One Piece’s first commanders are often only second in power, brain, and might to their commanding officers. But as first mates, their loyalty to their crew and captains is often the touchstone of their greatness.
When talking about raw strength, I have a different ranking for you. It goes something like this:
Oden, Rayleigh, Akainu, Benn Beckman, Marco, King, Katakuri, Zoro, Sabo, Shiryu, and Killer.
I also have a list of the strongest first commanders in current canon, which you can check out here.
But since we’re talking about the greatest first mates in the history of One Piece, here are the top 15 that make the cut! Let’s go.
15Mr. 3
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Mr. 3 or Galdino is the first commander to Buggy, one of the 4 Yonkos and the captain of the Buggy Pirates.
Buggy’s official first mate might be Mohji, but Mr. 3, like Shiryu, escaped during the Impel Down riots, and probably went on to become his most valued member after the Impel Down arc.
He is a master tactician, skilled at stealth, able to bypass the surveillance of Level 5 of Impel Down and avoid Aokiji’s Devil Fruit powers.
His own Wax-Wax Paramecia Devil Fruit enables him to manipulate wax, making it sometimes stronger than steel. He can also create clones and keys with his wax, which can prove super useful. It is also resilient to a number of substances like Magellan’s poison.
14Aladine
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Aladine was the first commander to Jinbe, former captain of the Sun Pirates. After Jinbe left, Aladine became the captain of the crew.
Aladine and Jinbe were Fisher Tiger’s closest mates, and even after his death, the two kept a strong bond.
As the doctor of the crew, Aladine’s medical expertise is top-notch, helping Tiger when he was injured.
Aladine has tremendous strength due to the fact that he’s a Merman and a Fishman, being well-versed in both, Fishman Karate and Jujutsu. He performed Kairyu Ipponzeoi, a Fishman Jujutsu technique, to fight Daifuku’s genie who was trying to sink the Thousand Sunny.
13Killer
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Killer is the first commander to Eustass Kid, the captain of the Kid Pirates, whose bounty was recently raised to 3 billion for defeating the Yonko Big Mom.
Killer and Kid share an endearing bond, the former ready to even give up his life to save Kid from people like Hawkins. He also is his captain’s voice of reason, making sure Kid is focused on his goals and doesn’t act rashly.
Killer is the only other non-captain along with Zoro to be a part of the Worst Generation. He consumed the artificial Devil Fruit, SMILE, and became Orochi’s subordinate for a while.
Killer’s endurance is commendable as he survived even Rayleigh’s Haki. His two swords, the Punishers, are his trademark weapons, capable oof cutting bone.
12Shiryu
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Shiryu of the Rain is the first commander to Marshall D. Teach or Blackbeard, one of the 4 Yonkos and captain of the Blackbeard Pirates.
Shiryu joined Blackbeard to avoid imprisonment again after being temporarily being released to reign in the Impel Down riot. He is one of the 10 Titanic Captains and is the captain of the crew’s second ship.
Burgess might be captain of the first ship, but based on strength, which is one of the major defining features of first commanders, especially for people like Blackbeard, I think Shiryu might just be the Blackbeard’s right-hand-man.
Shiryu was waiting for someone like Blackbeard and Blackbeard clearly values the former head jailer for his ruthlessness and power.
His Paramecia-type Clear-Clear Devil Fruit grants him the ability to turn himself and any weapon he might be holding invisible. Being an extremely proficient swordsman, he uses his DF to slice his enemies in the matter of a split second.
11Jinbe
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Jinbe was the first commander to Fisher Tiger, former captain of the Sun Pirates. After Tiger’s death he became the captain of the crew, until he joined the Straw Hat Pirates.
Jinbe was sworn brothers with Tiger and grew up alongside him. When Tiger was enslaved and later attacked the World Government, Jinbe quit his position on Neptune Army to assist him.
Jinbe was made a Warlord of the Sea because of his strength as a Fishman. He is the best Fishman Karate artist the series has seen, including his former captain.
He can read sea currents, predict torrents, interact with whales, and perform a special version of Armament Haki that makes full use of his Karate. He could defeat the Ancient Zoan DF user, Who’s Who with this ability.
10Sabo
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Sabo is the first commander to Monkey D. Dragon, the supreme commander of the Revolutionary Army.
Being the chief-of-staff of one of the 3 world powers in the OP universe, Sabo is definitely one of the stronger players in the field.
He won and ate his brother Ace’s Devil Fruit, the Flame-Flame Logia-type Devil Fruit, thus carrying on his legacy. In the most recent OP manga chapter, it is revealed that Sabo is being called the Emperor of Flames around the world.
He is the master of Ryosoken, a martial art style that can crush metal with fingers. He is also strong and clever enough to have infiltrated Mary Geoise, and battle the admirals Fujitora and Ryokugyo to save Kuma.
9Marco
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Marco the Phoenix was the first commander to Edward Newgate or Whitebeard, formerly one of the 4 Yonkos and the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates.
Marco’s bond with Whitebeard was very similar to that of Roger and Rayleigh. Marco fought valiantly alongside his captain during the Summit War and then against the Blackbeard Pirates.
He took up the captaincy of the crew for a short while, after which he allied with Luffy and the rest against Kaido and Big Mom.
Marco’s rare Mythical Zoan-type Phoenix-Phoenix Devil Fruit gives him infinite healing and regenerative properties, no matter how bad or strong the offensive attacks are.
8King
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King the Conflagration is the first commander to Kaido, formerly one of the 4 Yonkos and the captain of the Beasts Pirates.
He is Kaido’s right-hand-man, his second-in-command, his confidant and the closest thing he has to a friend.
Being a Lunarian, King has the hereditary power to manipulate and create fire. But he also has the Dragon-Dragon Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit, that allows him to transform into a flying Pteranodon.
He is a beast when it comes to hand-to-hand combat, and is also skilled at swordsmanship, being able to disarm Zoro.
7Roronoa Zoro
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Zoro is the first commander to Monkey D. Luffy, one of 4 Yonkos, and the captain of the Straw Hat Pirates.
Formerly a bounty hunter, Zoro himself currently has a huge bounty, considered one of the Supernovas.
Zoro and Luffy are nakama, their relationship based not just on love, but trust and respect. After spending 2 years training with Mihawk, the world’s greatest swordsman, he is currently one of the most skilled swordsmen in the series, being able wield 9 at a time.
To gain victory over King, Zoro drained all his Armament and Conqueror’s Haki into his 3 swords, thus claiming the title King of Hell.
6Kizaru
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Kizaru or Borsalino is the first commander/admiral for Akainu aka Sakazuki, who is the fleet admiral of the Marines.
His Glint-Glint Logia-type Devil Fruit lets him manipulate and become light. He can move at the speed of light, and shoot blinding laser beams from his extremities.
Kizaru was a member of the previous admiral trio alongside of Kuzan/Aokiji and Akainu and has shown Haki strong enough to deflect Whitebeard’s Devil Fruit power.
5Charlotte Katakuri
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Katakuri is the first commander to Charlotte Linlin or Big Mom, formerly one of the 4 Yonkos, and the captain of the Big Mom Pirates.
He’s not just Big Mom’s strongest man, but is also her son, which means when it comes to crew and captain loyalty, Katakuri is definitely up there.
He has shown powerful displays of all 3 types of Haki, being one of the best users of Observation Haki, so much so that he can see slightly into the future.
Katakuri’s Mochi-Mochi Paramecia-type Devil Fruit is similar in property to Luffy’s; it lets him convert inorganic material into mochi.
4Akainu
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Akainu aka Sakazuki was the first commander/admiral to Sengoku, the fleet admiral of the Marines. After Sengoku retired, Akainu took his place as the leader of the Navy.
He is a born leader, a fundamentalist and a strict follower of Absolute Justice.
When he was Sengoku’s subordinate, he followed all his orders down to a T, not because he believed in him blindly but in the law and order of things. Akainu didn’t have any hostility against his commanding officer, but no real love either.
Akainu is extremely intelligent and powerful. I don’t have to tell you how strong Akainu is. His strength, durability, and endurance are so high that he could go toe-to-toe with Whitebeard, the “strongest man in the world.”
His Magma-Magma Devil Fruit is one of the strongest Logia-type fruits we’ve witnessed. Merely using it causes the climate of Punk Hazard to change, in addition to putting fire to the sea itself.
3Benn Beckman
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Benn Beckman is the first commander to Shanks, one of the 4 Yonkos and the captain of the Red Hair Pirates.
We don’t know much about him, but Beckman has the highest IQ in East Blue, and possibly the highest commander bounty in the series. In the same vein, the guy probably has insanely strong Haki, including Conqueror’s Haki, especially seeing as Shanks and the whole crew aren’t Devil Fruit users.
Even Kizaru, who has fought Whitebeard, Rayleigh, and Marco, refused to fight Beckman, despite being held at gunpoint.
He is also fiercely loyal to Shanks and is his most trusted crew member. He’s his number #2 in every sense of the word.
2Kozuki Oden
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Before Marco, Oden was the first commander to Edward Newgate or Whitebeard, formerly one of the 4 Yonkos and the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates.
He was the second division commander of the Whitebeard Pirates and shared a short but strong relationship with his captain.
Initially, Whitebeard didn’t want to take the eager Oden onboard because he thought he wouldn’t respond well to authority. But looking at Oden’s determination and his fierce compassion and loyalty, he quickly became a powerful member of the crew.
Oden, apart from being the daimyo of Kuri and son of Wano’s shogun, had mental and physical strength like no other. He was one of the best samurais we’ve seen, a legendary pirate, and a user of all 3 types of Haki.
He could also read Poneglyphs, which is why Roger insisted he join his crew. Later, Oden traveled with Roger to Laugh Tale and found the One Piece.
1Silvers Rayleigh
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One Piece’s greatest first commander of all time is Rayleigh the Dark Knight. He was the first mate of Pirate King Gol D. Roger, captain of the most powerful pirate crew. Roger referred to Rayleigh as his partner, journeying to find the ultimate treasure – the One Piece.
Rayleigh is not just great; he’s astonishingly strong, even today. He is 100 times stronger than all the 11 Supernovas, despite being 78 years old. But upon his own admission, Rayleigh easily tires in battle due to his age.
He has displayed all 3 types of Haki, and can combine it with his swordsmanship. Even without a Devil Fruit, he wounded Kizaru who was enhanced by his own DF.
Rayleigh and Roger are the ultimate captain-and-first-mate duo, the OGs of the Great Age, only to be closely followed by our favorites – Luffy and Zoro.
Honorary Mention:
This list wouldn’t be complete without mentioning 2 very important – and powerful people:
The first is Monkey D. Garp, who would technically be on #1. But he was the right-hand commander of Sengoku, who was only an admiral at the time, and not the fleet admiral. The second person is Charlotte Linlin. I suspect Big Mom was Rocks D. Xebec’s first commander, but since nothing has been confirmed, all she gets is a shoutout for now.
About One Piece
One Piece is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Eiichiro Oda. It has been serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine since July 22, 1997.
The man who had acquired everything in this world, the Pirate King, is Gol D. Roger. The final words he said at the execution tower were “My treasures? If you want it, I’ll let you have it. Look for it; I left all of it at that place.” These words sent many to the seas, chasing their dreams, headed toward the Grand Line, in search of One Piece. Thus began a new age!
Seeking to be the greatest pirate in the world, young Monkey D. Luffy also heads toward the Grand Line in search of One Piece. His diverse crew is joining him along the way, consisting of a swordsman, marksman, navigator, cook, doctor, archaeologist, and cyborg-shipwright, this will be one memorable adventure.
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