alternatehistory.com

One of the more infamous mistakes the Roman government ever made was at the hands of the governors in charge of overseeing the Gothic settlement into Roman territory that lead to the Gothic War and the battle of Adrianople. The Romans so brutally treated the starving desperate Goths that historians report the well-known story that the Goths were able to buy dogs for food, at the price of one child sold into slavery per dog.

Now, I've always had some doubts about this story, but I've never heard any conflicting versions, so it would seem that we have to go with it. Whatever the case, the fact remains that the Goths were considered to be so desperate for food that they would sell their own children into slavery for dog meat. Its almost comical.

However, there is one key detail that is left out of most tellings of this tale: It was Roman practice to disarm tribes that wanted to settle in the Empire. That only made sense. However, in this case, due to logistical problems, the Goths were not disarmed, and were one giant encamped conglomeration, just waiting for a spark to ignite.

What if the Romans on the scene were more intelligent and less cartoonishly greedy, or replaced by some that fit that criteria? Rather than angering a bunch of barbarians by extorting them for slaves, what if the Romans didn't say 'one dog to eat for your kid?' What if they said 'one dog to eat, for your weapons?' Or whatever conversion rate makes the most sense on the ground. The important part is that these people who were desperate enough to sell their kids surely would have been desperate enough to sell their weapons, instead, correct?

So, the Romans are able to gradually disarm the camp, the Goths are fed, and less unhappy. The Romans are also likely able to manage the remaining Goths still across the border, rather than being totally impotent to stop them from crossing at will. And, there is less likely to be such high tension that the Romans kill some Gothic notables during negotiations.

TLDR: What if the Romans don't do literally everything wrong regarding the settlement of the Goths?
Top