5. Nope. Don't worry too much about stats, you can always just recruit more liberals . And now that stats aren't capped to 20 anymore, optimising the founder is not that clear-cut a matter anymore either (though you'll probably want to answer D in the last question).
A shame, but i can live with that.
I have my founder raise his juice up to 1000 asap, with Cha, Persuasion, Disguise, Driving, Security, Seduce and Stealth maxed out, and then i had all recruitment slots except one reserved to sleeper-judges, + 8-10 sleeper-sex-slave-judges. The last slot for the second in command, and he/she has all "right hands" under him/her. This way the main character is untouchable in any way, and even if they catch him in a siege, he can simply walk out.
I can even say that the LCS founder in my game CAN simply walk into mordor.
Although this answer bothers me somewhat, because interrogation Heart losses, aswell as wisdom gains seem to be permanent and irreversable in that case. and this is in no way good!
1. Fox has been looking for a design for that part of the game that was both compelling and transparent enough to be good as game mechanic, and not just flavourful minigame. The deprivation options weren't that. Still looking for a food design though, AFAIK.
I just had my main char kill a hangin judge in one beating... -2 Heart
Another question tho!
6. CEO. Is there only one per world? What changes once you kill him(aside from his mansion no longer having any mercenaries, only dogs and servants)? What changes after you recruit him?