In Civilization 6, barbarians are a very simple obstacle to understand: kill or die.
In the next game update, the barbarians are getting a complete overhaul that makes them more than just gold pinatas with empty heads. In the video below, the developer Firaxis details how everything works.
The February update, scheduled for February 25 and free for all players, adds the new Barbarian Clans game mode. This completely changes the way barbarians work in the game, adding six barbaric clans that can be found living in or near map conditions, and each specializing in a different type of unit. You will find the camps of the Clan of the Hills near the hills, for example, and the Clan Rover near the horse resources.
Clans can claim and build exclusive units from great civilizations not present in that game. These clans accumulate progress each turn to become a city-state. You can hinder their progress or really help the barbarians by learning to live together and eventually becoming your Suzerain.
If you destroy a clan, you will delete it from the map, as usual. But if you invade a clan, you will earn some gold and take down some of their progress to become a city-state. You can prevent a clan from attacking your cities by paying a bribe and even hire a clan to add your strongest unit to your army.
If a clan hijacks one of your units, you can recover it by paying a ransom. You can also spend gold to incite a clan to attack another civilization. The exchange of gold increases the clan’s progress towards conversion into a city-state.
Meanwhile, the February update adds the leader selection pool, which allows you to customize the leader pool that can be used in the game. There are AI adjustments and balance changes as well (most AI adjustments focus on air units and air combat, where they deploy anti-aircraft defenses and engage in air strikes more often). Expect patch notes along with the update on February 25th.