The non-numeric precedent was set by Template:Max/4, where I think the likelihood is that users will have "n/a" text entries when more, but the use of expensive #iferror will limit {max/5} to 100 instances (5*100=500 expensive limit). Yet, it is also likely to be used few times in an article; however, I was thinking "maxnum/5" for a pure quick numerical maximum. I have not seen much improvement from Lua speed, and of course, the extra {#invoke:} accessor templates will irritate people. Meanwhile, we have millions of templates, such as 100,000+ infoboxes. So, I think we just need more basic template parser functions, such as {#length:string}, {#numeric: data}, and yes, {#set:val|70*5} to set parameter values mid-stream (like a "real" language), rather than calling another template to pass val=70*5. As for the expansion depth, experienced programmers are more likely to exceed the limit, due to typical if-else-if-else-if-else logic, and bottom-line, the 40-limit expansion is just way too low for modern computers, which use perhaps, 200 if-else nesting, easily, where perhaps a limit of 60 would solve most problems now. My hope for Lua is to create "smart" advisor/wizard templates which cross-check parameters and make complex decisions to help improve article text. -