Nik, PM me if you want some help. If you let me know ahead of time, I could prolly even help you in person on brew day if you like. It's only a 10 minute drive.
Seriously, don't add straight up sugar unless it's appropriate for the style, e.g. Belgian Trippel with Candi sugar. Honey, however, is completely acceptable, just remember it ferments dry.
Other options are Molasses, which I have to say is GREAT in a porter or brown ale, or also brown sugar (not THAT much, just a half lb or so) into the boil to add some caramelization character.... Or if you buy kits from Austin Homebrew, they have a little dropdown menu that lets you add a flavorless 1% alc boost to your brew for about a dollar. That's a much safer option if you gotta cram more octane in there.
If you haven't yet, you should investigate the Lincoln Lagers, you can check out the site at
http://www.lincolnlagers.com/ for the next meeting time date and place. Great group of guys with lots of varying expertise!
Best of luck with those dark brews, dude, I'm a similar fan! Porters, stouts, brown ales, wheat beers, it's all good in tha neighborhood.