I'm looking to run a game for the first time and had a question. What's the general consensus on the best adventure path? In terms of adventuring? Roleplaying? I was thinking of doing the updated Rise of the Runelords but before I formally settled I figured I'd see what else was out there. If possible something that has a blend of a little of everything, from goblins to ogres to giants to dragons, gods and everything in-between! (while it may be my first time running, my group has been playing for years)
I'm looking to run a game for the first time and had a question. What's the general consensus on the best adventure path? In terms of adventuring? Roleplaying? I was thinking of doing the updated Rise of the Runelords but before I formally settled I figured I'd see what else was out there. If possible something that has a blend of a little of everything, from goblins to ogres to giants to dragons, gods and everything in-between! (while it may be my first time running, my group has been playing for years)If you've never run a game before, my advice to you is to start small. Do modules first. Or maybe some PFS scenarios (PFS membership isnt' required to run them.) Get a handle for how the game operates, and then you can start a new campaign on an adventure path. Adventure Paths are major commitments and you may want to get your wings broken in small jumps before committing for a long flight.
I can't see myself doing modules. I like/want/need having story continuity from one session to the next. A series of one-shots would bother me to much.
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I just started GMing myself, first session was a couple days ago. I ran into the same problem as you and When I did my research 4 APs stood out to me (in no particular order):
Rise of the Runelords - Most people have said this is an excellent adventure. From what I understand it is also the easiest for a new GM to get into. It might also be the cheapest if that matters.
Carrion Crown - I am a huge fan of Horror and the Undead. I have heard mixed reviews about this one, but I was personally interested and thinking of trying to push Ravenloft rules into the setting. My players were not interested in this one because...
Skulls and Shackles - Pirating on the high seas, sums this one up nicely. I have only heard good things about this adventure. My players wanted to be pirates, so this is what they chose. This is not the standard Hero AP, and personally I am more interested to see what a group of evil pirates will do.
Kingmaker - Heard great things about this one. It is a really open sandbox, make sure that you have players that want to be rulers of their own kingdom if you choose this one.
As far as the advice for starting with modules goes, I think it is not a bad idea. What I did was I got a level 1 Module (Hangman's Noose) and ran my players through it to get them acquainted with each other. I wanted them to have something to bond over before starting the adventure path. This one just happened to match what I wanted to see in game; Horror, Mystery, and Undead. It was a good way to ease myself into the GM chair as I got to see how my players reacted to several different aspects of the game: Roleplay, Riddles, Combat. I also got to see what I needed to work on to smooth out game play to keep the flow of the game constant: Initiative and combat, Notes on rooms(What monsters are in them, what treasure, other interesting stuff), Faster map drawing, Getting more into NPCs heads, preparing closer to game time(I forgot most of my prepared information and did not have a chance to review it).
For you, I would recommend one the above AP's if you want a continuous story. Otherwise, modules could be a good place to start, just have the hints be dropped in the previous module to keep players wanting to continue on. Ask your players what they want to run, what they are in the mood for. Just summarize the AP for them and see what they are interested in.
Personally, I enjoyed running my character through Hangman's Noose. I also intend to run them through Carrion Hill when they reach around 6th level. Gonna have a heck of a time finding a way to get them there, but reading through the AP I have come up with a couple ideas.
My best advice is to read through the APs (possibly start with those I've listed) and see which one sounds the most interesting to you and present them to your players for voting. This way you get to run one you will be interested in, and your players will get to choose their path.
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I can't see myself doing modules. I like/want/need having story continuity from one session to the next. A series of one-shots would bother me to much.
The new dragons demand module goes from level 1 to 7. Thats certainly not a one shot, and there are also several other modules designed to be strung together, like crypt of the ever flame has 2 follow up adventures.
The reason I would recomend startind small is initially you will make mistakes, you will screw stuff up. You are human, dming a game like pathfinder is complicated. An adventure path is a long term commitment, you are talking about a year of your and your groups life being put into this (depending on how frequently you play). If you make some early mistakes that throw things off, you will be living with them for a while. Practice in the form of a module or two is a good way to avoid this.
That said, if you intend to do a adventure path, i'd recommend against kingmaker. Its an awesome AP, and I personally love it, but its very open ended. Its very hard to prep for as a dm, which makes it doubly hard for a new dm.
Rise of the runelords is a great choice, as its the classic adventure path. It has the most supporting material, and the most experience collectively in running it. Nothing quite like getting a re-write after 5 years of feedback. You can get the most out of what I call the 1000 man gm army backing you up (all the posters in the AP specific forums). You can get tons of advice in the rise of the runelords section of the adventure path forums, which you can get for the other adventures, but the simple fact is that the most people have run rise and that means more information and better advice.
I would add that for Skull and Shackles, I think you get what you put into it. If your players want to be pirates, and will get excited/have fun with it, it can be great. With my group, I am not a pirate fan, and only 1 or 2 of the group is actually acting "piratey". The rest are either just kind of there, or playing "amoral mercenary" and trying to pass it off as a pirate. Combined with a GM who is also not a big pirate fan, and the AP seems to drag and is not terribly fun. It is not bad . . . but kind of meh, in my opinion. The fun we is have tends to be independent of the AP content, rather than stemming from it. I have no doubt that if we were all buying into the pirate theme, it would be much better. Like with Aconyte said about Kingmaker, make sure your players are buying into the premise of "we are pirates" before choosing it.
I think Rise of the Runelords is a great AP to run, especially because, as Kolokotroni said, there are a ton of resources to draw from since it has been around for so long.
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Just to add to Kolokotroni's advice, Dragon's demand is like a small AP, it should last you 2 months of weekly play, and lets you cut your teeth on a really well put together mini campaign. When it is done, you can wash away all the first time GM mistakes (like indulging PCs in uber characters) and reset into an AP with a little more grounded expectation of what kind of prep you need to do, and when to say no (as I'm a strong proponent that a DM should in general say yes.)
As for the follow up AP, Kolo's right with his advice both on Kingmaker, and on Runelords. I would put in a strong vote for Carrion Crown, as it is a great romp through the horror genre, it is really easy to set the mood as players know what to expect (in general not specific.)