Open crew: add a new ability to join the join without a crew or ship. Add the ability to invite no crew players via captaincy similar to guild emote invite. Add the three different ships to every out post that can be obtained by voting on the Captain's table till ship crew limit is filled. Instead of forcing connection let us create connections.
Captaincy: Add new benefits. Purchase a special flag for capturing seaforts. Access to skeleton lord cosmetics (no abilities just cosmetic). Hire no crew players.
Seaforts: if claimed can hire AI to protect it. Can lock treasury with loot if hire treasurer. Can lock one enemy or crew member in cell if hire jailor. If jailor is defeated it will drop key to release prisoner. If treasurer is defeated vault key is dropped. To take over claimed for defeat all guards and lower enemy flag. Add the ability to lock pick to escape jail cell and access player owned seafort vault.
Seaforts part 2: Seaforts should be upgraded to look like legend of the veil seafort or at least let lotv seafort remain existing to be used and explored
Crews: friendly collision with no lock on or damage so u can clash swords on same crew without killing them. Same applies to all throwables except traps.
Boarding and ship combat: instead of instantly sinking a ship it gets to a crippled state similar to the burning blade. Get your ship close enough to initiate boarding sequence which pulls your ship next to crippled ship. In this scenario the doors of the ferry of the Damned won't open for either crew till each is entire crew is killed. If the crippled ship wins they can restore there ship escape if the crippled ship loses the other crew can vote to scuttle there crippled ship or just take everything and leave ship. If other crew leaves ship floating once they get a certain distance the crew of the crippled ship can return and repair. To prevent jerks who would just stay till drive players mad there would be a 2 min timer before the doors of the Damned open again for the crippled ship. After 2 min the crippled ship can fight the other crew again for a chance to reclaim their ship. The crippled ship can cripple the other ship as well before leaving. If a ship does not do boarding sequence the crew will have the usual death time frame as it is currently.
If any of these suggestions are critiqued I will make sure to see ways to improve these ideas so that way they're even better after all an idea is merely a stepping stone to perfection