Lots of good insight here; thanks everyone for your time. I have to stick to my budget so the swaro and noctvids and all that alpha glass are out for now, unless I hold off and hunt for a second hand deal–which might be worth considering.
I looked through the monarch 7’s and Zeiss terra ed’s today and both were bright and crisp enough (as much as you can tell in a brightly lit store...) but the focus knob on the zeiss was a weak point, rough and clunky, not smooth and silky like the Nikon. The monarchs stood out for sure, but I’ll hold off until I can try the vipers though.