The God Valley Incident is a critical point in the history of One Piece. The fateful battle brought around an end to the Rocks Pirates, one of the most infamous crews to ever sail. So, who else was involved in One Piece’s greatest battle, and what did it change about the Grand Line?
Fair warning this will contain spoilers for One Piece up to the current Egghead Island arc. The One Piece manga is available to read online from Mangaplus, Viz, and Shonen Jump. So, catch up, or proceed with caution!
Where is God Valley?
That’s just it, nobody knows where God Valley is now. It’s seemingly gone from the face of the planet with no record of it on any map and only legends remaining. It’s essentially lost from history, much like the Lulusia Kingdom, and now exists in whispers. God Valley is a small island of steep cliffs and deep valleys, giving it its name. It was here that a number of World Nobles, including Figarland Garling, were attacked in an attempt to wipe them out.
Who Fought at God Valley?
There are two factions in God Valley, with the Rocks Pirates and Rocks D Xebec the instigating side. His crew attacks the World Nobles, and meet a defensive by Monkey D Garp and the Navy. Garp wasn’t enough to take on the combined might of the Rocks Pirates and had to request the aid of Gold Roger and his crew. Here with Roger, Silvers Rayleigh, and the others, they made a formidable enemy to the Rocks Pirates’ power.
Who Were the Rocks Pirates?
A crew that made more legendary names than any since. Phenoms, the Rocks Pirates were led by the villainous Captain Rocks D Xebec. He’s a mystery, and only wants an end to the Celestial Dragons and World Government. His take on the Will of D centered more around the chaotic destruction brand that Blackbeard has now inherited. These underlings of Xebec’s are the real standouts of his crew though, deadly force consisting of Whitebeard, Big Mom, and Kaido in their primes. Although that’s not even his whole crew, as many of the Rocks Pirates are still debuting like Buckingham Stussy, mother of Edward Weevil.
What Happened at God Valley?
Only the basics of God Valley are sure, mostly that Xebec’s pirates intended to destroy the World Nobles. The nobles had protection from Figarland Garling but one of the famed God Knights of Marijoa and it still wasn’t enough. The Rocks Pirates were a formidable crew with three Emperors in the prime of their lives. There’s no way in hell one Celestial Dragon and some slaves could take them on. The Navy rushes in with Vice-Admiral Garp at the helm and take the L in record time.
Thankfully one of Garp’s oldest rivals, Gold Roger, put their differences aside to stop an ultimate evil. They join forces, attacking the Rocks Pirates in a long, desperate battle that destroys the island of God Valley. After the fight, the Rocks Pirates disband with Xebec presumed dead. The World Government, who knows that a pirate can’t be seen as a hero, declares Garp the hero of God Valley. This is a lot like what happens with Smoker at Alabasta too.
Red-Hair Shanks
The Roger Pirates take their first major win in here, and an adoptive child in the process. After the battle, Roger and Rayleigh were loading up treasure taken from God Valley. Suddenly, crying comes from a treasure chest and they’re both unsure of what to do. Sure enough, they open it to find a small baby with bright red hair, the one and only Shanks. With no idea who he is or how he got there, the Roger Pirates take the child in as apprentice. Shanks learns everything he knows about piracy from the Pirate King himself thanks to the battle at God Valley.
Fallout from the God Valley Incident
An event this size rocks the world and the Rocks Pirates are no more. The crew disband and go their separate ways, with Big Mom, Kaido, and Whitebeard all forming their own crews. Kaido gets his Devil Fruit from Big Mom as they flee the God Valley incident. Unfortunately for him, World Government agents take him into custody not long after. This leads to Vegapunk’s initial experiments in cloning Devil Fruits, and Kaido meets his first mate, King.
Whitebeard goes on to clash on and off with the Roger Pirates over the next decade, content as Emperor. He was always the more laid-back one of the Rocks Pirates, and goes off to make his own family. Big Mom starts work on Totto Land, and Kaido joins up with Orochi to overtake Wano from the Kozuki family. God Valley is the ground zero for the New World’s tumultuous events, and things are coming full circle.
Although God Valley Incident is still a mystery, the Straw Hat Pirates are closer than ever to the truth. There’s a real, full breakdown of the fight at God Valley, with explanations of Rocks D Xebec’s history coming. Until then, the Straw Hats are on Egghead Island with Dr. Vegapunk but haven’t had much time to speak with him. So, only time will reveal the mysteries still left in the world of One Piece!
One Piece is available to stream on Funimation, Crunchyroll, and Netflix in the United States. New episodes premiere every Saturday at 10 pm EST, simulcast with Japan.
