The thing about XBXL is that it was simply too stale, too boring. So we got BoP. Now, BoP was good, I really like it, but I feel that it was too crazy. I think that BoP should be replaced with highlands. It's a nice middle ground, not too extreme, but not boring either. http://www.minecraftforum.net/topic/1602064-164-forge-highlands-merry-christmas-v215/ I also wouldn't mind seeing highlands added alongside BoP, because there are 1 or 2 BoP biomes that I really do like. It is possible to install highlands alongside BoP, if biome IDs are changed, there are details in the minecraftforum thread, so if getting rid of BoP is a no go, then maybe adding highlands alongside is okay?
We are using EBXL this time, and we already have a seed picked out. Maybe next time, it does look nice enough.
HighLands is definitely the black sheep of the terrain generation mods to say the least. Not many people know about it, and it's sad because it has some really cool features!