Among the many interrogations one can have about future developments of the story, there is the size of Guts' crew and how it will be handled from now on. The most immediate question would be whether Magnifico and even Roderick will stick with the group after they leave Elfhelm. Will they be in for the long haul, to the very end? I personally don't think so. But what about Isma, who joined fairly recently? Her character arc isn't quite over yet, but her unique characteristic, that of being a merrow, wouldn't be of much use on land.
Beyond this, there's the issue of character development. The more characters are around, the harder it is for everyone to get enough time in the spotlight, and some characters can end up somewhat neglected. With Casca back, we can assume that she will be focused on for the foreseeable future. But other characters are also overdue for some development, be it Serpico, Azan, or even Isidro. And yet Farnese is also continuing on her journey of growth, and Schierke's now learning new techniques from the best magicians around. In short, there's a lot of things to tackle, and not a lot of screen time for it.
One possible way this could be handled is by splitting the group in two. There could be many hypothetical reasons for this, so I'm not going to dwell on it too much, but suffice it to say that some members could leave the island early, in a hurry, while others have to stay behind, or have to go back by another means. For example, some could travel through the branches of the World Spiral Tree while the others get back by sea. Obviously, none of this is guaranteed, it's pure speculation, but I figured it'd be interesting to think on who would be in which team and why.
My two base scenarios are as follow:
A-Team: Guts, Schierke, Isidro, Isma, Ivalera
B-Team: Casca, Farnese, Serpico, Azan, Puck
or
A-Team: Guts, Casca, Farnese, Azan, Puck
B-Team: Serpico, Schierke, Isidro, Isma, Ivalera
These were done assuming that roughly the same number of people would be in each team, but of course this could end up not being the case. For example in my second scenario, Azan could very well end up in the B-Team. Anyway, here's my reasoning for these and more generally for what I think would make sense narratively.
If the teams stay apart for a fairly short time, then I believe Guts and Casca could be in a different group. However if it's a longer term thing, where for example they rejoin in front of Falconia, then there wouldn't be enough time for the two of them to reignite their relationship just before the end, and therefore they would need to be in the same team. That aside, I believe Farnese has to be in the same group as Casca given her dedication to her. I also think it makes sense for Farnese and Schierke to be separated so that Farnese can grow. In the same way, I would like Serpico and Farnese to be split up as it would allow him to more easily pursue his own path. Lastly, I fundamentally believe that Isidro and Schierke should stay together as their chemistry is important. Isma sticking with them follows the same line, assuming their proto-love triangle isn't resolved before then.
Then we have the matter of fighting prowess. Obviously, Guts needs no one else, but separating him from Schierke would make the armor much more dangerous to use. If he were with Casca, it would also mean their relationship and his feelings for her would be the only thing keeping him sane. On the other hand, having Schierke with him but not Casca also presents a serious challenge, since Casca has repeatedly been the one thing that can "wake him up" when his consciousness gets engulfed by the armor's Od. That matter aside, the real problem is B-Team's survivability. I think having Serpico, Casca and Azan battling serious opponents on their own would be very interesting to see and a good avenue for development. Same for Schierke not being able to rely on Guts. Lastly, smaller groups could either provide an opportunity for a closer Guts/Puck or Casca/Puck relationship, which I'd like to see.
Of course there are many other ways the groups could be split up, but I didn't want to fill this post with possible permutations. It could be something as extreme as having Guts alone on one side, or maybe with just one other person (like say, Isidro), and everyone else on the other. He could even be without the armor, which would add some dramatic tension. Anyway, I invite you to share the scenarios that you think would make sense if the idea inspires you.
The last point I want to bring up, given the peculiar flow of time around Skellig, is the possibility of having one group age more than the other. This could provide a way for Schierke, Isidro and possibly Isma to get a bit older if they were to leave the island first and the others couldn't follow right away.
Beyond this, there's the issue of character development. The more characters are around, the harder it is for everyone to get enough time in the spotlight, and some characters can end up somewhat neglected. With Casca back, we can assume that she will be focused on for the foreseeable future. But other characters are also overdue for some development, be it Serpico, Azan, or even Isidro. And yet Farnese is also continuing on her journey of growth, and Schierke's now learning new techniques from the best magicians around. In short, there's a lot of things to tackle, and not a lot of screen time for it.
One possible way this could be handled is by splitting the group in two. There could be many hypothetical reasons for this, so I'm not going to dwell on it too much, but suffice it to say that some members could leave the island early, in a hurry, while others have to stay behind, or have to go back by another means. For example, some could travel through the branches of the World Spiral Tree while the others get back by sea. Obviously, none of this is guaranteed, it's pure speculation, but I figured it'd be interesting to think on who would be in which team and why.
My two base scenarios are as follow:
A-Team: Guts, Schierke, Isidro, Isma, Ivalera
B-Team: Casca, Farnese, Serpico, Azan, Puck
or
A-Team: Guts, Casca, Farnese, Azan, Puck
B-Team: Serpico, Schierke, Isidro, Isma, Ivalera
These were done assuming that roughly the same number of people would be in each team, but of course this could end up not being the case. For example in my second scenario, Azan could very well end up in the B-Team. Anyway, here's my reasoning for these and more generally for what I think would make sense narratively.
If the teams stay apart for a fairly short time, then I believe Guts and Casca could be in a different group. However if it's a longer term thing, where for example they rejoin in front of Falconia, then there wouldn't be enough time for the two of them to reignite their relationship just before the end, and therefore they would need to be in the same team. That aside, I believe Farnese has to be in the same group as Casca given her dedication to her. I also think it makes sense for Farnese and Schierke to be separated so that Farnese can grow. In the same way, I would like Serpico and Farnese to be split up as it would allow him to more easily pursue his own path. Lastly, I fundamentally believe that Isidro and Schierke should stay together as their chemistry is important. Isma sticking with them follows the same line, assuming their proto-love triangle isn't resolved before then.
Then we have the matter of fighting prowess. Obviously, Guts needs no one else, but separating him from Schierke would make the armor much more dangerous to use. If he were with Casca, it would also mean their relationship and his feelings for her would be the only thing keeping him sane. On the other hand, having Schierke with him but not Casca also presents a serious challenge, since Casca has repeatedly been the one thing that can "wake him up" when his consciousness gets engulfed by the armor's Od. That matter aside, the real problem is B-Team's survivability. I think having Serpico, Casca and Azan battling serious opponents on their own would be very interesting to see and a good avenue for development. Same for Schierke not being able to rely on Guts. Lastly, smaller groups could either provide an opportunity for a closer Guts/Puck or Casca/Puck relationship, which I'd like to see.
Of course there are many other ways the groups could be split up, but I didn't want to fill this post with possible permutations. It could be something as extreme as having Guts alone on one side, or maybe with just one other person (like say, Isidro), and everyone else on the other. He could even be without the armor, which would add some dramatic tension. Anyway, I invite you to share the scenarios that you think would make sense if the idea inspires you.
The last point I want to bring up, given the peculiar flow of time around Skellig, is the possibility of having one group age more than the other. This could provide a way for Schierke, Isidro and possibly Isma to get a bit older if they were to leave the island first and the others couldn't follow right away.