Would you give your 2nd level party 30 thousand gold?

[ZuulMoG]

Assuming you didn't let them purchase anything off the Medium or High tables, it probably wouldn't cause too much harm. Assuming your plot hook involved thieves or other loss-inducing phenomena, their 30kgp could vanish rapidly.

 

[Buttercup]

I wouldn't do it myself, because I tend to keep the PCs relatively poor, but I also wouldn't condemn the idea out of hand. An experienced DM (which Crothian is) could probably make it work.

What I have done is put the PCs in a position where they can see that much wealth, but they know they can't get it and survive, or they don't have the means to transport it. But that's kind of like real life, eh? There's gold in Fort Knox, but can you get at it? And if you did, could you use it?

 

[Nifft]

IMC, any kind of wealth that can be stolen will attract attention, as soon as you try to spend it.

-- N

 

[Trickstergod]

Magic item shops are goofy and I don't use them.

Once that's out of the picture, it becomes a lot easier to drop gold by the bucketful on the PC's. There are usually places they might be able to buy magic items, but chances are, they lack the connections, power, and ability to survive getting to such places to begin with.

Sure, it might mean that the PC's start up their own army or turn those funds to buying their own kingdom or what have you, but a little ambition like that's a good thing. It might mean that some of their antagonists get some rather skilled assassin's on their tail or what have you, but basically, the PC's themselves aren't likely to get over-powered in one of my games with some change like that.

If anything, considering their relative power, they're in even more danger than ever. If anyone finds out they're that loaded and that relatively unskilled, they quickly become a target if they don't play things right.

So, yeah. While I probably wouldn't drop that much gold on the PC's, if for some plot reason it made sense, than, yeah. I'd do it.

 

[Li Shenron]

So, in tonights adventure I gave the group, all second level characters, about thirty thousnd gold pieces in gems. It is connected to a plot, it just wasn't out of nowhere. But I'm just curious how many people would do this? I'm not taking it away from them later, well not all of it. One of the gems is going to be made into a very powerful magical item for second level characters, and item worth 5 times as much as the gem was. The players are in a town they can spoend lots of it, they have time to special order some things and make some magical items themsevles. That's a lot of money to give to second level characters, so is that somethign you would have done?

No.

I feel that the average D&D characters have already too much equipment, which occasionally overshadows their personal abilities, and I would never increase this aspect of the game since I don't like it at all. I feel that the game is too much dominated by the boring idea that money is so important as the key to power. Bleah... Furthermore, money brings more accounting to do, drives the PC's behaviour to flat stereotypes (sometimes conflicting with alignment), and creates annoying circumstances in sell & buy practises which should happen only very occasionally.

OTOH, I could give the characters far bigger treasures than what they are supposed to get, but I would not let them spend it to improve their own personal/combat prowess. I'd let them spend the money in other ways, which may give benefits outside the action scenes (such as building a castle, starting a business, donating to the church, or empty the taverns' cellars). That means, I would have to make magic equipment unavailable.

 

[Henry]

I wouldn't, because any sane characters would RETIRE on those funds. If 4 people in a party, that's 7,400 gp, which unless the local economy is a lot different from D&D standard, that's a LOT of money, enough to start or buy a business, hang the sword or staff on the wall as a momento, and settle down with the local peasant girl or boy.

 

[philreed]

I wouldn't, because any sane characters would RETIRE on those funds. If 4 people in a party, that's 7,400 gp, which unless the local economy is a lot different from D&D standard, that's a LOT of money, enough to start or buy a business, hang the sword or staff on the wall as a momento, and settle down with the local peasant girl or boy.

I would be impressed if I ever saw a player choose to retire his 2nd level character -- especially for the reason you describe above. I think that player's next character would deserve some sort of special bonus during the creation process.

 

[Romnipotent]

sure, they get 26000gp in shares of a company all the time! Now they have a Patron to serve, and have an interest in expanding the company, insuring its success. Problem is that sometimes they dont get any returns

 

[Numion]

I think it's quite ok. So now they've got a couple of +1 items, which isn't much different from them starting with attributes a little higher. Thats bound to happen in my games where we use dice generation, and it's not broken the game.

But being the rules-stickler I am, I'd short them on future treasure to slowly ease to the DMG wealth tables

 

[MonsterMash]

Not if it fits the story arc - and I'd make up for it later: " After defeating the mighty dragon, you find its treasure: 50 gp, 500 cp and a half eaten mars bar"