Blackbeard Pirates

The Blackbeard Pirates are an extremely infamous and powerful pirate fleet led by their admiral, Marshall D. Teach, better known as "Blackbeard", one of the Four Emperors and one of the main antagonist groups of the series.

Blackbeard was originally a member of the Whitebeard Pirates (and Portgas D. Ace's subordinate), until he murdered one of his crewmates over a Devil Fruit and defected, heading out to form his own crew. Blackbeard was Crocodile's replacement among the Seven Warlords of the Sea, having captured the wanted pirate Ace to obtain his position, but resigned after forfeiting the privilege by raiding Impel Down and recruiting several notorious prisoners for his crew from Level 6.

During the timeskip, after clashing with the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates led by Marco the Phoenix and emerging victorious, Blackbeard usurped the status of the deceased Whitebeard as one of the Four Emperors. Following the Rocky Port Incident, the Blackbeard Pirates made Hachinosu their main base.

Jolly Roger
The Blackbeard Pirates' flag is that of three scowling skulls: one looking left, one looking forward, and one looking right. Behind them there are cross intersected sets of bones, in addition to the classic two.

Territories
Following Whitebeard's death and the events of the Payback War, Teach went on to conquer most of Whitebeard's former territories, with the known exception of Fish-Man Island, which originally became part of the Big Mom Pirates' territory after Whitebeard's death. Sphinx is currently the only other known remnant of Whitebeard's territory that is confirmed to be not under Blackbeard's rule.

Hachinosu is under their protection as they favor the festivities there.

Crew Strength


As their admiral was a former subordinate member of the 2nd division of the Whitebeard Pirates, a former Warlord of the Sea and currently one of the Four Emperors; the Blackbeard Pirates are an extremely powerful crew and are currently recognized as one of the four strongest pirate crews in the world.

Even when only 5 men were in the crew at that time, the Blackbeard Pirates were a mighty force to be reckoned with. Their first appearance, an attack on Drum Island, was so overwhelming that the island's selfish king, Wapol, fled without even attempting to fight back. The Blackbeard Pirates were also able to break into Impel Down's Level 4 without much difficulty (though Impel Down was, at the time, admittedly strained due to multiple riots). Every member (with the exception of Sanjuan Wolf) has also taken a direct hit from Sengoku's shock wave attack and got up easily, with only minor injuries. Great endurance and strength aside, each member possesses a special crew position (discounting the new recruits - it is unknown what positions they hold), though how well they perform such jobs is unknown.

The Blackbeard Pirates, Sanjuan Wolf excluded, dealt the final killing blows to the legendary pirate Whitebeard, taking advantage of Whitebeard's grievous injuries with a nine-against-one attack. Additionally, they captured Jewelry Bonney, a member of the Worst Generation with a bounty of 140,000,000, who was then deemed too weak to join their crew and was instead given the option to become Blackbeard's "woman".

The crew also managed to decisively crush Marco and the remaining members of the Whitebeard Pirates (who had come at them with their full forces) in a ferocious battle a year after the Summit War of Marineford. Most recently, Blackbeard and his crew attacked the Revolutionary Army's island base of Baltigo, resulting in it being completely devastated and the Revolutionary Army abandoning the island, followed by doing battle with the Cipher Pol and the Marines, before retreating. Law himself said that the powers of the Blackbeard Pirates were very terrifying and that their rewards were increasingly impressive. Naturally, as an Emperor's crew, they have subordinate crews that affiliate themselves with them, such as the Peachbeard Pirates, though Teach is said to care little about their well-being

Members

 * Van Augur, the sniper, has tremendous marksmanship skill, being able to shoot a flock of seagulls from a distance so far, the Straw Hat Pirates could not even see the island he was on. He is able to predict where a bullet is going to hit and can run at an amazing speed to avoid it. Augur has now (post-time skip) become captain of Blackbeard's third ship and gained the Wapu Wapu no Mi.
 * Jesus Burgess, the helmsman, is a wrestling champion who possess incredible strength and won every fight while he was in Mock Town. He is also able to throw buildings with much ease and at impressive distances, even while airborne. Furthermore, Burgess has now (post-time skip) become the captain of Blackbeard's first ship, and he is now so infamous that everyone in the Corrida Colosseum recognized him immediately and was shocked by his presence. Burgess is now strong enough that he was able to take down all the contestants in Block A without getting a single scratch. He was able to blow away a full-grown Fighting Fish with just a blow from his elbow and has knowledge of Kenbunshoku and Busoshoku Haki. He was seen using Busoshoku Haki when he fought "Lucy". He has since gained the Riki Riki no Mi.
 * Laffitte, the navigator and a former sheriff in the West Blue, is a master of stealth and infiltration, and was able to sneak undetected into the capital of the World Government and the domain of the Celestial Dragons, Mary Geoise, during a meeting between several high-ranking Marine officials (including the former Fleet Admiral Sengoku) and three Warlords of the Sea, despite having tap-dance shoes on. He also seems to possess a Devil Fruit ability that allows him to sprout wings on his back, making him capable of flight, and possesses the power of hypnosis, though whether these abilities are connected or not is unknown. Laffitte has now (post-time skip) become the captain of the fifth ship of Blackbeard's fleet and has earned the epithet "Demon Sheriff".
 * Doc Q, the doctor, and his horse, Stronger, despite both being stricken with chronic sickness, are an extremely powerful duo. Being exceptionally skilled in cavalry combat, Doc Q and Stronger rely on perfect teamwork and coordination with Stronger galloping towards enemies at high speed while carrying Doc Q who strikes enemies down with his double-bladed scythe. Doc Q has now (post-time skip) become captain of Blackbeard's ninth ship and gained the Shiku Shiku no Mi, while Stronger now has the Uma Uma no Mi, Model: Pegasus.
 * Shiryu of the Rain, the former Head Jailer of Impel Down, is a fearsome master swordsman, said to be equal to the extremely powerful former Warden Magellan, a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit user who was strong enough to take care of Monkey D. Luffy, hundreds of prisoners, every member of the Blackbeard Pirates alone (though Shiryu noted that the crew had been careless against Magellan's poisonous powers). Shiryu has now (post-time skip) become captain of Blackbeard's second ship. He has also acquired the Suke Suke no Mi.

After their break-in of Impel Down, excluding Shiryu, the crew recruited four other pirates, their crimes so terrible that the World Government chose to literally erase their existence from history, locking them in Level 6: Eternal Hell, the deepest level of the underwater prison. Though they have yet to show their full powers, they are some of the most feared legendary criminals in the world. The Marines even said that even just one of the prisoners walking free again is unthinkable. In fact, during the riot at Impel Down, Blackbeard selected them in a "survival fight" among the Level 6 prisoners, in which they appeared to easily achieve victory with no visible injuries after the battle, making them the most powerful inmates in all of Impel Down at the time.
 * Sanjuan Wolf, the "Colossal Battleship", is the largest giant who has ever lived, courtesy of a currently unnamed Paramecia-type Devil Fruit. Wolf has now (post-time skip) become the captain of the seventh ship of Blackbeard's fleet.
 * Vasco Shot, the "Heavy Drinker", is a man known for his love of liquor and bloodlust. Shot has now (post-time skip) become the captain of the eighth ship of Blackbeard's fleet.
 * Avalo Pizarro, the "Corrupt King", was once the tyrannical king of a kingdom in the North Blue until his subjects rose up and toppled him from his throne. Pizarro has now (post-time skip) become the captain of the fourth ship of Blackbeard's fleet.
 * Catarina Devon, the "Crescent Moon Hunter", is the worst female criminal in history. She is a ruthless killer that collects the severed heads of beautiful women. Devon ate the Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Kyubi no Kitsune, giving her the ability to transform into and assume the abilities of a nine-tailed fox, which include shapeshifting. Devon has now (post-time skip) become the captain of the sixth ship of Blackbeard's fleet.

The crew recruited Kuzan, a former Marine Admiral and a feared man throughout the world. After losing in a 10-day long battle with Akainu over who would be Fleet Admiral, Kuzan left the Marines. He ate the Hie Hie no Mi, a Logia type Devil Fruit that allows him to control, manipulate, and become ice. Having bore the rank of Admiral before his resignation, Kuzan's combat might was considered one of the strongest; he was able to freeze an entire town and even a Sweet Commander of Big Mom's into submission.

However, the true strength of the Blackbeard Pirates lies in their fearsome admiral, Marshall D. Teach, better known as "Blackbeard". Initially a relatively unknown name, Blackbeard has performed the incredible feat of landing a permanent scar on Red-Haired Shanks, who is famed as one of the Four Emperors in the world, prior to eating a Devil Fruit, as well as defeating two of the division commanders of the Whitebeard Pirates, Portgas D. Ace and Thatch. When asked why he had not become one of the commanders of his old crew, Teach claimed that he did not have that "ambition". Teach ate one of the most powerful known Logia-type Devil Fruits, the Yami Yami no Mi, said to be the "most evil", and held the position of a Warlord of the Sea, until he forfeited the title after he used it to reach Impel Down and recruit the prisoners mentioned above. With the assistance of his crew, Blackbeard ganged up on Whitebeard with a barrage of gunshots and stabs and killed him in a rather cowardly fashion.

He somehow acquired the power of the Gura Gura no Mi from Whitebeard's corpse, which is said to be the strongest Paramecia-type Devil Fruit, making him the only known person in history to wield two Devil Fruit powers at the same time. Along with his extensive knowledge of Whitebeard's sphere of influence, the Five Elders have deemed him the likeliest candidate for usurping the deceased Whitebeard's place as one of the Four Emperors; a prediction which came true following Blackbeard's devastating victory over Marco and the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates.

After the timeskip, it appears the Blackbeard Pirates have grown much stronger and more powerful. According to Jinbe, they have been hunting and stealing Devil Fruit powers to increase their crew's overall strength, making a name for themselves as Ability User Hunters (能力者狩り). Indeed, Jesus Burgess has shown knowledge on this mysterious method of obtaining powers after death and attempted to do so against Luffy to gain the powers of the Gomu Gomu no Mi. Eventually, they succeeded in stealing enough Devil Fruits and were able to give most officers of the Blackbeard Pirates a Devil Fruit, increasing their overall and formerly already powerful crew's strength significantly, with only Avalo Pizarro and Vasco Shot are yet to be confirmed to be Devil Fruit users.

The crew has also grown in such numbers that it has been organized into divisions. According to Gatz, Blackbeard is supported by Ten Titanic Captains (10人の巨漢船長), with Jesus Burgess, Shiryu, Van Augur, Avalo Pizarro, Laffitte, Catarina Devon, Vasco Shot, Sanjuan Wolf, and Doc Q being nine of them, along with only one unknown member.

Ships


Prior to the time-skip, the Blackbeard Pirates utilized a giant raft (丸太舟) for a ship.

The raft is made up of gigantic trees possibly wound together. Around the sides of the raft are gunports. A large mast is posted in the middle, bearing the flag of the Blackbeard Pirates and three sails. Another sail is placed at the stern of the raft, behind the main sails. The other means of propulsion, other than the wind, seems to be that the crew uses paddles or oars to move the raft along. Jesus Burgess and surprisingly Doc Q were seen paddling.

The raft was first seen in the Jaya Arc, when the Blackbeard Pirates were chasing after the Straw Hat Pirates. It was broken up by the Knock Up Stream. The raft was eventually repaired by either them or someone else, but they used a stolen Marine ship to sail to Impel Down, as opposed to their own ship.

After the war, the ship was nearly broken down, due to the extremely large giant, Sanjuan Wolf. Because of this, the Blackbeard Pirates were trying to exchange the prisoner Jewelry Bonney for a Marine battleship; Shiryu commented that it was foolishly impractical for the crew to travel through the New World with the raft alone, but Burgess claimed that they were rather attached to the raft. They were, however, surprised by Admiral Akainu's arrival and fled. Since the exchange did not take place, it can be assumed that they used the raft to flee from the Marines.



After the time-skip, they have gained a signature ship called the Saber of Xebec. They have obtained numerous ships, as each of the Ten Titanic Captains have command over a ship. Currently two ships have been seen, and they now resemble actual battleships, although they have a large log on each side, which resemble the original raft.

Past


Teach formed his crew some time after killing Thatch and stealing the Yami Yami no Mi.

The Blackbeard Pirates arrived and attacked the kingdom of Drum Island. Upon seeing their immense power, the cruel and cowardly king, Wapol, fled without even fighting back.

Jaya Arc


Laffitte marks the first official visual appearance of the crew by appearing at Mary Geoise to recommend Blackbeard to replace Crocodile as one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. The other crew members are first seen in Mock Town on the island of Jaya, playing several "games" to see how their fate works out. When Monkey D. Luffy meets Blackbeard himself in a tavern, they at first seem to have the exact opposite opinions on the bar's food and beverages. While Luffy hates the bar's pie, Blackbeard loves it, and while Luffy loves one of the bar's drinks, Blackbeard hates it, which leads to them challenging each other to a fight, but they decide not to go through with it when Nami points out that they are fighting for no reason.

Later on, after the Bellamy Pirates taunt them for believing in Sky Island, Blackbeard assures the Straw Hats that it does exist and in response to the notion of the "New Age", states that people will never stop dreaming. Because of this, Blackbeard's true motives are a mystery. When Blackbeard finds out about Luffy's high bounty, he and his crew try to capture him, but the Straw Hats are launched into the sky by the Knock Up Stream before they can make an attempt.

Post-Enies Lobby Arc


While the crew was pillaging the Banaro Island Blackbeard reads about the Straw Hat Pirates' feat in Enies Lobby in the newspaper. Since the island is close to Water Seven, he decides to go capture him and bring him to the World Government to prove that he was a worthy candidate for the vacant position of Crocodile's Warlord. However, before they could set sail, Ace stops them. Although Blackbeard tries to convince him to join his crew, Ace, after learning of his intentions to harm his little brother, decides to take on Blackbeard, where the latter is victorious. Blackbeard then hands Ace over, instead of Luffy, to the Marines to acquire the position in the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

Amazon Lily Arc
During the preparations for the war, Blackbeard is seen sitting along with his fellow Warlords of the Sea.

Impel Down Arc
Roughly five hours before the execution, he and his crew steal a Marine ship from Marineford and set off to Impel Down, where they planned to break in to recruit several inmates from Level 6. After dispatching several guards and encountering former chief guard Shiryu (mistakenly identified as Magellan), they appear on Level 4, where Blackbeard eliminates Hannyabal's backup team before crushing Hannyabal personally. The five then face off against the breakout crew that includes Jinbe, Crocodile, Inazuma, Daz Bonez, Bentham, and Luffy.



As time is running out for Ace, the breakout army simply runs around Blackbeard, who allows them to pass through. The Blackbeard Pirates are then confronted by Magellan, who proceeds to drench them in poison with his Hydra attack. They are saved by Shiryu, who presents them with an antidote. Shiryu, who was only released temporarily because the jailers required his help in managing the chaos in Impel Down, is offered a position in the crew by Teach as Shiryu cites that he had been waiting for a person like Blackbeard and accepts the proposal to join his crew in order to avoid being imprisoned once again by Magellan.

With Shiryu on their side, the crew make their way to level six where Blackbeard had the inmates fight to the death with the survivors becoming part of his crew. It is unknown how many inmates were killed, but the Blackbeard Pirates gained four new members before they fled the prison while not knowing or caring there were some inmates who survived and escaped as well.

Marineford Arc


After the Summit War of Marineford has reached its pinnacle point, the Blackbeard Pirates returned to Marineford with several of the most legendary and feared prisoners from Impel Down as their new recruits. Teach informed Sengoku that he only wanted the Warlord title so he could break into Impel Down, and was then assaulted brutally by Whitebeard. The Blackbeard Pirates then attacked Whitebeard all together, brutally killing him. After that, the Blackbeard Pirates covered Blackbeard and Whitebeard with a black cloth, inside which Blackbeard somehow stole Whitebeard's Gura Gura no Mi powers by an unknown method, and then declared that the new era belongs to him with his powers of darkness and earthquakes.

When Blackbeard stated he would sink Marineford, Sengoku retaliated by hitting the entire crew with a shockwave. They later left on account of Shanks and his crew arriving on the battlefield.

Post-War Arc


Some time later, on a burning island in the New World, the crew defeated the Bonney Pirates and kept them as compensation for their transaction with the Marines. The deal was to give them Jewelry Bonney in exchange for a Marine battleship to replace their raft, which was about to break due to the weight of Sanjuan Wolf. As they waited eating and talking among themselves, Blackbeard asked Bonney to be his wife, but she kicked him, causing Blackbeard to get angry while the rest of the crew laughed. However, when they discovered that the Marines were not interested in dealing with them and sent Admiral Akainu after them, the Blackbeard Pirates quickly fled the island, leaving the Bonney Pirates alone.

During the Timeskip


A year after the Summit War of Marineford, Blackbeard and his crew engaged Marco and the remnants of the Whitebeard Pirates in a ferocious battle that has been referenced as the "Payback War", which ended in an overwhelming defeat for the Whitebeard Pirates. Due to this victory, Blackbeard successfully arrogated the vacant Emperor position formerly held by Whitebeard, as the Five Elders had feared. Teach, knowing his former superior's territory all too well, annexed his territory with ease. According to rumors, the Blackbeard Pirates have also been searching for people with strong Devil Fruit powers, in order to absorb them.

The crew's size has expanded being increased to ten divisions, led by warriors known as the "Ten Titanic Captains". His fellow crewmates, Shiryu and Laffitte, had become the captains of the second and fifth ships, respectively. Other crewmates Avalo Pizarro, Catarina Devon, Vasco Shot, Sanjuan Wolf, Van Augur, and Doc Q also became captains of their own ships as well.

Following the Rocky Port Incident they were able to make Hachinosu their base of operations.

Dressrosa Arc
After the battle royale of Block A in the Corrida Colosseum tournament for the Mera Mera no Mi had ended, it was announced that a participant called Mr. Store had won. It was quickly revealed that Mr. Store was in fact Jesus Burgess, and was now one of the four qualifiers.

During the battle between Luffy (as Lucy) and Chinjao, Burgess goes to the observation deck and comments that Block C has got interesting. He then wonders who Lucy is. After witnessing his victory in his group's battle royale, Burgess realizes that the man is in fact Luffy and gets excited.



After Block C ended, Burgess converses with Blackbeard via Den Den Mushi about the possible recruitment of Kuzan. As Luffy was passing by, Burgess handed him the Den Den Mushi, which allowed him to talk to Blackbeard, where he is surprised that he is there, as well as telling him that Burgess would be the winner and get the fruit,but Luffy said he wouldn't allow it, provoking laughter in both Burgess and Blackbeard.

After Sabo, like Lucy, acquired the power of the Mera Mera no Mi and demolished the arena, Burgess fell into the underground trade port. Burgess then noticed that Lucy was not Luffy and was frustrated that he was deprived of his opportunity to acquire the Devil Fruit.



During the final battle between Luffy and Doflamingo, Burgess is on top of the royal palace watching as the events unfold while wondering what to do next. After Luffy's Gear 4 ran out and he was weakened, Burgess took the opportunity to try and kill him to obtain the Gomu Gomu no Mi, however Sabo stopped him. Although at first not intending to mess with him, Burgess confronted him after seeing that he possessed the Mera Mera no Mi.

Despite his efforts, Burgess was defeated easily by Sabo. In a last-ditch attempt to try and kill Sabo off guard, the revolutionary uses a a fiery point-blank attack.

The newest associate of the Blackbeard Pirates was later revealed to be Kuzan, during the meeting between the Five Elders and Sakazuki. His status within the crew is unknown.

Zou Arc


Laffitte and Shiryu received a call from Burgess, who had stowed away on a ship and had reached Baltigo, the location of the Revolutionary Army headquarters. Burgess told Laffitte to tell Blackbeard to bring everyone and attack, as they could obtain a lot of weapons. The Blackbeard Pirates later attacked the Revolutionary Army's base and destroyed it before the Marines and Cipher Pol arrived, but the Revolutionary Army was able to escape. The crew retreated after briefly clashing with Cipher Pol.

Levely Arc
As the news of Luffy's exploits at Totto Land spread across the world, Teach read the newspaper at some unknown location and laughed while commenting that it was too soon for Luffy to be called an Emperor. The other members of the Blackbeard Pirates stood nearby as they listened.

Wano Country Arc
On Hachinosu, Absalom is discovered by the crew, and he was later killed by the crew, in addition to Shiryu taking his power.

A few days later, Gecko Moria and his zombies attacked the island in search of Blackbeard and his subordinate. Avalo Pizarro was notified of Moria's attack by some subordinates, although he did not seem to care much. While Catarina Devon had posed as Absalom to distract Moria so that Shiryu, who turned invisible, would attack him and many of his zombies. Blackbeard then invited Moria to join his crew and also mentioned that the bloody struggle between the mighty for the throne had begun.



After the Levely, with the release of the news that the World Government was abolishing the Seven Warlords of the Sea, Teach ordered his crew to set sail with plans to acquire Boa Hancock's Mero Mero no Mi before the Marines could take it. The Blackbeard Pirates led an attack on Amazon Lily while it was simultaneously being attacked by the Marines and Seraphim. Hancock petrified most of the pirates, which included Catarina Devon and Vasco Shot, save for Teach himself, who was able to defeat her. He was kept from killing her by the arrival of Silvers Rayleigh, who convinced Hancock to restore everyone and intimidated the Blackbeard Pirates into leaving. The crew later captured Koby.

Germa 66's Ahh... An Emotionless Excursion
Kuzan and Van Augur infiltrated Cacao Island in Totto Land, Big Mom's territory, and abducted Charlotte Pudding. When Charlotte Cracker tried to stop them, Kuzan froze Chocolat Town, including Cracker and the residents. Kuzan and Augur then took Pudding back to their ship.

Egghead Arc
Sometime afterward, Blackbeard and some of his Titanic Captains laid an ambush near an island north-east of Wano Country, knowing either the Straw Hat, Kid, or Heart Pirates would sail there, with the intent to steal their Road Poneglyph etchings, successfully cornering and confronting the latter on Winner Island.

Early Concepts
The concepts in One Piece Green: Secret Pieces show the Blackbeard Pirates have appearances and names different from their finished counterparts. Marshall D. Teach was originally named Everything D. Teach. Van Augur was originally named Van Wagot. Jesus Burgess was originally named Lapaix Jesus. Vasco Shot had more of a Viking-like appearance and was named Basurero Shot. Catarina Devon was shown to be more beautiful in appearance. Three original characters, a jester-like man named King Joker (キング・ジョーカー), a man named Last Lion (ラスト・ライオン), and a fox-like woman named Kitsune (キツネ) were to be members, but this idea was scrapped, and King Joker's appearance passed on to Vasco Shot. Catarina Devon was also subsequently revealed to have the ability to transform into a nine-tailed fox.

Trivia

 * Van Augur is the only crew member who kept his character design from the flashback shown of the Blackbeard Pirates' assault on Drum Island.
 * A model of the Blackbeard Pirates' raft is presented in One Piece Super Ship Collection.
 * During the Impel Down Arc, Emporio Ivankov describes Level 6 prisoners to Mr. 2, aside from Avalo Pizarro, those described join the Blackbeard Pirates.
 * A fan asked Oda why he did not make any of the crew members beautiful, and Oda answered that they correspond to "pirate themes".
 * The Blackbeard Pirates share a few connections to the legendary pirate Rocks D. Xebec and the Rocks Pirates.
 * Their base of operations is on Hachinosu, where the Rocks Pirates were formed.
 * Their current ship is named the Saber of Xebec.
 * Also, the leaders of both crews have the Will of D.
 * The Blackbeard Pirates and Whitebeard Pirates are the only known pirate crews to feature all three categories of Devil Fruit in their ranks.

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