How do you assign NPC wealth?

[Melan]

Carte blanche all the way. Since I DM a low-wealth and low-magic item campaign, I have no use for the WotC guidelines for either my players or my NPCs. A low to mid level NPC, when encountered, usually has d6*10 gold pieces, basic equipment and maybe a minor magical item (usually a potion or something nonstandard). Higher level and wealthy types are handled on a case by case basis, but nothing comes even close to the "default".

 

[genshou]

Usually I use the standard NPC gear value. It's more value than a normal encounter of that level, but since the players will never find all the treasure I hide, it all balances out.

In a lower or higher magic-level campaign, I would definitely go carte blanche.

In a campaign with a lot of NPC fights, I would go with the amount standard for encounters of that level, so the PCs wouldn't get too rich.

For NPCs the players are never gonna loot, I usually go with the same amount as a PC of that level, but sometimes I just go with whatever works out best without worrying so much about numbers.