High Forest Elves - kids going on their own

[HoboKnight]

Hey guys,

my group is currently playing as an all-elves party and they are currently residing in a small elven forest village at the southernmost tip of High Forest (Sword Coast, FR). So far, they were baisically training. They got a lot of gear, some levels and some experience as players. But they are really prone to finding Cult of the Dragon. (Cult has killed their parents decades ago)

Now I'm playing these NPC elves as rather protective (VERY protective of their "little ones" (elves up to 100 yrs of age)) and isolationist. They are very well off(lots of gear and low level magical items), their groups of rangers are regualrly patrolling their parts of the forest, if something nastier shows up there, they include elven druids to "nuke" the enemy. They also have "connections" to the outside world.

Desire of the PCs to find the Cult and harm it, is still great. I'm wondering, how would responsible, protective elven elders approach desires of these "kids"? Elves are isolationist, but they do have "intelligence service" in the forest outside of it. Also, they are well connected to other elven settlements in High Forest.

Elven kids (these "kids" are about 40 years of age, lvl 4, well geared out) want to seek out Cult of the Dragon in the "big, bad world, full of stupid, filthy humans and evil orcs, goblins and much nastier things".

What would be a proper approach for village elders, who understand PCs desire (elders know, PCs may just run out into the world, if they are held back for too long) to help and support and especially guard this kin of theirs with (according to centuries old-elves) not enough skills and knowledge, who really really want to find and destroy murderers of their parents?

thanks

[Paeleus]

Just shooting from the hip here: have the senior elders forbid the PCs from leaving. Have a junior elder sympathize with the PCs desires to seek out and destroy the Cult and provide aid/information on when/how to escape. Next session should be escape from High Forest settlement using new found ally's help/information. Later sessions will reveal that the senior elders have sent their own agents to retrieve PCs and return then home (hunter rangers, the rare gloomstalker ranger, etc.).

[Tanarii]

At some point these 22-human-equivalent eleven "kids" who believe themselves to be fully competent and have strong motivation are going to rebel. It sounds like the elves are helicopter parents though. I'd assume they'd trail the party and try to take over whenever anything got dangerous, until the PCs throw a fit and just leave the region entirely, and never talk to them again.

[HoboKnight]

Just shooting from the hip here: have the senior elders forbid the PCs from leaving. Have a junior elder sympathize with the PCs desires to seek out and destroy the Cult and provide aid/information on when/how to escape. Next session should be escape from High Forest settlement using new found ally's help/information. Later sessions will reveal that the senior elders have sent their own agents to retrieve PCs and return then home (hunter rangers, the rare gloomstalker ranger, etc.).

Not bad, but a bit heavy-handed for me.


At some point these 22-human-equivalent eleven "kids" who believe themselves to be fully competent and have strong motivation are going to rebel. It sounds like the elves are helicopter parents though. I'd assume they'd trail the party and try to take over whenever anything got dangerous, until the PCs throw a fit and just leave the region entirely, and never talk to them again.

Not a bad one :D

I'm running these elders as wise. You are both quite on point, regarding PCs motivations. I was thinking maybe to have them connected to Harpers ... The only thing is, the specific Harper, that has actually been dealing with Cult is dead for 120 years now. There ARE some Harpers there, but they have no clue of the cult. Yet, they might help them on their way ... or just use young elves for their own purposes - perhaps as good killers of some other baddies. I'd appreciate some ideas unfolding along this line ...

But really thanks for both answers!