best engine to build!!!!!

That's for sure. I watch bitchin rides and iron resurrection,etc and those guys usually put a LS in the build as it's suppose to be the best bang for the buck. I don't follow the newer stuff, but does Ford have anything else besides the 5.0 for performance? Mopar has the hemi. GM has several different displacements of the LS, correct?
There's is a bunch but cheap and easy ones to get are 4.8 and 5.3 which is 292 and 325
Same bore head cam intake just different stroke, with the right cam can get you in the high 400 hp easily, it's basically if 273/318 came with ported eddy heads stock, ford is all over head cam engines.