I agree with you Perfect-Organism that there doesn't need to be any conflict between AvP canons. I also like the idea of everything being in one continuity and like Predxeno, I try to put things together and for me, what doesn't make sense, I only slightly change it in my headcanon.
I treat some of these comics, novels and movies as "reports" of these incidents, and like with reports, there can be multiple reports and there can always be an error or two as nobody remembers events too perfectly.
Anyway, I see you aren't a Predator fan and that's absolutely fine. I am curious about what it is about them you don't find appealing anymore. You did mention that the thought of an entire race being obsessed in hunting was ridiculous, however, to me that is what makes them absolutely ruthless as a race.
To me, Predators are technological and sapient, but in no way would I class them as "civilized". I don't even see them as having Predator lawyers, accountants, bankers etc as funny as those examples you listed were to picture in my head.
But from the cities we saw in AvP-R and AVP2010 game (although that was more of an abandoned ruin) they seem to have a vastly different society to ours, one based more on rituals and strict clan rules. One fanfiction I read long ago mentioned how Predators prefer to build things by hand and to me, that would make them rather unique as opposed to us who are using more robots in factories. Obviously about their ships some things could be automated while the rest could be done by Predators. They are a very physically powerful race so building by hand does not seem out of the ordinary.
As for their currency, I like the idea of it being status based. I know some fans here are against "honour", but to me, Predator honour is based more on how "honourable" your clan deems your actions to be and not on what human opinions on honour are. For example, it's based more on being a badass and making something harder for yourself. You don't really have to disarm yourself to fight a Xenomorph Queen, nothing stops you from blasting her head apart with a charged plasma caster. Buuut... females smile upon the hunter who chucks his caster away and breaks that Queen's neck with his bare hands.
And such deeds bring respect which helps you rise among your clan and gives access to better living quarters and technology. Falling down the ranks means you lose such things just like you would in human society if you were to go bankrupt.
Since at the age of 100, it is implied that they are merely adolescents, then it is of no surprise that they may spend the earlier ages being taught by their parents or clan how to fight as well as about their technology. I think most Predators actually KNOW how to build their own masks and customize them. How many humans know how their smartphone works and would they be able to build it from scratch? Just a little hypothetical question. I would love to see this being explored about the Predators. They do seem very intelligent despite their savage brutality and strict ritualism but like I mentioned earlier, in no way are they by any means "civilized" in terms of behaviour.
And this is why I find them so appealing, there is something about a race that just doesn't give a damn and goes out there to hunt other sapients that is so appealing. I don't see Predators as allying with anything either, they seem way too isolationist for that.
The RTS game AvP Extinction gives some really good scraps on their society including their clan laws and their ruling council the "Council of Ancients" that are over 1,000 year old individuals who govern other clans which are in turn lead by Elders.
I am gonna leave you guys with this quote from a Predator in the AvP2010 game manual, what do you guys think of it and I hope Tim Lebbon explores this too:
"We are old, my brother. Our race is few and scattered. Our ancestry lost to myth. The humans are still children, creatures of desire and hubris, with no comprehension of the long hunt. Still, they make good sport. They have discovered a trophy long locked away. They must not be allowed to find the crucible that spawned our most respected prey. If they succeed, all life will succumb to the crawling dark...".
Speaking of AvP2010, I remember the Predator telling me to "breach their primitive security systems" while in the lab, I love how even the year 2209 human technology is "primitive" to these guys. Plus apparently they consider the marine war tactics to be "juvenile" according to Wikipedia but I couldn't find that during the game.
I wonder how they will compare technologically to 25th/26th century humanity. One thing I love doing so much in this franchise is comparing the two races tech wise. And now with the addition of more races, it's becoming even more fun to add in other contenders. To me, Predators are definitely "up there" in the list of advancements while humans could be mid-tier.
