Good call on the crows - in v0.34 they circle near their tree once you have the lantern, so they're not fighting it for the middle anymore. My crow employees finally got their own territory :D
The lantern feeling weak at the start is fair. The new cemetery lanterns should help a bit with the souls far to the sides, but I'll keep an eye on the starting radius and when it unlocks.
An apprentice that tosses bodies is a fun idea, especially now that the carts bring so much. I've added it to my list, let's see how the pile feels with the new update first.