All along the Watchtower.

[FantasticFox]

So here is my idea, watchtowers!

They would not only be aesthetically pleasing, but they could also serve decent purpose, whilst looking brilliant whilst they do so.
For example, a watchtower could be built freestanding, or on a cornerpost. They would have Pallisade and Brick variants, costing roughly as much as a cornerstone of each respective wall. When your hearthling right clicks the watchtower, they enter it - zooming out their view by a minimap or so. Showing the surroundings of their village or camp.
Being in this vantage point of a watchtower is beneficial that it multiplies your marskman skill and range by a fraction of the watchtower's quality, allowing long-distance animal kills, or getting the upper hand on those raiders that have started building their Ram.

Another purpose, which sprang to mind after the implementation of the bonfire, was a 'signal fire'. Buildable onto the top of the Watchtower, still allowing the hearthlings their vantage point - it would serve as a light source which was twice the amount of a regular bonfire. But that's not all, if an enclosed wall has four cornerposts, each with a watchtower + Signal fire on, when they are all lit. The inside of this enclosure is entirely illuminated, providing a bonus to happiness and decreasing the amount of stamina used whilst inside the settlement. Unfortunately, free-standing watchtowers cannot provide this effect.

- Fox.

[Thijssnl]

This is actually a great idea worked out nicely and broad.
Give it even more work and get some people to support this and we might have watchtowers (Idea's come along many times on the forum, but imo this is the first good workout of it)

[Granger]

Nice, but some problems with that (like when is a wall closed etc.).

I'm with you though that better defense is needed, at least for the feeling of having it (won't help though in case your villagers are offline while evildoers come to your place).

Please dig through [X] this search to find out what others thought about it.

[vikingdragons]

damn noobs trying to pass off ideas as their own...j/k
has been suggested before, i like it, i have suggested it before, and I'm glad someone is bringing the subject up again.
next time though, use the search for any possible keywords on your idea, then include links (or at least thread names) and others ideas, whether they hurt or help or argument.