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When Eiichiro Oda began building One Piece’s massive world of pirates, it felt limitless, a living ocean full of legends, mysterious islands, and powerful figures whose stories seemed unconnected except by the waves they sailed on. Yet, as the final saga unfolds, a startling truth emerges: much of that vast pirate history traces back to a single point of origin, the Rocks Pirates.
What was once a scattered constellation of lore now looks like fragments of one broken empire. From the Yonko system to infamous treasures, from shadowy mafia families to entire pirate islands, the fingerprints of Rocks are everywhere. In hindsight, it’s a storytelling masterstroke, and Oda patiently built a sprawling world only to reveal that its foundations were laid by one crew that sailed sixty years ago.
This is the story of how the Rocks Pirates shaped the pirate world, from their rise alongside the end of the Giants’ era to their shattering at God Valley to the lingering echoes that still define the seas of One Piece today.
How the Rocks Pirates have hidden links across One Piece
1) The end of the Giants’ Era
Long before pirates dominated the headlines of the One Piece world, the New World belonged to the giants of Elbaf. For centuries, their warriors were unmatched in strength, influence, and fearlessness. Their leader, Harold, was not technically a pirate, but his power, freedom, and dominance over the seas made him the de facto Pirate King of his age.
With companions like Dorry and Brogy, the famed Giant Warrior Pirates, Harold’s Elbaf stood as the mightiest nation in the world. For generations, this status quo remained untouched. Then came a slow, almost peaceful transition: the giant warrior crews disbanded, Harold turned toward diplomacy, and Elbaf itself embraced a more pacifistic stance.
The giants’ retreat from domination left a power vacuum. Into that space stepped humans of unprecedented strength, and at the center of this human wave was a name destined to shake the world: Rocks D. Xebec.
2) The rise of the Rocks Empire
The Rocks Pirates weren’t just a crew; they were a coalition of monsters. Kaido, Big Mom, Whitebeard, and others sailed under Rocks’ flag before they became the feared emperors of our era. In fact, the Yonko system we know today is less a collection of unrelated rulers and more the scattered remains of one unified empire.
It’s a chilling thought: the four most feared pirate captains of the Great Pirate Era were once shipmates. Their later empires, Big Mom’s Totto Land, Kaido’s Wano occupation, and Whitebeard’s vast territories, are splinters of the same vessel. Even Blackbeard, the “new” Emperor, appears to be chasing Rocks’ shadow.
Some theorize the web runs even deeper. Theories about Buggy’s possible lineage tie him to Rocks, and if true, it would mean nearly every Yonko in history stems from that one ship. The “age of the emperors” is really just the aftershock of God Valley.
3) The forgotten emperor: Shiki the Golden Lion
No discussion of Rocks’ influence in One Piece is complete without Shiki. Often overshadowed in fan discussions due to his anime film portrayal and defeat in Chapter 0, Shiki was in many ways the missing fourth Emperor of his era.
On Rocks’ ship, he was second only to Whitebeard in prominence; Kaido and Big Mom were still unpolished weapons then. After the crew’s breakup, Shiki built the largest pirate fleet of his time and was poised to dominate the seas. He even fought Gol D. Roger to a standstill, only losing his advantage due to a freak storm.
Had he not self-destructed his career by storming Marineford alone in a fit of rage over Roger’s capture, Shiki likely would have been the first formally recognized Yonko. Instead, history remembers the emperors who lived to hold their territories, not the lion who roared too soon.
4) Loki, the one who is as strong as a Yonko
Another figure shaped by Rocks’ shadow is Loki, a lone pirate who tore through the New World for eight years without a crew, alliance, or safe harbor. His rampage made him the most wanted solo pirate in history until Shanks stopped him.
That battle in One Piece crowned Shanks as a Yonko, meaning even his rise was linked to toppling a would-be successor to Rocks’ legacy. The original four emperors at the story’s start? All are either former Rocks Pirates or products of defeating them.
5) Pirate island: Rocks’ throne
Long before the Davy Back Fight revealed its legend, Pirate Island (Hachinosu) was more than a lawless haven; it was the Rocks Pirates’ headquarters. For perhaps the only time in history, so many legendary pirates gathered in one place, creating a force to rival the World Government itself.
Modern attempts at pirate utopias pale in comparison. Even decades later, Pirate Island in One Piece retained its prestige under Wang Zhi, another Rocks veteran who ruled outside the Yonko system, an exceptional feat in the New World. It took the combined effort of Koby, Trafalgar Law, and Blackbeard to finally oust him in the Rocky Port Incident.
The fact that Wang Zhi held that seat for decades speaks volumes about the enduring power of Rocks’ remnants.
6) Captain John’s treasure and the God Valley mystery
If the One Piece itself is the most legendary treasure, Captain John’s hoard might be second. First teased on Jaya and relentlessly pursued by Buggy, this fortune once belonged to another member of the Rocks Pirates.
There’s a compelling theory that John’s treasure is the same “certain valuable” that sparked the God Valley Incident, a prize stolen from the Rocks Pirates by the World Government before being reclaimed (or stolen again) during the battle. If John absconded with it during the crew’s collapse, that would explain both its fame and its connection to Pirate Island.
7) Bakkins, MADS, and scientific parallels
Rocks’ reach wasn’t limited to brute force. Miss Bakkin, claiming to be Whitebeard’s lover and Weevil’s mother, was a “science robber” tied to MADS, the outlaw scientific group that once included Vegapunk, Judge, Queen, and Caesar Clown.
In many ways, MADS in One Piece mirrored Rocks: a congregation of geniuses whose breakup scattered innovations (and dangers) across the world. Bakkin’s presence hints at covert missions that may have funded or supplied Rocks-era operations, blending science and piracy in a way that still ripples through the current story.
8) The Kuja legacy
Even the faraway island of Amazon Lily bears Rocks’ mark. The Kuja Pirates, now captained by Boa Hancock, are only the latest in a line of leaders dating back four generations. The first? Gloriosa, an elder of Amazon Lily, and a former Rock Pirate.
This suggests the crew’s traditions and reputation as fearsome warriors on the high seas were seeded during Rocks’ reign, continuing long after the God Valley split.
9) The West Blue’s mafia roots
In this series, the West Blue is known for its gangsters. Capone Bege in One Piece rose through its underworld to become one of the “Five Families of the West,” but the culture itself may have begun with another Rocks veteran: Don Marlon.
As with so many other regions, the archetype of the West Blue mob boss may trace back to a single Rocks-era figure whose influence outlasted his crew.
10) Roger’s Parallel Legacy
If Rocks in One Piece built the pirate world’s structure, Gol D. Roger shaped its spirit. The God Valley Incident didn’t just shatter Rocks’ empire; it elevated Roger, who inspired the next generation.
Shanks, Luffy, and even Buggy began their journeys chasing Roger’s legend. Most of the Supernovas and countless small-time captains owe their dreams to the Pirate King, not to Rocks. Where Rocks’ remnants maintained the old order, Roger’s inheritors sought to surpass it.
11) The Final Act: Breaking the old world
Now, in One Piece’s final saga, the last pieces of this centuries-spanning puzzle click into place. Luffy’s era isn’t just about finding the One Piece; it’s about dismantling a world order that has been in place since Rocks’ fall.
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Blackbeard’s ambitions mirror Rocks’ hunger. The World Government still fears a unified pirate front. And the scattered legacies of Rocks are converging once again.
If Oda’s plan holds, the endgame may not just reveal the truth about the Void Century or the One Piece itself but also close the loop on the saga that began at God Valley.
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