I do recommend the period. As it is proto-WWI I was worried it might be too much of a grim grind to play. However, partly I think because of the low troop density, the Balkan Wars games I have played have certainly been bloody but have still generated plenty of maneuver and been interesting to fight. You will need a lot of terrain though. Very lumpy, those Balkans.
I asked Konstantinos about the Turkish wargaming scene and he said this:
"Let me talk about both Turkey and Greece( since BBBB also notes to Greece), and also a bit to Balkans
Turkey
Istanbul and Izmir have wargaming clubs. Wargaming is dominated by the following games tied to ECTs wargaming- 9th Age (unofficial Warhammer clone), Flames of War. Recently there is a spike in interest in Bolt Action,and Black Powder, Tercios, Saga historical. There is another name a space for historical gaming, though the tournament mentality is strong. I know BBB will be bought in Turkey by the hard core historical wargaming groups. Size wise I would say the community of wargamers ranges about 1000 in all of Turkey (based on Kararagh Club membership) plus a number of board-wargamers who would be interested in the war for historical reason. I know of 15-30 people who were directly interested in BBBB.
Greece
Very strong and active historicla wargaming community, with strong diversity compared to tournament obsessed Turkey. The Strategikon Clubi is the hub of historical wargamers. There is a massive 40k community some of which might be interested in historical wargaming relevant to the area. Member wise we can talk of about 2000-3000 interested.
Rest of Balkans. By Fire and Sword had made inroads thanks to the smart marketing by the Poles. They stress the historical relevance and do a great media campaign with nice graphics, videos etc. There is thus a growing interest in historical wargaming ,but of course nowhere near to Greece and Turkey.
I believe the Balkan's are ripe for a turn from 40k and tournament gaming to historical war-gaming as the generations that built the war-gaming communities are getting older and more tired of tournament gaming. There are key ways to tap into it. Good marketing stressing the historical relevance to the areas. Using social media to advertise and make linked content (history, hobby etc). Marketing in e-copies so us to evade the issue with expensive post costs. Translating games. For younger generations a By the Fire and Sword attitude could do wonders. BBB is not an expensive game. We need to point that out.
Konstantinos"
rebases some old soldiers.
