Kalgara

Calgara (カルガラ, Karugara) was a hero of the Shandians who lived while Upper Yard was still a part of Jaya (some 400 years ago), and who befriended the explorer Montblanc Noland (the ancestor of Montblanc Cricket). A statue of him was erected after his death as an eternal reminder to the Shandians of his strength and courage. He had a daughter named Mousse. Wiper is a direct descendant of his.

Appearance
Calgara's most striking feature is his long mass of red hair that extends down to his knees. He has red tattoos on both shoulders and wears purple laced-leg pants (similar in style to those worn by Native Americans) under a grass skirt. Like all Shandians, he has a pair of small, white wings extending from his back.

Personality
Calgara was quick to react and a strong believer in traditions of his people. He was hugely mistrusting of strangers. Calgara's personality changed after he met Noland with many of his outtakes of the world changing alongside it. One particular note was that after seeing his God for what it truly was (a giant snake), he dismisses all Gods including the Skypieans "God".

Powers and Abilities
Not much is known about Calgara, except that he was considered the Shandian tribe's greatest warrior and has been shown to fight on even terms with Noland, and killed a giant snake himself, demonstrating he was incredibly strong. It should be stressed that both his descendant Wiper and the pirate hunter Zoro, both notable in their own right for their exceptional strength, couldn't so much as harm the snake Nola of the same size.

He is also apparently very fast, as he has been known to swiftly dispatch intruders as soon as they appear on the island. Those that have heard of any legends about him often compare him to a demon.

Weapons
Like many others from his tribe he wields a spear, something he seems quite adept with as he used it to kill a giant snake. He also uses a giant iron ball on a chain, in the same way Garp did, swinging it and utilizing it with ease, despite its giant size.

History
After their dying priest had a 'vision', he declared the only way to stop the "curse" that was plaguing their land was to sacrifice their most beautiful woman. Mousse, Calgara's daughter, went willing to the altar in order to save the rest of her people. She was about to be sacrifice to God, but she was saved by Montblanc Noland Calgara fought against Noland, but after Noland was distracted by his daughter who was unwilling to flee from the altar, he finally struck the explorer in the chest.

Noland declared that he could cure the village without needless human sacrifice and given the deadline of sunset to prove this, or join Mousse and his crew on the altar. Calagara declared the first sign of trouble and he would kill Noland, heading out to find the explorer he found Seto just outside, who had discovered that he carried the plague the day before. . When Calgara asks how he is feeling, Seto says "much better" to Calgara's shock.

The next day, an earthquake hits the island, thinking this is God's wrath, Calgara rushes out to find and kill Noland. Calgara mocked Noland after finding him trapped in a crack in the ground. After God's daughter came to devour Noland, Noland pleaded with Calgara one last time. Hearing the speech, Calgara finally listened and killed Jaya. Wondering whether he did wrong or not, Calgara stood there for a moment unsure of the fate of his people, Noland ensure him things were fine. Later, Noland cured the entire village of the illness, Noland and Calgara became friends and laughed and drank together.

Noland stayed on the island a few days longer, exploring what other trees and plants grew on the island. During this time, his crew found a viper, Noland and Calgara found themselves laughing over the viper being the great snake's granddaughter.

Having been convinced Noland and his crew were okay people, Calgara showed them Shandora, the city of gold which his people protected. In the ruins of the great city, Noland was shown the bell of Shandora which first brought him to the island.

However, it is revealed that Noland and his crew cut down an entire forest, whose trees the Shandians believed to guide the souls of their ancestors, causing the Shandians to act towards Noland with hostility. Noland did so because the trees were the source of the disease that plagued the Shandians in the first place, and decided to leave anyway, as he and his crew were once again seen as outsiders. However, Calgara realized the truth too late, as Noland's crew was already on their ship leaving.

This didn't stop Calgara though, and he rang the golden bell that first attracted Noland to Jaya, promising that he would wait for Noland's return. Sadly that was not to be, as one fateful day, the part of the island they were on was shot into the air by the Knock Up Stream and into Skypiea, where it attracted the attention of the "god" of the time, who then proceeded to attack it and the Shandians in order to claim it as his own. Calgara found himself struggling to breath suddenly.

The last seen of him was shouting to his warriors that they must protect the land so that their friend Noland can return. He died honorably in battle never knowing the fate of his friend Noland. Calgara's call to relight the light of Shandora would later inspire his descendant Wiper to attempt to complete Calgara's final wish.

Noland! Light the Fire of Shandora!!!

Anime and Manga Differences
In the manga, the frame containing his last actions depicted him standing still yelling "Relight the fire of Shandora" implying that was his very last action. In the anime, while he still shouted out, he also was seen fighting instead. This is a curious note as Calgara was struggling with breathing problems moments before hand and in the manga it seemed to have a greater impact on him than in the anime, where he continued on as if nothing was wrong.

Merchandise
He featured in was the One Piece Full Color R Gashapon series and One Piece Unlimited Adventure as an optional boss. He is a level 5 character, which means that (in the game) his strength rivals that of extremely powerful One Piece characters like Luffy, Aokiji, Shanks and even Whitebeard.

Trivia

 * When Calgara was shot into the sky, he complained that it was suddenly difficult to breathe. It is most likely he was suffering from a high altitude related illness, since he was shot into the sky suddenly fast, having no time for his body to adjust. One of the common symptoms of high altitude related illnesses is difficulty breathing.