12 with a madness for captains (7)
I believe the answer is:
leaders
'captains' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both people as well as being plural nouns.
Maybe there's a link between them I don't understand?
I don't understand the rest of the clue.
(Other definitions for leaders that I've seen before include "newspaper articles" , "People to follow" , "Bosses" , "They take the initiative and direct others" , "Guides" .)