 In the Highlander universe, immortals participate in what is referred to as the game. The game is when one immortal challenges another immortal. Immortals participate in the game in order to obtain the prize by way of a quickening. The rules of the game are as follows, engaging in combat on holy ground is forbidden. Once a battle has begun, interference is not allowed. Combat is limited to one-on-one. Only bladed weapons can be used. And in the end, there can be only one. In the Highlander universe, a quickening is when one immortal receives the power and essence of another immortal. There's a number of ways for immortals to receive a quickening, and in this video we're going to explore and explain those different types of quickenings. In the film Highlander the Final Dimension, which was the third film in the franchise, the quickening is shown to more directly transfer knowledge and skill as opposed to the vague transfer seen elsewhere. In Highlander 2, the quickening deages Connor, who has grown old as an immortal after winning the game in the first Highlander film, and makes him immortal once again. However, this is considered non-canonical. How this occurred after Connor won the game in the first film is because he had gained the quickening of every immortal who had lived on the planet. However, since Highlander 2 revealed the non-canonical origins of immortals as being from another planet, once other immortals began showing up on Earth again, Connor was forced back into the game. The first type of quickening is the main type. This quickening occurs when one immortal takes the head of another immortal during participation in the game. Adrian Paul, who played Duncan McLeod in the Highlander TV series, and the Final 2 films explained, the quickening is the receiving of all the power and knowledge another immortal has obtained throughout his or her life. It is like the receiving of a sacrament, or a massive orgasm. The producers described it as, the power of the quickening is the equivalent to a major electrical storm hitting, windows explode, lights short circuit, it is almost as if the victorious immortal is in the center of a lightning storm. The second type of quickening is an indirect quickening. This type of quickening occurs when an immortal is decapitated by something other than the sword of another immortal. As long as an immortal is present, the surviving immortal gets the quickening. However, if an immortal is beheaded and there is no immortal nearby to receive the quickening, such as if the killer is mortal, or the immortal is decapitated in an accident, then the quickening dissipates. The third type of quickening was introduced in the animated series which followed Quentin McLeod. The quickening of the main character Quentin McLeod were transferred by both he and the immortal Jettiter making the transfer by gripping his or her sword together, which means that an immortal can give up his or her own quickening to another at will, while still able to be taken by beheading an opponent. This type of quickening leaves the immortal who gave up his quickening immortal and able to grow old and die, however it is unknown if this type is considered canonical or not. The first type of quickening, which is the most common, has a few subtypes as well. The first of which is a double quickening. From the 5th season episode Revelation 6-8, the only known example of a double quickening came as Duncan and Mithos battled the remaining horsemen in their lair. Duncan battled Kronos while Mithos turned against his former brothers and battled Silas. As Duncan and Mithos won their respective battles at the same time, the quickenings merged and split between the two in an unusual display of a spiraled lightning effect. The second subtype of quickening number one is that of a dark quickening. A dark quickening is when a buildup of quickenings from evil immortals can overwhelm even the best of immortals and lead to a dark quickening. The dark quickening draws out the darker elements of an immortal psyche as well as forces the receiving immortal to take on the personalities of the dark immortals they had killed until they are evil themselves. Only one immortal has been known to come back from a dark quickening and that was Duncan McLeod with the help of Mithos, the oldest living immortal. The third subtype of quickening number one is that of a light quickening. So far there has only been one known case of a light quickening. That of the immortal monk Darius. A light quickening is when an evil immortal takes the head of an immortal that is so pure and good, the good essence of the defeated immortal is far stronger than the evil and the victorious immortal. So much so that the evil within them is all but destroyed. In the first season of Highlander the TV series, the immortal monk Darius was introduced as an ancient goth warlord who led an army across Europe. When he reached the gates of Paris, Darius encountered an immortal holy man who tried to protect the city. When Darius beheaded the holy man, his pure essence overwhelmed Darius and caused him to disband his army and spend the next thousand years living in peace on holy ground. There is ultimately a fourth subtype of quickening number one that is more rare than a dark or light quickening and that is a holy ground beheading. In Highlander 3 this type of quickening is only hinted at when Connor's sword which shatters into the thousand fragments after he and Cain engage in a duel on the location of a former Buddhist shrine. The two immortals wisely chose to postpone their battle. According to Joe Dawson, there is a watch or legend about two immortals going at it in a temple of Apollo in AD 79 in Pompeii, which may have led to the eruption of Phasuvius. However, he admitted that this was only a rumor and no one knows if it's true or not. It's not clear though if this type of quickening ultimately destroys the winning immortal or not. The fifth subtype of quickening number one is that of a multiple quickening. This type of quickening occurs when one immortal beheads multiple others at a single time either by those immortals willingly giving up their quickenings or by one immortal side stepping the rules and beheading immortals who have taken sanctuary from the game. Immortals in sanctuary according to Highlander Endgame is when an immortal grows tired of the game and chooses to retire. They lay down their sword and enter into hiding. They are placed into a style of solitary confinement via tombs by watchers, restrained with their eyes and ears covered and watched over in secret on mostly holy ground by the watchers. So there you have it guys, in this episode of Highlander, quickenings explained. I hope you enjoyed the video and if so make sure and give it a thumbs up, hit that subscribe button and share it on social media because it would really help the channel out. Until next time my friends, I'm Shannon for Come Again TV. In the end, there can be only one.