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I'm not sure I can provide too much insight. I did a few things that I thought might endear my players but one of them doesn't care about Sandpoint, the other only cares about his relative, another is Chelaxian, and lastly... well the last one is a Cavalier who also happens to be the Sargent of the Guard.
Anyway, one thing I did was set up a little extra side track after the situation at the graveyard where the party was able to follow one pack of goblin tracks to their camp(Full disclosure I stole this from the boards as well) and attempt to attack them. The goblins had hijacked a wagon and were cooking it's horse.
In the middle Brathazmus arrived and started raining arrows on the party from the tree-line seriously injuring them. Shalelu arrived and pulled their bacon out of the fire but only from the Bugbear.
The group also found a missive on the dead wagon owner meant for Titus Scarnetti. He bribed them to get it back without reading it and that gave them a connection to him. They took it and got a
Another thing to remember is to always try and make the major players in Sandpoint out to be capable of taking care of themselves. Invent minor adventures and problems for them to have dealt with while the group is away. A small goblin attack, a robbery, etc...
Heck, if not for Hemlock, Ameiko, Shalelu, and Zantus in my game
As for stores I would definitely make a point to describe at least the first few initial visits to the local stores to build rapport with the locals. Even make up a list of local rumors for when they visit the store later and roll it to give a player a piece of what Sandpoint locals call 'juicy gossip'. They may not care, but it will make things seem more real for them.
Really going over the NPCs of town - getting to know them yourself is of great value, particularly as you want them to care about the town.
Throw the NPCs at them and see what sticks, there's gonna be some NPCs who draw their attention.
- After the Session, write down a list of NPCs that they interacted with.
- Add any NPCs that will have a part to play in the next several scenes.
- Add one or two that interest you even if not part of the main plot.
Give thought to what those NPCs might want to do, especially as relates to the players, keep that list next to you as you run the next session, check them off as you use 'em.
The ones you didn't use, ask: Why not? What happened? Perhaps something got in the way of the NPCs doing what they wanted to do.
The players need a sense of the fact that there are other people doing things.
Also, keep a list of names/NPCs nearby - my frickin' players are always asking people what their names are, where they work...
OH yeah, and data mine this forum like mad.
I used to run lots of D&D events at Gen Con. Often running the same adventure 3+ sessions. By the time I got to that 3rd session, the adventure was becoming really nice and polished. It would have seen my home group, then 2 different groups of players asking all sorts of questions and following the oddest red herrings. With these forum threads, there's a wealth of information about other experiences/adaptations/thoughts on pretty much every encounter across the AP. Not quite as good as running it multiple times yourself, but still very useful.
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WARNING: SPOILERS
My group is about to wrap up this AP so I am full of retrospect when it comes to GMing rotrl.
So first up it is good that you are trying to bring Sandpoint to life. Sandpoint is incredibly important when it comes to making this AP shine. You want your PCs to care about Sandpoint and its inhabitants, since they will be called upon to save Sandpoint time and time and time and time and time again. If they don't like Sandpoint they may get frustrated at being forced to hang out there. The set-up in Burnt Offerings (basically everything up to the Erylium dungeon) is roleplay fodder to get your players set into Sandpoint. So here are some thoughts:
1. "Usually I just handwave a trip to the store." Don't do this in Sandpoint! That's fine in Magnimar or wherever else your team goes. But in Sandpoint the blacksmith's name is Das Korvut and he runs the Red Dog Smithy. (it is testament to how often my team has spoken to Das Korvut that I have this knowledge off hand haha). While in Sandpoint, roleplay out all your interactions with the populace. Make your players address people by name, to make them care, or at least remember the names of, the people whose lives they will be saving.
2. On that note, have you thought about Pathfinder face cards? These are decks of cards that have Pathfinder NPCs on them and blanks on the backs. You could probably print out your own if you can't find a copy online. They let your players see the game art, something that is hard to do unless you use digital aids like Roll 20. Seeing the faces of NPCs makes them more memorable and lifelike. Before every game, my players go through every face card, name the NPC, and say something memorable about them. Like "This is Mayor Kendra Deverin. She gave the opening speech at the festival last session!" and so on.
3. Print out a map of Sandpoint and have it available to your players to help them explore the town. I personally blew up a huge map of Sandpoint and glued it to posterboard. We lay the map of Sandpoint out on the table when the players arein town. Encourage them to obtain permanent player housing, whether its through an arrangement with Ameiko Kaijitsu, or buying/renting a cottage at reduced rates.
4. Ideally your players will want to wander around Sandpoint and talk to NPCs themselves. If they are shy, new to roleplaying, or otherwise just used to "adventure hook -> dungeon -> kill monsters -> loot/exp!" RPGing, this may feel like pulling out teeth. So bring this up out of game that you'd like them to take incentive and speak to NPCs more. But of course be prepared to have NPCs approach your party out of the blue and chat them up.
5. To start off with, narrow your scope to a few NPCs that you want your party to know a lot about. There are a LOT of NPCs in Sandpoint so don't feel pressured to include every single one in your campaign. Some of my favorites are "Pillbug" Podiker, Ven Vinder, Shayliss Vinder, Ameiko Kaijitsu, Shalelu Andosana. Make sure these NPCs show up consistently over several sessions to build a sense of continuity.
6. To convey NPC backstory, do it through dialogue and small quests, rather than infodumping. If it is part of a give and take dialogue, pcs will be more likely to remember the story. Encourage your players to take notes on NPCs if they don't already (this is another good use of the Face Cards I brought up earlier). One good way to get people talking is to have NPCs ask questions of the PCs themselves, such as by asking them questions like "Where are you from?" "Where did you get that sword?".
7. Encourage romances if your players will bite for that sort of thing with NPCs. Any high charisma players should probably get hit on by an appropriate NPC.
8. The players should direct the story, not you. This means give the players OPTIONS for how to interact with NPCs. Ask your players things like, "How does your character feel about this NPC?
" or "What do you think about that?". Try to find places where the players have to commit to a choice. For example, in Hook Mountain Massacre, in Jakardos' backstory there is tension between him and his step-daughter, Shalelu. In my game, Shalelu was openly hostile towards him and blamed him for his father's death. After the players know both sides of the story, force them to take a side and get involved in the resolution. Do they defend Jakardos or Shalelu? Do they have the diplomacy skills and initiative to maybe bring the two together? Another example is the dealing with the traitor in Hook Mountain Massacre. According to Black Arrow law, the traitor should be put to death. Challenge your players to have an opinion on this capital punishment. Will they interfere, encourage execution, or try to stay out of the way?
So to tie it together here is an example of how to try and weave story in with dialogue -
The group has just explored the Catacombs of Wrath and the town is abuzz with rumors about the monster-infested catacomb they found under the glassworks, and how the heroes saved Ameiko Kaijitsu, and her traitor brother. Have Cyrdak Drokkus, the bard behind the Sandpoint Theater, approach the heroes and ask them to recount their heroics so that he can compose a play about it. Have the heroes actually verbally describe all this in their own words. (Maybe some of your players will disagree about the usefulness of a certain party member..for example.) Describe Cyrdak as flamboyant, astonished at the heroes' story, frantically taking notes. Have this become an ongoing thing, every time the heroes come to Sandpoint after an adventure, Cyrdak wants to know the nitty gritty to add to his play. The second time they recount a story, have them come to the theater, where Cyrdak introduces them to his (female) fiancee. Have her be there the next time also, to reinforce her in the player's mind. Then, some time later, have a perception check to have a character catch Cyrdak with his lover, Jasper. (possibly leaving Jasper's home looking disheveled or something on those lines). Cyrdak comes up with some half-assed excuse, naturally, and begs them to keep this hush hush. Challenge the players to make a choice and address the "revelation" that he is in fact gay. Do they blackmail him? Do they tell his fiancee? Do they keep his secret?
If you have a bard in your group, they can become involved in Cyrdak's play. Eventually have the heroes actually come in to watch the play that stars themselves! Recount their adventures back to them...embellished, of course. Ask them afterwards how they feel... honored? Embarassed?
In this example your players are kept the star of the story, not Cyrdak, yet the players slowly learn more about him over time, rather than in an info dump. The best way to do this is the "over time" part - focus on a few NPCs and have them show up constantly. Ideally your players will naturally gravitate to specific NPCs (like through romances) so your players end up choosing which NPCs they want to know about, rather than you forcing it upon them.
SPOILERS, goes without saying.
I ran this AP almost entirely in MapTool (although I've since switched over to Roll20).
I found that the map of Sandpoint was absolutely essential to stimulating a desire to explore the setting. Maybe you can find a way to apply this at the table.
Print or obtain a large map of the town. Place them on the map. Tell them what they can see, in much the same way you might treat a dungeon description. Augment the map with some of the splendid landscape-style paintings of Sandpoint featured in the books (especially the big one with the Old Light!). The cover image of book 1 takes place on Salmon St facing the Pixie's Kitten and the Fatman's Feedbag. Have something happen there and show them that classic picture!
Use this kind of thing to foreshadow events. At this point in the campaign, there are a few "aftershocks" in store relating to the goblin attack. Insert a very brief interaction with the "monster in my closet" family while they're on the way to Das Korvut's for some repairs. Likewise, feature the sawmill early, and the temple.
Look at the Sandpoint encounters later in the AP, especially with the the stone-giant attack and the opening of the ruins beneath town, and start forshadowing the geography of these things NOW, so that later you can show how this affects the NPCs.
But in the very beginning, it's totally okay to let the players be guided by their material needs: repairs, purchases, food, lodging and information. When they go in search of these things, interject short, quaint encounters based on the geography. What aspects of small town life might they encounter on the way from point A to point B? No need to make a full blown encounter, but adding a skill roll here and there does lend it a bit of legitimacy. Don't let it get out of hand or hijack the session, though.
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Use this kind of thing to foreshadow events.
Absolutely the point I was trying to make in using the lists of NPCs, Thanks for putting that more clearly Mythic Evil Lincoln!
Its great to have the players already have some reference when they need to interact with the NPCs "for real".
One of my PCs was out hunting with Davrien Hosk, during the Late Unpleasentness (as I ran some scenes that took place at that time), he saw Hosk and Shelalu have an interaction/altercation.
Yesterday when Shelalu was introduced during "news from the Mosswood", the player asked "Hey, is that the elf woman I saw talking do Davrien?"
So trying to introduce the NPCs of Sandpoint to the players BEFORE they need to interact with them lets them exist in a real space - they just don't appear because they are needed for this part of the adventure, only to disappear once they are no longer needed.
During the Attack on town, I put several of the NPCs on the maps as well, along with some extra goblins, allowing them to see Ven Vinder break a goblin's neck (among other NPC actions) heck, I wish I'd showcased one or two MORE NPCs during these scenes.
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Ideally, your PCs will wander town doing things they need to do (shopping at blacksmith etc) and you can organically introduce NPCs while they do so. Like if one PC decides to go to the blacksmith, as he leaves, have an NPC challenge them to the hagfish challenge. Or if they're responding to Sheriff Hemlock's summons, as they arrive at his office, have them catch wind of the tail end of a heated argument between Hemlock and his brother over Hemlock missing a Shoanti holy day.
If the PCs are just sitting there going "uhhh so what do we do next?" then give them a list of options to choose from. Like, "Well there are lots of things to see in Sandpoint. Do you want to go to the Fatman's Feedbag, the Pixie's Kitten, or maybe check in with Father Zantus at the new church?". The goal here is to keep the players driving the story, not you.
If that doesn't work, then just parade NPCs to the PCs and have them introduce themselves. They are the goblin slayin' heroes after all so they will be somewhat of a curiosity for those first couple of days anyway. You can have relevant NPCs approach the PCs with work. A "brutish" or roguely PC may be given an unsavory job by Jubrayl Vhiski and introduce the Sczarni, a bard could get a job from Cyrdak Drokkus, a ranger a job from Shalelu to clear out goblins, a priest a job from Father Zantus, an alchemist could meet Pillbug Podiker. These will ideally be quick encounters resolved in a few skill check rolls or brief combat, but will help introduce your PCs to residents.
At first, you will just want to introduce several NPCs and see which ones the players find interesting and want to learn about. For example my party ranger immediately was interested in Shalelu (they were both elves) and chatted her up, which eventually lead to romance between the two. Once you've narrowed it down to a few, then you can brainstorm ideas to try and weave their backstories into the overarching plot so that the players can learn more about them.
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First let me start off by saying I read your initial question but none of the responses so I'm sorry if this is redundant.
I am currently running RotR and my group just finished burnt offerings.
I had my group describe in detail why they came to Sandpoint on this particular day, and how they went about it. (Only had 3 players, two of which were in-game traveling brothers) and that alone added about 3 hours of game time before the festival even began. This helped the players get introduced to some of the NPCs, the layout of the town, and ultimately improved their connection to the town. Once the festival began the next day, I wrote out things to do at the festival (it gives a brief idea of what goes on) and wrote out speeches for when the notable NPCs took the stage. My players told me that it did in fact improve the quality of the assault, and made it more fun to play.
As for shops and stuff, I make them roleplay buying things and that also introduces them to the world and builds connections.