The thought occurs to me that people aren't really that scared of vampires and werebeasts: they're just another fun thing added to the game.
I wonder when Toady is going to add Werepotashmakers to make them appropriately terrifying again?
Would that be when your elite smith turns into a potash maker once a month, and churns out shitty weapons?
I have to admit -- I've only played a TINY amount since the night-creature and necromancer release came out. Most of that has been in adventure mode, and the werecreatures and vampires do add some value there.
I used to be a much bigger fort mode player, and probably will get into it again next release. What little i've seen of this release though, I wouldn't say I was "scared" of night creatures. But only in as much as I wasnt "scared" of any particular dwarf dieing.
When I was more involved and played more, I would get much more invested in the individual characters. A favorite mayor that I groomed for the role by giving him lots of social opportunities and spending starting points on conversation skills. A legendary engraver who was the only one allowed to carve in the great hall. The captain of the guard, or the one animal trainer who tamed all the elephants (turned out to be a bad idea, that did)
Anyway, I can imagine if there were some mysterious deaths going on, I'd be in a right serious hurry to find the cause before one of my favorite dwarfs got murdered or turned.
But hey, This. Is. Dwarf. Fortress. after all, and any horrific event can be turned into a weaponizeable industrial process.