Ship Crewmembers are indispensable allies on the high seas, providing vital ship-wide bonuses, combat support, and progression through a Loyalty system. This page covers their acquisition, roles, and development. Return to the main Ships page.
Acquiring Crewmembers
You can bolster your ship's roster by obtaining Crewmember Contracts through several methods. They can be hired directly from NPCs found in Taverns, Inns, and Docks using Doubloons (costs vary by rank, see cost table). Some may even be persuaded to join your cause through skillful use of the Begging skill; notably, 120 Begging provides a small chance (2% Heroic, 1% Legendary) to recruit high-rank crew found in towns. Lastly, Crewmember Contracts are often found as loot during various seafaring activities, though these looted contracts always start at Loyalty Level 0 and arrive as Pending Salvage.
Managing Your Crew
Crewmembers exist as contract items until assigned to a ship. Adding or removing crew is done via the Crew Gump Tab while the ship is either a deed in your possession or docked with a Dockmaster. Removing a crewmember requires the Ship Deed to be in your backpack.
Crewmember Professions and Bonuses
Each crewmember belongs to a specific Profession which dictates the types of passive, ship-wide bonuses they can potentially grant. These bonuses might enhance cannon damage, speed up repairs, improve movement speed, increase boarding success, or offer other valuable perks. Crewmembers can potentially possess multiple instances of the same bonus type, further specializing their contribution. The effectiveness of these bonuses increases as the crewmember gains Loyalty. When a Crewmember reaches Loyalty Level 10, their base bonuses gain an additional +50% multiplier.
Profession Details
Each point listed is a base stat value. Crewmembers can potentially roll multiple bonuses from their profession's list. (Note: Scaling % for some bonuses is currently unavailable).
Carpenter
- Repair Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Hull Repair Amount Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Hull Max Points Bonus: Base 1 (+0.05% per level)
Cook
- Crew Hit Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Crew Wrestling Bonus: Base 0.75 (+0.015% per level)
- Crew Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Crew Healing Bonus: Base 3 (+0.15% per level)
Engineer
- Lesser Ability Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Regular Ability Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Greater Ability Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Cannon Reload Speed Increase: Base 3 (+0.15% per level)
- Cannon Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Repair Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
Fisherman
- Effective Fishing Bonus: Base 0.2 (+0.01% per level)
- Doubloons Earned Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Sails Max Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Sails Repair Amount Bonus: Base 4 (+0.2% per level)
Gunner
- Cannon Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Cannon Accuracy Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.05% per level)
- Cannon Reload Speed Increase: Base 3 (+0.15% per level)
- Guns Max Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Guns Repair Amount Bonus: Base 4 (+0.2% per level)
Hedge Mage
- Wake Scalar Bonus: Base 1.5 (+0.075% per level)
- Crew Hit Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Greater Ability Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
Marine
- Boarding Success Chance Bonus: Base 4 (+0.2% per level)
- Crew Wrestling Bonus: Base 0.75 (+0.015% per level)
- Crew Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
Marksman
- Cannon Accuracy Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.05% per level)
- Cannon Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Crew Wrestling Bonus: Base 0.75 (+0.015% per level)
Medic
- Crew Healing Bonus: Base 3 (+0.15% per level)
- Crew Hit Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
Merchant
- Doubloons Earned Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Tidings Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Movement Speed Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Movement Speed Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.10% per level)
- Sails Max Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Sails Repair Amount Bonus: Base ? (Value Missing)
Orc Reaver
- Crew Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Crew Wrestling Bonus: Base 0.75 (+0.015% per level)
- Boarding Success Chance Bonus: Base 4 (+0.2% per level)
Paviseman
- Crew Hit Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Cannon Accuracy Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.05% per level)
- Doubloons Earned Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
Pilgrim
- Wake Scalar Bonus: Base 1.5 (+0.075% per level)
- Effective Fishing Bonus: Base 0.2 (Scaling % Data Missing)
- Movement Speed Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
Pirate
- Boarding Success Chance Bonus: Base 4 (+0.2% per level)
- Doubloons Earned Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Cannon Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Crew Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
Powder Monkey
- Cannon Reload Speed Increase: Base 3 (+0.15% per level)
- Cannon Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Regular Ability Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
Raider
- Crew Wrestling Bonus: Base 0.75 (+0.015% per level)
- Boarding Success Chance Bonus: Base 4 (+0.2% per level)
- Crew Damage Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
Sailor
- Movement Speed Bonus: Base 0.5 (Scaling % Data Missing)
- Sails Max Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
- Sails Repair Amount Bonus: Base ? (Value Missing)
- Cannon Accuracy Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.05% per level)
Sea Dog
- Doubloons Earned Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Movement Speed Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Crew Wrestling Bonus: Base 0.75 (+0.015% per level)
- Sails Max Points Bonus: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
Spy
- Wake Scalar Bonus: Base 1.5 (+0.075% per level)
- Tidings Bonus: Base 0.5 (+0.025% per level)
- Lesser Ability Cooldown Reduction: Base 2 (+0.1% per level)
Crewmember Cost
The initial Doubloon cost for hiring crew depends on their starting Rank:
| Base Rank | Icon | Cost (Doubloons) |
|---|---|---|
| Novice |  |
600 |
| Adept |  |
700 |
| Veteran |  |
800 |
| Expert |  |
900 |
| Master |  |
1000 |
| Heroic |  |
10000 |
| Legendary |  |
25000 |
Crewmember Stats
A crewmember's potential is determined by their Rank, represented by statistical "pips" randomly allocated across their profession's possible bonuses when the contract is generated. These base stats, along with personal combat attributes like Hit Points, Dexterity, Damage, Wrestling, Armor, and Magic Resist, improve as the crewmember levels up through the Loyalty system.
The "Breach" stat is now Bravery (displayed as Crew Breach Bonus in the stats gump). It grants a direct Damage Bonus when crewmembers fight enemies on the same ship (repelling boarders) or engage Ocean Bosses and their minions.
Ship Crewmember Loyalty
Loyalty reflects a crewmember's experience and effectiveness, ranging from Level 0 to 10. Higher loyalty significantly boosts their provided ship bonuses and personal stats.
Gaining Loyalty Experience
Crewmembers gain Loyalty Experience (XP) passively whenever the captain's ship earns Doubloons from sinking NPC ships or killing their crew. Completing activities like Special Fishing Nets, Fishing Spots, and SOS/MIB quests also contribute XP. Progress is tracked via a bar and specific values in the Crewmember Info gump.
Upgrading Loyalty Level
Once a crewmember's XP bar is full, they are eligible for a Loyalty Level upgrade. This process must be performed via the Crewmember Info page while on land or docked (not at sea). Upgrading requires spending Pirate Booty, a special resource found during seafaring activities, with the cost increasing for each subsequent level. The current Loyalty Level is visually represented by the number of Rum Bottles displayed in their info gump.
Effects of Loyalty Upgrades
Each level gained provides significant enhancements:
| Stat Increase | Amount per Loyalty Level |
|---|---|
| Ship Bonus (from Profession) | +5% (scalar multiplier on base bonus) |
| Hit Points | +25 to +50 (random) |
| Dexterity | +0 to +2 (random) |
| Damage Bonus (Personal) | +0 to +2 (random) |
| Wrestling Skill | +0 to +2 (random) |
| Armor Rating | +0 to +2 (random) |
| Magic Resist Skill | +0 to +3 (random) |
- At Max Loyalty Level 10, the crewmember's base Ship Bonuses gain an additional +50% multiplier, making high-loyalty crew incredibly valuable.
Crewmembers in Combat
In battle, crewmembers act autonomously, engaging the nearest enemy. While they cannot be directly controlled, the captain can issue orders like "Ready Crew", "Send Below", "Attack", and "Stand Down" via the Crewmember Hotbar. The Begging skill's "Motivation" ability can boost crew damage temporarily. NPC Crew deal +50% increased damage in ship combat compared to players or pets. Their roles during Boarding actions, including incapacitation and recovery, are detailed on the Naval Combat page.