Wave makers i think are necessary due to them making random flow, but then again you can do that by just pointing to powerheads at each other. The control i would say isn't as need, its more for extra security incase something goes wrong then it will let you know.
i would say Naso are my fav, the blond ones are sick! but Sohol get pretty mean, so mean that they may jump out of your tank while you are sleeping and steal your car lol jk but they do get big and mean.
never had an octopus skimmer but i would go with an in sump then hang on the back. In sump is just so much better the hang on the back plus you dont have to have some ugly pump sitting in your display tank.
Welcome!!
but with a qt thank you'll be able to get your fish feeding and checked for any diseases such as ich and be able to treat it easier.
also why go with a big lion? why not a dwarf they look the same and can live in a smaller tank.
the red sea reef foundation one has been pretty good for me, and it come with a Ca, alk and Mg test kits. As for everything else i use the simple API kits and they do their job nicely.