Campaign pacing

I think I've written here before about how many pitfalls I ran into
trying to go from the pacing of a "stock" campaign to an Ars Magica
convenant-building game meant to cover decades.  A lot of my GMing
techniques just didn't work.

I'm finding this in reverse at the moment.  I'm (trying to) run
the _Age of Worms_ mega-module, which goes from 1st to 20th+ level
(in AD&D) over the course of twelve adventures and maybe a year
game-time.

This means that the PCs must go up approximately 2 levels per
adventure, occasionally only 1; and, even more dauntingly, approximately
two levels per *month* in the internal time of the game.  (Also
in the external time of player and GM, more or less--maybe 1.5
months per 2 levels.)

I keep finding that I've missed doing something and now it's far
too late--even the next session.  The PCs picked up an apprentice
mage, an ex-servant of the evil mage-god with memory issues and
a tendency to have visions.  I was developing a thread about her
and how she grapples with her past--but suddenly she's 9th level and
that thread doesn't feel sensible anymore.  Presumably she must
have some sense of herself as a 9th level wizard (even if I don't!)
and that's going to leave her in a different, much less vulnerable,
internal space.

Similarly, the modules have an arc about how one NPC starts out as
a mentor (level way above the PCs') and how it's supposed to be
a major characterization point when the PCs surpass him and must
advise and protect him instead of vice versa.  But that transition
took all of three weeks.  There was just no sense of the mentorship
relationship.  My player played his PCs as already knowing they were
destined for greatness--otherwise the rapid advancement would
probably destroy their personalities--and they never looked at this
person as being far above them, despite the level difference.

I know some people on this newsgroup have done Adventure Path
games before.  How did you deal with the pacing?  Did you introduce
lots of side material in between the main arcs?  Just accept that
the PCs' relationship with NPCs and the world changes with
dizzying speed?  Something else?  Are there character personalities
which should/shouldn't be preferred in such a game?

Mary Kuhner mkkuhner@[EMAIL PROTECTED]