
Mechanic_ape |
The party was on a push to secure as many allies as they could. Not happy with recruiting natives and Phanatons they seized on the knowledge that a Huge Green Dragon lived on the Isle.
After a mini quest they encounter the dragon. Being LE I played out the negotiations and agreed to assist the players if they were willing to give up their most valuable treasure. So the Dragon winds up with 50k worth of treasure and the party end up with the promise of aid.
What sort of aid should it offer?
I was considering have it sink 2 boats? Trading the parties 50k in tribute for 200 VP. Should it do more? I also considered it making a counter deal with the Crimson Fleet? Would this be in line with it's LE alignment?
Any suggestions?

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I understand that what is done is done but.....Why the hell would a reclusive dragon, who made sure he is on an island with no others of his type, talk to a group of adventurers, let alone agree to assist them in populating his island?!?!
The dragon should get their stuff, straff the town once or twice to show the imbeciles what happens when you disturb an evil dragon, and return to his lair with 2-3 townfolk in hand to consume before taking a nap. Just because he is lawful doesn't mean that he will honor his dealings, it means that he has a plan and acts in an organized fashion.
Teach the players not to trust an evil dragon in a deal.
Dragons aren't stupid, if anything I would have the dragon, who now knows when and how the town will be at it's weakest, attack and level the town, killing any who oppose it, so as to eliminate the threat that a growing town could become to it.
FH

renee rameshwar |
They're playing a dangerous game. Sure the dragon can help out and sink a few ships, but it will likely do this when it feels like it, and it won't want to put itself too much at risk.
The real problems arise after the fight. Why should the dragon stay content with 50k. Sure it will take the money, and maybe leave Farshore alone for a week or two, so that it can say that it fulfilled its deal. But after that it is now aware of Farshore, and will likely take an interest in the settlement. It could then show up again, and start demmanding a regular tribute to stave off its wrath.
I was thinking of using a black dragon instead (mostly because I have the big mini). So you could be real nasty and have the green dragon be a black dragon that was using magic to trick them. Suddenly the thing is no longer LE, but CE and has no qualms about not following through with a agreement.
But seriously, isn't there an old expression "Never deal with a dragon". Your players need to be taught a lesson. You don't cut deals with ancient chromatic dragons and expect to come out on top. They should in the end rue the day they decided to take that course of action. I'm not saying that you should destroy them, but the dragon should be coming back and trying to suck more and more money and resources out of Farshore. He might be happy to see the colony grow and thrive, but he should want a cut of all the profits- a big cut. And what would he offer in return, nothing other than I won't slaughter you all on whim.

N1NJ4 |

I think the dragon should aid the PCs as it promised, but after the fleet is defeated it decides that Farshore would be a lovely prize as well, and turns on the PCs. It should be wounded in some way to bring it more in line with a challenge of the PCs level, but having to bring down a turncoat dragon while Farshore is still dizzy from the fog of war is a cool way to end the adventure!

Mechanic_ape |
Thanks for the suggestions so far. You've really got me thinking about the mindset and agenda of Huge Green.
Here's my thoughts:
War council - Huge Green arrives at Farshore early and attend a war council. A few unobtrusive charms / bluff / diplomacy later he will have a fairly accurate lay of the land.
Warning - I'll have Lord Mervanchi pull the characters aside and make sure they know exactly what they are getting themselves into with the following tirade... What in 9 hells do you think you are doing. Have you never heard the expression 'never cut a deal with a dragon' What did you offer it? Will it be content with that, what gaurantees do you have that it will not ask for more? What if it sees farshore as a threat? Had you considered such things before recruiting such a dangerous ally. What if it betrays us, evil is the intent of chromatic dragons, whose to say it doesn't help stop the pirates then raise Farshore.
I cannot believe you made such descions without approval from Farshores council. Your rash descions has endangered us all.
Agenda revealed - After helping (by sinking a few ships and watching the PC's battle their foe) the dragon will act according to his own agenda.
"I have kept my side of the bargain. Now hear me mortals, know that the Isle of Dread belongs to me. It has been mine for centuries. Your Farshore is problematic. A growing town on the borders of my island is a threat. Your incursions to the mainland I see as an affront to my sovereignty. You and your town are a threat that must be dealt with. Leave with the promise to never return to my Isle and I shall let you live." To which Lavinia responds in the negative as Farshore is her parents dream. Net result battle with dragon. I'll have the dragon injured / debuffed so this doesn't wind up a TPK.
How does that sound? Anything I can do to improve it? Am I being to soft having the Dragon give the players the option to leave?

Mechanic_ape |
hmm, how about I have Lavinia warn them about dealing with a dragon.
During the war council Lord Meravanchi would seek out Big Green and make an offer that would see the Dragon strike at Lavinia and her flunky PC's once the Crimson fleet had been defeated.
Lord Meravanchi would once again be in charge of Farshore though now he would owe a considerable debt to Big Green. Big Green gets the PC's gear, the pirates treasure and a subservient Mayor on his borders.

N1NJ4 |

Lavinia sends the PCs to negotiate with Emraag, so maybe she'd be ok with Huge Green? Of course, if things turn sour with the green dragon maybe she'll be sending the PCs to kill the dragon turtle outright! Regardless, Lavinia as written has an awful Wisdom score, so she'd likely think it a good idea, especially with a good Bluff or Diplomacy check from one of the PCs.
I think this is gonna be a cool end to the adventure, Ape! It already ends with an important and personal victory for the PCs, but to then have to turn around and stop a despotic dragon, once content to slumber but spurned into action by the PC's very own scheme? Priceless!

Sir Kaikillah |

I would n't penalize them for thinking about gaining a green dragon ally, then successfully negotiating with said dragon. I would play it out as you said. Have it take out a couple of CRimson FLeet vessels. Award the PCs wome extra Victory points.
If Farshore survives the Crimson Fleet attack, Have the green dragon return afew months later to negotiate new terms, i.e. extortion. After that the dragon can return at a regular basis to re-negotiate their "security" agreement.
That way the party can gain the rewards for clever thinking and good negotiating, and the coup of gaining the aid of a dragon. Then Farshore can continue paying for that agreement for a long time to come.
SOunds like the party is going to have to do some dragon slaying.

Taliesin Hoyle |

I think it would be wonderful to have the dragon fulfil its bargain, and be awesome in its power as it strafes the enemy fleet and melts the flesh off the bones of many of the crimson fleet.
Then have Avner Merivanchi shout an order to it, at which it roars that it is not a servant, and wrecks as many of the defences of Farshore as it can and flies off roaring.
Avner then blames the P.Cs and they unfairly draw the wrath of the town they saved and are urged to deal with the threat "they brought down upon us"

Humble Minion |

Have it fulfil its part of the bargain, but have it assume that since it has defended Farshore, it now sees Farshore as part of its domain and expects to be treated accordingly. Will the PCs grant it or its designated representative a seat on the Council (it's lawful, so it should be too unwilling to play along with that - I figure it believes it'll eventually gain complete control over the council through sheer longevity)? Will they pay tribute? What will their attitude be when some of the locals (or even Lavinia, if the PCs leave her along for too long!) start giving birth to half-dragon children, or become green-totem dragon shamans? It may try to consolidate its hold on the settlement by providing a selection of items out of its hoard, or from lost Olman ruins to its political allies, to enrich them or make them more powerful and influential. It'll have a load of skill points, a carefully-chosen selection of spells, probably high Bluff, Diplomacy and Intimidate modifiers (Bluff is a class skill for greens!), and suggestion as a spell-like ability. That's a pretty nice toolkit for the aspiring empire-builder...

ikki |

oh.. maybe greenie runs for mayor too?
Bet she has a better diplomacy than most... and some rayher huge other benefits!
And probly could help speed up the economy big time too. Lawful AND Evil, need i say more?
Ofcourse a lot of that wealth would go to make a really awesome treasury..
But atleast for killing creatures for their hides.. some starting capital for all kinds of ventures and keeping the place safe. No one could do a better job.
Bet those olmans would quickly fold too..
And being a green no doubt knows of all kinds of useful cashcrops that can be planted on those smaller islands and the peninsula. Perhaps replacing lady vanderboren as their hirerer?
No doubt being a useful source of information too. Perhaps she has draconic knowledge.. and thus would a lot about the savage tide

Tsulis |

Think about this: the end game in this campaign involves making deals with evil monsters and gaining them as allies. If you penalize the players for doing it now, or make them feel like there was no chance it would work no mater what they did, they may be extra reluctant to do it later.
You can definitely role play lots of good debate about aligning with such a creature if your players like roleplaying. In the end, I dont think you should have the dragon arbitrarily betray them just because he's evil, but I'm not sure exactly how it should end. It will be interesting to see how the end of the alliance with Orcus is treated in the next issue of dungeon.

Klamachpin |

Big Greenie should aid the PCs in some way - I believe securing a hundred or two VPs during the battle would suffice. Afterwards, however, the humanoids whom are capable of generating 50K will probably be agitated that Big Greenie didn't handle the entire fight for them. Hell, Big Greenie would expect them to turn on him and prep for it. Perhaps moving his lair and trapping the old one?
In addition, the town his new "allies" currently protect has the potential to generate large amounts of wealth. Certainly Big Greenie will be interested in taking advantage of that. Extortion through domination of the town's settled leaders (as adventurers are never truly settled until dead) would work well there. However, if the town gets any big ideas they may send the adventurers to slay him - should they be available. A plan to send them off to Emraag's maw would likely eliminate the pests, and perhaps he could get something from Emraag for his "gift". And if the adventurers somehow manage to defeat Emraag, leave a few pieces from Emraag's hoard in his lair, take the rest, and direct the adventurers to the lair as a "reward"....
and so on. Big Greenie should be concerned with staying on the winning side, but also should be constantly sending the new threat into danger. He'd be unofficially acting as the PC's new patron!

Bryon_Kershaw |

Think about this: the end game in this campaign involves making deals with evil monsters and gaining them as allies. If you penalize the players for doing it now, or make them feel like there was no chance it would work no mater what they did, they may be extra reluctant to do it later.
You can definitely role play lots of good debate about aligning with such a creature if your players like roleplaying. In the end, I dont think you should have the dragon arbitrarily betray them just because he's evil, but I'm not sure exactly how it should end. It will be interesting to see how the end of the alliance with Orcus is treated in the next issue of dungeon.
I agree whole-heartedly with this statement. You want the players to see early on that against a greater threat, evil can be expected to align against evil. Simplest answer? The dragon knows *exactly* what's been going on across the Isle which it views as its demesne.
Have the Dragon understand about the Shadow Pearls and at least have some inclination of what's going on beneath the island. As ancient as dragons are, it was likely alive in the time of the Tlalnoc and survived the first Savage Tide. The Dragon, while inherently evil, doesn't want to see this happen to it's island again.
I'd suggest having the dragon, because of its nature, land on the beach head when the pirates are within sight and "negotiate" some future terms, such as a place on the Council of Farshore and of a regular additional "tribute" from all future trade in Farshore. Remember, the creature is Lawful and has pledged its aid in battle, so it *will* do so, but how much aid the PCs can really expect will vary. The Dragon should work to twist whatever it promised and try to force the PCs into a loop hole and also negotiate from a position of strength.
Afterwards, have it scuttle two ships and devour the crews while the rest sail inwards. If the PCs get in a rough spot (such as against the vrocks) have the dragon swoop through with fly by attack. Honour its word, make them see it will stick by them since it had given its word to.
Finally, I'd advise having the dragon begin manipulating people and trying to force the PCs towards the Lightless Depths and the Central Mesa. Keep it very subtle, don't flaunt that it knows what's going on but offer subtle nudges in one direction or another. Depending on whether Lavinia or Manthalay is mayor, have the other side with the dragon. Manthalay could easily see it as a quick route to power while Lavinia has shown evidence of willingness to negotiate with monsters and likely would be willing to listen to the dragon's advice. Perhaps it's even the dragon who puts the idea into Lavinia's head to negotiate with Emraag the Glutton later on.
I whole-heartedly agree that you shouldn't punish your players for thinking "outside the box" of the module. If they want to get the dragon's aid, I say give it to them. Give the dragon a chance to show off during the battle without being invincible or taking the spotlight away from them.
~ Bryon ~

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I think you have to balance the reward for the players' initiative (that is cunning and creative) and the role of such a uber-powerful creature, whose intentions and disposition are beyond the PCs control.
The big dragon should help the fight against the Crimson Fleet pirates, just doing a little less work than it is expected to do - a clever move for the DM to not unbalance the scene, and a ruse for the dragon to consider any alliance with the PCs broken should they complain.
Again at the end of the battle, the dragon asks for all of the loot - so there's nothing left for the PCs and for Farshore, least the colony faces a devastating urban battle with such a mighty beast.
Also, consider the dragon trying to establish a racket on the humans of the isle, including the Olman tribes (that can break their alliance with Farshore too), asking for treasures and food... sentient food.
Moral dilemmas are fun and a great narrative element.
Turning an unlikely ally into a threat and eventually into a nemesis can be the most fun part of a DM's job.

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...Then Farshore can continue paying for that agreement for a long time to come.
Sounds like the party is going to have to do some dragon slaying.
My thoughts exactly. When the STAP is finished and the party is ready for some much needed R&R, have the players be called to tie up some loose-ends: namely the Huge Green Dragon that somehow entered the Sanctuary of the Olman gods (I forget the name) and devour one of them, Instantly transforming it to a CR23 creature (either by age advancement or numerous what-the-F**K?!?!? templates)...perhaps, if the DM was inclined, a foray into epic levels may begin with the solving the mystery of the Olman gods and bringing a New Age to the Olman people as they are "re-civilised" by their deities return...

Grimtk1 |

I agree with everyone who says you should have the dragon give aid to the party. However, how did the deal exactly go down?
Why I am asking is because LE in my opinion is like making a deal with the devil. He will follow exactly what it says, but if you forgot to close a loophole, well, your screwed.
If the dragon said he would give aid, was there any sort of specific nature to the aid.
With all of the spells and powers available to the dragon, he could do everything from destroying the ships to killing one pirate and flying off. He might even make himself invisible (I can't see a dragon necessarily wanting to start a vendetta against him) and help out quietly.
You could use him to provide buffing and healing to the party.
Finally, I think after the fight, he should now consider Farshore under his protection, and be afforded that right in gold and food. It's like getting help from the maffia, it never goes the way you want it to.

MrFish |

I agree with some of what was said, certainly the dragon will likely be cunning and calculating. I would agree as well with the idea that you should not punish the pcs for coming up with the idea and carrying it out capably, but certainly a dragon will be a rather selfish ally at best. I think the attitude will largely be "Thank you for helping me rid the area of some of my rivals--I will expect my tribute when I next return." Or whatever the dragon might actually want. And as stated above it could be a nice means for you to provide adventure hooks.
Dragons as allies actually lend a fun tense element to the game. Pcs will rarely take a dragon lightly if you roleplay them well, even a small or young one, and this one is freaking huge. It has one of the nastier breath weapons and probably has spellcasting capability. Who knows what other treasures it has?
In my game my pcs have a very young blue dragon to deal with, and she expects the lion's share of the treasure every time she helps them. She has that gullet feat which enables her to swallow stuff so if she gets to something before they can see it she gulps it down. They have a love hate relationship; every now and then you can see them glumly wondering what cool stuff they missed this time in exchange for her valuable help.

Tsulis |

Another idea, sorry that I dont have the magazines in front of me. I remember thinking that the hook leading the players to fight the dragon turtle and discover the way down to Goligsmara was pretty weak. Maybe you could have the dragon help the playersin the battle of farshore, but be arrogant and overbearing about it, and show how powerful he really is, then a few months or weeks after the fight, he comes back to town with his tail between his legs! He just got his ass kicked by evil dudes with Dragon bane weapons and he needs the party's help now. They get ot gloat over the dragon as well as be scared of what there is down there that could do this to the dragon.
Then you get a better hook into the next adventure and good roleplaying opportunities.
By the way, I'm thinking of changing my tag to "DM Without a Game". Sorry if I'm giving too much advice.

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Here's my take, which is similar to some posted above.
The dragon helps out, then announces that it owns farshore and demands ongoin tribute. Treasure sacrifices the works.
It reinforces its position by by claiming that the PCs have requested to enter into a protective contract with the Dragon and the dragon has the right to continue that contract.
Try to work it so that the PCs look like they have to break their own promises to get out of the deal, that they are the ones who have negotiated in bad faith.
Have these discussions publicly to erode the townsfolks' trust of the PCs. "They made a deal with a Dragon, and now we have to pay? Or did they lie to the Dragon? If they lied, they lied in the name of our town! That puts us at risk!" etc.

ikki |

pst.. its a she ;)
Wouldnt it be nice for the players to come home again.. and farshore is a fortress.. infact all the outer islands are fortresses..
The colonists now live on the central plateu in a gigantic palace city.. pillars and all... centered around a humongous temple where everyone worships the dragon, now druid 3/mystic theurge X/dragon ascendant 1
LOTS of green jade statues of the dragon etc..
Think of a old hellenic city covering large parts of the plateu. Huge farms and hundreds of ships plying trade between the surrounding continents.

Sean, Minister of KtSP |

Somewhat tangential to this discussion, but...
But seriously, isn't there an old expression "Never deal with a dragon".
If by "old expression" you mean "title of one of the first Shadowrun novels," then yes, there is that "old expression."
But I don't think that old expression applies because a) it's not that old (to me, but I've been around a while), and b) Shadowrun dragons were all meant to be cryptic and untrustworthy (plus Shadowrun was a whole other system), so the example doesn't really carry over to D&D.
Now admittedly, D&D dragons are their own bundle of trouble to deal with, but my long experience with D&D dragons has generally taught me one should almost always deal with a dragon, if nothing else to give you time to figure out an escape plan. So saying "never deal with a dragon" strikes me as bad advice for D&D.

renee rameshwar |
Yes that was a Shadowrun reference. And if you encounter a dragon in Dnd trying to cut a deal with it is often a better choice than trying to fight one, but if you can avoid a dragon altogether- well really that is often your best option.
Somewhat tangential to this discussion, but...
renee rameshwar wrote:But seriously, isn't there an old expression "Never deal with a dragon".If by "old expression" you mean "title of one of the first Shadowrun novels," then yes, there is that "old expression."
But I don't think that old expression applies because a) it's not that old (to me, but I've been around a while), and b) Shadowrun dragons were all meant to be cryptic and untrustworthy (plus Shadowrun was a whole other system), so the example doesn't really carry over to D&D.
Now admittedly, D&D dragons are their own bundle of trouble to deal with, but my long experience with D&D dragons has generally taught me one should almost always deal with a dragon, if nothing else to give you time to figure out an escape plan. So saying "never deal with a dragon" strikes me as bad advice for D&D.

tumbler |

The Dragon is a great hook down the road to Emrag. I am hoping to use the dragon as a source of spells and maybe a dragonpact from Dragon Magic. I've considered making it actually a gold dragon disguised as evil to keep denizens of the island from coming after it.
In any case, I think a deal with an evil dragon should stand up well. I'm not sure I would have the dragon run for mayor, just because he wouldn't like the hassle, but I would definitely have him befriend and sponsor Merevanchi.
The dragon should take a dragon's share of any loot from the ships (especially given his ability to swim down and claim treasure from sunken ships). His CR is way past the party, especially considering the grinder of the pirate attack (which I plan to make even worse).
Over time, if the players can manage to keep him as an ally, he would make a pretty cool addition to the final battle.

Sir Kaikillah |

I think it would be wonderful to have the dragon fulfil its bargain, and be awesome in its power as it strafes the enemy fleet and melts the flesh off the bones of many of the crimson fleet.
Then have Avner Merivanchi shout an order to it, at which it roars that it is not a servant, and wrecks as many of the defences of Farshore as it can and flies off roaring.
Avner then blames the P.Cs and they unfairly draw the wrath of the town they saved and are urged to deal with the threat "they brought down upon us"
Super Cool!!!

Mechanic_ape |
I agree with everyone who says you should have the dragon give aid to the party. However, how did the deal exactly go down?
The party has two very strong diplomacy characters. A Bard and a Diplomacy focused Swashbuckler - supported by the perfume from the Lotus Dragon Lair their Diplomacy rolls were into the 40's. I took these massive rolls into account during the negotiations and cut them a little slack. They attempted to get the dragon onside by arguing that the pirates would attack her. The dragon saw through this, explained she knew about Crimson Fleet and that they did not bother her. She then asked what they would give in return for her help. They eventually coughed up 50k in loot (metamagic wands, +4 breatstplate goodies like that). This is a substantial boost to her hoard. She agreed to help defend Farshore but did not negotiate specifics as she cut short negotiations. She had the heroes fearful for their lives throughout. I played her as demanding, commanding and haughty.
So no specific promises beyond when the time comes she will be there to help defend farshore.

Grimtk1 |

So no specific promises beyond when the time comes she will be there to help defend farshore.
Well, then I think you should use her to make the battle go easier for the party, if not secure victory.
One thing that I did think of was that you could have the dragon start using the party to run errands for her. Obviously they are resourceful or they wouldn't have bothered to even come to her in the first place (in the conceited logic of dragons). You could then use her as a source for side quests and the like.
She would probably even take into account their "goodly" natures and make sure she kept them at least as reluctant opponents. After all, they will eventually get stronger (unless she wants to rub them out). However she could easily have the party wipe out all of the groups (such as the Crimson Fleet) which challenge her for resources, etc.
It might make a good way to motivate the party.
Just a thought.

Jeremy Mac Donald |

Thanks for the suggestions so far. You've really got me thinking about the mindset and agenda of Huge Green.
Here's my thoughts:
War council - Huge Green arrives at Farshore early and attend a war council. A few unobtrusive charms / bluff / diplomacy later he will have a fairly accurate lay of the land.
Warning - I'll have Lord Mervanchi pull the characters aside and make sure they know exactly what they are getting themselves into with the following tirade... What in 9 hells do you think you are doing. Have you never heard the expression 'never cut a deal with a dragon' What did you offer it? Will it be content with that, what gaurantees do you have that it will not ask for more? What if it sees farshore as a threat? Had you considered such things before recruiting such a dangerous ally. What if it betrays us, evil is the intent of chromatic dragons, whose to say it doesn't help stop the pirates then raise Farshore.
I cannot believe you made such descions without approval from Farshores council. Your rash descions has endangered us all.
I like the tirade bit a lot but don't think this needs to end up in another fight. Dragons are subtle long lived creatures. The players have surely made Farshore a fiefdom but maybe not yet and not, at first so obviously. Farshore has the opportunity to bring in large amounts of treasure. Surely the Dragon will want a piece of that action. One of the problems with a big fight is that its actually too easy - the players gave up 50K for this dragon. If they kill it while its wounded and debuffed they'll just go get their treasure plus its horde plus earn its XP. Its like piling the rewards on top of each other. Here they get to have their cake and eat it to. I'd make sure that the Dragon lives through this relitivly unscathed just to make sure the players can't, at this stage, get their treasure back.

Rezdave |
After a mini quest they encounter the dragon. Being LE I played out the negotiations and agreed to assist the players if they were willing to give up their most valuable treasure. So the Dragon winds up with 50k worth of treasure and the party end up with the promise of aid.
Brilliant initiative by the Players ... reward them.
Why the hell would a reclusive dragon, who made sure he is on an island with no others of his type, talk to a group of adventurers, let alone agree to assist them in populating his island?!?!
A viable community like Farshore offers a dragon excellent opportunities to expand his horde with more than just the bones of jungle creatures and pretty seashells that wash up on the shore. A supply of constant tribute for modest protection is a great bargain.
Just because he is lawful doesn't mean that he will honor his dealings, it means that he has a plan and acts in an organized fashion.
I completely disagree with this assessment of Alignment. Lawful vs. Chaotic is one's opinion on whether society is best if everyone follows established rules and structure or if a set of general guidelines and a lot of individual freedom is enough.
Lawful vs. Chaotic alignment has nothing whatsoever to do with an individual's ability to make and carry out plans, or personal organization. It is their opinion about how organized society should be, not an expression of their own mind.
According to the above definition, all wizards must be Lawful, or they could never focus on studying spells (yes, I know that 1st Edition books like Oriental Adventures got this point confused).
Agenda revealed - "I have kept my side of the bargain. Now hear me mortals, know that the Isle of Dread belongs to me. It has been mine for centuries. Your Farshore is problematic. A growing town on the borders of my island is a threat. Your incursions to the mainland I see as an affront to my sovereignty. You and your town are a threat that must be dealt with. Leave with the promise to never return to my Isle and I shall let you live."
As noted above, the Dragon has a lot to gain by allowing Farshore to prosper ... within limits. It may negotiate property rights on the island with the settlers such as areas they can and cannot explore, settle, cultivate and so forth. It will certainly demand "rent" on its island, possibly aside from any "protection" tribute.
The dragon may also accept or even require services. All powerful beings need minions, so perhaps it needs some manual labor done on its lair, a particular cave too small for it to enter surveyed, etc.
The dragon will see the advantages of putting Farshore under its thumb. Your point about it establishing a lair on the Isle away from other dragons is precisely the point. Now there is no competition for the resources available to it ... and Farshore is a great resource indeed.
The pirates are competition, since they take from others to increase their own wealth (horde) whereas the settlers are there to build and grow the resources of the island. The dragon would certainly ally with the latter against the former, so long as the conditions were to its advantage.
Remember, also, that dragons make plans that last for centuries ... it may negotiate terms that seem excellent to the PCs during their lifetimes, but which later generations may rue.
Will the PCs grant it or its designated representative a seat on the Council <snip> giving birth to half-dragon children, or become green-totem dragon shamans <snip> consolidate its hold on the settlement by providing a selection of items out of its hoard ... to its political allies
All excellent suggestions that play to both the Lawful alignment and long-view strategems of a dragon. I'd say go with this idea.
Actually, once the PCs wrap up STAP, you could run the next campaign set 15-20 years in the future with their children as new, 1st level PCs. Title it Under the Shadow of Green Wings.
HTH,
Rez