Shanks, the red-headed Yonko, is one of the most powerful characters in the world. one pieceAnd he is also a skilled swordsman, using the power of his famous saber griffon in battle. This sword was introduced by Oda long ago, but its true power remains a mystery to this day. However, Ho Elbaf finally teased the true power of Shanks' special sword, surprising all readers by linking the blade directly to his Devil Fruit abilities.
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Origin of Shanks' special sword
Shanks' griffon has a very special history that Oda has yet to fully explore, but it's clear he hasn't always had this blade. When Shanks was in the Roger Pirates, he used to wield a regular saber, but it was very different from the saber he wields now. As seen in an Elbaf flashback, Shanks gains access to the Gryphon when he returns to Marijoa about 15 years ago. Therefore, it can be inferred that Shanks obtained the griffon when he returned to Mariejois and received it from the Figaland family.
This makes sense, since Shamrock also possesses his famous sword Cerberus during this time, and Garling also wields a very similar sword. Perhaps this saber style is a symbol of the Figaland family, and since Shanks went to rejoin them, he was also given this special sword. Since his return to Marijoa, Shanks has always carried this sword with him, and even to this day he wields it fiercely in battle.
Why does Gryphon have devil fruit abilities?
The reason why Gryphon has the special abilities associated with his Devil Fruit is quite simple, and you only need to look at Shanks' twin brother, Shamrock, to understand it. Since Shanks and Shamrock are both twins, they are parallel to each other and use similar powers in many ways. In fact, Oda makes it clear in the story that the two have similar levels of potential and skill, proving that he is truly drawing parallels between these two powerful brothers.
In the Elbaf arc, Shamrock revealed the power of his sword called Cerberus. This sword is named after the mythical creature, and it allowed Shamrock to produce the mythical Zoan-class giant Cerberus. Cerberus's power was strong enough to seriously injure Loki. Now, if we compare Cerberus to Shanks' sword, it becomes clear why Shanks also has a special devil fruit blade. Shanks' sword is called the Gryphon, another mythical creature like Cerberus. If Shamrock's Cerberus is a sword with a devil fruit, then Shanks' Gryphon is most likely a sword with a devil fruit, which completes another similarity between the two true brothers.
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The power of the Devil Fruit Sword Gryphon will make Shanks incredibly dangerous in battle. This will allow Shanks to transform his sword into a griffon in battle, which will be a huge help to him. He also breaks away from the traditional swordsman label, which sets him apart from Dracule Mihawk and explains why although Mihawk is the strongest swordsman in the world, Shanks is still stronger.
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It goes without saying that Mihawk is stronger than Shanks when it comes to traditional swordsmanship. Shanks, who has the power of a griffon, is different from an ordinary swordsman. Fighting alongside creatures from swords means that Oda can easily outsmart Shanks, who is stronger than Mihawk, and Mihawk is the better swordsman of the two. It will also once and for all settle the biggest debate in the One Piece community.
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Measurement of Shanks' overall power level
If Shanks had a Devil Fruit sword like Shamrock, it would make him stronger and explain how he was able to defeat Loki in the first place. Shanks is an absolute monster and his Haki is on a whole other level, but even with this powerful Haki he wouldn't be able to beat Rocky. That is, unless you take into account the power of the Gryphon.
The Gryphon allows Shanks to create a mythical creature similar to Loki's Nidhogg, and when combined with his ferocious Haki, it may explain how he was finally able to defeat this monster. It would also put Shanks above the average Yonko in the One Piece world and make him one of the most powerful pirates to have ever lived. In fact, Shanks was probably stronger than Roger and Rocks due to his special sword Gryphon. Because he was able to defeat Loki. In the final story, Oda will definitely reveal Shanks' hidden blade abilities, and fans absolutely cannot wait for it.
One Piece Chapter 1177 will be available to read on Manga Plus on March 22, 2026.
- release date
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October 20, 1999
- network
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Fuji TV
- move
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Hiroaki Miyamoto, Konosuke Uda, Junji Shimizu, Satoshi Ito, Munehisa Sakai, Katsumi Tokoro, Yutaka Nakajima, Yoshihiro Ueda, Kenichi Takeshita, Yoko Ikeda, Ryota Nakamura, Hiroyuki Kakudo, Takahiro Imamura, Toshihiro Maeya, Yuji Endo, Nozomu Shishido, Hidehiko Kadota, Sumio Watanabe, Harume Kosaka, Yasuhiro Tanabe, Yukihiko Nakao, Keisuke Onishi, Junichi Fujise, Hiroyuki Sato
- author
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Jin Tanaka, Akiko Inoue, Junki Takegami, Shinzo Fujita, Shoji Yonemura, Yoshiyuki Suga, Atsuhiro Tomioka, Hirohiko Uesaka, Michiru Shimada, Isao Murayama, Takuya Masumoto, Yoichi Takahashi, Momoka Toyoda.
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Mayumi Tanaka
Monkey D. Luffy (voice)
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Kazuya Nakai
Roronoa Zoro (voice)
