tlantl
First Post
In the perfect D&D world there would be other things the non-casters could get XP for that the casters couldn't, but yeah, that's a problem. (Rogues should be able to get some for stealing, for ex.) Maybe just a really small amount could be awarded to show that they're actually doing something constructive, rather than penalizing them for it.
IMHO having magic item creation cost a lot of time or money ought to keep the magic mart problem under control. The occasional townie wizard might have an item or two for sale, but that doesn't mean it'd be something the characters wanted. To be sure they got what they wanted they'd either have to wait til it was ready, pony up a lot of cash, or go questing for the right ingrediants to speed up the process.
I usually set up specific NPCs in an area who are available for the players to commission magical items. Sometimes I have the player or group do some little adventure for him or her to bring back certain materials used in the creation process. I don't make them wait for the stuff once they r turn though since the item may have been on hand or the materials to make the stuff was already in his possession while having the party go find the stuff was only to replenish the guy's inventory.
I used this method in 3e since the players wanted nothing to do with wasting feats on item creation and no one played an actual wizard.