I've been binging One Piece lately, and was thinking about how you'd build some of the characters in D&D 5e. Now, I realize that D&D probably isn't the best system for One Piece characters, but that doesn't stop me from wondering about this.Now, you might think that, because Luffy uses unarmed strikes almost exclusively, monk would be the best fit. And I could see putting perhaps a few levels into monk for certain class features. But I actually think that barbarian might be a better fit. Luffy has been shown to be absurdly strong (as in, he lifts really heavy things; I'm pretty sure he's as inhumanly strong as someone like Zoro), as well as very resilient. Luffy's exact class progression might be able to be mapped according to the series progression, i.e. when he gets a new ability or special attack in the anime/manga corresponds to gaining a level in a class that confers a similar ability. My best estimate is that he starts at 3rd level to reflect that he's already somewhat experienced and definitely a competent fighter (he beats Alvida handily in the first episode), and is probably around 5th level when he enters the Grand Line.
See AlsoComplete list of familiars obtainable through Find Familiar?Sleet Storm and Flying Creatures???There is the matter of Luffy's devil fruit powers. One angle I thought of that could work would be to use caster classes and spells to represent any devil fruit abilities (e.g. using Eldritch Blast for Luffy's stretchy punches), and then make the ocean an anti-magic zone. There are a couple problems with this, however. For one, if Luffy is a barbarian, then he won't be able to use spells while raging. Another is that characters without devil fruit powers could also be represented as casters, e.g. Ussop probably has some artificer levels. A third issue is that the way it is depicted in the series, the ocean doesn't actually block devil fruit abilities, it just saps the strength of devil fruit users. For example, in the Arlong arc, when Luffy gets his feet trapped in the concrete and thrown into the water, they stretch his neck so as to get his head above water, so clearly his devil fruit powers are still working. A fourth issue is that a lot of devil fruit users are very physical, e.g. most of Luffy's abilities should be keying off of STR, not a mental stat.
Another way to represent devil fruit abilities might be to write up a homebrew template for each devil fruit. Luffy's gumgum fruit might look like the following:
Rejected by the Sea. While immersed in seawater, you are stunned. (I'm a little unclear on how this actually works; can devil fruit users not swim even in fresh water?)
Rubber Resistance. You are resistant to bludgeoning and lightning damage.
(Should perhaps be immune, but that might be a bit too strong for a PC. Partially redundant with Rage, but always on.)
Elastic. As a bonus action, you can increase your reach by 60 feet until the end of your turn. Anything you are holding, grabbing, or grappling will either snap back to you or pull you to it, either at the moment you grab it or at the end of your turn, your choice.
Your body can also be stretched up to 60 feet and held in place. Any part that is stretched out will snap back in place the moment it is no longer held in place.
Honestly, there's actually a lot that the gumgum fruit does, but a simple reach increase seems like the most straightforward way of handling it. Otherwise, we'd probably need multiple paragraphs describing how the ability works. A simple reach increase also allows it to be combined with other class features in order to replicate Luffy's signature special moves, rather than making those special moves inherent features of the devil fruit itself. Also, I'm pretty sure Luffy has stretched a lot more than 60 feet, but I'm not sure at what point an extended reach would break the game; 60 feet is probably way past that point as it is.I think trying to make this work just highlights why D&D isn't really a good system for this. That doesn't mean it can't work, just that doing so will be a bit awkward.
