It's quite interesting to compare the equipment selected by characters who are created at 6th level with that possessed by characters who have reached 6th level through play. In theory, these characters should have much the same value of equipment, so only the way that it is spent is changed.
The big difference is that characters created at high level have fewer items than those who reach that level through play. So, whereas the party cleric might have several potions, a scroll or two, and maybe a couple of wands if he's played through those levels, when created at 6th level he'll first allocate the bulk of his starting funds to the best armour, or weapon, or Wisdom-boosting item he can afford. This process is repeated until the character has less than 1,000 gold still to spend, and then mundane items are chosen.
There's nothing inherently wrong with this approach - characters should, in general, be able to collect the items that the player wants. That's one of the (rather unfortunate) assumptions on which the encounter system in 3rd Edition rests. (Since a fighter with a magic bastard sword is less effective than one with a magic longsword, if he has Weapon Focus(longsword) and Improved Critical(longsword), for instance.)
The other odd thing is that players creating higher-than-first-level characters seem to miss options to take masterwork items, partially-charged wands, and items made of special materials. So, the party wizard could very easily purchase a wand of 8d6 fireballs, for the meagre sum of 1,800 gp.
Hmm, perhaps that isn't the very best option.
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