How Strong Were the Rocks Pirates & Who Defeated Them?

The Rocks Pirates were a legendary pirate crew led by Rocks D. Xebec, who became the most powerful of their era, 38 years before the current timeline. They are, historically, one of the strongest and most feared pirate crews in the history of the One Piece franchise. In this article, we are going to introduce the Rocks Pirates to you and reveal just how powerful they were, as well as how they were ultimately defeated less than 40 years before the current timeline.

The strength of the Rocks Pirates at the time made them the most threatening pirates to the World Government, so the World Government decided to cover up their actions. Aiming to become the strongest crew in the world, Rocks had three of the four future Emperors of the Sea in his ranks. It took the combined might of Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp to defeat them.

The rest of this article is going to tell you two stories about the Rocks Pirates. One is the combined and individual strength of the crew and its members, and the other is going to be the story of the crew’s demise. The article is going to contain spoilers, so if you want to read the whole article, be careful how you’re going to approach it.

How strong were the Rocks Pirates?

The strength of the crew at the time made them the most threatening pirates to the World Government, so the World Government decided to cover up their actions. Aiming to become the strongest crew in the world, he had three of the four future Emperors of the Sea in his ranks. The individual members, along with an overview of their powers and abilities were:

• Rocks D. Xebec was the captain of the Rocks Pirates. He became a prominent pirate forty years ago, before Gol D. Roger came to power. Rocks’ strength is unknown in detail but according to Sengoku, in his day he was so powerful that it took the combined efforts of Garp and Roger to break his might. He is also considered Roger’s first and most formidable rival, even more so than Whitebeard. This is bolstered by the fact that Kaidou thinks that Xebec was one of the few people who were able to stand up to him in combat. Rocks led his own gang, made up of pirates who later became legendary, such as Big Mom, Kaidou, Whitebeard, Shiki, among others. Neither of these likes to follow orders, which gives an image of Rocks’ great leadership. In Sengoku’s memories, Rocks appears wielding a sword.
• John was a famous captain whose body fell into the hands of Dr. Hogback and was modified to be one of Moria’s zombie generals. While alive, he was famous for amassing the greatest treasures in the One Piece universe. His legendary treasure cave has been highly sought after by Buggy. Before forming his own crew, he was part of the Rocks Pirates. In his lifetime, John was such a greedy and loathsome person that he was betrayed by his own crew that mutinied against him.

• Charlotte Linlin is one of the most powerful and influential pirates in the world. The Five Elders mentioned that she is one of the few people capable of stopping Blackbeard. Even the Straw Hat Pirates recognized that they could be quickly crushed if they recklessly fight her. She is called by Kaidou’s subordinates the “strongest woman in the world”.
• Kaidou is one of the few people capable of stopping Blackbeard. Trafalgar Law stated that Kaidou could easily assassinate Donquixote Doflamingo, a world-famous and extremely powerful pirate. Law also speculated that even with an alliance with the Straw Hats, his chances of overthrowing the Emperor were reduced to 30%. This statement may, however, be questionable, as at that time Law was not raising a real and open conflict with Kaidou.
• Edward Newgate was the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates, one of the most powerful crews to ever exist. As the only man in the world he was able to fight on equal terms with the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger. This individual power is reinforced by the fact that Kaido, who is known as “the Most Powerful Creature”, thinks that Whitebeard would be one of the few people capable of facing him in combat.
• Ochoku is a pirate who was a member of the Rocks Pirates, as well as one of those involved in the Rocky Port incident. He was also the former ruler of Hachinosu until he was defeated by Marshall D. Teach, who became the new chief of the island. Like the rest of the Rocks crew, he couldn’t stand each other, going into hiding. Ochoku’s abilities are unknown. According to Sengoku, he was just like Shiki, John, or Silver Axe a renowned pirate, indicating that he must have been very strong.
• Shiki was one of Gol D. Roger’s main enemies, thus showing his enormous power. He was also a great swordsman, as well as the head of the largest pirate fleet of his era. This places him in a position of great power and reputation. He commanded a fleet of at least 51 ships, similar to Don Krieg’s and Whitebeard’s pirate fleet. It is unknown how strong his crew was, but it is known that he was the largest pirate fleet of his time.
• The “Silver Axe” is a supposed member of the Rocks Pirates. Nothing is known about him so we put him on the bottom of this list because we couldn’t really evaluate his strength in comparison to the other members of the crew. We knew that he was notorious among the pirates, but nothing else. We’ll update the article once more information becomes available.

Who defeated the Rocks Pirates?

The Rocks Pirates ruled the seas before the era of Gol D. Roger until 38 years ago and have posed one of the greatest threats to the world government to date. Garp feels that the Rocks Pirates are a thing of the past and seem to have fallen into oblivion. Hina notes, however, that even after their captain died, the former crew members grew in power. Garp replies that the return of the Rocks will pose a great threat to the Navy.

During a Navy meeting following the announcement of Big Mom and Kaido’s alliance, Sengoku confirms Whitebeard’s, Kaido’s, and Big Mom’s former membership in the Rocks’ crew. It also reveals that many pirates known today were part of it, such as Shiki, Silver Axe, Captain John or Ochoku. The crew formed on Pirate Island. However, the members all got along very badly, and murders between companions were common.

The crew was akin to a terrorist organization and their captain’s goal was none other than to become master of the world. They posed a great threat to the World Government according to Sengoku. The crew was, however, defeated in the God Valley Incident 38 years ago, by an unheard-of alliance between Gol D. Roger and Garp, which subsequently earned them the title “Heroes of the Navy”.

The island of God Valley then disappeared and many incidents caused by the crew were covered up by the government. Today, few people still know the name of the Rocks crew, and even their former members hardly mention this part of their lives. It was however revealed that right after the Pirates were defeated, Charlotte Linlin gave Kaido the Uo Uo no Mi and he then ate it.