XP is an invisible, semi-OOC measure of your PC's progress to the next plateau of character-class-based power. It accumulates at some level by itself (through scripted RPXP) and may be awarded at any time by a DM's discretion.
Gold/gear/potions/networth, on the other hand, is very much In-Character. It doesn't automatically rain from the sky after a particularly pivotal moment in your PC's development, or at the end of a five-hour session. There are recommendations to aid DMs in deciding what may be a reasonable sum to award for completion of an IC task, but there will be many times in which the task won't have been completed, the task-giver is penniless/destitute/sneaking out the back door without paying up. The wealth guidelines, similarly, are tools for DMs to use in planning ahead for rewards- not rules that static content are meant to adapt to. When a PC goes significantly "underawarded" for long enough, it leaves a wide range of freedom to the DMs who may run plots involving a customized reward down the line. The more significant such a reward might be, the less likely a DM is to drop it in a PC's lap without some prolonged interactions. Even the standard "low-end" magical gear (+1 AC, +1 enchantment) has values from 1000gp - 2500 gp, so most low-level PCs would have to be pretty significantly under par wealthwise to "qualify" for that sort of award. Conversely, a PC who is already at or above recommended wealth for their level, on the other hand, will tend to receive less and smaller rewards in terms of gear/consumables/gold.
I believe is it true that a large majority of the NWN2 PCs in ALFA are significantly below the "recommended" wealth levels in the DM guidelines. The reasons for this are many-fold, but I expect the primary one is a lack of prolonged DM-player contact due to DM staff shortages and turnover, combined with player turnover. I would also say that we've not entirely adjusted to the "new" way of doing things, in which scripted RPXP takes an increasingly large place in the total XP of PCs.
Certainly, DMs should feel comfortable finding excuses here and there when possible to send some gold, potions, masterwork weapons/armor, and other such networth type items along towards underwealth'd PCs. But, since these are IC things, they do beg IC justification for consistency's purpose. Totally incongruous windfalls can be just as disruptive (if not more so) than being poor IC, and engender ill will amongst everyone who had the misfortune to miss the day the skies rained gold crowns
.
To sum up:
Low-end rewards (+1-+2 skill, scrolls, potions, MW items) are Good Things.
GP rewards are Good Things, as they are incremental and put some freedom/choice into the hands of the player with regard to "gear purchase".
Expecting scripted content to balance the books and bring everyone to "D&D Average Power and Wealth by Level" is just not realistic. DMs are the best enabled to make intelligent and context-appropriate rewards available, but they're quite rightly going to make PCs "earn" those rewards (even if the players may feel they've "earned" them already due to past activities which the DM was not present for). So, as players, the best approach is to be patient, participate in DM'ed events and during DM timeslots when possible, try not to retire/die too often, and focus on enjoying the game rather than worrying about how your PC would fare against a "standard level based CR challenge" or where they fit on a standardized wealth table.
