Baroque Works was a criminal syndicate created by the Warlord Crocodile to destabilize and conquer the Arabasta Kingdom and, by extension, acquire the ancient superweapon Pluton. For this sole purpose, it conducted countless acts of espionage, sabotage, and murder over a span of years, ultimately manipulating Arabasta into civil war
While the syndicate mostly employed common bounty hunters and mercenaries (motivated by the half-truth that they were building a new, “ideal” nation), its elite members contained significantly skilled combatants and spies. Despite multiple setbacks, its endgame Operation Utopia nearly succeeded in every objective, and was only narrowly stopped by the combined efforts of Princess Nefertari Vivi, the Straw Hat Pirates, and a unit of Marines led by then Captain Smoker.
After Operation Utopia’s failure, the syndicate was exposed and dismantled, with Crocodile and most of his subordinates many personally defeated by the Straw Hats arrested by the Marines. In years to come, however, many of them would escape and continue to impact world events.
At its height, the syndicate contained over 2,000 members, with operations ranging from the Grand Line’s Paradise region to the East Blue. Crocodile heavily enforced secrecy throughout, with most (possibly all) members assigned codenames and often forbidden from interacting with higher-ranked personnel; his own identity was kept the highest secret, and any would-be threats were immediately marked for execution.
Administration
Mr. 0 Miss All Sunday
Officer Agents
Mr. 1 Miss Doublefinger Mr. 2 Bon Kurei Mr. 3 Miss Goldenweek
Mr. 4 Miss Merry Christmas Mr. 5 Miss Valentine
