for some reason i am weary about having to use other apps or programs in the process. that is either due to a lack of understanding or paranoia.
But if that is the reason, why aren't you worried about using Bitcoin Core? It's open-source, like many other software, but it means very little to you personally if you have no understanding of how it works under the hood. I don't see why you would be paranoid about Electrum and at the same time not be paranoid about Bitcoin Core.
also, isn't electrum quite difficult/not newb friendly?
It's more user-friendly than Bitcoin Core. It's a light client with a native seed format, but also supports BIP39 seeds. It's not hard to learn the basics.
and getting a paper back up of a btc core HD wallet is difficult/cumbersome?
You would be backing up a long string of letters and numbers that make no sense to the human brain. It's not user-friendly, and it's easier to make a mistake with a random character than it is when backing up a set of 12 or 24 English words. Don't forget, there are no seeds in Bitcoin Core.