shom, I use a split mechanical keyboard and miss the conveniences of layers and homerow mods on my laptop. Kanata has been an excellent option for me.
I wrote an article on using Kanata to remap any keyboard¹, with a focus on not just how but why we're running each command and what the pieces of configuration mean/do. My hope is to simplify the first steps for someone without a programming/IT background to get started. Feedback welcome!