I'm especially interested in:
A) Broad overview gamemastering advice (doesn't have to be Pathfinder specific)
B) Actual gameplay of Rise of the Runelords
The longest adventure I've ever GMed is a four-session homebrew, so this will be the first campaign I'm running.
Thanks for any suggestions!
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Read the entire chapter before you begin. read the entire book if you can, then read the chapter you'll be running again. And take notes.
Have print outs of the beastiary entries you'll be using a lot in a given game session. For Burnt Offerings, that means the Goblin & goblin dog pages. Keep them handy.
Add your own spin to everything; based on the players in your group. Make it personal to them and they'll get more deeply involved. Especially the social encounters in the first chapter.
Always remember, it is not about you. This is the PCs story. Make sure each player gets a chance to have center stage at some point. If the players write up short background stories, work those into your game. Do your best to make Sandpoint home for your heroes.
Start staging chapter two, Skinsaw Murders, while still running chapter one.
Make sure that the players know that they are the heroes of this story. When they act heroic, have the townsfolk treat them like heroes. When they act like scoundrels, have the townsfolk comment on how far they seem to have fallen. Encourage that heroism and highlight the battle between good and evil in this AP. It is a classic hero story, so play it up.
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I have not seen a good podcast for Rotrl yet (none that I have found yet). However, if you are new to the game, the Glass Cannon Podcast is a great podcast overall, they are running Giant Slayer, but is an amazing inspiration of how a game can be.
http://www.glasscannonpodcast.com/
If you are looking for Runelords specifically I found a few youtube playthroughs that helped me on setting the stage. Tabletop Talk Rise of the Runelords was pretty good.
https://youtu.be/aYJPWjLaCyA
Most of the good ones I have watched however stopped a few sessions in, sadly.
But I agree with the above post. It is always wise to personalize the content to the group. Really makes it feel special. It is a really long story, but don't let that scare you. Just take it session by session, and remember the players don't typically know when you have made a story mistake...
Lastly, if you are in this forum.. there is so much help available from the previous and current DM'S and players it is really insane, inspiring and overwhelming. If you need help, or suggestions on how to handle or fix something... Just search or post. You really can't go wrong
if you want to see gameplay in action, reading a couple of the PbPs on this forum is a good way
I've seen only one that went beyond Burnt Offerings, it's being made by The Inn of Planar Crossroads.