Gol D. Roger

Gol D. Roger (ゴール・D・ロジャー, Gōru D. Rojā), also known to most as "Gold Roger" (ゴールド・ロジャー, Gōrudo Rojā), is both a fictional character and ally from the One Piece series. He was the King of the Pirates (海賊団の王, Kaizokudan no Ō), captain of the Roger Pirates, and original owner of the world's legendary treasure known as "One Piece". He was also the lover of Portgaz D. Rouge and biological father of Portgaz D. Ace.

Roger was famed as the man who did what no one thought possible - conquering the Grand Line and amassed a vast fortune, but he knew that he would soon die from an incurable disease. He disbanded his crew before turning himself in to be executed.

The World Government intended to have Roger be publically executed to discourage piracy, but his last words had the opposite impact. He stated that anyone who can find his treasure can claim it. This made Roger single-handily responsible for starting the Golden Age of Pirates.

"You want my wealth? My treasures? If you want it, you can have my fortune, it is yours for the taking... but you'll just have to find it first. I left everything I owned, gathered together, all of it in one place. In One Piece!"
 * —Gol D. Roger's famous last words before he died.

Appearance & Biography

 * Voice Actor: Sean Hennigan (English), Not Known (Japanese), Not Known (Italian), Not Known (Spanish), Not Known (German), Not Known (Finnish), Not Known (Korean), Not Known (French), Not Known (Latin American Spanish)
 * Voice Actor (young): Marcus Stimac (English), Takeshi Kusao (Japanese), Not Known (Italian), Not Known (Spanish), Not Known (German), Not Known (Finnish), Not Known (Korean), Not Known (French), Not Known (Latin American Spanish)

Appearance
Roger was a tall man who walked proudly before his execution. His most prominent physical features were his curved black mustache, a fierce grin he almost always wore, and his intense eyes. He also had thick black hair and a short, thick neck.

The Young Past Days
Later on, during a flashback to Roger's first meeting with Rayleigh, it was revealed that Roger wore the straw hat that Monkey D. Luffy is currently wearing.

To The Days He Died
Like many other high ranking pirates, he wore a long red captain's coat. Beneath his coat, he wore a blue shirt and had a green sash around his waist. He wore a white cravat around his neck, dark blue pants, and what appeared to be black sea boots. Before he turned himself in, he also wore a pirate hat with his jolly roger on it over a yellow spotted bandana. During the Edd War, however, he donned a dark-blue vest and a yellow sash.


 * Hair Color: Black
 * Skin Color: Not Known
 * Eye Color: Black
 * Age: 53 (Deceased)
 * Birthday: December 31st
 * Height: Not Known
 * Weight: Not Known

Personality
"Even in front of a huge enemy army that he had no chance of winning against, Roger stood tall and would not run."
 * —Monkey D. Garp about Gol D. Roger.

Roger was said to be fearless, and those who witnessed his execution even claim that he smiled just before his death. His personality is often noted by people who knew him to have been similar to that of Monkey D. Luffy. This is best shown when he meets Rayleigh and ask him to join him, despite having no idea how strong he was or even what role he would have on his ship. Portgaz D. Ace revealed his lineage to Whitebeard, who noted that Ace's personality was not much like his father's. However, they both shared a refusal to run from battle: Monkey D. Garp stated that Roger would not run away from an enemy in order to protect his crew from danger.

Roger was also a man who loved big, flashy things and reveled in his title of King of the Pirates despite his oncoming death. While not portrayed during any of his appearances, he could be a merciless enemy when he got angry. This was further evidenced when he killed all of Squard's crewmembers personally for unknown reasons.

Roger was very quick to anger, and he would retaliate for something as simple as an insult to his crew, regardless of how small it might be. Garp stated that an angry Roger could be a violent, selfish, and short-tempered man, but his actions had been pure and straight, just like a child's, and that he was lucky to survive and become the King of the Pirates despite his extremely reckless nature.

Friends/Allies

 * Roger Pirates
 * Silvers Rayleigh
 * Monkey D. Rex
 * Shanks
 * Buggy
 * Gunfall
 * Tom
 * Kokoro

Family

 * Portgaz D. Rouge (Lover; Deceased)
 * Portgaz D. Ace (Son; Deceased)

Neutral

 * World Government
 * Marshall D. Teech/Blackbeard

Rivals

 * Navy
 * Monkey D. Garp
 * Whitebeard Pirates
 * Edward Newgate

Enemies

 * Golden Lion Pirates
 * Shiki
 * Big Mam Pirates
 * Big Mam

Abilities and Powers
"There once was a man named, Gold Roger... who was King of the Pirates. He had fame, power, and wealth, beyond your wildest dreams."
 * —Introduction to One Piece.

Prior to his death, Roger was called the "King of the Pirates" because his fighting power was nearly unstoppable. Only two people are known to have ever matched Roger in battle: Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp, who possesses immense strength even in old age and cornered him multiple times before his surrender, and his rival "Whitebeard" Edward Newgate, who held the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit and was called the "Strongest Man in the World" after Roger's death.

Examples of his strength include fighting on equal ground with Shiki, who commanded the largest pirate fleet of the time, and single-handedly defeating the armies of several countries. Another testament to his strength is the fact that his first mate, Rayleigh Silvers, was able to battle on an even par with Admiral Kizaru, even in his old age.

Roger was also able to understand the meaning of the characters written on the Ponecliffs, as well as write in the same language. However, he was not like the Ohara scholars who used their intellect to study the Ponecliffs, so he could not exactly "read" them. According to Rayleigh, Roger could interpret the Ponecliffs because he had the ability to "hear the voice of all things". He was also one of four known humans in the series who possessed the ability to hear Neptunians speaking, the others being Luffy. He was also one of four known humans in the series who possessed the ability to hear Zunisha speaking, the others being Luffy, Kozuki Oden, and Kozuki Momonosuke.

Weapons
While fighting Shiki and his massive fleet, it has been shown that Gol D. Roger wielded a sword in one hand and a gun in the other.

The Beginning
Born in Roguetown, Roger was famed as the man who did what no one thought possible - conquering the Grand Line. It would seem that he had been around for some time, considering that Brook refers to him as a "rookie", more than 50 years and around three decades before the current storyline. Before he formed his crew, he met Silvers Rayleigh, a young man who was living on a ship he had stolen after his house had burnt down. Roger said that it was a fated meeting and asked Rayleigh to join him.

Unavoidable Fate
Twenty-six years before the start of the story, Roger came down with an incurable disease. He decided to pitch one last journey with his crew into the Grand Line. Upon reaching the lighthouse at Reverse Mountain, at the entrance of the Grand Line, he recruited Crocus as his doctor to keep him alive until the completion of his journey.

Their journey took them to Skypiea and later Water 7, where the shipwright Tom built them a ship called the Oro Jackson.

Two of the most powerful opponents Roger faced on his journey were Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp and the pirate Edward "Whitebeard" Newgate. The former is said to have cornered him many times on the journey, and the latter was the closest rival to his title. It is said that Whitebeard was the only one capable of matching Roger in combat.

In the New World, Roger managed to read the Road Ponecliff in the possession of Charlotte Lingling, better known as Big Mam, that helped guide Roger toward Raftel's location; Roger would also find the three other Road Ponecliffs, one of which was on Zou.

"I am not interested in "domination", Shiki! There is no need to be a pirate if you can't do what you want, right? No matter the pressure, "Golden Lion", I will never accept the offer!!!"
 * —Gol D. Roger, refusing to be Shiki's right hand man in order to dominate the world with him.

Before the final reaching Raftel on his final journey, Roger was approached by the "Flying Pirate" Shiki, who had learned that Roger had located an Ancient Weapon. Seeing the opportunity, he asked Roger if they could join forces, as with his large pirate fleet and Roger's weapon, Shiki believed that together they could take over the whole world, even telling Roger that what happened between them in the past was now forgotten. Despite the urges of one of his apprentices, Roger refused Shiki's offer and said that he wanted to be free to do what he wanted. Shiki announced that his answer meant the death of him, while Roger said it meant that he would beat him, and a great sea battle soon ensued between their crews.

The battle was resolved by a storm that happened during their fight, which sunk half of Shiki's fleet. Despite this and getting a piece of a steering wheel lodged into his head that almost killed him, Shiki came to have great respect for Roger.

Near his death, Roger had a final meeting with Whitebeard, where he told him about the nickname the government gave him, Gold Roger, and the secret of the Spirit Will of the D.

Final Days of the King
"In the last moment of his life, he turned his fading "flame of life" into a huge fire that enveloped the world. I've never laughed more than on that day...!! I've never cried more than on that day... I've never drank more either..!! He was our captain... and he was a magnificent man...!!!"
 * —Silvers Rayleigh talking about Roger's death.

In the final days of Roger's reign, he had attained more wealth, power, and fame than anyone could imagine. Though now known as the Pirate King, Roger was well-aware of his own mortality, and he disbanded his crew in secret. Before his death, he told Rayleigh he would not die. He informed Whitebeard that he was going to die before his execution; whether he was referring to his illness or to him giving up to the Navy is unknown.

Also, at some point he met Portgaz D. Rouge, a woman living in Batelira, that would later become the mother of his son, Portgaz D. Ace. Eventually, Roger turned himself in to the Navy and was scheduled to be executed. While in prison, he had asked Garp to take care of his son when he was gone, saying that an infant child should not be labeled a criminal for his family ties. Although Garp said he had no obligation to do so, Roger knew he would do it anyway.

Thinking they would make an example of him to prevent others from becoming pirates, the Navy immediately set up his execution in Roguetown. But as he was about to die, Roger yelled out his famous last words. The swords of the executioners fell, and the greatest pirate of them all died.

Legacy
What was thought would be a warning to all and extinguish the hopes of all pirates had failed. The last words of Roger ignited the excitement of the world, and thus began "The Great Age of Pirates", dubbed by a few as the "Age of Dreams". The echoes of his influence resonate further into the current era, and have shaped most of the world after his death.

As far as directly influencing major contenders, those known to be present at his execution include his apprentices Rex, Shanks and Buggy; the Warlords Crocodile, Don Quixote Doflamingo, Dracule Mihawk, and Gecko Moria; and the revolutionary Monkey D. Dragon, and it can be assumed from their conversation with Shiki that Monkey D. Garp and former Fleet Admiral Sengoku attended as well. Smoker also appeared to be there as a child. Twenty-two years after his execution, as Whitebeard was about to die, he revealed to the world that Roger's treasure, One Piece, is real, and inferred the consequences of what would happen once it was discovered. This triggered the beginning of the New Age of Pirates to be created out of Roger's legendary treasure.

The legend of the "King of Pirates" and his treasure "One Piece" gave start to the "Great Age of Pirates", where many pirates sailed in search of its location or to follow in Roger's footsteps.

All the men and women who had contact with Roger were executed. The only one to survive was Rouge. Roger's blood survived his death through his son Trace.

Roger's will has been inherited and retransmitted by Whitebeard's last words, which will start the "New Age of Pirates".

Canon

 * Gol D. Roger vs. Shiki (unseen, several times)
 * Gol D. Roger vs. Edward Newgate (unseen, several times)
 * Gol D. Roger vs. Monkey D. Garp (unseen, several times)
 * Roger Pirates vs. Golden Lion Pirates (Edd War)
 * Roger Pirates vs. Squard's first pirate crew (unseen)

Non-Canon

 * Gol D. Roger vs. Killer Giant (mentioned)
 * Gol D. Roger vs. "King" Eric Dow (mentioned)
 * Gol D. Roger vs. the giant men Gowns Brothers (mentioned)
 * Gol D. Roger vs. the famous gunner Silver-Silver (mentioned)
 * Roger Pirates vs. Naguri Pirates
 * Gol D. Roger vs. Zephyr