@Solar
That is just not true, as I explained in my opening post.
There are different types of "money", such with inherent value (Goldcoins for example), money which is backed up by real value (gold standard, stuff standard, whatever), and money which has only value, because government tells you it has (forces you to use and accept it). Last type is "fiat money", relatively new type of money and our actual money system in western countries. Fiat money system is failing right now, but that is not the point.
Fiat money is unlimited. You, the devs could insert unlimited ammount of money to every player if you wished to (don´t do it!).
This would lead to "none items available everywhere", as inflation (rising prices, due to lack of goods and/or abundance of money) is not implemented in Fonline (except for mercs etc.).
Real world governments could create "unlimited" money also, though it would loose its worth, as goods are never unlimited.
The US and european governments are doing this right now, so we will see inflation in the coming years. Dollar, Euro, and british Pound will become more or less
worthless! I´ll bet 2000€ this will happen the next 10 years.
So much for fiat money.
If money/caps would be backed up, or made out of gold nuggets (gold caps), then money would be limited by gold nugget production in Fonline.
If money/caps would be backed up by "stuff", then total ammount of money would be limited by ammount of stuff crafted/savenged/whatever.
You could back up caps with weapons also, or every other item.
Someone mentioned already that Fallout tactics had merchants with unlimited money (so they had stuff based currency).
And this concept was just working fine. Less anoying, faster and you didn´t became too rich to easy.
You could create your legal stuff based money in real world.
Start accepting stuff (whatever) by people and don´t pay them money, but give them an I.O.Y.
I.O.Y. a Car-Radio for example. This person with your I.O.Y. could go to the local bakery and might be able to buy some buns for this I.O.Y.
At least if you are well known to the bakerys personell and they trust you.
Same thing with real world money. You can buy your food with Dollar, Pounds, Euros, whatever just because the seller is trusting the value of the money.
He believes/is sure that he can buy tomorrow stuff with "money". But that is not guaranteed by physics laws, but just by state laws.
And every paper based currency always declined to the materiel worth of the money, sooner or later.
As caps are just bottle caps if nobody accepts it, real life money is just a sheet of paper, or a piece of cheap metal, if it is no longer acceptet.
