8. Buggy

Crew: Buggy Pirates, Cross Guild Organization

Buggy is a character of many mysteries. Just like Shanks, he was an apprentice on the Pirate King’s ship. After the execution of the Pirate King, Buggy went his own way and decided to create the Buggy Pirates. This pirate crew started slowly, however, today, it has turned into an incredibly massive organization known as the Cross Guild.

Buggy has become one of the Four Emperors of the Sea, however, when it comes to strength, he isn’t nearly as strong as the other powerful fighters of his generation.

7. Doflamingo

Pirate Crew: Donquixote Pirates

Doflamingo belongs to the same generation as Shanks. He became a pirate at a very young age and certainly terrorized the New World as much as he could. Doflamingo controlled all three types of Haki and, with it, he gained infamy quite quickly.

His celestial dragon blood offered him a certain level of protection and, eventually, he became one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea as well.

6. Crocodile

Crew: Baroque Works

Just like Doflamingo, Crocodile was also among the Seven Warlords of the Sea. At one point, he fought in the New World and is known to have clashed against the likes of Whitebeard as well. Crocodile had lofty ambitions at first, wanting to become the Pirate King himself.

However, something in his life made him very skeptical of those around him. Later down the line, he created an organization known as the Baroque Works, which fans saw being taken down in the Arabasta arc of One Piece. He is resurgent once again and currently serves as a member of the Cross Guild, being the man who leads from the shadows.

5. Marco

Crew: Whitebeard Pirates

Marco is one of the strongest pirates to have ever lived in the world of One Piece and he also belongs to the same generation as Shanks. Marco fought against the likes of Shanks and Buggy when the Whitebeard Pirates collided with the Roger Pirates for the last time.

He then became the First Division Commander of Whitebeard’s crew and, after the death of their captain in the Paramount War, Marco led the crew until it was crushed by Blackbeard in the Payback War. Marco is still one of the very strongest characters in One Piece and has a role to play.

4. Boa Hancock

Crew: Kuja Pirates

The Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock is an extremely powerful pirate who belongs to the Kuja Tribe. She’s one of the most dangerous pirates in the world and certainly the strongest female pirate after the fall of Big Mom. Hancock possesses a Devil Fruit that can charm and defeat the vast majority of characters if given the chance.

In fact, her strength is so great that even Blackbeard knew that he would get turned to stone if he fought against her in a proper 1v1 battle. What’s even scarier is that she commands three types of Haki with brilliant control and, given that the Kuja Tribe has a natural disposition for learning Haki, fans can assume that she has mastered advanced forms of this skill. Hancock is certainly one of the strongest pirates from Shanks’s generation.

3. Mihawk

Crew: Cross Guild

The World’s Strongest Swordsman, Mihawk belongs to the same generation as Shanks. In his early life, he was known as the Marine Hunter and he used to hunt down naval officers for some reason. At some point, he was offered the position of one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea and he accepted.

Mihawk also had a fierce rivalry with Shanks, however, this rivalry ended when Shanks ended up losing his arm in the East Blue. He is certainly among the strongest pirates from this generation.

2. Blackbeard

Crew: Whitebeard Pirates, Blackbeard Pirates

Teach, also known as Blackbeard, belongs to Shanks’s generation as well. He was once a member of the Whitebeard Pirates, however, after getting his hands on the Yami Yami no Mi, he fled and started his own pirate crew, called the Blackbeard Pirates.

Although the crew was quite small, it made it very big and became one of the Emperor crews during the timeskip. Blackbeard is one of the strongest characters in the world right now and also a fierce rival to Shanks.

1. Shanks

Crew: Roger Pirates, Red Hair Pirates

Of course, the strongest pirate of this generation is none other than Shanks himself. Shanks was the apprentice of Roger himself and, according to Buggy, he was touted to be the next Pirate King, which just goes to show the level of potential that he had as a child. Shanks certainly fulfilled that potential, however, he did not become the Pirate King, as that is not something that he wanted.

Shanks is exceptionally powerful and, even though he does not have a Devil Fruit, he commands Haki at the highest level. Currently, he is one of the strongest pirates alive in One Piece.