Zoans might be one of the most fierce classes of Devil Fruit in One Piece, but they get much, much more terrifying. The power of Ancient Zoan Devil Fruits relies on creatures that no longer exist in most of the world. That means the power of dinosaurs, mastodons, and who knows what other kind of prehistoric horrors lay in wait. So, what exactly gives Ancient Zoans an advantage over other Devil Fruits, and who has the power to use this primal rage?
This article contains spoilers for One Piece. Catch up on Viz or MangaPlus before reading any further!
What Are Ancient Zoans?
Just like regular Zoans, these Devil Fruits turn their user into various kinds of animals. The primary difference of this subclass is that all of the Ancient Zoans come from long-extinct (in most places) species. It’s one of the rarest types of Devil Fruits right along with the Mythical Zoan Types, which themselves take on legendary creature characteristics. Some of the creatures that exist within Ancient Zoan Fruits haven’t been seen in millennia, but will make a full comeback just to kick some ass in the present time.
The only known Ancient Zoan Fruits so far have come in the form of dinosaurs, mammoths, and a saber-toothed tiger. That said, it’s not outside of the realm of possibility that others exist. It’s just that they haven’t been seen in the world yet. Nobody would put it past Eiichiro Oda to try and cram a Megalodon shark in there or something just for fun.
Known Species
The three main types of species seen so far are the Dragon-Dragon, Elephant-Elephant, and Cat-Cat Fruits, all appearing as Ancient models. Their subclasses are pretty numerous from there, especially when it comes to the Dragon-Dragon Fruit class. Fun fact! the only real Dragon on the Beast Pirates isn’t from a Dragon-Dragon Fruit. No, Kaido’s massive serpent comes from the Mythical Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon. It’s one of the better subtle jokes to happen throughout the Wano arc.
The Cat-Cat Fruit, Ancient Model: Saber-Tooth Tiger is one of the more agile ones, giving the user enhanced speed, strength, and ferocity. Meanwhile others like Jack’s Elephant-Elephant Fruit, Ancient Model: Mastodon give him immense size. The man can rage across Zou crushing everything in his path, an elephant rampaging on top of an even bigger elephant. Others like Black Maria have the Spider-Spider Fruit, Ancient Model: Rosamygale Grauvogeli, resemble a long extinct massive spider species.
Important Users
Literally, all of the Tobiroppo of the Beast Pirates are Ancient Zoan users in some way or another. Even the lowest of the Tobiroppo has an Ancient Zoan Fruit, with Sasaki holding the Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Model: Triceratops. They’re also the only ones so far in the series shown to use an Ancient Type of Zoan Fruit. Well, other than X Drake who is a former member.
- Black Maria – Spider-Spider Fruit, Ancient Model: Rosamygale Grauvogeli.
- Sasaki – Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Model: Triceratops.
- Page One – Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Model: Spinosaurus.
- Ulti – Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Model: Pachycephalosaurus.
- Who’s-Who – Cat-Cat Fruit, Ancient Model: Saber-Tooth Tiger.
- X Drake – Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Model: Allosaurus.
- Queen: Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Model: Brachiosaurus.
- King – Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Ancient Model: Pteranodon.
- Jack – Elephant-Elephant Fruit, Model: Mammoth..
Difference From Regular Zoans
Primarily the difference between Regular Zoan Devil Fruits is simply the time period the creature was alive in. In the modern-day world of One Piece, these creatures are thought to be extinct. Sure, they might exist on strange islands like Little Garden, but outside of that? Nah, nobody is going to see these animals outside of some grand adventure.
Ancient Zoans have only had a small part in the series up to this point, but there are likely more hiding away. It’s just a matter of what Oda decides to bring to the table later on. The Zoan Fruits have been shown to be some of the stronger Devil Fruits in the series though, and the Ancient Zoans definitely take that power to a primal level. Hopefully with at least X Drake’s survival in Wano, there will be a chance to see one of the dinosaurs back in action in One Piece.
