Civilization 6 February Update Adds New Barbarian Game Mode And More

Civilization 6 will be getting its next free community update on February 25 at 11 AM PT/ 2 PM ET/ 7 PM GMT.

Each of these community updates brings a new feature along with it. For February, we're getting the Barbarian Clans game mode. Playing this way will completely change how you're used to interacting with the Barbarians in Civ 6. Instead of the standard kill-or-be-killed setup, this mode introduces six Barbarian clans that can be found living on or near different map conditions, with each specializing in a different unit type. Each turn, the Barbarians will accumulate progress towards becoming a city-state; it's your call if you want to help or hinder them in that endeavor.

Destroying a clan will wipe it off the map completely, while choosing to raid one will allow you to earn gold and decrease some of that clan's progress. To stop clans from attacking your cities, you can bribe them or hire them to add their strongest unit to your army. Barbarian clans can also abduct your units, and you'll need to pay a ransom to get them back. To really get your Machiavelli on, you can Incite different clans by paying them to attack other enemy cities for you. Exchanging gold in this way will also allow a barbarian clan to gain progress towards becoming a city-state.

Another change coming with the February update is the addition of the Leader Selection Pool. This will allow players to customize which leaders can be used in a game. With this feature, you have complete control over which leaders you'll be faced with, in case you dislike certain ones or want to practice against them.

Like past updates, the February one is also bringing balance changes and tweaks to the game's AI. Certain governments have had their policy slots shifted to reflect how those governments would actually run more accurately. Additionally, some Natural Wonders have been rebalanced and both air units and combat have had their AIs adjusted.

If you have the game's Frontier Pass, you can enjoy both the monthly free updates and DLCs as they come out.