Even with the increased amount, you can still kite them/outrun them. Damage is also really low so you can get bitten once or twice without any real danger.
No idea if it'll be included in the next update but I think it will be. For the art stuff, I plan to post one or two close up screenshots of the CG that I'm working on. It's not much but it's something to show that things are moving along behind the scenes in the art department.
An interesting proposal, but I'll wait for the next update with the expedition gameplay fixed (it's playable, but it's a bit tedious to lose an hour on each expedition) and maybe more routes (we can always see more refugees or other soldiers).