While reading this
Cohort Question I was kinda struck by a quote in there and instead of asking an unrelated question in that area I figured it would be good to make a separate question.
The quote was "Though I am not advocating a strict adherence to the wealth by level progression…" So my question is, why wouldn't you want to follow this chart? I'm not defending the chart and in fact I usually reduce the starting amount for new characters but what is the consensus among other gamers?
So I guess a better worded question is: "Do you adhere to the wealth by level chart; if not what is your justification/reasoning for not doing so?
Best Answer
It's a major decision not to be made lightly
D&D 3.5's power curve is strongly influenced by wealth. A character with magic items is obviously much more powerful than a character without, and to an equal extent a character with level 15 items is probably going to kick the face of a character with level 5 items regardless of what level the characters might be.
By that reading, it seems as though reducing a character's wealth (and thus the items they have access to) makes for a lower-powered campaign. This is true, but doesn't touch the heart of the issue:
Challenges are (in theory) balanced around the wealth by level chart.
A CR 15 monster is supposedly designed to use about 1/4 of the daily resources (spells, hp, consumables, etc) of a party of four level 15 characters. That "daily resources" estimate is based on wealth-by-level, because wealth is a major part of the D&D power curve.
There are spells and items which wealth-by-level ensures a party will have access to at certain levels even if no one in the party can cast or make them. Monsters and other challenges are built and their difficulty assessed by assuming this level of access.
So proceed with caution, because there is no single answer here
There are plenty of good reasons to adjust party wealth, but it's important to remember that you're redefining one of the basic balancing assumptions in a system whose balance is already off-kilter. Be prepared to compensate.
An undergeared party will have fewer resources and be forced to use more of the resources they have in order to defeat a creature of their level. An overgeared party will often have utility at its command which trivializes encounters of its level.