A) 'Droop' is nice for a ramp queen vehicle...and while it looks 'cool' it serves no ultimate practical purpose on the trail. That said, don't sacrifice compression for extension. The further away from the body you place the tire, the less weight (ie: traction) you have on it. Locked or not, if you have no weight on a tire you will NOT grip. Plain and simple.
B) While there is no warranty on the 7100 shocks like there is with the 5100 series, they are still quite expensive to break when used as 'limiting straps.' Do it once, do it right. Use limiting straps to limit extension and use bumpstops to prevent full compression. 7100s have nice long travel, so you're not sacrificing anything there. If you're investing the $$ to set those shocks up, do it wisely.
HTH and if you have any questions about the 7100s hit me backchannel. I deal with them on a regular basis.