Hey Besty,  have you started doing martial arts?   YMAA is the best resource on these days.

I have been doing martial arts (kung fu, taiji, qigong) for about 4 years now in paralleled with consciousness explorations.  Here what I've learned so far.

Root chakra is seen has a doorway, an exchange port.  It's closely related to legs and sexual energy.  Someone who waste and have a poor sexuality will leak energy from there and his legs will weaken.  Has you said, it's linked to grounding, because earth and body energy are exchanged there. 

The energy is not stored there, but in the second chakra (lower dan tian, as they call it).  This is an energy tank, and a artist who has mastered his arts will build a HUGE amount of energy there.  It becames his center of gravity, and it roots his emotion response there instead of the solar plexus. The artist  must synchronize this center  with the upper dan tian  (center of the brain/third eye) to grow spiritually and to become a master, otherwise he'll become a killing machine.

For OBE (real time zone), from what I have experienced, the root chakra always activate.  E.i, a cool sexual sensation that often end with erection    I have have to let it be, and not pay attention, otherwise it will interfere the process.  So having a strong root chakra will not bring down OBE ability, it just bring energy to it.

For phasing and focused attention, I don't think it really matter as we don't separate our entire energy body. 

Quote PhantasyMan: "and it roots his emotion response there instead of the solar plexus."

interesting info for me. I have problems with emotions and the solarplexus area, and have noticed the pressure in that area can be dissipated in the down-direction, but not in the up-direction, the latter attempt seems to make things worse.

Spooky