Firaxis decided to release a free update to Civilization 6 recently, the Barbarian Clans update. I’m glad that the developers of the game are choosing to make paid packs, but also sprinkling in some free updates here and there too. This pack includes updates for both people with and without DLC including the Barbarian Clans game mode, a leader selection pool, balances and fixes, as well as AI tweaks.
First on the list, the Barbarian Clan optional game mode. Barbarian camps are now replaced with “clans” that you can diplomatically interact with. They will still attack you and pillage your farms all the time, but you can now bribe them. Clicking on a clan will bring up a bribe selection screen where you choose what you would like to spend your gold on. Your options are buying units from them, bribing them to stop attacking you, or bribing them to attack somebody else.
You can still clear camps for XP, or pillage them for gold. After a certain amount of time, clans can turn into city states if you treat them well. They gain “influence” overtime making them get closer to turning into city states. Your choices on what you want to bribe the barbarian clans for, their influence points will change by a certain ammount. So you can change how Barbarians interact in the game.
Different clans spawn different units, such as cavalry clans who spawn by horses will produce cavalry, and seafaring clans who spawn by the coast will produce boats. This changes what units you can purchase from the clans. It’s such an immersive mode that really makes the Barbarians more immersive and slightly less of a pain in the ass.
Second on the list, there is now a leader selection pool. If you are tired of Gandhi sending nuclear bombs to your cities every game, you can take him out of the possible random leader selection pool. Or if you are sick of England’s trade agreements, you can remove her from the game too. This makes you able to make your games harder or easier depending on who you add to the list.
Lastly, there are a ton of bug fixes and balance changes. Such as some policy government cards getting a rework, or the AI becoming a bit smarter. I personally like most of the changes, as they made all of the bad wonders (the Cliffs of Dover) actually good, and they made some of the leader’s broken abilities get fixed.
Honestly, this update is really good. Once again, I am glad to see Firaxis making free updates for everybody to enjoy. This was a great idea, and I hope they come up with more cool things to add to the game. Now, let’s get back to having one more turn.
