The world of One Piece is filled with many different pirate ships and crews that aim to be the strongest one out there in order to find the great treasure, that is the One Piece.
Some pirate crews are made up of a rag-tag group of misfits with one of them being the captain, others have proper roles like that of a first mate, navigator, cook, doctor, shipwright and a gunner, and some even include roles like that of a helmsman, musician or cabin boy.
Very large pirate fleets, like the Yonko groups, also have the role of ‘commanders’ where the strongest members in the crew overlook different sub-sections of the fleet.
Out of all the innumerable pirate crews and fleets in the world of One Piece, there are some that stand out more than the others in terms of power levels, abilities and bounties.
In this list I rank the top 10 strongest Crews of all time, their captains, members and what makes them so special in the story.
10Sun Pirates
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The Sun Pirates is a pirate crew formed by the Fish-Man Fisher Tiger, a former slave who was the one that freed many slaves captured by the World Nobles.
Along with the Fish-Man slaves he freed, Fisher Tiger rebrands the mark of slavery of the Celestial Dragons with a symbol of the sun. He also takes them, and a few other fishmen, to form the Sun Pirates.
The most prominent members of the Sun Pirates include Jinbe and Arlong, Aladine, Hatchan, and (the Pelican Eel Fish-Man) Marco.
Following the death of Fisher Tiger after an ambush by the Navy, Jinbe takes on the role of captain.
Jinbe later joins the Seven Warlords of the Sea, after which they all go their separate ways. Arlong set out with part of the crew to the East Blue, Marco and two others begin a kidnapping ring near the Red Line, and the rest go back to Fish-Man Island.
Much later, after Jinbe leaves them again to join the Straw Hat Pirates, Aladine takes on the role as their new captain.
9Donquixote Family
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The Donquixote Family is a powerful pirate group led by the “Heavenly Demon” Donquixote Doflamingo, a former Warlord and later revealed to be former Celestial Dragon.
Doflamingo began his pirate group along with his brother Donquixote Rosinante and other members like Trebol, Diamante, Pica and Vergo. Later they gain more members like Senor Pink, Sugar, Dellinger, Gladius, Bufallo and Baby 5.
They are well rounded in terms of strength and skill, they also have many powerful Devil-Fruit users in their ranks which makes them a formidable crew.
The Donquixote family were able to take control of the island of Dressrosa by overthrowing the king and making Doflamingo its new ruler.
Doflamingo’s reign of terror lasted until the Straw Hats were able to defeat them and re-conquer the kingdom with help from its former soldiers and other pirates.
8Blackbeard Pirates
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The Blackbeard Pirates were formed by “Blackbeard” Marshall D. Teach, a former member of the Whitebeard Pirates who ran away after killing one of the Whitebeard Commanders and stealing the Dark-Dark Devil Fruit.
The Blackbeard Pirates crew is made up of the Ten Titanic Captains in charge of the 10 ships of their fleet and other allied pirates. The captains include the likes of Van Augur, Jesus Burgess, Laffitte, Doc Q and Shiryu.
The rest of the Ten Captains include the prisoners they managed to break out of Impel Down, Sanjuan Wolf, Vasco Shot, Avalo Pizarro and Catarina Devon. Later we find out that the former Admiral Aokiji Kuzan is also allied with the Blackbeard Pirates.
At the battle at Marineford, Blackbeard kills Whitebeard and steals his Devil Fruit Power, thus being the first person in the world to have the power of two Devil Fruits.
Later he replaces Whitebeard as one of the Four Emperors of the Sea and takes control of most of Whitebeard’s former territories.
7Straw Hat Pirates and Straw Hat Grand Fleet
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The Straw Hats are a Pirate Group formed in the East Blue by “Straw Hat” Luffy,who aims to find the One Piece and become the new Pirate King.
The main members of the Straw Hats include Roronoa Zoro, Vinsmoke Sanji, Nami, Usopp, Tony Tony Chopper, Nico Robin, Franky, Brook and Jinbe.
The Straw Hat Pirates are responsible for defeating the Warlords Gecko Moria, Crocodile and Doflamingo and were also the ones to liberate the kingdoms of Arabasta, Dressrosa and Wano.
After the battle at Dressrosa, seven pirate crews swore allegiance to the Straw Hats, creating the Straw Hat Grand Fleet. This includes members from the Beautiful Pirates, Barto Club, Happo Navy, Ideo Pirates, Tontatta Pirates, New Giant Warrior Pirates and the Yonta Maria Grand Fleet.
They had an alliance with the Fire Tank Pirates when they tried to defeat Big Mom in Totto Land, and an alliance with the Heart Pirates to take down Ceaser Clown in Punk Hazard and Big Mom and Kaido in Wano with help from the Kid Pirates.
Following Luffy’s reveal as the new Emperor of the Sea, the Straw Hat Pirates are now officially a Yonko crew.
6Beasts Pirates
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The Beasts Pirates are a powerful Yonko crew led by “King of the Beasts” Kaido, that helped overthrow the Shogun of Wano and kill its successor, Kozuki Oden.
Kaido started out as an apprentice in the Rocks Pirates. Later he formed the Beasts Pirates along with King, formerly called Alder, Queen and the Fish-Man Jack.
Working with Ceaser Clown and Doflamingo, he was able to create an army of Artificial-Zoan power holders using the SMILE fruits. The Beasts Pirates also have many Ancient Zoan users in their highest ranks, these include Page One, Ulti, Whos’s-Who, Black Maria, Sasaki and X Drake.
After taking control of the land of Wano, the Beasts Pirates settled down at an island nearby called Onigashima.
Kaido was also able to defeat the alliance of Scratchmen Apoo, Basil Hawkins and Eustass Kid and add the first two crews to his army.
Kaido along with the rest of the Beast Pirates were defeated by the joint forces of the Straw Hat Pirates, Heart Pirates, Kid Pirates, Minks, Ninjas and Samurai of Wano.
5 Big Mom Pirates
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The Big Mom Pirates are a Yonko crew that consists of the sons and daughters of “Big Mom” Charlotte Linlin.
Linlin began her own pirate crew after the disbanding of the Rocks Pirates. The Big Mom Pirates include many powerful big-bounty names like Charlotte Katakuri, Charlotte Smoothie, Charlotte Cracker, Charlotte Perospero, Charlotte Oven, and many more.
The Big Mom Pirates rule over an archipelago called Totto Land, in which many different races live together under the rule of Big Mom.
Aside from having their own land, the Big Mom Pirates also have a large pirate fleet. Their main flagship is a gigantic confectionary themed battleship known as the Queen Mama Chanter.
The Big Mom Pirates were challenged by the combined forces of half of the Straw Hat Pirates and the Fire Tank Pirates but remained mostly unharmed.
After being humiliated by the Straw Hats, the Big Mom Pirates made their way to Wano where Linlin and Perospero were both defeated in the final battle.
4Red Haired Pirates
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The Red Haired Pirates is a Yonko crew captained by “Red Haired” Shanks, a former apprentice of the Roger Pirates.
The known crew members include Benn Beckman, Lucky Roux, Yasopp and a few others, although most of the group remains unknown.
Since their chief is one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, the Red Haired Pirates are recognised as one of the strongest pirate crews in the world.
During the War at Marineford, Shanks stopped Admiral Akainu from killing Coby while Beckman stopped Admiral Kizaru from shooting the Heart Pirates’ Submarine.
They are also mentioned by Eustass Kid in Wano when he reveals he lost his arm in a battle against the Red Haired Pirates.
The Red Haired Pirates are the only crew left out of the four original Yonko crews.
3Whitebeard Pirates
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The Whitebeard Pirates were formed by “Whitebeard” Edward Newgate, the strongest of the original Emperors of the Sea.
The main crewmates include division commanders like Marco, Portgas D. Ace, Jozu, and Kozuki Oden, among others. They also have subordinate captains of other pirate groups such as Squard, Little Oars Jr., Whitey Bay, the Decalvan Brothers and others.
The Whitebeard pirates were formed from Edward Newgate’s dream to have a family he could call his own. Most of Whitebeard’s crew call him “Father” or “Pops” out of appreciation for the bond they share.
During the Battle of Marineford, in an attempt to save Ace, Whitebeard was heavily wounded fighting the Navy and was finally finished off by Blackbeard, his former crewmate, who also stole his Devil Fruit Power.
One Year after the Marineford incident, Blackbeard fought and defeated the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates in what was called the Payback War, and later took control of most territories that were under Whitebeard’s name.
2Rocks Pirates
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The Rocks Pirates were a pirate group in the old era led by Rocks D. Xebec, the most dangerous man alive at the time.
Their common quest for fame and fortune led to the group’s formation on the island of Hachinosu, better known as Pirate Island.
The Rocks Pirates were known to be very strong and violent, and would even kill their own crew members.
Their group included some of the most notorious pirates in history. Out of its mysterious cast of crewmates, the ones that we know are Edward Newgate, Charlotte Linlin, Kaido and Shiki the Golden Lion.
The Rocks Pirates ruled the seas unopposed by any other crew. Most of the members would later go on to become big names in the New World.
Thirty years ago, the Rocks Pirates attacked several World Nobles and their slaves on God Valley. Which triggered the navy into reacting.
It took the combined effort of Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp and the future Pirate King, Gol D. Roger to Xebec and his crew for good.
1Roger Pirates
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Led by Gol D. Roger, the Pirate King, Roger Pirates is the strongest pirate crew of all time in One Piece. It’s the only known pirate group to have conquered the Grand Line and New World; and consists of the strongest characters in One Piece including Dark King Rayleigh (Yonkou level) and Scopper Gaban (Yonkou commander).
After his execution, the Roger Pirates disbanded. A few like Buggy and Shanks went on to make their own pirate crews, while some like Rayleigh retired out of the spotlight.
During his execution, Gol D. Roger’s famous last words were: “My treasure? it’s yours if you want it. Search for it! I left it all at that place!”.
The last words of the Pirate King still drives every pirate crew to try to be the strongest crew in the Grand Line, and gives them hope that at the end of their journey, if they tried hard enough, the will finally be able to find the One Piece.
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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