Sometimes more gold does not help a party much.  Sometimes even more experience points, magic items, and hordes of gems really aren’t worth very much to characters or to players.

Understanding the importance of these items in relation to the world that the characters live in is important to understanding how treasure and even experience can impact the game.

The easiest example is with magic items.  If an item has no use or very little use to the party then it really adds no value or power to the party.  An example would be a magic wand in a party with no one who can use a magic wand.  On paper the party appears to be at the appropriate power level, but in reality they are a magic item short.  This could be particularly devastating because it highlights a deficiency and exacerbates an existing weakness.

Gold can fall into a very similar situation very quickly if there is no place to spend the gold, or if the players are unwilling to spend the gold or if the characters are unable to haul the loot around.  A huge dragon horde at the bottom of a dungeon with a party that has no bag of holding or time in which to pack the loot out does nobody any good.  If, when they reach the top there is nothing waiting but a village with one general store selling only basic goods from the Player’s Handbook, then they will unlikely be able to find a good way to spend their money.

What about experience?  Can it really be of little or no value?  Most of the time experience is the single most valuable reward that can be given.  It is the only reward that inherently increases the character’s power – regardless of the campaign or situation.  However, in a vacuum it still is not the holy grail.  If there is not a corresponding increase in treasure – particularly useful magic items, then experience points alone can be a bit disappointing.  A wizard who does not have a powerful implement may struggle in situations where other high level wizards do not.

Until next time, have fun!

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