I like where you are going with this.

Can you clarify...how do you see perks laying out in the new skill tree? I'm very much not a fan of SP sinks purely for unlocks and really don't care for SP sinks that offer nothing for some levels.

One addition...I would like if your race and/or dropsuit operation perks worked in conjunction with the proposed weapon tree redux. Example - Caldari get 5% decrease in SP costs to levels in Caldari primary tech such as rail weapon, suits, and nano circuitry (hives / needles).

First, pass that joint over here, let me catch up...
Then I will be in a better place as you are
in regards to this wonderful diabolical thought
that you are now pondering.
:)

If it boils down to confusion of weapons class, etc.
Maybe a information hub is in order that is of more detailed orientated than what is currently offered,
then go from there?
hard to go step one to step 5 on a ladder at any incline.

complete support. Leave the weapon-specific trees for T2, if they every come out with a true T2.

EVE has the idea that you train Sharpshooting, Surgical Strike, and Rapid Reloading to affect your Laser Weapons, Projectiles, or Hybrid Weaponry. I could see that working overall.

I don't know how to feel about the idea of training Hybrid Weaponry and getting access to shotguns, pistols, sniper rifles, and assault rifles. It does remove a whole heck of a lot of sinks to be able to use all those weapons of that type (Rail, Projectile, Blaster/Plasma, Energy) rather than go Rail Rifle, Caldari Shotgun, Bolt Pistol, and Sniper Rifle. However, making each racial variant be able to do close, medium, side arm, and far range with a single skill sort of removes the point of going into different race's dropsuits.

If all the racial types of weapons were put under a single roof (Rail Tech Weaponry gives access to every Caldari Weapon), what do I put my points into after I 'cap' out that role? With needing only Rail Tech Weaponry, Rail Tech Reloading, Rail Tech Proficiency, and Rail Tech Ammunition rather than quadruple that to master a Rail Rifle, Bolt Pistol, Magsec SMG, and Sniper Rifle, people are going to cap very quickly to where extra SP doesn't do much.

3 million for a Suit, 4 million for the maxed weaponry, and then 2 million for the side skills. What does the Infantryman go for then? Going Minmatar doesn't matter too much as Caldari can do everything they can do anyway. If that is to be done, there would need to be a far greater emphasis of being a certain race; everyone needs to have a niche that is about on par with everyone else but that niche is powerful and important. That way, you actually give people reason to train into a new dropsuit rather than "I want to be an Armor Tanker now."

It is definitely a cleaner SP tree.