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[soulmata]

Goal: I am looking for suggestions on how to craft multiple entrances for a fortress, most likely 12 (3 per side of the map), near the map edges.

Reasoning: I'm currently embarking on in a Terrifying location, where the local fauna is all variety of undead nasties and the local weather is enthralling clouds. The clouds roll in frequently, at least a few per week. In this same map, I've lost more than a handful of migrants to the clouds, and pretty much every caravan that's tried to approach my fort was dead before they even made it to my fort entrance. I want to put around 9-12 additional entrances to my fort at the far edges of the map, to allow caravans and my migrants to have at least a chance of making it to the front door.

Ideas on ways to do this safely? Even with an entrance 2 tiles from them, migrants still beeline for the 'main' center entrance.

I tried digging highways at Z -1 and tunneling upward. That works for the first highway, but after that the dwarves *insist* on going back to where I embarked and first struck the earth and then frolicking on the topside to dig the downward staircases. I tried setting the underground highways to high traffic, and that didn't work. A friend suggested I do that, then additionally set the surface to restricted, which I'll try. What I also will try to do is build the highways out 1 by 1, and as I finish each one, stick a door near the end and make it impassible to give the dwarves no other foot traffic option.

It is pretty hilarious to see the elven caravan show up and walk right into the middle of a cloud, then watch them tear each other apart.

[vjek]

You can prevent the "pathing badly" on the surface problem by using burrows to restrict the surface, that way, they only dig from beneath and never go up.

Ensure the wagon is deconstructed, and then designate a meeting area underground.  That will ensure they have a place to go when they're done their current task, rather than heading back to the wagon.  Also, construct floors over all the rest of the ingress paths, to ensure they only use the ones on the edges.

In the past, I've dug four 3x3 downward staircases, one per corner (NW, NE, SW, SE) and this provides very quick pathing underground.  Although there is no reason you couldn't put 3x3 downward staircases along the entire length of each side, leading down to Z-1.
EDIT:typos, typos everywhere

[ZzarkLinux]

Ideas on ways to do this safely? Even with an entrance 2 tiles from them, migrants still beeline for the 'main' center entrance.

You've got 3 options:
1) Airlock system, close everything, when migrant arrives it will squat-in-place until you order it inside (Squads)
2) Airlock system, close everything, when migrants arrive designate an above-ground meeting area near the entrance of your choice
3) Airlock system, dig tunnels underground that are outside of your airlock but still underground

They all have advantages and disadvantages.

I'm currently embarking on in a Terrifying location
...
The clouds roll in frequently, at least a few per week
...
pretty much every caravan that's tried to approach my fort was dead before they even made it to my fort entrance

You are on the right track.

[WealthyRadish]

It is possible to use raising bridges on the map edge to restrict where everything enters from, but I get the feeling that you're not going to be able to risk that much construction on the surface. Migrants will path to a meeting hall, so it's possible that the center is the shorter route... keep that in mind. I'm not sure if migrants will path to a meeting hall made from an activity zone after they've arrived, but that could be another option.

[Sutremaine]

I did a quick test with a site with rolling clouds. The clouds will pass into a ramped tunnel 1 layer below the surface, but they won't go down another level even if the ramp is clear. That was with the clouds passing over the tunnel entrance sideways instead of rolling straight into it, and while I don't think directionality makes a difference it's something to consider.

Even with an entrance 2 tiles from them, migrants still beeline for the 'main' center entrance.

Close it off and make the tunnels the only way of accessing the fortress. Why are you leaving it open, anyway?