Don’t give up on the 36er for xc muni. Put on a Coker Non-Skid tire (or whatever they call it now). Really good traction in all conditions, in my experience (gravel, rocks, mud, snow, ice, and also feels fine to me on the road) - more comments here. The limitation for me is in climbing. But for relatively flat trails, the 36 can be pretty darn maneuverable once you’re used to it, and you can just roll over things smaller unis need to negotiate. I find that keeping the cadence up is really the key.
That said, my Coker will probably be getting less trail use - I’m just starting on my 26 guni, and absolutely love it.