Rivals in One Piece are kind of its bread and butter. Like, of course it would be, One Piece is a Shounen after all. The protagonist, Monkey D. Luffy, is going to find a rival at every turn that he has to best, all in order to move on and become the next Pirate King. You know, like the original Pirate King a.k.a. Gol D. Roger. But one man threatened even him, and that was Rocks D. Xebec.

It is widely known that even someone as fearsome as Rocks D. Xebec had his rivals in the forms of Gol D. Roger and even Edward Newgate, who was actually his subordinate at the time. But ‘rivals’ is putting it plainly, because it took the combined powers of both Gol D. Roger and Monkey D. Garp, to defeat someone of Rocks D. Xebec’s caliber. It was his loss that earned Monkey D. Garp his title of ‘Hero Of The Marines’. But were there more rivals to Rocks D. Xebec’s legacy?

Okay so here’s the thing: Rocks D. Xebec’s entire history predates Gol D. Rogers, so he was absolutely senior in that hierarchy. And that isn’t even mentioning the crew he had enlisted while being the Captain of the Rocks Pirate Crew, which consisted of some big names such as Kaidou and Big Momma. And they grew up to be mighty pirates in their own right. But can they rival Rocks D. Xebec now? Let’s discuss that and more in today’s segment of Lore Analysis!

Rocks D. Xebec: Trying To Become The King Of The World

Okay but who is Rocks D. Xebec in the first place? Well, according to some fans, he’s one of the scariest antagonists in One Piece. At the helm of the Rocks Pirates, Rocks D. Xebec earned a fearsome reputation for being the strongest pirate of his generation and ruled the High Seas for a fairly long period. 

What was his main goal? Well, after gathering his future crew at the island of Hachinosu, Rocks D. Xebec announced how he wanted to be the ‘King Of The World’. And his actions afterwards would usher in an era of terror that eventually culminated into something known as the ‘God Valley Incident’. All of this made him probably the biggest threat to the World Government, especially with how violent he became.

And violent would exactly be the word to describe Rocks D. Xebec and his Pirate Crew. The Rocks Pirates were in constant conflict with each other, with the joining process being a literal fight till the last man was left standing. So naturally, the Rocks Pirates grew infamous as one of the strongest out there, with the World Government labeling them as a terrorist organization that even they couldn’t stomp down.  

Gol D. Roger, Whitebeard And Monkey D. Garp Were Rocks Main Rivals

So, how did Rocks D. Xebec’s reign of terror end? Well, the World Government couldn’t do much to hinder him, nor could the other Pirates. In the end, it took the combined powers of Gol D. Rogers and Monkey D. Garp to finally bring him down. Gol. D Rogers was always the only one that could hold his own against Rocks D. Xebec, but Garp? Garp was a wildcard with no prior reputation. 

Well, this is what the God Valley Incident was all about. Rocks D. Xebec decided to attack the Celestial Dragons and he was met with the combined might of the Roger Pirates and the Marines. And Rocks D. Xebec having to fight against Gol D. Roger, his biggest rival, was bad enough. Add to that Monkey D. Garp and it was that edge that Gol D. Roger needed to finally take down Rocks D. Xebec. 

So, while Gol D. Roger was Rocks D. Xebec’s biggest rival, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Monkey D. Garp should also be counted in that list. Of course, he only gained that notoriety after defeating Rocks D. Xebec in the first place, but still. Monkey D. Garp has proven himself to be more than just a formidable opponent over the course of One Piece, especially with how he constantly goes against the authority of the Admirals and the Marines and gets away with it. 

But another contender for one of Rocks D. Xebec’s rival is Edward Newgate, aka Whitebeard. Whitebeard is a weird one, because he was part of Rock’s Pirate Crew, and later became one of the Four Emperors. However, it makes sense once you realize how he might’ve had an in on what Rocks D. Xebec’s weaknesses were. Especially when you consider how Whitebeard grew to be much less of a hot head than Rocks D. Xebec. 

In any case, it’s been a while since we’ve seen Rocks D. Xebec in action. And Sengoku did confirm that he had died a long time ago, like his primary rival a.k.a. Gol D. Roger. But hey, you never know when this information can come in handy!