Blackbeard’s Crew Will Be Even Stronger Than The Rocks Pirates, And Here’s Why

With the recent reveal of Xebec being Blackbeard’s father and the legendary ‘Rocks D.’ bloodline being hinted at as being far more important than everyone previously thought, most fans are in agreement over the fact that Blackbeard will likely be the true final villain of One Piece. This is something that has been hinted at since his very first appearance, as Oda has slowly built him up as the perfect counter to Luffy.

With most fans being convinced that Teach will be Luffy’s true endgame foe after Imu, many have even begun wondering the same for the crews of both Yonko. While many have been deliberating about this for some time, a small detail from the Egghead Island arc confirms that the Blackbeard Pirates will be even stronger than the Rocks Pirates and will be the true final villains of One Piece. So, let’s take a look at why this is.

Blackbeard Will Recruit The Seraphim Into His Ranks In The Final War

The Strongest Force On The Seas

The Egghead arc was one of the most important arcs in One Piece’s history due to the many incredible reveals made within it, as well as setting the stage for much of how the Final War will play out. The greatest of these reveals were the Seraphim, who were made by Dr. Vegapunk and the Marine Special Science Group in order to replace the Warlords of the Sea system as one of the Three Great Powers.

Due to the privileges that the Warlords enjoyed because of this system, there was a great abuse of power which caused many of the world’s nations to come together to try and abolish it, which was even supported by Marine Admiral Fujitora. However, there is a delicate balance that must be maintained in the world, which is why the Three Great Powers have to remain strong; otherwise far too much power would fall to one of them alone. This is why the World Government tasked Vegapunk to create a replacement for the Warlords.

By taking the genetic data of the Warlords, Vegapunk managed to create near-perfect clones of each of the original seven, which he mixed with the Lunarian Lineage Factor that he got from King and Green Blood, which allows the user to replicate the effects of Devil Fruits. The result were the Seraphim; perfect weapons of war that could hold their own against the most powerful characters in the series, even at a young age, despite being far from their peak.

The way these Seraphim work is through a chain of command, in that they’re directly controlled, for the most part, by those who give them orders. The highest in this chain are the Gorosei, particularly St. Jaygarcia Saturn, as none supersede their authority in the World Government. However, toward the end of Egghead, Catarina Devon and Van Auger of the Blackbeard Pirates made their sudden appearance on the island.

This caught everyone off-guard, especially when Devon touched Saturn and copied his identity, since her Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, the Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Nine-Tailed Fox, grants her this overpowered ability. Through this, the common consensus among the community is that Blackbeard will use her powers to take control of the Seraphim in the Final War, which would just be perfectly in line with the kind of sneaky and conniving character that he is, especially when he is believed to be the one who will destroy Imu and the World Government for good.

Doing this would be perfect, not only for the character himself, but for the One Piece series as a whole. Through having his own exceptionally powerful crew and the Seraphim together, Blackbeard will undoubtedly create the single most powerful pirate crew in history, surpassing the likes of the Rocks Pirates and, perhaps even, Joyboy’s ancient crew as well.

Why The Seraphim Are The Perfect Endgame Fights For The Straw Hats

Quintessential Match-Ups

• Each of the Seraphim represents a Warlord that has a strong relation to the Straw Hats.

If this ends up being true and the Seraphim do end up coming under the control of Blackbeard, then it would provide the perfect counter for the Straw Hats at the end of the story. Of course, many believe that some of the crew already have their main fight in the Final War, such as Imu for Luffy or Nusjuro for Zoro, but Blackbeard and his incredibly powerful crew making a sudden appearance at the end would be even better.

Despite their incredible performance in their debut on Egghead, Vegapunk stated that the Seraphim are just children right now, and when they grow up, they will be the most powerful force in the world. So, whoever uses the strengths of these living weapons in the Final War will likely be the faction to win in the end. Additionally, many believe that the Seraphim will essentially replace all the new members of the Blackbeard Pirates that joined after the Impel Down arc, aside from Catarina Devon, so let’s see why this would make sense.

Luffy vs. Blackbeard

As if it hasn’t been clear since the Jaya arc, Luffy and Blackbeard stand as mirror opposites to one another and have been destined to fight at the end of the series for years. Although Imu has always been presented as the great evil of One Piece, who has thrown the world into an endless cycle of oppression and evil for centuries, it’s Blackbeard who stands as the antithesis to Luffy’s character in every way. This is the most likely fight to happen in the entire series.

Zoro vs. S-Hawk, The Mihawk Seraphim

Just as clear as the relationship between Luffy and Blackbeard is, Zoro’s relationship with Mihawk is also central to the plot. Mihawk has always been the person who defined Zoro’s entire journey as a swordsman, so it’s only natural that his fight against S-Hawk is guaranteed to happen. This will truly test Zoro’s skill as a swordsman before he fights Mihawk at the very end for the title of the World’s Strongest Swordsman, or this may just be the ultimate battle that decides this.

Sanji vs. S-Flamingo, The Doflamingo Seraphim

Although this one isn’t as clear a match-up to be made as the others, it ultimately does make sense since Doflamingo has always been considered one of the strongest of the Warlords. Sanji suffered a huge defeat against him in Dressrosa, so a fight with an arguably stronger version of the villain would be the perfect opportunity to show how far Sanji has come, as this Seraphim is almost confirmed to be at or even above Yonko level.

Jinbe vs. S-Shark, The Jinbe Seraphim

This match-up may be the most straightforward, since Jinbei would essentially just be fighting an even stronger version of himself who can swim on land. This would also serve as the perfect way to make him stronger for the Final War considering how he hasn’t really had too much of a power-up since the Wano arc ended, and his showings on Egghead and Elbaf haven’t really sold his strength at all.

Robin vs. S-Croc, The Crocodile Seraphim

Robin going up against the Crocodile Seraphim would be one of the most interesting match-ups to see and would be a perfect battle for her to undergo in the Final War. Much of her adult life was spent under the employ of Crocodile as Miss All-Sunday in Baroque Works, which ultimately led to a betrayal by Crocodile, where he almost ended up killing her. Through a fight against S-Croc, Robin can have the perfect symbolic revenge that awaits her at the end of the series.

Brook vs. S-Gecko, The Gecko Moria Seraphim

Just like with Robin, Brook’s entire arc of joining the Straw Hats started off because of his unfortunate run-in with Gecko Moria in the Florian Triangle, where the Warlord stole his shadow. Brook has shown considerable power ever since the time skip and has taken part in many impressive battles, so his fight against Moria’s Seraphim would be the perfect one to cap off his story arc.

Usopp vs. Van Auger, The Sniper

Usopp has been the character whose power-up has been the most awaited in the entire series, to the point that fans have been worried about how he would perform in the Final War. However, his role within the crew truly blossomed in the Enies Lobby arc as the sniper, making him the perfect candidate to battle against Van Auger in the Final War, which would be a battle of snipers and would show just how powerful Usopp has gotten.

Franky vs. Jesus Burgess, The Helmsman

Just like Sanji’s match-up, there isn’t too much of a connection between these two that could hint at a thematic battle between them. However, both Franky and Burgess have always been defined as overly machismo characters with tons of bravado and pride in their strength, so within the context of the Blackbeard Pirates vs. the Straw Hats, this is the perfect one to make for either of them.

Chopper vs. Doc Q, The Doctor

Chopper’s entire character journey has been defined by his desire to help people and become the greatest doctor in the world. On the other hand, Doc Q has been called ‘Death God’ due to him being a doctor who specializes in poison and harming people, the exact opposite of what a doctor should be. Because of this and Chopper’s passion for helping people, these two have always been primed to battle, making this the ultimate fight of Chopper’s life.

Nami vs. Lafitte, The Navigator

Nami has never been a fighter and has only served in support roles in the few combat scenarios that she has been a part of. Lafitte is one of the most mysterious characters in the series, but has also never really been portrayed as a fighter either, so that, along with the fact that they are both navigators, makes this the perfect fight for both characters.

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