Impel Down

The prison is carefully monitored all around by a Surveillance Den Den Mushi. Tiny versions of them are found in specific locations throughout Impel Down. Whatever they see is transferred to a larger version that sends video feeds to monitors connected to it, allowing the guards to keep surveillance. Each of the smaller versions has an alarm beeper connected to the shells. The large Surveillance Den Den Mushi is kept in a monitor room somewhere within the fortress.

Medical Laboratory

There is also what appears to be a medical laboratory stationed somewhere within the great jail, with doctors and a variety of medical equipment for immediate treatments of anyone within the prison, both prisoner and staff alike. However, the doctors seem to have a limit, as they cannot produce a cure for an accumulation of various poisons.

Generator Room

The generator room of the entire prison is located on the first floor, before Level 1, and as are the controls to open the Gates of Justice.

Crimson Hell (紅蓮地獄, Guren Jigoku?) is the first level of Impel Down in which prisoners are kept. The level houses the least-infamous prisoners and contains a large forest of red trees. The leaves of the trees, known as Kenju (剣樹?, literally meaning “bladed tree”), are as sharp as blades, while the grass on the floor, the Haribarisō (針々草?, literally meaning “needle grass”), is as spiky as needles. Here, prisoners are forced to run through the forest while being chased by poisonous spiders and guards to experience all the pain from being cut from all directions. As a consequence of prisoners being forced through this forest, it is soaked in blood, giving it its characteristic crimson color. Deep within the forest is a hole that leads to Level 2. For those who do not wish to live through the pain of being cut any longer, they are given the option of jumping down the hole to Level 2, which contains an even more terrifying hell that nobody is willing to risk. The security here seems to be somewhat lax, as a prisoner has managed to sneak a Black Den Den Mushi into his cell, eavesdropping on what is happening around the fortress. Buggy was kept here prior to his escape due to the guards not knowing he was a Devil Fruit user, much less one whose power rendered him completely impervious to this type of torture.

Level 2 Wild Beast Hell

Wild Beast Hell (猛獣地獄, Mōjū Jigoku?) is the second level of Impel Down in which prisoners are kept. Buggy commented that every prisoner that was imprisoned on Level 2 and escaped alongside him holds a bounty higher than his own (15,000,000). It contains various wild beasts of all sorts. Prisoners kept here are forced to be chased by them through the corridors of the level. Because of the fearsome danger, prisoners often either lose the will to go on, or refuse to escape even when their cells are unlocked.

The beasts kept here include Puzzle Scorpions and Manticores. Puzzle Scorpions are large poisonous insects that can link together to form a giant centipede-like creature. Manticores are man-eating lions with human faces; they will devour their prey entirely, including the bones. Because they have human faces, they are able to speak, however they can only repeat things that they have heard and they do not actually understand what they are saying, so some of the things that they say are completely out of place. They mostly just say things that they have heard from the prisoners.

Among these regular-sized beasts kept here are also two gigantic beasts, the Basilisk and the Sphinx. The Basilisk is a gigantic snake born from a chicken. It is a feathered mutant that possesses both snake and chicken traits. It is extremely strong, and it gave Luffy and Buggy a good chase until it was downed with one blow of Gear 3 from Luffy. Though formidable, the Basilisk is not the most powerful beast in the level.

It is considered to be the “second-in-command”. The Sphinx is a gigantic human faced feathered lion. Significantly larger than the Basilisk and much more fearsome than the other beasts, it is considered the “boss” of the level and is charged with guarding the stairway that leads out of the level. It is so fearsome that the prisoners kept in the level, and even the other beasts hide from it. Like the Manticores, it is capable of imitated speech. It randomly says the names of types of noodles and apparently understands the concept of giving thanks before meals. It is such a strong beast that it is capable of breaking the floor beneath it if it hits it enough times. Galdino was kept here prior to being set free by Luffy and Buggy. After both the Basilisk and the Sphinx were defeated, and along with all the prison doors being unlocked, there was a mass riot in the level caused by Luffy and his companions. The riot however was quelled down by Saldeath and his Blue Gorillas. There was a second riot that occurred shortly after the previous riot but was quelled after Magellan apparently decimated almost all the prisoners on the level and blocked all the entrances and exits. However, as Magellan became occupied with Luffy’s breakout army, the rioters of Level 2 once again became active.

Level 3 Starvation Hell

Starvation Hell (飢餓地獄, Kiga Jigoku?) is the third level of Impel Down in which prisoners are kept. Most of the prisoners kept here are pirates who have a bounty of 50,000,000 or higher. On this level, prisoners feel the heat rising up from Level 4 and are given precious little food and water to keep them in a near death state. They are reduced to the point where, by merely looking at them, one cannot tell that they were ever once frightening criminals. Also, while the temperature here is nothing compared to the level below, it is intense enough to cause overwhelming dryness, resulting in Level 3’s somewhat desert-like terrain. Bentham was kept here, despite his bounty being only 32,000,000. In the middle of the level is a large hole going directly to Level 4 down below. This, combined with a gigantic fan directly above the hole, serves as the main ventilation system to redirect the smoke produced from below. Level 4 can be reached through this hole; however, to travel down it holds a risk of death or scalding by the fire and heat from the floor below.

Level 4 Blazing Hell

Blazing Hell (焦熱地獄, Shōnetsu Jigoku?, VIZ: “Inferno Hell”) is the fourth level of Impel Down in which prisoners are kept. At this level, a pool lies filled with boiling blood heated by a raging fire making it extremely hot. The heat caused by this is so intense that it also heats up the level directly above it. If one tries to jump down to this level from Level 3 using the large hole used for ventilation above but do not land in a safe place, then they will die. Prisoners from other levels are regularly tortured here.

The most prevalent form of torture however is being thrown into the gigantic pot of boiling blood in the middle of the level. Other tortures involve prisoners being hung from ropes around their stomachs en masse and being dangled over the raging flames throughout the level and being put to back-breaking hard labor by suppling giant logs of firewood to keep the flames going. Guards on this level must don protective gear to avoid being hurt by the intense heat, as it is strong enough to sear bared flesh. Daz Bonez was kept here, though he was shown to be unfazed by the heat of this level while being placed into hard labor. He also saw Luffy and Magellan’s battle while in his cell. Magellan, the warden of Impel Down, stays here. His office contains a lift, which can take several people to all the levels throughout the fortress, bypassing the stairs. This is also where the kitchen of the prison is located, right next to Magellan’s office. Luffy’s battle with Magellan was fought here prior to him being completely poisoned and captured.

Level 5 Freezing Hell

Freezing Hell (極寒地獄, Gokkan Jigoku?, VIZ: “Frozen Hell”) is the fifth level of Impel Down in which prisoners are kept. This is the level where criminals with bounties of 100,000,000 and over are kept. In stark contrast to the level above it, the entire level here is a giant freezer. The level is so cold that not only do the prisoners kept here either freeze to death or lose pieces of their flesh from severe frostbite, but the food given to them is frozen to the level of being virtually inedible. Due to the extreme cold, Den Den Mushi do not function in this level, thus cutting off both contact and surveillance, except on the locations localized around the entrances that connects Level 5 to the previous and next levels.

Along with the severe cold, the level is inhabited by wolves. These wolves roam around the level like the beasts of Level 2, where they were originally stationed at. However, they proved to be too brutal to be in Level 2 as they also hunted the other beasts as well, including the Basilisk and the Sphinx. Along with the bitter cold of the level, there seems to be an occurrence of prisoners mysteriously disappearing as well. Prisoners who are incapable of moving by themselves have been disappearing without a trace. Because of this, the Impel Down staff and the prisoners call this phenomenon, the Demoning Away (?). The superstition is that the missing prisoners have been actually pulled away by demons to the Gates of Hell itself. The belief of this superstition has been carefully kept within Level 5 so that no inmates from the upper levels were aware about it prior to Bentham (disguised as Hannyabal), Buggy, and Galdino descending down to it where they were informed by the guards. Among these missing prisoners is Emporio Ivankov, the queen of the okama. He was imprisoned here until he mysteriously disappeared from his cell. Since then, he was rumored to be living in an abandoned guard’s office deep within a forest situated in the level. Luffy was transferred into the central tower of this floor after his loss against Magellan, with the effects of Magellan’s poison whittling away his vitality, until released by Bentham, hoping to find a cure.

Level 55 Newkama Land

Known as the “The “Prisoners’ Secret Flower Garden”, Newkama Land (ニューカマーランド, Nyūkamā Rando?) is a hidden sub level of Freezing Hell and is where all the prisoners who have been supposedly Demoned Away (降ろした, Oroshita?, English versions: Demon’s Invitation) have gone to. The secret area is located inside a rock between Levels 5 and 6. It was carved out long ago by a prisoner with a tunneling Devil Fruit power and is a secret location unknown by the jailers. It is ruled by the “Queen” Emporio Ivankov, and it is called the Okama Paradise where all the okama and prisoners party and have fun all the time. It has been described by Ivankov as a “paradise within hell”, and true enough, not one inmate from this hidden level is inclined at all to escape the jail as a result.

However, since the level itself is hidden, the inhabitants seem to abide by very strict rules that prohibit them from actively interacting with the other levels, at least not without covert movement. Still, they do not seem to discriminate should new arrivals find their way here, as seen by the warm welcome they gave to Bon Kurei. One of its main rooms is a combination of a sit-down cafe and a discotheque, with the main attraction being a cabaret stage where Emporio Ivankov and his followers perform. Apparently, there are also secret entrances existing from the other levels (save for Level 6) that leads directly into this hidden level which the inhabitants can use to their advantage in procuring any necessary supplies. The level also has a Surveillance Den Den Mushi that captures feeds from Impel Down’s main surveillance system so the prisoners can see what is going on from all levels in the prison. They also steal newspapers from the prison’s garbage cans to stay informed about current events. Following the mass breakout of Impel Down, many residents of Newkama Land participated in the Summit War of Marineford and left for the Kamabakka Kingdom, leaving the area largely empty. However, after two years, many prisoners are shown occupying it again, the only real difference being that it is now ruled by “Queen” Bentham. Its name is a pun on “new comer” and okama, and refers to the okama who are completely able to change genders thanks to Ivankov’s powers. In Japan, a “Newhalf” is a transgender woman who has not yet undergone a sex reassignment.

Level 6 Eternal Hell

Eternal Hell (無限地獄, Mugen Jigoku?, VIZ: “Infinite Hell”) is the lowest level of Impel Down. It is where prisoners who are insanely powerful, have caused crimes extremely atrocious, and/or whose mere existences have become a major threat to the World Government itself are kept. Sengoku said even a single Level 6 prisoner lurking in a remote country could be an incredible danger to the public. The prisoners on this level have been given either the death penalty or a life sentence. They are basically “erased” from history.

Saint Jaygarcia Saturn of the Five Elders admitted he was surprised anyone from Level 6 would ever be someone else’s subordinate. Most high-ranking officers of Impel Down tend to avoid this level because of the danger these criminals pose but will visit it if the need arises. The chief warden of Impel Down also has the authority to execute prisoners kept here on the spot if they begin acting up and may do so at their own discretion. When he was chief warden, Magellan made no qualms about demonstrating this power by dousing prisoners with his deadly Hydra attack when they openly mocked his authority. Ace was kept here on death row, awaiting his execution.

Because most people dismiss Level 6 as just a rumor (until its actual discovery), Ace was believed to be on Level 5 by other prisoners. Jinbe was also placed on this floor and was being kept in the same cell as Ace. Though the prisoners on this floor are either jailed for the rest of their lives or until their execution day arrives, Jinbe was only given a temporary sentence for refusing to fight against Whitebeard. Crocodile was also kept in a cell next to theirs. Near them are various other legendary pirates who hold deep grudges against Whitebeard, some of which are several imprisoned giants. Kept alongside the prisoners was the former Head Jailer Shiryu. Because he constantly massacred prisoners, he was deemed to be a menace even within Impel Down and became too dangerous to be kept anywhere else in the prison. For abusing his powers, he was sentenced to Level 6, until his death sentence. Interestingly enough, even though Level 6 is considered the worst hell, prisoners kept here are never actually tortured (though it was shown that Minotaurus occasionally showed up and tormented the prisoners with its club). It simply seems to be a holding cell for life or until an execution and prisoners do not have to endure terrible conditions (burning heat, freezing cold, etc.) unlike the higher floors. However, as seen with Jinbe and Crocodile as they moved through the other levels and are unaffected by those conditions, the inhabitants of this level may simply be too powerful to be affected by torture. On the other hand, Shiryu noted that the boredom of spending his time in this empty level made him wish for death.

Impel Down is located in the middle of the Calm Belt, where Sea Kings thrive, making entrance difficult. The only way to get there with the greatest of ease is to use the Tarai Current, a water current accessible by going through the Gates of Justice located at either the Marine Headquarters or Enies Lobby. Also, the only way to safely get to the prison is to use one of the Seastone lined Marine battleships, as the entire place is surrounded by Sea Kings. Because of its brutal nature and being renowned for being inescapable since Shiki, almost no person wishes to ever go there. The only known exceptions are Monkey D. Luffy, Daz Bonez, and Crocodile. Jinbe believed that one or two lives should not be enough to make anyone want to venture into the prison, seeing Luffy’s infiltration to rescue one person as incredible. Usually, Impel Down is a hell-fortress with maximum defenses, making intrusion and breaking-out by criminals impossible. However, Luffy made the record of being the first to break-in, tarnishing that perfect record since Shiki’s breakout twenty years ago. The Blackbeard Pirates are the second group of people to ever instigate a break-in, and they did so with less effort than Luffy, not having bothered to try to avoid detection.

Arrival And Sterilization

When prisoners arrive in Impel Down, they are put in boiling water known as Hell’s Hot Tub to disinfect and sterilize them. This is ritualistically referred to as “baptizing” them. In the VIZ manga translation, it is instead said that only the prisoners’ clothes are thrown into the boiling water. While most have screamed in pain due to the extreme heat, only a few prisoners have been known to take the sterilization without flinching even one bit. These prisoners include Portgas D. Ace, Jinbe, and Crocodile. Monkey D. Luffy is the only known prisoner to not have gone through this ritual, being an intruder who was supposed to die in twenty-four hours from poison.

Change Of Clothing

Most prisoners then have their clothes taken before they are given a striped black and white pair of shirt and trousers. However, they are permitted to keep certain articles of clothing and prosthetics, such as Galdino’s glasses, and Crocodile’s hook. Exceptions to this rule are prisoners who were not meant to stay long before death. These include Portgas D. Ace, Monkey D. Luffy, and Shiryu. Jinbe was also allowed to keep his own clothing, as he was meant to be kept there until he was willing to cooperate with the World Government. The residents of New Kama Land seem to have managed to retrieve their old clothes after escaping from their cells. Similarly, Crocodile seems to have somehow retrieved clothing similar to his old attire, including a long fur coat, almost immediately after escaping from his cell. However, it was revealed by Oda as well in the anime that Crocodile got his outfit back from New Kama Land.

Level Assignment And Life Of Torture

After sterilization and a change of clothing, the prisoners are then placed in one of the six known levels of Impel Down, based on their crimes and strength. The more heinous or powerful a prisoner is, the lower the level they will be placed. From then on, the prisoners are tortured in various ways, depending on their assigned levels, with most of them supposedly having no chance of ever leaving alive.

Visits

Whether outside people are permitted to visit the prisoners is unknown. Government agents and Marines have the authority to do so, but they would need permission from their superiors. As Impel Down is a World Government facility, it is obvious pirates cannot enter without being branded as intruders and criminals. The Seven Warlords of the Sea are allowed, at the permission of the Government. Even so, they would be subjected to a full body search, then be forced to wear Seastone-cuffs, for safety measures. Without permission, such as Blackbeard and his crew, they would be considered as traitors.

Leaving Impel Down

Aside from visitors and Government officials, most people who enter Impel Down never leave there alive. The only prisoners ever allowed to leave are those who are held until their death penalty that takes place outside of the fortress (e.g., Portgas D. Ace), those who are meant to serve temporary sentence (e.g., Jinbe) and those who are released for special reasons (e.g., Arlong). Breakout of Impel Down is virtually impossible, due to the defenses from the extremely powerful traps and guards of the place, with the Sea King-infested Calm Belt being its ultimate barricade. However, Shiki made the record of being the first person to break-out of the prison twenty years ago due to a mistake made by the Marines. Monkey D. Luffy became the second to do so. Aside from his own escape, Luffy is also responsible for leading the very first mass-riot within the jail. Along with Emporio Ivankov, Inazuma, Buggy, Daz Bonez, Crocodile, Jinbe, Galdino, and 233 other prisoners, he is also responsible for the first-ever mass breakout in Impel Down’s history. Bentham intentionally stayed behind, sacrificing himself to let the others complete their escape. It is unknown how many prisoners died during this riot, mostly from the Jailer Beasts and Magellan’s poison. Following this second breakout, the Blackbeard Pirates had freed several Level 6 prisoners for recruitment into their crew, leading to even more prisoners leaving.

Over a century ago, Morley was a wanted pirate who was imprisoned at Impel Down. Using her Devil Fruit abilities, she managed to escape the prison and construct a network of elaborate tunnels between Levels 5 and 6 of the prison, a fact that remained unknown for a long time allowing the prison to retain its status as being inescapable. Twenty-two years ago, Shiki the Golden Lion became the first known prisoner to escape Impel Down due to a mistake made by the Marines and by cutting off his own chained up legs. Ever since then, no prisoner had ever made a successful break-out or break-in until the Impel Down Great Escape Incident. Over the years, many prisoners of Level 5 would disappear for no apparent reason. The guards dubbed this phenomenon as “demoning” away, and thought such prisoners were gone forever. In truth, they were rescued from their cells by the Revolutionaries’ commander Emporio Ivankov, who was also imprisoned in Level 5, and they all stayed at the secret Level 5.5, a space dug out by a past prisoner with a tunneling Devil Fruit power. Head Jailer Shiryu of the Rain killed many prisoners within the walls of the prison for his sheer pleasure and was deemed a menace. He was put on death row and was held in Level 6 until his sentence would be carried out.

Water 7 Saga

Enies Lobby Arc

Impel Down was briefly mentioned by Nami as a place that once a person goes in will never come out. She thought Robin was going there but it turned out to be wrong. Later in Enies Lobby, Spandam ordered Franky to be sent to Impel Down while Robin was to be sent to the Marine Headquarters.

Miss Goldenweeks Operation Meet Baroque Works

After the fall of Baroque Works at Arabasta, Crocodile (Mr. 0), Daz Bonez (Mr. 1), Bentham (Mr. 2), and Galdino (Mr. 3), were all eventually transferred from a regular prison to Impel Down for life.

Thriller Bark Saga

Thriller Bark Arc

When Marshall D. Teach captured Portgas D. Ace to gain the title of Warlord of the Sea, Ace was transferred to Level 6, to be held there until his public execution.

Summit War Saga

Amazon Lily Arc

After Kizaru’s failure to apprehend the Straw Hat Pirates during the Celestial Dragon Incident, he captured 500 pirates to vent his frustrations. When Impel Down couldn’t process their paperwork in a timely manner, Fleet Admiral Sengoku ordered the captured pirates be sent to a labor camp because he did not have the time to deal with anything other than the upcoming conflict.

Impel Down Arc

Sometime around Ace’s imprisonment, Buggy the Clown was captured by the Marines and sentenced to Level 1. His crew was thinking of saving him, but due to Impel Down’s reputation of impregnability, they gave up and left him. During the preparations for Ace’s impending execution, Jinbe of the Seven Warlords of the Sea was sent to Level 6, as he refused to fight on behalf of the World Government, and even broke out in rage at Marineford. He was placed in the same cell as Ace, whom he was friends with for a long time. After the consecutive mass breakouts (the first led by Luffy and Buggy, the second by Blackbeard), Impel Down was left completely defeated.

Post-war Arc

After the war with the Whitebeard Pirates, several Level 6 inmates would escape due to Blackbeard’s death match and the warden, Magellan, would be beaten to an inch of his life. Among the escapees was Shiryu, who Magellan temporarily released out of desperation for assistance in quelling the riots. However, Shiryu quickly betrayed Magellan and teamed up with Blackbeard, as well as many more Level 6 inmates, who would all ultimately go on to inflict the final killing blows upon Whitebeard.

Fish-man Island Saga

From The Decks Of The World

After the time skip, Impel Down has been repaired from Luffy’s and Blackbeard’s mass escapes. Hannyabal has been promoted to chief warden and Domino has been promoted to head jailer. Another Jailer Beast, Minochihuahua, has been added. Saldeath has grown taller and Sadi has fallen in love with the newly appointed vice warden, Magellan who has been demoted (or has stepped down) to vice warden.

Dressrosa Saga

Dressrosa Arc

Jean Ango, a bounty hunter, became very active in hunting down many of the escaped prisoners and sending them back for the bounties, including many Level 6 prisoners, and desired to capture the main perpetrators of the breakouts two years ago. After Donquixote Doflamingo’s defeat at the hands of Monkey D. Luffy and Trafalgar D. Water Law, he was sent to Impel Down. Though nearby, a pirate ship flying Kaidou’s jolly roger commanded by Captain Jack pursued Doflamingo’s escort of four Marine warships, as Jack planned to take him back by force. However, the rescue attempt failed, and Jack was presumed dead for some time. Doflamingo was put in Level 6 and he started looking for the latest news from the outside world since Tsuru rejected his request to have newspapers delivered to him.

Whole Cake Island Saga

Levely Arc

As the royal parties arrived at Mary Geoise for the Levely, Doflamingo was shown in a solitary cell. He asked Magellan if he was guarding him and wondered if an assassin would be coming to kill him before he could reveal the truth about the Mary Geoise’s national treasure.

Final Saga

Egghead Arc

Sometime after, Impel Down felt an earthquake of unprecedented magnitude. When Vegapunk’s global broadcast began, the prisoners heard the message through the Den Den Mushi scattered throughout the prison.