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Android Q is indeed another huge shift regarding Android's direction. One example here is scoped storage. What we Android users always enjoys: direct file management, is no longer taken for granted. All apps will be restricted like iOS apps with their own isolated storage space.
The platform does include Storage Access Framework to act as a "proxy" for apps manage files outside of the sandbox. But basically apps are no longer allowed to directly control the files: all operations are delegated to the service the system provides.
All of the discussion above are regarding normal users though. For us hardcore Android modding community, the future is much more concerning than you would've thought.
I'm not sure how many OEMs will use logical partitions like Q on Pixel 3, but I think eventually Google will force it down everyone's throat by enforcing it in CTS/VTS certifications.
Once a devices chooses to use logical partitions like Pixel 3, it will basically kill 99% of "traditional" modding. The partition is no longer allowed to be modified (rw), so ALL mods will have to be using either Magisk modules or overlayfs (same result, different approach)
So basically Android's modding will be very similar to what iOS jailbreaking is like. I see the future that the only mods we will be able to see are done via code injection frameworks like Riru and Edxposed, all backed by file injection frameworks like Magisk.
Regarding custom ROMs this could be pretty tricky. I think the only way to distribute it is by providing a full system image, which cannot be modified afterwards till the next full flash.
I'm currently not sure how the device mapper is setup for logical blocks (not an expert in that part), and whether it is theoretically possible to modify or configure the kernel to make the logical partitions writeable, but no matter what it will be extremely complicated.
