Thank you for your long and very clear post. I want to clarify:
- ZScale is similar but different to Depth.
+ The renderings are different for some pattern : cube, cylinder etc
+ For the current version, set different ZScale could create multi layer effect, it's not the case for Depth. You could watch the Tutorial 3 to see this effect (the pot and plants in Chip&Dale Rescue Ranger)
- Totally agree. ZOffset will be supported in the future. You could discuss and share your ideas in this special topic https://itch.io/t/29232/3dnes-comprehensive-feature-request-list . It will be easier for everyone to keep track.