One Piece: All known members of SWORD, ranked weakest to strongest

The latest episodes of the One Piece anime saw Monkey D. Garp and the members of SWORD storming Hachinosu to rescue Koby, who the Blackbeard Pirates had captured. SWORD is a secret Marine unit comprising officers who can operate without being bound by orders. These Marines still work for the Navy but have formally resigned from the organization, meaning their official ranks often don’t measure up to their capabilities.

This freedom of action is balanced by the fact that neither the Navy nor the World Government is obliged to help the members of SWORD if they get into trouble. Many One Piece fans consider Garp to be an honorary member of SWORD, given that the unit seems to take inspiration from the same principles of selflessness and freedom that characterize Luffy's eccentric grandfather.

That said, here’s a list of the confirmed members of the group, ranked from weakest to strongest. The leader of SWORD appears to be X Drake, an officer who gained fame as one of the Worst Generation's Eleven Supernovas while posing as a pirate. However, the most powerful member of the unit is Koby. An old acquaintance of Luffy and Zoro, Koby trained relentlessly under Garp’s tutelage and proved his worth during the battle on Hachinosu.

Every confirmed member of SWORD ranked from least to most powerful as of One Piece chapter 1131

6) Hibari

Hibari as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Hibari is a young female officer of SWORD. Rather than a frontline fighter, Hibari is best used as a long-range support for her comrades. She is a skilled sniper, capable of firing countless shots while remaining undetected. Hibari’s rifle is loaded with Dr Vegapunk’s special Flower Bullets, which allow her to turn any gunpowder she hits into flowers.

During the SWORD group’s raid on Hachinosu, Hibari used her projectiles to disarm many grunts of the Blackbeard Pirates. At one point, former Marine Admiral Kuzan “Aokiji” used his Devil Fruit powers to freeze her. Fortunately, she survived as her fellow Marine comrades defrosted her body.

5) Kujaku

Kujaku as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Rear Admiral Kujaku is the granddaughter of Tsuru, a legendary Marine officer – still in service – who in her heyday was considered a prominent figure alongside the likes of Sengoku, Monkey D. Garp, Silvers Rayleigh, Gol D. Roger, Shiki, and Whitebeard.

Kujaku can use the Whip-Whip Fruit to tame anything she strikes with her whip. This Paramecia-type Devil Fruit gives her the power to implant obedience into inanimate objects such as buildings and structures, forcing them to move as she wishes, even though that should be physically impossible.

As seen in the recent One Piece episodes, Kujaku used this surreal ability to trap and defeat several low-ranked members of the Blackbeard Pirates.

4) Helmeppo

Helmeppo as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

At the story's beginning, Helmeppo was a spoiled and cowardly boy who exploited the status of his father, “Ax Hand” Morgan, to threaten people. After Morgan’s defeat at the hands of Monkey D. Luffy and Roronoa Zoro, Helmeppo befriended Koby. The two worked their way up in the Navy, starting as cabin boys until Monkey D. Garp took them as his students.

Garp’s harsh training has made Helmeppo braver and more mature. Working hard every day, Helmeppo became a skilled fighter even though he was a complete weakling. Nowadays, Helmeppo can use Soru to move at speeds comparable to Koby and Prince Grus. It has been implied that he can use Observation Haki, though not as well as Koby.

Helmeppo’s signature weapon is a pair of kukri blades. He used them to easily defeat a crew of New World pirates who had tried to attack the Dressrosa Kingdom convoy on its way to the Levely. During the battle on Hachinosu, Helmeppo supported Koby and Prince Grus, constantly covering their backs from incoming attacks.

3) Prince Grus

Prince Grus as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Prince Grus is a versatile fighter who can use the Glorp-Glorp Fruit to create and control clay. While clay is a natural element, the One Piece story has not yet clarified whether Grus can fully transform his body into clay. Therefore, whether this Devil Fruit is a Logia or a Paramecia is still unknown. Either way, Grus uses it to perform different techniques.

He can block incoming attacks by generating large masses of soft clay to mellow the impact. He can also create clay golems that fight for him, similar to how Charlotte Cracker uses his Devil Fruit to create biscuit soldiers. These clay golems can reform when damaged, reassembling their bodies in the same way as Logia users.

Grus is also a powerful melee fighter. He combines his Devil Fruit abilities with Rokushiki, using Soru to move at high speeds and then striking his enemies with weapons made up of hardened clay. Grus easily defeated Gotti, the third strongest member of the Fire Tank Pirates, a Worst Generation crew.

The formal rank of Prince Grus is that of Rear Admiral, but his fighting skills are probably higher than those of most Vice Admirals. In fact, his overall combat power may not be far from that of X Drake, the alleged leader of the SWORD unit. Grus seems to have a rivalry with Koby, being jealous of Garp’s recognition of the pink-haired officer. Even so, Grus and Koby worked as a perfect team during the recent battle on Hachinosu.

2) X Drake

X Drake as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

Stated to be the commanding officer of the SWORD unit, X Drake was initially introduced in One Piece as a former Rear Admiral who left the Navy to become a pirate. In truth, he only pretended to do so to work undercover.

Acting as a pirate, Drake made a name for himself as one of the Eleven Supernovas of the Worst Generation. He was even accepted into the Beasts Pirates as one of the Flying Six, an elite group within Kaido’s crew. After his cover was blown, he joined forces with the Ninja-Pirate-Mink-Samurai Alliance that had attacked Onigashima.

Drake dual-wields a sword and a four-bladed ax. Using these weapons, he is strong enough to take down a Number — an artificially created Ancient Giant — with a single blow. He can also use Armament Haki, as evidenced by the fact that he effortlessly defeated Caribou, a Logia user.

As an Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit user, Drake can transform himself into a hybrid between a human and a carnivorous dinosaur, greatly increasing his toughness and physical strength. During the Onigashima conflict, Drake was no match for CP0 agent Guernika, who brutally beat him. Even so, Guernika praised Drake’s sheer endurance and pain tolerance.

1) Koby

Koby, as seen in One Piece (Image via Toei Animation)

The timid boy who was once bullied on Alvida’s ship has risen to become a world-famous hero. Inspired by Luffy and Zoro, whom he met at the beginning of the One Piece story, Koby found the courage to follow his dreams. He joined the Marines and began training under the tutelage of Monkey D. Garp.

With his commendable determination and hard work, Koby went from a total weakling to a powerful fighter in a very short period. Garp himself recognized Koby as the future of the Navy for his kind heart and insane potential. Koby’s strength continued to skyrocket during the two-year time skip until he unleashed his true power during the battle on Hachinosu.

His overall power is nowhere nearly reflected in his current formal rank of Captain. In fact, Koby’s fighting skills far exceed those of most Vice Admirals. He is a Rokushiki master, capable of moving at great speed even underwater and deflecting torpedoes and even the Kuja Tribe’s Armament Haki-enhanced arrows with just his bare hands.

In addition to being a highly proficient Observation Haki user, Koby can also emit his Armament Haki outwards to generate tremendous shockwaves. Combining this form of Advanced Armament Haki with his physical strength, he can generate enough power to destroy Avalo Pizarro’s gigantic stone limb, seriously injuring the Blackbeard Pirates officer in the process.

Koby’s impressive force output would allow him to defeat many Commander-level individuals. Granted, he needs to improve his other skills to become a more complete fighter and rise higher on One Piece’s power scale. He was helpless against Boa Hancock and needed Garp to save him from Shiryu.

Of course, knowing his character, Koby will train hard to improve his shortcomings. He can’t remain idle if he wants to realize his dream of becoming an Admiral and challenging Luffy on equal terms.

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Edited by Shreya Das