Sorry to lite the discussion fuse and bail! That was a funny comment but totally not my intention!
We provide first class entertainment around here at no charge
I already have a 14 KTM 250 XCW that I ride trails and race the occasional enduro on. So I was thinking something more pavement oriented. I don't see myself trying to get on any gnarly trails on a d/s bike. If I want to go ride hard trails I already have a bike for that.
That bike is not suited for leisurely travel though and the only reason I would ever consider plating it is if I was headed somewhere that required a plate to get from Trail A to trail B.
Mark Sampson, a.k.a. Big Dog, rode over 7K to Alaska and back on a Yamaha WR250. You should read his ride story here.
If you scroll around his web page, you'll see the story of the build of that bike as well as other adventure bikes Mark has built up and taken adventures on. No doubt it will give you ideas. My main point here is if a big dude like Mark can outfit and enjoy a 250 and use it as his bike-of-choice, you might get the idea that bigger isn't necessarily better. Or more comfortable.
Lots of variables. Many of them are based upon perception and paradigms that we all have in one form or the other.
Good luck.