Dude. After I left Paul I rode all afternoon at Glentress with my Ebike switched off (the battery still had the 3 bars when I switched it off) spent a good half an hour just jumping and climbed to the top twice. I don't really care about battery range, and certainly don't have battery anxiety. when the lights go out it doesn't mean the party's over
I'll try to answer your questions but I can't really offer you the specific advice you're asking for.
The tread design depends on what you can cope with and what your local terrain is. I'll happily ride my go to dry weather set-up (2.5 DHF exo DC front and 2.3 SS exo DC silkworm rear) in the wetest slippiest conditions down some of the hardest steepest trails in the country. Most people won't. I actually enjoy being a little more on the edge (not 100% in control) at times.
Most people where I ride will be scrabbling to fit shortys or Magic Marys right around this time of year. I won't. I never do.
What I run is irrelivant to you. but basically I run a DHF or DHRII up front, Semi slicks or DHFs rear.
2.5 DH casings on my DH bikes, 2.5/2.3 Exo on enduro/Eeb and 2.35/2.35 single ply on hardtails and Slopestyle bikes.
A DHRII upfront when ridden properly corners almost exactly the same as a DHF but offers massively more braking performance. They are both soe of the most predictable tyre tread designs ever created.
You almost certainly don't need a full DH casing unless you are absolutely smashing very rough/rocky DH tracks. a lighter intermediate casing and appropriate presures should suffice.
A clumsy rider can dish out more abuse. as can a heavy rider. But the solution is not to go to full DH casings. It's to ride within your limits, choose better lines and stop smashing into square edges.
There's absolutely no point in me telling you a starting point for tyre pressure as I know nothing about you, how you ride, where you ride, what you weigh, your riding style, cornering preference etc. etc.
What I can tell you is you need a sidewall to support the tread, so the thinner/lighter the casing the more pressure you need to run to support it. You're looking for a tyre pressure somewhere high enough where it will never fold or squirm and low enough it gives you the grip and comfort you're looking for. it's always a compromise and also down to personal preference. I'm not looking for ultimate grip and I'm certainly not looking for maximum comfort. Support is far more important to me.
To try and explain something to you I'll use the Minion SS semi slick as an example.
If you run a minion SS too soft in the rear looking for more straight line traction it will conform (squirm) too much and simply won't dig in properly (consistently) when you lean it over properly. ie. When you REALLY need the grip! it won't hold you! Straight line grip really isn't that important to me at all. cornering grip is.
