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mtb tread choice is much more involved than road tires where (let's be honest) they all pretty much grip the same.
for what you're looking for, i'd go with open-ish tread, med height tapered lugs. at 29" tire weight differences can be significant, like double, or even triple at the extremes. for this, lower weight > aggressive tread or tougher sidewalls.
i'd go with schwalbe nobby nics. very good in most, but doesn't rule any. only really sucks on slickrock, sucks a little less in mud. pretty great in nearly all other trail conditions. pavement will wear down the lugs pretty quick on any tire tho, so if you plan on any cafe runs, you could consider the maxxis crossmark with semi continuous center.
only thing i'd avoid completely are do-it-all tires that do so with low profile lugs. i've found they're pretty useless in any trail condition other than pristine hardpack.
volume is good, tubeless is gooder. but not that big a deal to use tubes unless you ride in thorn infested trails.
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