Here's another one I'd like to put up for discussion.

I've always though the economic model for 3rd edition is completely whacked (that means it doesn't make sense if you're not up on my midwestern slang...). I could go on about how supply and demand would drive down the cost of things like healing potions (hello, level 1 priests can make them), and how since the creatures in D&D explode like piñatas full of gold and magical items, there would not only be a really skewed distribution of wealth, but the creatures would buy out the humans (they're rich&#33. Plus rarity becomes silly as an excuse for high price when most monsters explode into a shower of magical items when they die.

BUT, I have learned to ignore all that. Here's my question, part 1: How do you handle it when your humble party of a regent and her retinue (with 1st level chart equipment, plus an heirloom or two) want to visit ye olde adventurer's mart with some gold bars and want +1 plate mail on the house. To be more direct, I wonder what you are doing to control the fact that regents can become rich quickly, and the high prices of 3rd edition items aren't much of a deterrent to regents with nice treasuries.

What we've decided to do is make a clear distinction between personal and realm wealth, and since we're mostly good aligned, they honor that. I gave the PCs an inheritance of about 3 GB and after that they have to earn it. We also have a slush fund, so when anything in the treasury is less than a 1/10 (say a 1/12 GB is left over) it goes into the slush fund.

Part 2 -- This works pretty well, except they still want to go down to any old guild and order up all magical equipment and enough potions of healing to make a fountain. We've decided to limit availability of items based on the level and location of the guild, and I like to point at Endier (which is FAR away from us, thankfully) as where you need to go to inquire about stuff. I'm also thinking of limiting availability to +1 in a shop, maybe +2.

Thoughts?