> USB-PD supports 5, 9, 15 or 20v at between 0 - 5 amps. Higher power typically needs a thicker gauge wire.

Every voltage below 20 maxes out at 3 amps. As far as cables go, 60 is the minimum watts supported.

> There are definitely "charge-only" cables being marketed.

Are they valid though?

> Two markings with each having multiple variations. You will have a dozen plus combinations, that will only get more complex.

I don't really care how many combos there are. I won't need most of them. Most of the time I just want speed or power, sometimes I want both, and it's always a minimum requirement rather than anything specific.

>Every voltage below 20 maxes out at 3 amps. As far as cables go, 60 is the minimum watts supported.

Perhaps for PD 2.0/3.0 but there is also legacy USB PD 1.0 and USB-C BC. During that era I believe 1.5A was minimum.

>Are they valid though?

Probably not, looks like USB 2.0 data is minimum required.

>I don't really care how many combos there are. I won't need most of them.

Just because you don't need specific combinations, doesn't mean you won't have to wade through all possible combinations to find the cable you're looking for.