My experience doesn't apply much to what you're after, but here's my 2 bits anyway. My truck had 12.5x33s on it when I bought it. The PO lived outside of Jacksonville FL at the end of a dirt (sand) road. I presume this tire set up worked well for him because it helped him stay on top of the sand when it rained/flooded which happened to him often. When I got the truck up to Indiana and got it out on the farm cutting firewood, I quickly found that those 12.5 tires sucked. Now, in all fairness, they were pretty worn when I got them. Having said that, regardless whether the truck was empty or loaded with 5K of oak, when the ground got a little soft they wouldn't sink down and get a bite. Instead they would slide on top and dig a hole until I had both axles on the ground. I lost the front Diff that winter, and as a 2wd they REALLY SUCKED! I went back to factory spec tires and had the front diff fixed, and I've noticed a big difference. I'm currently running Michilan A/T on the front, and they've done well all things considered. They do well on the road, and not bad off road. I've used Generall Grabber A/T on the rear, and they were good when new but wore out quick and weren't worth a hoot the last half of their life. They were pretty noisy though, but I didn't mind even though the truck is my daily driver.
I've currently still got the Michilans on the front but they need replaced and only because my ball joints wore out and have trashed the outside of the driver side tire. I'll rotate them and keep going until fall, then maybe set them back for next summer to get some more use out of them before changing them out. I've got the Grabbers on another pair of rims in the garage where they've been sitting since last fall for the same reason. I need to get them back on and get some more life out of them as well. I can't remember what I have on the back right now, but they are BFG/Bridgestone ATs of some kind. They've done well for me this past winter and I need to get them off and save them for next fall/winter.
What I've noticed with my truck is that when it comes to getting stuck the best way to avoid it is to avoid slipping a tire at all. This has held true with every truck I've owned both 2wd and 4X4, but especially with this truck. It's heavy enough on its own that once it slips a tire it digs a hole fast and there's rarely an oportunity to "rock" it out. Only once have I been able to do that and that was because I dropped one wheel into a hole with the truck in 2wd and a load of firewood on the back. Had to empty the load and lock the hubs in and I was able to rock it out, but I still left some pretty nasty ruts. Every other time it has required a tractor, or at least several hours of digging and jacking to get at least one axil up off the ground. So if you're going to be off road much, and especially if your pulling trailers on questionable terrain, I would opt for the most aggressive tread available and be willing to sacrifice road noise, corning, fuel milage, and ride quality for it. Since my truck is my dialy driver, I try to find some middle ground for a tire, and I'm overly cautious about the ground conditions BEFORE I go in.
Just my 2 bits,
Mark