Suspension fork vs rigid fork for world touring.

I'm planning to build a Tumbleweed Prospector with a Rohloff hub for a multi year round the world expedition. My goal is to ride everything from paved roads to very remote, rough bikepacking routes.

I'm torn between two setups:

100–120 mm suspension fork + 29 × 2.35" tires

Rigid fork + 29 × 2.8" tires

My biggest concern with a suspension fork is maintenance. I often read that you should do a lower-leg service every 50–100 hours (oil and foam rings), which seems very frequent for someone riding around the world.

For those of you who have actually done long expeditions:

How closely do you follow the recommended service intervals?

Can they realistically be stretched if you keep the fork clean and only wipe the stanchions after riding?

Is it reasonable to just keep the fork clean and do a full service every 6 months, or is that asking for trouble?

Have any of you completed long world tours with a suspension fork? What was your maintenance schedule like?

I'm also trying to decide on the fork itself. Right now I'm considering a Fox 34 Step-Cast Factory (100 or 120 mm),RockShox Pike, and the Marzocchi Bomber Z2 but I'm open to other recommendations.

If reliability, worldwide parts availability, and low maintenance are the priorities, which forks would you recommend?