I need a tiny bit of help with how purchasing works within Society play. I've looked and I can't find a clear example in other messages. I'd love to see an example of chronicle awards across multiple scenarios and what the players do with their gold and prestige, just like the sample adventure on page 13 of the Core Rulebook.
For the sake of this discussion please assume all players spend every dime of their starting 150 GP. So here's what has happened.
The party runs through Silent Tide and they earn max gold (453). Everyone elects to save the gold at the end of the adventure.
Hydra's Fang is played the next week. Before the party leaves Absalom, Cedric the Cleric buys 2 potions of Cure Light and Fred the Fighter upgrades from Scale mail (sells it for 25 GP) to Banded mail (buys it for 250 GP). So these two have a little less cash on their chronicle sheets but more gear. During the adventure Fred also buys food and drink (2 GP) at the local Pub for all of them. Romana the Rogue elects to save her money. The party earns max gold (456) for the Hydra's Fang. So Cedric has 453 - 2*50 + 456 = 809, Fred has 453 + 25 - 250 - 2 + 456 = 682, and frugal Romana has 453 + 456 = 909.
Murder on the Silken Caravan is next. Again, Cedric buys two more potions of cure light and Fred thinks the Oil of Invisibility that's now available may prove useful. The party earns 454 gold from the Caravan. Now Cedric has 809 - 2*50 + 454 = 1163. Fred has 682 - 300 + 454 = 836. Romana has 453 + 456 + 454 = 1363.
At this point all three are level 2 with a fame of 6. Now the most expensive item they can purchase within the limits of their fame is 1500 GP. No one can buy a +1 weapon yet due to the fame limits. Thanks to their past purchases only Romana can afford to buy any magical armor. So purchasing scrolls/potions and higher quality mundane items is about the best they can hope for right now.
So, using all of this as an example, am I running the purchasing part of Society scenarios correctly? After three runs the party doesn't seem to have had an opportunity to greatly improve their gear.
Thanks in advance for any help you can give.