Crew members are an important element in Starfield for players who wish to improve the operations of both their Ships and Outposts. Each companion and crew member comes with their own unique set of skills pertaining to different departments. While some characters, such as Andreja and Simeon Bankowski make great companions for planetside missions, others excel as crew members.
Crewmembers can be assigned to any of the player's owned Ships or Outposts to help them run more efficiently. Companion and crew skills are the same as those players can develop throughout the course of the game and are split into five categories: Physical, Social, Combat, Science and Tech. Among the potential crewmembers that Starfield has to offer, these are the best picks.
8 Marika Boros
Marika Boros is a combat-oriented companion with particular benefits as a ship crew member. Although she does not have the highest skill level, her Rank 2 Ballistic Weapons and Rank 1 Particle Beam Weapons Systems can be very useful for ships with builds centered around this type of weaponry.
Marika can be recruited from The Viewport bar in New Atlantis, and is a relatively cheap companion. She is best assigned to the player's Home Ship if recruited, though she can also double up as a companion if need be.
7 Gideon Aker
Gideon Aker is another crew member ideal for assignment to ship duties. With Rank 2 Ballistic Weapons and Missile Weapons Systems, he is ideal for providing an added boost to starting ships or those built with a Ballistics and Missile focus.
Like Marika, Gideon can be recruited from The Viewport for a fee, and his asking price can be whittled down with a high persuasion skill. It is best to keep Gideon assigned to the ship since his abilities solely focus on this, and he will not provide much in the way of support if assigned to an outpost.
6 VASCO
VASCO is, so far, the only robotic companion and crew members players can recruit in Starfield. He is best utilized by assigning him to ships with his Rank 1 Anuetronic Fusion and EM Weapons Systems, as well as Rank 2 Shield Systems.
As a member of Constellation, players will be able to use VASCO as a companion or crew member following the game's opening mission. One difference between VASCO and other crew members is that he will not appear in the Crew Quarters when assigned to a ship.
5 Heller
Heller is the fellow miner players whom work alongside during the opening mission on Vectera. While Heller is not fit for service as a companion, he excels as a crew member when assigned to a player-built Outpost.
With Rank 1 Geology and Rank 3 Outpost Engineering, there are few crew members better to oversee the construction and preservation of an outpost than Heller. Heller can be recruited by speaking to him after the opening mission, if he is rejected, players can occasionally find him in New Homestead.
4 Lin
Lin starts the game as the player's boss, overseeing their work in the mines of Vectera. Following the mission "Back To Vectera", Lin will ask players if she can sign up as a member of the crew, and players with outposts would be wise to take her offer up.
With Rank 1 Demolition and Rank 2 Outpost Management, Lin excels at learning about new planets and establishing production lines. In combination with Heller, players should have a great team to oversee and manage any settlements for a long duration.
3 Sam Coe
Sam Coe is another of the Constellation companions whom players will be able to recruit as part of the main quest line. Coe has a very impressive Rank 4 Piloting skill, along with Rank 2 Payloads and Rank 1 Geology, making him well suited to either Ship or Outpost duties.
His Payloads skill can actually be his greatest asset, since this will provide the player with additional cargo capacity aboard their ship. Keep in mind that if assigned to a ship, Sam will also bring his daughter along with him.
2 Barrett
Barrett is easily one of the best choices when it comes to crew members. With a specialty in ships, the Constellation member has Rank 4 Starship Engineering, Rank 3 Particle Beam Weapons Systems, and Rank 2 Robotics, which will be particularly useful.
His Starship Engineering skill should allow for much faster ship recovery during combat, which can be crucial when it comes to fighting multiple enemies at once. Barrett can be recruited following the completion of "Back To Vectera."
1 Sarah Morgan
Sarah Morgan is another of Constellation's leading members, and makes a great crew member as well as companion for the game. With Rank 4 Astrodynamics, Rank 3 Lasers, and Rank 2 Botany and Leadership, Sarah Morgan works well both on ships and outposts, and will provide a noticeable improvement in her particular fields.
Her Astrodynamics ability will considerably reduce the fuel consumption of Grav Jumping, while her Lazers skill will improve firepower of lazer weapons by 30%. Much like Barrett and Sam Coe, Sarah Morgan is one of the few romance options available for players in the game.
Starfield is available now for PC and Xbox Series X/S.