The Italian singer in OPLA S02Ep01 (and a Zoro-centric fic) had me thinking about languages in the world of One Piece. Now, of course, since real-world countries donāt exist in One Piece, it stands to reason to find places in One Piece to act as a ārepresentativeā for the language. Like Wano. Itās perfect as a stand in for Japan.
English ā Portsmouth (from a port city in England; pretty much the Common Tongue; my mom tells me its pronounced like 'Ports-muth'...not sure how true it is.)
Japanese ā Miyajin/Miyajinese (from Miyajima, now called Itsukujima, in Japan)
Italian ā Serenissi/Serenissian (from the nickname of the Republic of Venice, now part of Italy)
Spanish ā Sagrada/Sagradan (from the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain)
French ā Fontaine/Fontainish (a French word for āfountainā; and there are places in France called Fontaine)
Russian ā Moskval/Moskvalic (from the Moskva River in Russia)
And this is it for this post because Iām not (will not) do the same for the rest of the languages because I do not hate myself that much.
A way to look at this is that these languages are named after kingdoms that have/had existed before the Void Century. I didnāt want the name of a language to be tethered to a currently existing country.
Iām not sure about accents, but I guess a way to differ the accents is by the location. For example, OPLA-wise, Nami and Usopp have an East Blue-Portsmouth accent while Sanji has a North Blue-Portsmouth accent (Portsmouth being their mother tongue; Sanji is fluent in Sagradan and Fontainish). Zoro has an East Blue-Miyajin accent while Yamato has a Wano-Miyajin accent. Letās further dive into this. Capone Bege (West Blue-Serenissi), Luffy (East Blue-Sagrada; OPLA-wise, obviously).
And, maybe terrain? Like, I have thought for a Canadian English accent to be Portsmouth-Tundran (since Canada sits more north) and for Creole French/Louisianan to be Fontaine-Wetland (because of the bayous of New Orleans).
Hopefully, this doesnāt seem too complicated ^^;
I am curious...if the Poneglyphs could be written in a way that incorporates many different languages. Like a very nutty fusion of languages.
The Kilagrew Project: Meito and itās Ranking System
I was re-reminded of how the Meito Ranking System is based on a real world sword cutting ranking system that was also called Wazamono.
And I guess this also pertains to the Meito.
However, I think what makes this difficult to follow in the story is how the swordās cutting ability varied, especially if Haki is involved, depending on the person, later in the story.
Even the whole concept of the āblack bladeā sorta holds some issues in regards to raising rank. Take Mihawkās Yoru for example. Itās a Supreme Grade Blade (one of five known within this rank) and a Black Blade (meaning itās possible that it was a Great Grade Blade before). So, this is the highest it can go. Meanwhile, the Shodai Kitetsu, another Supreme Grade Blade, is not a Black Blade. This does have potential down the line with maybe Mihawk and Nusjuro clashing, but that could very well be way down the line and could just as likely not happen.
Other currently known Supreme Grade Blades include Whitebeardās Murakumogiri, Rogerās Ace, and Fujitoraās Yakuza Kasen. All of which have the potential to outrank Mihawkās Yoru.
So, the idea of a swordsmanās goal is to turn their blade into a black blade feels...stagnate. One of Zoroās swords, Sandai Kitetsu, is a Grade Blade, the lowest rank. Meaning if (really when) Zoro turns it into a black blade, itās only gonna go up to Skillful Grade and thatās it. Now, itās possible that Sandai Kitetsu could get shattered, but given how long its been around...
Also, the fact that there's supposed to be a fixed number of blades above Grade is...odd. For one, I'd imagine new swords are made all the time. The other is the whole "Black Blades rank up by one thing".
First off, Meito are strictly swords. The fact that any blade can be a Meito is...dull. In fact, Eneru's staff is a Meito...huh????
Second, it is not the goal of a swordsman to turn a blade into a black blade. Instead, its to use their will (Haki) to temper the blade, making the blade appear more vibrant, so that the blade (regardless of rank; sense the whole rising one rank is omitted) is performing at its greatest potential. Black blades are made from material like obsidian ore.
Lastly, the ranking system. I feel that I should look into as the person traveling around the world to study and catalog these swords.
Note: Under the assumption that Wano can let outsiders in, but its incredibly on who they let in. Extensive background checks and what not.
This person checks for the materials used to forge the blade, who made the blade, and it's reliability and performance in combat.
Supreme Grade (Saijo O Wazamono): Forged from legendary Grand Line/New World ores/metals, crafted by a legendary master smith, and boasts flawless, peerless combat performance.
Great Grade (O Wazamono): Made with superior Grand Line materials, made by a renowned smith, and shows exceptional performance.
Skillful Grade (Ryo Wazamono): Uses standard Grand Line or high-grade Blue materials, shaped by a skilled smith with reliable durability.
Grade Sword (Wazamono): Made from standard Grand Line materials, forged by a simple local blacksmith, and offers passable, sturdy combat performance and reliable to not break in most fights.
Swords made from standard material found in the Four Blues are disqualified from the ranking system due to just being more like mass produced tools.
However, what makes a Meito worthy or has the potential to become a Meito is the presence of a distinct energy/personality, made from the intention of the blacksmith and how it "resonates" with future wielders.
I originally was gonna add my original swords here, but the post was longer than I originally anticipated, so I'll dedicate a separate post for them later.
His parents died when he was very young, so he hardly remembered them personally. He was raised by his grandparents for a few years before they passed away and he was put into custody of Koshiro and his family.
He was a sort of outcast growing up, due the reputation of his mother being a former deadly bandit, so most of the villagers avoided him. Fearing that he too would one day become a ābeastā.
Zoroās only true friend was Kuina until he lost her when he was twelve and four years later, an incident forces Zoro to leave Shimotsuki Village.
Life as a bounty hunter was even more lonesome, where he is often double crossed. One damning moment was when he was tricked to face against a pirate crew while his āpartnerā snuck onto the pirate ship to steal a treasure and left Zoro to die. This moment solidified not just Zoroās distrust towards just about anyone, but also the mindset that heās useful as just a weapon, a mere tool. Something useful.
So, Zoro chose to be alone. Even when he meets genuinely friendly people who wanted to work with him during his travels around the East Blue (such as meeting Yosaku and Johnny), he kept them at arms length.
It is rather bizarre that Zoro was continued to be called āPirate Hunterā and...Iāll be frank: King of Hell is cringey. XD
Not sure if this is any better, but I decided on giving him a new epithet (perhaps after Enies Lobby), āSamsaraā Zoro.
The reasons for choosing āSamsaraā is this: It goes with the Buddhist motif that Zoro has, it goes with his āthreeā theming (with the concepts of Life, Death, and Rebirth), and it thematically references his need to protect his crew, his willingness to kill if needed, and how no matter how many times heās knocked down, heāll get back up and continue to fight.
Iāve also had the idea of him having moves similar to Asura, named after the other realms and utilizing different sword styles (Santoryu, Nitoryu, Ittoryu, or even Mutoryu) and maybe even different swords.
To have Zoro as bit of a mirror with Tashigi, Zoro would find himself gaining more swords outside of his usual three.
Itās not like heās going out of his way to get them, he already has three and thatās enough, as they are usually gifted to him or he stumbled across them (and was forced to take them by Nami for monetary value).
This sorta birthed an idea that he would occasionally switch his swords out, depending on if heās up for a swordās āmoodā, with only the Wado Ichimonji as his constant.
He wonāt be getting a lot of swords, let me go on to say, because (again) heās not going out of his way to find swords if he already has three. In this AU, he initial gets three extra swords (maybe four after the timeskip; not including Enma).
For at least the three extras: Nijikawa (as a gift from the Alabastan royal curator, with permission from the Nefertari family, as a gift for saving the kingdom), Tsuyuno Nagara (found up on Skypiea in a gilded case), and Kusanagi (took from a former bounty hunting partner in a place called Rosuluna)
Iāll go into further details on them in the post relating to Meito for the Lore.
I donāt care that this was a headcanon born from incredibly trivial moments in the animanga...both I love the idea of Zoro being a wiz at math and quick with it too.
And, yeah, I can see him being autistic. Not to mention introverted.
To me, Zoro hides both physical and mental trauma...the latter being very much unaddressed more so than the former.
By the time heās joined Luffy, heās already experiencing chronic pain that heās long been accustomed to, with his scar from Mihawk adding to it. Migraines became a new addition after Thriller Bark.
Mentally, he still grapples with the grief of losing Kuina, along with some flavor of survivorās guilt, which he does use as fuel for his ambition. He obviously doesnāt show it much, but he suffers with anxiety. Depression and PTSD also becomes a part of Zoroās life, one that he prefers to bear in silence. (much to the worry of others who recognize the signs)
I once made a post about how the āNothing Happenedā moment could play out in OPLA and someone left a comment regarding how OPLA could have this be the moment Zoro starts losing his more carefree attitude...which is heartbreaking to think about as Zoro was very guarded in Season 01 (a common complaint that OPLA Zoro in this season acted more like Post-TS Zoro), but in Season 02, we get to see more of Zoroās dorky side. So, come Post-Thriller Bark, Zoro starts to revert back to his old attitude as a means to be ready of the dangers ahead for the safety of his crew.
The lack of proper rivals for Zoro have irked me. Because, in a sense, the Supernovas were meant to be rivals for Luffy (and Iām starting to think that that the title of Supernova is only exclusive to the captains; so, excluding Zoro and Killer).
Thatās why I made the āWaiting Bladesā, an unofficially formed group of people who also wanted to fight Mihawk.
While Zoro gains strength fighting the enemies he faces in the arcs, the point of the āWaiting Bladesā was to challenge and bolster Zoroās philosophies.
I have two posts dedicated to the Lore and Characters.
After some mental debate, I settled with Zoro have let his hair grow out a bit. Just slightly passed the nape of his neck and itās usually put in a half pony-tail.
His left eye is still slashed and unusable, but Iām going with the logic Iām imagining for OPLA (on the possibility that theyāll do the timeskip) that Zoroās scarred left eye would be opened and his iris has turned cloudy because of the damage done to it.
Lastly, thanks to some GothFam fanart, Zoroās brought some of Mihawkās old clothes that he doesnāt wear anymore. Even his AU TimeSkip ādefaultā look has some goth aesthetic. Thatās what happens when you spend a few years alone on an island with not not-Dracula and a lolita woman.
First, I wanna say that during the weeks he spent in Wano while Luffy and his group went to Whole Cake, Zoro meets Yamato (masked), who can see the similarities with Ushimaru and even asks who Zoro really is when the pair fought against the Beast Pirate Waiters that came looking for Yamato. To prevent Zoro from being taken, Yamato allowed themselves to get captured and urges Zoro to go into hiding for the time being.
In this AU, Zoro does have some awareness of his lineage, as he was raised by his grandmother (Shimotsuki Furiko), even for a short while. Heās felt no pressure of honoring the Shimotsuki name, more focused on his own goals. Besides, he doesnāt even consider himself a Shimotsuki, anyways.
Really, his arc in Wano is less about his loose connection with the country itself and more about Kuina.
Zoro has a vague memory of Kuina talking about some documents she found in her grandfatherās things detailing a beautiful country of swordsmen. Kuina yearned to visit the place when sheās able to leave the village to pursue her dream.
At the sight of all the factories, pollution, and the starving and poor, Zoro knew that Kuina would be devastated at the sight. In addition to meeting the victims of the Smile Fruit and Yasuie's death, Zoro has more than enough reason to take down Kaido.
Iād like the Straw Hats attend the Fire Festival after the Onigashima Raid and Zoro, perhaps the first time in years, makes a lantern in Kuinaās memory.
Age: 10 (chronologically; Pre-TS), 12 (chronologically; Post-TS), 14 (chronologically; by end of canonical AU story) 9 (child form; default by DF effect), 24 (adult form)
I picked the color orchid for Bonney. I know as a Supernova, her associated color is pink, but Chopper has that color and I wanted to find a color that's like a pink-purple color.
I wasnāt all that bothered by the reveal of Bonneyās real age. She reminded me of Neliel Tu Odelschwank from Bleach.
The way that I see it, Bonney was forced to āgrow upā fast in a hellish world. She got where she is thanks to her crew, who I liked to think were former church-goers back when Kuma was still a priest and cared for Bonney.
...And thank God, Iām going into this with OPLA and OPLA Sanji in mind because he wonāt feel like a creep.
The fact that, technically, Bonney was a princess too (through being adopted by Kuma who becomes a king)...We just keep seeing royals one after another ^^;
Anyways, I did some thinking and thought that Kuma would remain as a priest and never became a king.
How he got in trouble with Bekori, who remains the king of the Sorbet Kingdom, was just because the citizens loved Kuma more (and they still wished for Kuma to be the next king).
So, here, Bonney is not the adopted daughter of a king, but rather a beloved and modest priest.
After Bekori forced Kuma to go on the run, sending him to the Revolutionary Army and eventually accepting Vegapunkās deal and leaving Bonney to the people who left with them, Bonneyās fruit āwakes upā and she leaves the Revolutionary Army to set out to sea, followed by the men who eventually became part of her crew.
The Sapphire Scale Disease and the Age-Age Fruit (Borrowed Time)
Since I didnāt read the Egghead Arc in full, I assumed that Bonney still had the disease and the Age-Age Fruit is sorta capable of keeping her alive. Now, I know that Vegapunk actually cured her.
So, for the AU, Bonney still has the disease and, as Iāve said, her DF prevents her from dying from it by keeping her ādefaultā form at the age before the fruit awakened (Apparently, Bonney was injected with the essence/juice of the fruit as an infant and it didnāt āactivateā until a certain age???) and, what triggered it was Bonneyās desire to have a future when faced with the prospect of dying young.
Sheās still affected by the disease, especially if she uses Future Distortion for too long. The Sapphire Scales start to flare up and spread on her body (if sheās exposed to natural light) and sheāll have to rest to let her fruit revert her back to the age before it happened. This makes her hungrier than normal (like how Luffy is)
As painful as it is, as long as she continues to hope for that future, the disease wonāt claim her.
Vegapunkās Remedy, Luffyās Faith, and Chopperās Promise
As Iāve said, Vegapunk has yet to make the cure and Bonney was growing impatient. After all, her father gave up his freedom for her treatment. So, she stowaway on the Straw Hatās ship to take her to Egghead Island.
Or, rather, to one of the Sky Islands hovering above Egghead Island, referred to as Stations, each govern by one of Vegapunkās satellites.
In this AU, the crew doesnāt get to meet Vegapunk first, instead meeting with the satellite in charge of the Station the Straw Hats dock at. Vegapunk instead meets with a unit from SWORD Koby and his group is in, on a mission of their own. This might be dissatisfying to some, given the fact it means Franky would still have little time with the actual Vegapunk.
The satellite, letās say Shaka, gives an agitated Bonney an update on Vegapunkās research. Shaka tells the truth that the research had been slow going because Vegapunk kept getting sidetracked by other projects, feeling that he has time thanks to Bonneyās DF.
Soon, the Straw Hats would converge with SWORD when Shaka receives an urgent message that the main island is under attack by not Saturn, but by a Holy Knight and Kizaru. Luffy and his crew (taking Lucci and Kaku with them) would head to the island.
Vegapunk would die to Kizaru and the Holy Knight and all of his research pertaining to finding a cure for Bonney is destroyed by the Holy Knight.
Because of this, Bonney would soon start to lose hope for her future, exposed to the natural sunlight and the scales spread.
However, before it could get worse, Kuma makes his appearance to save her and Franky helps to remind Bonney of Kumaās sacrifice. And why she shouldnāt lose hope.
Seeing Luffy fighting in his Gear 5 inspires Bonney to keep fighting, to use Future Distortion so that she could use Gear 5 too. The two fought against the Holy Knight. Luffy tells Bonney to never lose that hope again because her DF powers, through Future Distortion, shows proof that there are countless futures where she is cured.
In the end, Chopper (with the help of Lilith) was able to find and escape with the surviving research papers about the experiment that caused the disease and Chopper vows to use it to find a cure for Bonney.
While a cure is a long ways away, Chopper would be able to at least make a medicine for Bonney to ease the symptoms of the disease when it flares up.
Even though Bonnie was the captain of her own crew, she really didnāt do much leading and this was the crewās way for her to have a role on the crew while also not burdened and not needing to 'become an adult', finally feeling safe enough to do kid-things again. Yes, she is given chores, but, she also gets to play around with Luffy, Carrot, and Chopper, gets bedtime stories from Robin, sing with Brook, taste test Sanjiās recipes, and so on.
I havenāt really thought of a Bounty for Yamato yet, although I did thought about having it be somewhere around 800,000,000. Their epithet, for now, being the āOni Princessā.
And here we goā¦I just wanted to get this over with.
First off, I like to think that Kaido is an oni (or ogre) and Yamato is half-oni. I also have this thought that their mother was Wano native, since Kaido did arrive in Wano 28 years ago (according to the wiki).
And, in this AU, Yamato is female.
In an all-female color spread, Yamato was there and, in the Vivre Card Databook, she was identified as female (and I think in that same databook, Kikunojo was identified as female). Could Oda had written it better to make it more clear? Absolutely. 'Cuzā¦good god, those debates are niiiiightmares.
After seeing this, I see the whole āIām Kozuki Odenā as definitely less about gender/sexual identity and more of justā¦identity. (Of course, donāt let this stop you from headcanoning that theyāre trans; hell, Iām giving them they/them and she/her pronouns).
Yamato saw the identity of Kozuki Oden as the ultimate act of rebellion against their father. They relied on that identity to become free.
When they are finally are freed, they again ask to join the Straw Hats. Luffy does allow it on one condition: He wants Yamato to join, not Oden.
So, Yamato is Yamato.
Who, quite frankly, doesnāt give a hoot if theyāre bathing in the mensā onsen. Because their side is more fun ^^.
And, hey, Luffy would still call them āYama-oā. āCuz why not?
In my synopsis (whenever that happens), Yamato would make their appearance muuuuch earlier (either in Act 01 or Act 02).
What I thought of was them possibly escaping Onigashima, which was something theyāve done before, which sparked rumors of a āwhite demonā or āwhite beastā.
This happens so often that the Beast Pirates turned this into a game that Kaido encouraged.
Yamato could be seen with the mask on for most of their appearance up until they meet (or reunite, depending on if Yamato crosses paths with Luffy during their escape off Onigashima...although I am imagining them meeting Zoro during his time in Wano while Luffy and the others are at Whole Cake) with Luffy.
Inspired by reading Odenās journal, Yamato becomes the crewās Chronicler and listened eagerly of their many exploits.
I have read posts that were againt Yamato joining because they read Odenās journal and, by extension, knows what the One Piece is. However, from what Iāve gathered (because its been a while), crucial pages that could reveal the details of the One Piece was ripped out, so Yamato really couldnāt have known.
Now, I will say that there is a chance I might change Odenās journey with the Roger Pirates a littleā¦because his presence in the Roger Pirates sort of retconned (or, to many, ruined) Roger using his Voice of All Things abilityā¦Although, I guess what I can do is omit the lore that the Kozuki family created the Poneglyphs (which, honestly, never sat right with meā¦a lot of what happened in Wano did not sit right with me ^^;).
I want to tackle the crewās actual dynamic as a crew. I know that Luffy doesnāt give a hoot about this sort of stuff and just letās the crew do their own thing, but...there has to be order. Even for the freest man on the seas.
I like to think that the roles become more realized after Water 7, since it is here that the crew are more realized as pirates.
Luffy, the Captain
Zoro, the First Mate and Master-at-Arms
Nami, the Navigator and Quartermaster
Usopp, the Sniper
Sanji, the Cook
Vivi, the Diplomat and Advisor
Chopper, the Doctor
Robin, the Historian and Archaeologist
Paulie, the Boatswain and Shipwright's Assistant
Franky, the Shipwright
Brook, the Musician
Carrot, the Lookout
Jinbe, the Helmsman
Yamato, the Chronicler
Bonney, the Cabin Girl
I guess there is a distinction between First Mate and Quartermaster. At least, thereās a distinction here, within the One Piece fanbase.
Here, the Gum-Gum Fruit remains the Gum-Gum Fruit. It is not connected to neither Joyboy nor Nika. It is just a Paramecia Fruit.
Part of the reason is because of the huge retcon (or whatever you wanna call it) behind the lore of the Nika fruit, in regards to the Gorosei and Whoās Who.
Now, as for Gear 5, I still think that most of it can be recycled to the Gum-Gum Fruitās Awakening. How that can work is the very nature of rubber itself. To me, the Gum-Gum Fruit exhibits properties of both natural and synthetic rubber. Gears Second and Fourth can be referenced to synthetic rubber while Gears Third (maybe) and Fifth can reference natural rubber. In the case of the appearance of Gear 5, it can reference how natural rubber starts as a milky white color, not to mention that natural rubber has more fluidity than synthetic. And given the fact that DF powers can even affect the clothes you wear, look at Buggy and Alvida, Luffyās clothes turning white would not be far-fetched.
Despite this, people do still see similarities between Luffy and Joyboy and Nika just from attitude alone. Joyboy is just a title and Nika is a folklore symbol.
Not sure about other people, but I've heard Tekking101 refer to the blackening of limbs when characters use Armament as 'vulcanization'...
Which I thought was funny because this term is used in the process of hardening rubber to make tires.
Armament Haki is meant to be invisible, but I like to think that the nature of the Gum-Gum fruit makes the Armament visible on Luffy as the color black.
One of my...I guess gripes with shounen genre is how they would just...omit the initial weaknesses and limitations to a characterās power system in favor of having them fighting at their fullest at all times and spamming their stronger/strongest attacks even against fodder...which I guess is just the reality of battle shounen (even though One Piece, even as a battle shounen, wasnāt...really like that Pre-TS.)
Trying to remember what happens to Luffy after he uses his Gears: Second, I think he just couldnāt move for a while out of exhaustion. Third, he shrinks into Chibi-Luffy. Fourth, he canāt use Haki for a while. Fifth, he...turns into Old-Man Luffy XD.
What Iām getting at here is, he doesnāt lose any of these. And, I guess in addition to the Old-Man Luffy thing, thereās a 16-hour wait before he could use Fifth effectively again. Same for the other Gears too, I guess. (Second recharges after 2-hours, Third recharges after 4-hours, Fourth recharges after 8-hours). He can use his Gears after the initial exhaustion wears off, but its power output would be halved and the exhaustion comes back quicker.
I have a headcanon that the Gum-Gum Fruit makes Luffyās metabolism be extraordinarily high. He was already a hungry boy before the fruit (it runs in the family), but the energy he spends to use his DF power burns through the calories.
I have this idea that OPLA Luffy doesnāt steal food from his friendās plates (he is shown in the show to have more self-restraint, at least after defeating Buggy in S01Ep02, even when he still took a piece of food). He does have larger portions than the rest of his crew and is free to eat the leftovers.
So, one of the things Iāve liked about OPLA is Inakiās portrayal of Luffy. For one, he definitely exude Luffy-energy. Another thing I liked, and I think itās because of the more grounded feel of OPLA, is how OPLA Luffy feels more emotionally intelligent. And more vulnerable.
Especially at the prospect of losing a crewmate, as seen when Zoro was in his coma. Bro was tweaking in that Galley scene while he tried to care for the Wado. While I can pick up Inakiās performance of Luffyās quiet desperation for Zoro to wake up, Mayumi Tanakaās voice over took the cake.
It honestly lead me to speculate how Thriller Bark would turn out, when Zoro makes his sacrifice. I have this idea that Luffy (and honestly the others) would be able to tell that Luffyās recovery and Zoroās comatose state are somehow connected. Luffy would have an inkling that something did happen, but unsure what it is.
He never confronts Zoro about it, wanting to respect his space, but does do things for Zoro behind his back to ease his burdens. This did cause a friction by Sabaody.
Hey, I like me some angst, so Luffy isnāt blind to the decisions he makes as captain (I mean, look at how he broke down after his fight with Usopp) and is aware the state of the world after everything thatās happened when he met Ace and Sabo, from being taken by Bluejam, what happened at Gray Terminal, and Saboās death. Not to mention how much he loves his crew, to the point of breaking down at the ālossā of them (as seen at the end of Sabaody) and remembering he still has his crew after Aceās death.
While Luffy is generally a happy-go-lucky and simple-minded individual, he is deeply traumatized (I mean...isnāt everyone in this crew?). These moments are rare, but he would have days where he just...canāt keep up his optimism and just try to stay out of sight of his crew until the moment passes.
Heās their captain. Heās supposed to look unshakable.
Only a selective few of the crew have seen this side of him: Jinbe, Nami, and Zoro.
And boy...did it take awhile for him to go to them when he doesnāt want to be alone.
A post dedicated to some changes to either other canon/filler characters or some information on original reoccurring characters I've created that's part of the AU canon.
They won't be as detailed compared to what I have for the Straw Hats, so I might group characters together.
I have stated that this AU sorta mixes with animanga with OPLA as well as my headcanons. So, this was the logical thing to do.
In terms of duration of the journey for both halves...apparently, Luffy had been on this journey for about six months ever since he entered the Grand Line (obviously excluding East Blue and the two year timeskip).
Here, however, itās significantly longer. The journey from the Twin Capes to Sabaody took a year and half. The individual training for the characters took three years instead of two. As for the journey from Fishman Island to the final island...maybe two years??? Three??? Meh. I'll keep it vague for now.
Post-TS had been dealt with pacing issues and, honestly, things are getting rushed for the end (as of writing this post, I think the Elbaf arc isn't finished yet), honestly, so...right now, the Post-TS stuff is gonna be heavily altered in someway. Like, donāt be surprised that the Pre-TS stuff wonāt be as long as the Post-TS stuff and don't be surprised if my Post-TS storyline is vastly different from canon Post-TS.
Pre-Timeskip
East Blue Saga
Alabasta Saga
Sky Island Saga
Water 7 Saga
Thriller Bark Saga
Summit War Saga
Post-Timeskip
Fishman Island Saga
Dressrosa Saga
Whole Cake Saga
Wano Saga
The Final Saga
It definitely will take a while for me to write all this ^^;
There is also the matter of filler arcs (depends on the arc; honestly not a fan of most of the filler arcs in Post-TS), games, movies, and original arcs, however those arcs are gonna be with the canonical Saga I wanna place them at (one original arc I have is called the Takekinu arc, which would take place after the events of Thriller Bark, so maybe within the Summit War Saga?).
Also...given that the journey through the New World is gonna be slightly longer...I dunno. Maybe there could be original Sagas in the mix Post-TS. Just not sure yet.
I do know that the whole Green Bit plot in Dressrosa was meant to be it's own arc, but was instead added to the Dressrosa arc. And, honestly, I'm starting to think the whole Holy Knights plot in the Elbaf arc was meant for a future arc, but was added to Elbaf in an effort to not make the story much longer, which...I mean fair ^^;
Hereās stuff for the lore. Some a reimagining of an existing lore, others that are original to me (but I try to keep it following established rules). Mostly with lore that does needs some fixing due to inconsistencies and logic issues.
Haki
Devil Fruits
The āWaiting Bladesā
Meito and it's Ranking System
The Germa 66
SWORD
Technology
Language
The Void Century
I will add more once something comes to mind that Iāll change for the AU.
So, what Iām gonna do here is to share some character-related info for this AU, obviously this one dedicated to the Straw Hats, since that is what Iām more focused on for the AU.
I know this seems like a lot (and it is XD), but I honestly donāt mind such a large cast. I mean, itās part of the reason I liked Class 1A from MHA. Did Horikoshi give everyone in the class equal attention? No, but at least gave them some unique character traits and moments to shine (I think...did Ojiro did anything memorable??? ^^;). At least with this crew, itās six less characters than the number of characters in Class 1A (so, imagine getting rid of the six most irrelevant student in class XD)
To me, even the smaller moments with a character matters.
Obvy, Vivi, Paulie, and Carrot are official Straw Hats here. For their posts, I might include some SBS-like info, similar for the Straw Hats, plus their bounties.
As for Bonnieās inclusion, sheās more of a āEriā character, especially now that she feels safe enough to stay in her real age and Iām gonna go into how I interpret her character when I get to her.
I've decided to add Yamato and, as a heads up, their post could be considered...controversial. Because that's just...unavoidable at this point.
Once I finish with an individual post, Iāll place a link here.
Iām transferring over my headcannon to this simply because Haki, as it is in canon...honestly is a bit of a mess.
So, hereās my (and the AUās) take on Haki.
The Will of a Dreamer
What I'm getting at here is...well, let's remember what Haki is. Or rather, what Haki means. It means ambition, aspiration, drive, vigor, domineering spirit, will... This is the very foundation of Haki. In this context, everyone in the cast can very well have Haki, so as long as they have the drive. They have their ambition. The will to act upon it. And, I can see characters like Nami and Usopp, who believe in Luffy so much, exuding their will against a foe as a show of determination. (Think Reiatsu or Spiritual Pressure from Bleach)
It could help explain why certain characters like Crocodile or Moria didn't use Haki. They lacked/lost the will to "take action".
Same for Ace. His spirit was wavered by his identity crisis and guilt.
A wavered spirit or conflicted feelings can cause the effectiveness of Haki to fluctuate, falter, or even fail.
One's resolve needs to be greater than their conflicted emotions/wavered spirit so Haki can be used more effectively.
Observation Haki
Enhanced Senses
A competent user can mask their presence and sensing familiar presences
A user can "see" the colors of will, even when they can't see.
Future Sight is a rare sub-ability that is even rarer to use in combat
At risk of sensory/cognitive overload when in use, as well as dealing with environmental noise if they are unable to filter it out
It's visual cue are the eyes: The iris shimmers with the color of the user's will.
Has an advantage over Armament, but is vulnerable against Conquerorās
Armament Haki
Attack and Defense Boost
Able to make contact with Logia users (but still effected by the element)
Prolonged use can rapidly deplete energy, leading to fatigue
Defensive Armament does not make the user 100% impervious to damage, just way harder to kill
It's visual cue are sparks that appear from friction and exertion of energy.
Capable of enduring Conquerorās waves, but can be easily tracked by Observation
Conquerorās Haki
The only advanced Haki and itās just a massive release of oneās will.
The 'Will of the Dreamer' is like a much weaker version of this and lacks the crucial credentials for it to become Conqueror's
While Haki users in general can exert a presence (think reiatsu from Bleach), only Conquerorās can have a lasting effect
Available to those with the will to rule/conqueror, to be a reckoning force, and/or willing to shake the world.
Friendly fire can be a danger, as will as clashing wills
Visual cues are the environment surrounding the user losing some color, becoming dimmer, to make the user's presence standout and the energy surround the user looks warped, like the ripples of a heat mirage. When clashing with another user's Conqueror's, a 'glitch' effect could imminent from the clash.
Can overwhelm Observation, but can have a hard time against Armamentās grounding force
Iām sort of treating Haki as more of stat boosts, if anything. Haki here also doesnāt nullify DF powers and it needs to be manually active (itās on extremely rare occasions where its passive).
This actually helps how to not only define the differences, but also why CP9 didn't use Haki when they apparently had it pre-Timeskip.
Haki is the active use of one's will in combat. Rokushiki is just peak human condition and isn't connected to one's will.
And the possible reasons for the agents of CP9 for not using Haki, I have explanations for Kaku and Lucci specifically.
Kaku was mentally compromised, as he actually loved being a shipwright at the Galley La Company. He probably felt very conflicted over his betrayal.
As for Lucci, it could be the feeling of being oppressed by people who "put a leash" on him. Even when he used his Leopard form to fight Luffy and even though his personality went in line with the bloodlust of the predator-based Zoan fruit, he was still "lost" to the hunt.
Yet another side-sideblog of yours truly, BB-BlueArcher (aka HH-BlueDynamite) XD.
This blog is, more or less, dedicated to a reimagining of One Piece, sort of like my reMix blog for Bleach.
Now...unlike Bleach reMix, which is more or less a fix-it AU born from frustration of how the story and lore was handled canonically, One Piece: The Kilagrew Project was born from...really for fun. Well, there's still some "fix-it" elements (like what happened in Wano and how Haki was shown), but, for the most part, this is out of fun.
My initial plans for the lore of this blog right now are this:
It's a mix of OPLA, Animanga, and my headcanons.
Between OPLA and Animanga, it's more OPLA-leaning because I adore the directions it took (currently waiting on bated breath for Season 03)
Because of this, things are relatively more grounded (as grounded as you can get in the world of weirdos that is One Piece)
At the start, the Pre-TS East Blue crew are older by two years (Luffy & Usopp are 19, Nami is 20, and Sanji & Zoro are 21)
Filler arcs, Movies, specials, and games (specifically ones like the Unlimited series, Worldseeker, and Odyssey) are semi-canon.
The journey from Twin Capes to Sabaody Archipelago actually took about a year and half. (currently debating on having their individual training last for 3 years)
Of the initial islands we've canonically (and non-canonically) visited, there are other islands.
Luffy's Devil Fruit remains a Paramecia (Gear 5 is relatively the same, just without the hagomoro scarf and the apparently reality bending)
Paulie and Vivi join the crew after Enies Lobby
Carrot joins the crew (technically) after Dressrosa
Sanji isn't really a prince, nor are the Vinsmokes true royalty. Judge is just a (as someone commented on my post about this on BlueArcher) manosphere warlord who just decided he was a king.
SWORD is a specialized unit of the Marines (originally founded by the Old Guard after the God Valley Incident) that shadows as a rebellion against the corruption of the Marines and World Government.
Garp reassigned Koby and Helmeppo to SWORD after Marineford
I actually have this idea for Egghead that while Koby and his unit visit Vegapunk specifically, the Straw Hats visit 'satellite' islands (sky islands that are overseen by Vegapunk's "clones")
There is probably more, but I'm going to have fun with it.
Current Status of the Blog: I am currently making character templates for at least the Straw Hats for their reimagined versions.
I'm also trying to work up the confidence to draw for it ^^;
