There are enough available positions aboard the Thousand Sunny to more than double the Straw Hat crew size, or at least add one more member.
Many One Piece fans who want a certain character as a new crew member are often stumped when asked what essential role they could fill. The Straw Hat Pirates seem like they have a pretty complete crew already. They have a captain, a first mate, a navigator, a gunner, a cook, a doctor, and a shipwright. They’ve even afforded themselves an archaeologist, a musician, and a helmsman. Any minor duties that aren’t assigned to a specific crew member are often relegated to whoever seems right for the job. This aspect of the crew’s dynamic makes adding a new member seem superfluous, especially now that the series is in its final saga.
With that said, there are still plenty of potential roles available on a pirate ship for new crew members to fill. If Luffy wanted to, he could more than double his crew size with all of the different positions he’s left open. The main Straw Hat Pirates will probably never get big enough to fill them all, but if it’s a matter of roles, there will always be room for at least one more crew member.
What Major Roles Could a New Straw Hat Pirate Have?
The Straw Hats are still in need a lookout. They’d be responsible for sitting in the crow’s nest and keeping a watchful eye on the horizon for enemies, land, or whatever else may come into view. Zoro may use the Thousand Sunny’s massive crow’s nest to train, but a lookout would move into the space and likely refurbish it to suit their own needs. Some have suggested that Carrot could take this position if she joined the crew.
A cooper would also be an essential role on a pirate ship. They’re responsible for making and maintaining the barrels or some other form of container to keep gunpowder, food, and other products from going bad or getting damaged. Their ability to help keep things preserved is necessary for longer voyages.
Franky proved that he could make a mean barrel to hold even a Logia like Caribou, but perhaps the role would be better suited to the latter. His Swamp-Swamp powers are notably good for storing and even preserving an infinite amount of whatever he needs, including rations. This, combined with his surprising amount of relevance throughout the New World, not only makes him a potential mainstay aboard the Sunny but also a useful one.
A riggeris also a fairly essential role and ought to be filled. These people are responsible for tying and untying a ship when docking or shoving off. They also raise and lower the sails and anchors. These tasks can technically be carried out by any Straw Hat, but if they ever wanted someone really good with ropes, they could always give Paulie a call.
Can The Straw Hats Function Without New Crewmates?
One potential role worth filling on a pirate ship is the quartermaster. They have several responsibilities aboard a ship; providing quarters, rations, clothing, and other supplies; maintaining the ship’s treasure and quota when shopping for supplies; listening to the concerns of the crew and relaying them to the captain. They’re also known for imposing punishments on crew members who step out of line. All of these duties are important for running a well-organized ship.
It should be noted that a lot of a ship’s finances are actually handled by a merchant, who works as the right-hand man of the quartermaster. Their tasks are more geared toward the bargaining, spending, and trading of the crew. They may also be sent into a port town ahead of their main vessel to gather supplies.
Technically, the roles of quartermaster and merchant are mostly filled by the Straw Hats’ navigator Nami. She’s the one who’s primarily responsible for the Straw Hats’ finances. She also doles out plenty of punishment when her crew mates do something stupid, even the captain. That said, if the Straw Hats still want an officially designated quartermaster to manage their supplies, that position could still be filled by someone like Vivi or Rebecca.
The Straw Hats might have also considered enlisting a commandointo their ranks. These kinds of people use a variety of weapons, certain kinds of warfare, or both to take on hordes of enemies. Commando units are technically more common among the Marine forces, but they could also represent a cannoneer on a pirate ship. Usopp fills this role to an extent, but someone like Wyper might have also been able to fill this role with his use of Dial-based weaponry.
What Optional Roles Could a New Straw Hat Fill?
Some crews also like to have a chronicler aboard their ship. They’re responsible for keeping track of the crew’s adventures in a logbook. Some fans believe Yamato would have worked in this role as her idol Oden did something similar for the Roger Pirates.
The only problem with having a chronicler join the Straw Hats now is how far the crew is into their voyage. The series is currently in its final saga, so there isn’t much left to be chronicled. Whoever takes this position would have to interview the veteran crew members one at a time to get as much of the story as possible, and even then it would be largely incomplete. Bartolomeo might be able to fill in some holes since he’s been following the Straw Hats’ exploits since Roguetown, but he’d probably be obscenely biased about it. As things stand, there’s just no practical way for a chronicler to join the Straw Hats.
The Straw Hats might also consider recruiting a cabin mate, also known as a cabin boy or cabin girl. These junior or apprentice pirates take care of menial tasks aboard a ship like polishing cannonballs or scrubbing the decks. They also help with the minor duties of a cook, shipwright, or boatswain as it helps them get a grasp of living on the high seas. If a cabin mate is diligent and determined, which is to be expected of a Straw Hat anyway, then they could get promoted to a higher position. This role could finally be the excuse fans have needed to add a younger character like Tama or Momonosuke to the crew.
A scientist is another optional but useful crewmate. They would be responsible for providing the crew with all sorts of technology that would make both their fighting style and their quality of life better. Franky technically fills this role, but he’s more of a shipwright by title. The scientist is meant to act as a support to a shipwright, as well as a commando or a blacksmith if they’re on board. Some fans are discussing the idea of Dr. Vegapunk joining the crew and filling this role.
A few more miscellaneous roles are also technically available. A janitor would be in charge of cleaning up the ship, though that job might just be shared by the crew as a whole. A blacksmith would be in charge of repairing, maintaining, and adding to the weapons, armor, and equipment on the ship; this kind of job is already done by Franky and Usopp and they even have their own workshops for it. A tailor would be responsible for mending and sewing the damaged clothes of the crew; Nami seems to fill this role as she’s the one who fixes Luffy’s straw hat. A boatswain would normally be responsible for the lower deck and the hull, but the Sunny might be too small a vessel for one of those. These are the kind of roles with tasks that the Straw Hats could designate to a new crew member, but can also be handled without them.
Anyone who’s worried that there won’t be any more Straw Hats welcomed aboard the Sunny in the Final Saga shouldn’t give up hope. There are still plenty of potential spots to fill aboard the ship and Luffy still has room in his heart for another crewmate. For all of the reasons a character would have not to join the crew, not having anything to do isn’t one of them.
