No magic-bullet answers, but a couple things to keep in mind:
- Spend money on the GPU, not the CPU. Even at 1080p (and for $1k, you won't be getting a 4K laptop), the vast majority of games are GPU bound. You money does more for you buying more GPU with more VRAM than buying more CPU. That said, you may not need a super-top-end graphics chip. My personal desktop is running an overclocked Radeon 290X from however many years ago those cards came out. It STILL manages 60fps@1080p in just about every game that isn't Far Cry. Laptop GPU's tend to be a bit more wimpy than their desktop brothers with the same names, but you probably don't more than a 1060-class GPU top handle 1080p without problems.
- If you can swing it, get an SSD. Aside from the GPU, getting pretty much ANY SSD is going to be your next best bang-for-the-buck place to spend money. Even if it is small and you have to swap games on and off of it from your steam library, the performance difference between SSD and non-SSD is huge.
- Gaming laptops are generally heavy, hot, and inconvenient. They may be able to play games acceptably, but they tend to suck as laptops in most other ways. Even without big batteries, they tend to weigh a lot thanks to the extra cooling hardware, and they shed TONS of heat when playing. Plus, they often have larger-than-normal power adapters to feed all that video hardware, so carrying it with you in a bag gets even more cumbersome. I own a 15" Alienware with a 980GTX and I can't set it on my lap in bed while playing a game. I have to use a laptop tray to keep from melting the skin off my thighs! Also, it's like carrying a sack of bricks. My Wife has a top-end Asus ROG STRIX, and it is lighter, but still hot as coal-fire and not exactly fun to carry.
I will say that I've had zero problems with either the Alienware I've got or the Asus my wife has in terms of technical issues. The Sager (basically a Clevo) she had before was...troublesome. I would have no problems recommending either Alienware or Asus' ROG line of laptops. However, neither are cheap for the hardware you get. I was willing to spend extra money for good support and a generally high standard of parts QA. If you want to save money, those may not matter as much to you.
Finally, I want to say that, while my wife likes her gaming laptops, I don't think I will get another one. I dislike mine too much as a laptop, and over time I've basically gone back to playing on my desktop most of the time. When it comes time to replace my current laptop I will more than likely get a thin, light, 14" or 15" 2-in-1 with no add-on GPU. I have found that, even with competent hardware, it's still a tiny little 15" screen with a cramped keyboard, and for everything other than gaming, I wish I had something less bulky. That's just me though.
