Have you also cross-shopped the other frames in this hyper specific niche of drop-bar 29er bikepacking rigs? Most of them are not suspension-corrected, other than the Cutthroat and Fargo - that may or may not matter to you.
Salsa Fargo
Bearclaw Beaux Jaxon (titanium fork wooo woo)
Ritchey Ascent
Black Mountain Cycles La Cabra
Etc
Bikepacking.com has a big list, recently updated in 2023:
https://bikepacking.com/index/drop-b...in-bikes-29er/