Quite some time ago, I put up this thread;
http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=26743.0In it, I proposed that more animal behaviors be added to the game, to expand on ideas like beer-chugging bears and mischievous macaques. However, looking at some of the material from the new release - particularly concerning venom, syndromes, and milking - the idea struck me that it might be better to build a flexible template for these behaviors, so as to avoid having too many exclusive and/or conflicting behavior tags.
As an example;
[SEEKER:1]
[SEEK:ITEM:ALCOHOL:50:EAT]This SEEKER heading would fall into the paradigm of the CURIOUSBEAST tags as they exist now, locating objects on the map and causing the creature to go towards it. This is the set of behaviors responsible for the aforementioned macaque and bear antics. The values here represent intensity (similar to BUILDINGDESTROYER), the type and subtype of object sought, the range within which the behavior is triggered, and the action associated with it.
Now, with this theoretical framework, we expand it to new uses.
[SEEKER:2]
[SEEK:BLOOD_WATER:ON_ARRIVAL:KILL_EAT]This would reflect violent shark behavior - seeking out blood in the water and attacking any nearby creatures. This is currently not in the game, but is a good example of what could be done with a small amount of tweakability.
[SEEKER_PACK:1]
[SEEK:PREY_CLASS:SMALL:30:KILL_EAT]A more detailed replacement of LARGE_PREDATOR. The creature is alerted when viable prey enters range, and then commences hunting it. The SEEKER_PACK variant would alert other creatures of its kind in a local area to commence hunting.
By simply generalizing a common creature behavior - "goes after things" - and allowing the criteria to be changed while using the same code, the door can be opened for all kinds of behaviors; giant eagles collecting logs for nests, fell beasts raiding your graveyard, deer eating plants, rock monsters hungering for ore... the list goes on.
Let's reverse that behavior - a [FLEES] tag that causes a creature to run away from the listed object. Werewolves fearing silver, gnomes avoiding gnomeblight, or lesser evil creatures fleeing from powerful good ones.
Granted, this is somewhat complex and perhaps a bit daunting, but isn't that DF in a nutshell? The payoff here would be the ability to flesh out the animal (and monster) kingdoms in more detail without making weird new exceptions for every instance.
