Machaka: one request and one question

[tinkthank]

I have always pictured the witch doctor as a guy hunched over his bubbling cauldron, a string of shrunken heads nearby, puzzling over new ingredients, experimenting, and had considered this to be a vital part of "research", so I had never seen the conflict in his high research costs. Be that as it may, I am slowly getting used to the "new" Machaka, although not entirely pleased; but one thing I have noticed:
- The new research value of 3 seems to be "stuck" in certain situations, that is even a magic level of 3 will not boost it up appropriately *until 1 full turn has passed*. Is this a bug?

That was my question.
Here is my request:

Now that the witchdoctor is weaker and less expensive, what do you people think of the idea of having either
- the bane spiders and their spiderlings OR
- the hunter lords and black hunters OR
- Black sorcerors and Sorceresses

be no longer capital-dependent? I tend to feel that bane spiders and their spider brethren should be available in all fortresses. I would like to know how you feel. And I would like to know if this is moddable (because my guess is that my request will not be met with enough gleeful support to make any official changes). If it is, could anybody make that mod if it is not too difficult? (I realize this is a lot to ask, but I am afraid I am a computer idiot.)