog" (Light-Light-Heavy combo) is in reference to the Irish mythology, "Tír na nÓg," which is one of the names of the Celtic Otherworld.
	+ "Lowland Slashes" (Light-Heavy combo) may be in reference to the Scottish Lowlands.
	+ "Banshee's Wail" (Heavy-Heavy combo) is in reference to the female spirit of Irish folklore who heralds the death of a family member. This is usually done through some form of cry (ie, screaming, shrieking, *wailing*).
	+ While there is no explicit trivia about "Celtic Curse," it is highly unlikely to be tied to Hemochromatosis, a metabolic disorder that has been named the "Irish Curse" or "Celtic Curse" due to its high prevalence among people with ancestry in the British Isles and Ireland.
	+ "Balor's Might" (Offensive Heavy) references the leader of the Fomorians (see below) of the same name. He is often described as a giant with a large eye that wreaks destruction when opened.
	+ "Formorian Kick" (Offensive Kick) is in reference to Fomorians (commonly misspelled as Formorian), which is a malevolent supernatural race in Irish mythology.
	+ "Caber Toss" (Offensive Grab) is a reference to the traditional Scottish athletic event of the same name.

## Quotes

### Combat

* **Gaelic**: "Dunmaghlas!" - **English**: "Touch not the cat but a glove."
	+ Entering Offensive Stance
* **Icelandic**: "Kryfja hann!" - **English**: "Dissect him!"
	+ Hitting with Balor's Might (Offensive Stance Heavy)
* **Icelandic**: "Til orrustu!" - **English**: "To battle!"
	+ Celtic Curse
* **Icelandic**: "Fjallabrjótur!" - **English**: "Mountain breaker!"
	+ Formorian Kick
* **Icelandic**: "Dauðinn blasir við þér!" - **English**: "You face death!"
	+ Caber Toss
* **Icelandic**: "Bestu þakkir!" - **English**: "Sincerest thanks!"
	+ When Revived
* **Icelandic**: "Við höldum áfram!" - **English**: "We keep going!"
	+ When Revived
* **Icelandic**: "Þreyttir fá enga hvild!" - **English**: "The tired shall have no rest!"
	+ When Revived
* **Icelandic**: "Aftur til starfa!" - **English**: "Back to work!"
	+ When Revived
* **Icelandic**: "Við höfum verk að vinna!" - **English**: "We have work to do!"
	+ When Revived
* **Icelandic**: "Áfram með ykkur!" - **English**: "Onwards with you!"
	+ When Revived
* **Icelandic**: "Enginn tími til að hvílast!" - **English**: "No time to rest!"
	+ When Revived

### Emotes

* **Icelandic**: "Nú ertu dauður!" - **English**: "Now you're dead."
	+ Intent To Behead Execution
* **Icelandic:** "Dauðinn blasir við þér!" - **English:** "You face death"
	+ Fatal Toss Execution
* **Icelandic**: "Kjúklingur á teini!" - **English**: "Chicken on a skewer!"
	+ Deep Cut Execution
* **Icelandic**: "Áfram með ykkur!" - **English**: "Onwards with you!"
	+ Heave-Ho Execution
* **Icelandic**: "Enn er verk að vinna! Áfram með ykkur!" - **English**: "There's still work to be done! Onwards with you!"
	+ Done My Smash Execution
* **Icelandic**: "Já ég er svo hættulegur. HRM! Er svo sterkur. Heh heh heh."– **English**: "Oh yeah, I'm so dangerous. HRM! (I'm) so strong. Heh heh heh."
	+ Lumberjack Chop Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Jæja!"– **English**: "Well then."
	+ Last Stand Emote or Oohrah! Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Andskotans djöfull!" - **English**: "Bloody hell."
	+ Insult To Injury Emote, Sole T Emote, Nap Time Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Fyrirgefðu mér!" - **English**: "Forgive me."
	+ Moment of Reflection Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Hei, þú!" - **English**: "Hey, you!"
	+ It's Go Time! Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Nú deyrðu!" - **English**: "Now you die."
	+ Hunker Down Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Allt of þungt." - **English**: "Way too heavy."
	+ I Have The Power! Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Ég vissi ekki að geirfuglinn gæti flogið!" - **English**: "I didn't know the Great Auk could fly."
	+ Par 5 Emote
		- A Great Auk, "geirfugl", is a large flightless bird once common to Icelandic nature but extinct since 1844.
* **Icelandic**: "Helvítis sverð!" - **English**: "Damn sword."
	+ Nap Time Emote
* **Icelandic**: "Nú deyrðu." - **English**: "Now you die."
	+ Hunker Down Emote

### Feats

* **Icelandic**: "Dýrabogi." – **English**: "Animal trap." or "Animal bow."
	+ Bear Trap
* **Icelandic**: "Ber er hver að baki nema sér bróður eigi." – **English**: "Bare is your back unless a brother you have."
	+ Inspire
* **Icelandic**: "Fljúðu." – **English**: "Fly."
	+ Long bow
* **Icelandic**: "Einbeita sér." – **English**: "Focus."
	+ Second Wind
* **Icelandic**: "Nú er ég reiður." – **English**: "Now I am angry."
	+ Fury
* **Icelandic**: "Skjotið!" – **English**: "Fire!"
	+ Spear Storm
* **Icelandic**: "Fáum okkur hressingu!" – **English**: "Let's have some refreshment!"
	+ Champion's Aura

## References

1. ↑ Developer Eric Pope's Reddit comment