Which is the most powerful gang in GTA San Andreas Definitive Edition?

GTA San Andreas is primarily based around the Los Angeles gang culture of the 90s. The game features gang warfare as a unique game mechanic, with the protagonist himself being a gang member.

The Definitive Edition of GTA San Andreas has brought back all these gangs in its remastered world. The gangs are the same as before, although a few character models (such as those of the Vagos) look inferior to the originals.

While there are many gangs in the game, the Ballas is clearly the most powerful in the game. While it does get trumped by Grove Street Families (GSF) in the end, it's the biggest antogonist in the game. This article delves into the most powerful gang in GTA San Andreas - the Ballas.

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Exploring the most powerful gang in GTA San Andreas Definitive Edition

The Ballas gang is the primary antagonist in GTA San Andreas. The gang is the bitter rivals of the GSF that CJ belongs to. The Ballas, like the GSF, is an African-American street gang based in Los Santos. The majority of its territory is in the city's poorer, run-down neighborhoods to the east.

While the GSF wears green, Ballas uses purple as its gang color. The Ballas in San Andreas consists of four 'sets':

1. The Front Yard Ballas (FYB) Territory is a part of East Los Santos and is located in Idlewood.
2. The Rollin' Heights Ballas (RHB) Territory is a part of Jefferson, East Los Santos, and Willowfield.
3. The Kilo Tray Ballas (KTB) Territory can be found throughout Willowfield and Glen Park.
4. After the completion of The Green Sabre, The Temple Drive Ballas (TDB) makes a minor comeback and takes Temple and Santa Maria Beach from the Temple Drive Families.

Their territories have been marked on the map below:

The numbers are in accordance with the sets mentioned above (Image via GTA Wiki)

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The Ballas makes its money mostly by selling narcotics, particularly crack cocaine. The San Fierro Rifa, the Loco Syndicate, and Big Smoke are the main sources of this. This is where it differs from the GSF, who doesn't wish to get involved with drugs.

The gang then spends money on firearms, mostly from the Russian Mafia.

In order to undermine the GSF, any leftover drug supply is sold to other dealers in the Grove region who have no gang allegiance. This is because selling in enemy territory would be too hazardous for a Balla. Apart from the GSF, the Ballas also has enmity with the Los Santos Vagos and the Varrios Los Aztecas.

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However, the gang can't be seen cooperating with the Vagos in the final mission of the game. The Ballas, like the GSF, is based on the Bloods and Crips, two real-life Los Angeles gangs with a bitter rivalry. Both gangs reappear in GTA 5, where Ballas is shown to have gained the upper hand.