As we all know, the One Piece universe offers tons of unique powers like devil fruits, haki, and more. So often, a classic power system like swords gets overshadowed by all the bizarre superpowers. But don’t let this distract you from the fact that swords are one of the legendary weapons in One Piece. We have seen countless powerful swords and their befitting greatest swordsmen throughout the show. So, if you’re curious about them, we have created a guide to help you understand the swords, their classification, their grades, and their powers. Read on to learn about the swords and their grades in One Piece and become a sword fanatic like Tashigi.
Spoiler Warning: This article contains spoilers about the swords and swordsmen in One Piece. So make sure to watch the One Piece anime or read the manga before to avoid ruining your experience.
How Are Swords Classified in One Piece
Before we get into the classification of swords, let’s recap the different kinds of blades that exist. There are various kinds of swords such as Cutlass, Katana, Nodachi, Longsword, etc. in the world of One Piece. All these distinct blades come under one term “sword,” and they have a general classification. So if you are wondering how the swords are classified and on what basis, read about them here:
Meito (Popular Sword)
Meito is a word that translates as “Popular Sword or Renowned Sword” in English. So you already know the underlying context of it. Any swords that were given names and acquired their own reputation are regarded as Meito. It should be remembered that Meito includes all weapons, even those without blades like staffs, polearms, etc.
Fun Fact: Even down to the number of blades per category, the Meito-grade swords in the One Piece universe bear an uncanny similarity to the Wazamono categorization of swords in reality. In One Piece, the number of Grade Swords is unknown, whereas the real-world system has 80 Grade Blades. Thus, there are a total of 163 ranked blades in reality.
All Meito swords are a sign of exceptional quality and fame. They are the products of master swordsmiths, and as always, prominent swordsmen wield them. The fact that the sword decides who will wield it is also emphasized. In conclusion, all Meito swords are regarded to be extremely valuable and capable of utter destruction in the hands of a skilled swordsman.
There are four different grades of Meito swords: Supreme Grade Blades (Saijō Ō Wazamono), Great Grade Blades (Ō Wazamono), Skillful Grade Blades (Ryō Wazamono), and Grade Blades (Wazamono). The four Meito grades are covered in further detail below.
Yōtō (Cursed Swords)
This is a bizarre classification, yet an important one. Yōtō literally means cursed blades. As the name suggests, the Yōtō blades are said to be cursed and known to bring horrific death or enormous suffering or misfortune to their wielder. So one shouldn’t mess with these swords unless they are capable of rewriting their fate.
All three Kitetsu swords namely Sandai Kitetsu, Nidai Kitetsu, and Shodai Kitetsu are cursed swords. Another popular cursed sword named Kikoku is owned by none other than Trafalgar Law.
Kokuto (Black Swords)
This is a special type of sword and what makes them special is that Kokuto (Black Swords) are more powerful than ordinary swords. So, how does a sword become a black sword? This must be the question running through your mind, it’s simple. A normal sword becomes a black sword after it has been imbued with Armament Haki (a type of Haki in One Piece) and used in numerous battles throughout time. The temporary black coating of Armament Haki will turn into a permanent one over time, and thus, a black sword is born.
However, this is only a brief overview and the exact steps to create a black sword have not been revealed yet. But we know that Armament Haki/ Busoshoku Haki is the key. As we mentioned earlier, black swords are the most powerful weapons, and once a swordsman is able to turn their sword into a black sword, the sword’s grade increases a level automatically. Black swords have immense strength, are incredibly resilient and sharp, and whatnot.
How Are Swords Graded in One Piece
Now that we have covered the classification of swords, it’s time to learn about the different sword grades in One Piece. It is a simple and easy concept like the former. As mentioned earlier, Meito has four different grades, namely Supreme Grade, Great Grade, Skillful Grade, and Grade. There is a special case here, where some Meito swords don’t have a grade and are known as ungraded swords.
Supreme Grade Blades (Saijō Ō Wazamono)
The Supreme Grade Blades are the highest quality swords in existence in the One Piece world. There are only twelve Supreme Grade swords in One Piece. As a result, consider these blades like a special edition of swords, which are extremely rare.
Only the greatest swordsmen and the most powerful characters in One Piece have been able to get their hands on these weapons. This type of sword is the best in the game right now. And as one can predict, a great swordsman can perform impossible feats with them if they are highly skilled in swordsmanship.
Another interesting aspect of Supreme Grade swords is that they are extremely durable, as they can withstand the mightiest of blows and remain unscratched. Only 4 out of 12 Supreme Grade Blades are known as of now, they are:
| Supreme Grade Blades | Wielders |
|---|---|
| Yoru | Dracule Mihawk |
| Ace | Gol D. Roger |
| Murakumogiri | Whitebeard |
| Shodai Kitetsu | Unknown |
Great Grade Blades (Ō Wazamono)
The second-highest quality blades next to the Supreme Grade are the Great Grade Blade. There are 21 of them as of now in the One Piece universe. All these blades are second only to the highest-ever quality blades and are incredible on their own. These blades possess mighty strength with great sharpness.
The Great Grade Blades are highly durable to withstand powerful blows. The more interesting take is that this sword can do wonders in the hands of a brilliant swordsman! For example — Oden was able to use his Enma and Ame no Habakiri against Roger’s Ace and Whitebeard’s Murokumogiri (Two Supreme Grade Blades). Some of the known Great Grade Blades in One Piece are:
Great Grade Blades Wielders Enma Zoro Ame no Habakiri Kozuki Momonosuke Shusui Returned to Wano Country (Ryuma’s Grave) Nidai Kitetsu Kozuki Sukiyaki Wado Ichimonji Zoro
Skillful Grade Blades (Ryō Wazamono)
Up next, we have the Skillful Grade Blades, these are really good-quality swords in One Piece and are the third highest-quality swords in existence. There are a total of 50 Skillful Grade Blades. These swords possess great strength and sharpness, but they are extremely light-weight when compared to other swords
Additionally, swordsmen who love to do fast attacks can make use of these blades in a great way. They are durable but not excellent like the above two grades. For example — the Yubashiri sword (one of Zoro’s Swords in One Piece) was destroyed by a Marine. Some of the Skillful Grade Blades in One Piece are:
Skillful Grade Blades Wielders Yubashiri Zoro Kashu Tashigi Yamaoroshi Tashigi
Grade Blades (Wazamono)
The Grade Blades are the last one in the four grades and have the fourth-highest quality swords in the world of One Piece. At the moment, the exact number of the Grade Blades in the show is unknown. They are known to possess good strength and sharpness, thus, their cutting power is great.
Furthermore, these swords are greatly resilient too. Despite being in the lowest grade level, they are still more exceptional than ordinary swords. The Grade Blades we know so far are:
Grade Blades Wielders Sandai Kitetsu Zoro Shigure Tashigi
Ungraded Blades (Iretsu Nashi)
This is another bizarre case and is well known as an Ungraded Blade. As the name suggests, these blades don’t have a grade like others but this doesn’t even mean that they are weak blades. Thus, they are unique in their own way and can be powerful enough depending upon the swordsmen.
For example — Kaido’s Hassaikai, a kanabo-type weapon is considered to be a famed ungraded blade after the accolades he got with this weapon. Some of the renowned ungraded blades are:
Ungraded Blades Wielders Hassaikai Kaido Kikoku Trafalgar Law Sukesan and Kakusan Kin’emon
Unknown Grade Blades (Iretsu Fumei)
Once again, as the title reveals, unknown-grade blades are those whose grades are unknown as of now. As there are many popular swords in this list, we hope to see the manga creator reveal the grades of these blades soon. At the same time, they can remain as it is too. Hence, only time will give us the answer. Some of the popular unknown-grade blades are:
Unknown Grade Blades Wielders Gryphon Shanks Raiu Shiryu Warabide Sword Basil Hawkins Napolean Charlotte Linlin Pretzel Charlotte Cracker
Unnamed Swords
Other unusual cases we have in One Piece are the following swords, which are confirmed to be Meito, but their names are not known at the moment. Here’s what we know about them right now:
- Kozuki Sukiyaki’s unknown sword that was seen in the Wano Country arc.
- Dark King Silvers Rayleigh’s sword, which we saw in the Roger Pirates vs Whitebeard Pirates fight.
- Whitebeard Pirates’ fifth-division commander Vista’s swords that were shown in the Marineford arc.
- Admiral Fujitora’s sword that was seen in the Dressrosa arc.
Popular Swordsmiths in One Piece
There are several renowned swordsmiths around the world of One Piece, who are well-known among the fans for their masterpiece swords. Some of the popular swordsmiths in One Piece are:
Swordsmiths Their Swords Shimotsuki Kozaburo Enma and Wado Ichimonji Tenguyama Hitetsu Sandai Kitetsu and Ame no Habakiri Kotetsu Nidai Kitetsu Kitetsu Shodai Kitetsu
Frequently Asked Questions
There are four grades of Meito swords in One Piece. They are Supreme Grade Blades (Saijō Ō Wazamono), Great Grade Blades (Ō Wazamono), Skillful Grade Blades (Ryō Wazamono), and Grade Blades (Wazamono).
The Supreme Grade Blades (Saijō Ō Wazamono) are the highest grade swords in One Piece right now. There are 12 Supreme Grade Blades in the One Piece world, but we only know about 4 of them currently.
The grades of the Zoro’s current three swords are as follows:
1. Enma – Great Grade Blade
2. Wado Ichimonji – Great Grade Blade
3. Sandai Kitetsu – Grade Blade
Gol D. Roger’s sword, Ace is one of the 12 Supreme Grade Blades, which are the highest quality swords to be produced in the One Piece world.
Murakumogiri, Whitebeard’s sword, is one of the 12 Supreme Grade Blades, which are the finest swords to be ever made.
A great deal of information was revealed about these swords in the Wano Country arc, and we hope to learn even more in future arcs in One Piece. Additionally, there are also a number of swords whose grades are to be revealed too. Meanwhile, tell us about your favorite swords in One Piece in the comments below.
