Is there a YVR-ORD on AA or AS that doesn’t include a connection somewhere else?
Edited to add: AA1717 is back on the schedule for the summer cruise season, so that would work for the OP (it appears to start up in early June).

If PDX is OP’s home base, Gardyloo’s suggestion would allow the OP to travel lightly on the trip up to YVR and then regroup and reequip with the rest of the luggage for the rest of their trip.

AA's YVR-ORD nonstop is seasonal; it wasn't clear when the trip would start.

Starting with BA YVR-LHR would expose the traveler to big BA YQ fees and ​would probably kibosh AA booking the ticket.

Starting in YVR is a great idea. My home base is PDX but I worked out the savings to be 2500USD, which makes a one way ticket up to YVR and an extra half day of travel well worth it. The booking tool doesn't complain that my last flight ends in PDX and assumes that the last segment is PDX-YVR via ground, which I won't do obviously.

This trip is tentatively 9/1/2024 and I see the BA flight as an AA codeshare. AA might be willing to ticket because the first segment is an AA codeshare. If not, I'll make it work as an AA metal connection through ORD or DFW. I could also make the last segment from HNL on AA metal to make them happier. I'm willing to add an extra day and a flight or two just to avoid having QF do the booking. Besides, each extra flight gives me more TPs towards the gold level on BA.

The ORD was only in there to force the tool to let me book a longer connection time on AA. It was giving me a limited number of AA PDX-LHR flights with absurdly short international connection times in ORD and DFW. If I'm headed home, I'll take the risk of a missed connection but on these itineraries, a missed connection can make a big mess with future flights.

Download the rules from oneworld.com RTW FAQ

So YVR start and PDX end is within the rules.

So is any other US/Canada destination, so if OP has an extra leg, they could build in a PDX-XXX flight as their final leg and have that be the first half of a future trip!

That's what I did years ago with an ex AU *ONE*. 8 month stopover in my home city MEL (not the departure city SYD) and them flights to an expensive to buy destination in AU. Basically a free trip. Finished 1 day before the 1 year time limit.

Great ideas about YVR and adding the last segment as long as it's not another transcon. The booking tool is letting me do YVR-LHR-NBO-LHR-BKK(via DOH)-HND-JFK-PDX for $2500 less than originating in PDX. The ticket to YVR is cheap The JFK-PDX segment is highly inefficient but I need that last 140 TPs to get BA gold.
The LHR-NBO-LHR segments are now working, possibly because I refrained from putting down DOH as a stopover. It might seem like an odd routing but I want to have a break in LHR in the middle of my trip. The booking tool complains the instant I try to connect through DOH instead of doing NBO-LHR direct.

The AA rtw desk should be happy with HND-JFK on AA metal and they can also have the BA segments as code shares since I get credit for the "operated by BA" flights.

I learned to be careful with putting destinations down as stopovers when all I wanted was a better connecting point. The online tool is also mysterious in the limited connections it offers when I know through expertflyer there are considerably more. I still think there's a bug in the tool complaining valid transfer connections between Europe and Africa.

For HND-JFK, it's about 8,000 fewer Avios earned but you might consider JL. JL 6 is already the A350-1000 daily with the new cabin and the second JFK flight (JL 4) should be A351 daily soon-ish. I certainly don't mind AA and think the seats are pretty decent, but.... :D Since you're able to do YVR-LHR as an AA codeshare that 'should' satisfy the RTW desk.

It also appears you have plenty of remaining segments, so you might consider AA JFK to LAX or SFO and AS from there to PDX on the end. The A321 with Flagship business is a lot nicer than anything AS has.

As it stands, you have only one North America segment out of six permitted (one transcon) so if you wanted to pad the TP and redeemable balance a little, you could treat your PDX stop (after JFK) as the first of two allowed stopovers in the continent of origin, then sometime before the end of the RTW validity, do a weekend something like (...JFK-) PDX-xLAX-ANC-PDX for another 220 TP or so.

How does OW handle for example flight QF4, JFK-SYD with a stop in AKL. Does this count as 1 or 2 segments? EF gives it aas a 0 connection flight.

As a single flight number, without 24hr stop over, is treated as 1 segment. AKL is just an airside transit (not a stop)
Just as BA LHR-(SIN)-SYD is 1 segment. Are others. Based on flight number.

Any recent experiences booking through AA RTW desk with AA-coded but not operated TATL flight? (Also have a few AA metal within NA).

No status on AA (soon will be OWE through BA status match).

No issues.. why?

The only time I've seen anything reported was ex-CAI when someone said an agent told them they were only issuing ex-CAI for EXPs and CKs. Any other point of origin should be fine, and even ex-CAI, there were many non-status members ticketing with AA before the price increase.

where to credit
 

I booked my first RWT so I am seeking some advice as a newbie. I booked a ticket with QF all in D class with IB, BA (mostly short hauls), AA (between South America to US only), JL, CX. I am not sure where to deposit the miles. I would like to earn as many miles as possible and hopefully oneworld sapphire status. Currently I have AA gold (which should give me 40% bonus) but I can try to get the status trial (do they allow for exp trials for current gold members? I used to be plat every year before covid, then just moved out of the whole status thing since then). If I understand the new rule correctly, all of my IB, BA, and AA miles will be earned by revenue, not distance, is that correct?

Alternative seems AS because it has massive bonus for D classes, almost as good as AA Gold 40% but I haven't utilized my AS miles for years now, so not sure if I should bank my miles on AS. 0BA and QR seem to be good to get a status but I can easily get those miles via bank transfer so not very thrilled about them. Any advice?