[vash]

i've boiled it down to this method.

i broke my flashlights into two categories:
the ones i keep for emergencies and i tend to forget about them, until needed. in my car, hanging on my headboard, etc.

and

the ones i use all the time. headlamps, toolbox, hunting packs.

the long term storage ones, i bit the bullets and all of those are high end torches that use the CR123 batteries. you can keep one in a flashlight, in a hot car..for years. the one hanging on my headboard has the same batteries for many years. they never leak..not yet.

the rest of them i just proactively change out. usually right before a trip, or a long session of night work..etc.