[Emp_Palpatine]

Avant de passer aux choses sérieuses, le briefing!
Tout y sera bien mieux expliqué...

Balkan League army of 139 units opposed to Ottoman army of 106 units
for a battle of complexity 0.75 at Brigade(X) level
on a 15 Km/Hex map
for 14 turns of Half Week each.

by Todd Klemme


THE FIRST BALKAN WAR
Version 3.01.

UNIT COLORS

1.1. BULGARIAN LEAGUE
Bulgaria - Black on Red
Greece - Blue on White
Serbia - White on Blue
Montenegro - Red on Black1.2.

OTTOMAN EMPIRE
Ottomans (Turks) - Various on Green
Austria-Hungary - Black on Grey
Rumania - Black on Olive
Britain - White on Tan2.

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS

Undisclosed chance that the Ottoman 7th and/or 8th Corps will be withdrawn to put down Turkish Rebels in Anatolia.
Undisclosed chance that Greece will sign a seperate peace treaty with the Ottomans, quit the Balkan League, and withdraw its armies.
50% chance that Austria-Hungary will join the war on the Ottoman side if Scutari (hex 9,15) is taken. It may be several turns before they do so.
50% chance that Rumania will join the war on the Ottoman side if Constantinople is taken. It may be several turns before they do so.
75% chance that Britain will send a fleet to aid the Ottoman Empire if Constantinople falls. It may be several turns before the Fleet arrives. If this occurs, the Balkan League's sea transport drops to zero.
Undisclosed chance that either or both side(s) will receive secret arms shipments from a foreign power.
25% chance that Turkish guerrillas will be active behind Balkan League lines.
100% chance that Turkish Rebels and local Slav and Christian guerrillas will be active behind Ottoman lines.

3. HISTORY

By 1912, the Ottoman Empire (the Turks) was widely known as "the sick man of Europe." The Ottomans had controlled most of the Balkans for over 500 years, but control had been slipping away little by little since the early 19th Century. Greece won her independence in 1828. Serbia, Bulgaria, and Montenegro arose as independent states after the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-78. Fierce nationalism drove these countries to seek ways to reclaim the Ottoman territories they believed were their ancestral homelands.The Russians were involved as well, pushing Bulgaria, Montenegro and Serbia to expand their borders in the interest of "pan-Slavism." Of course, this expansion could only come at the expense of both the Ottomans and Austria-Hungary.Austria-Hungary controlled a large multi-ethnic empire which included many Slavs and did not want Russia stirring up trouble.The British also had interests in the region, primarily in regards to the control of the Dardanelles, which England saw as vital to her naval supremacy.Let's also not forget the Germans, the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, and Albanian independence movements, all of whom insisted on stirring the pot. Clearly, the situation was far more complicated than can be discussed here. Suffice it to say that Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece and little Montenegro banded together to form the Balkan League, a loose affiliation whose primary goal was to expand League members' borders by taking away Ottoman territory.Montenegro jumped the gun and started the war on October 9, 1912 by attacking Turkish forces in Albania. Serbia, Bulgaria, and Greece joined in 9 days later. The Bulgarians made strong gains towards Constantinople while the Greeks headed for Salonika and the Serbs struck out for Monastir and Scutari. The Turks sought to attack the enemy before the League forces were fully mobilized. Those attacks were ill-timed and met with disaster.The Ottomans were soon fighting a purely defensive war on too many fronts and, fearing the loss of Constantinople, sought an armistice. The League accepted. Except for a small patch of land around Constantinople, the Ottoman Empire had been driven from the continent of Europe.Unfortunately, the Balkan League did not fair as well in peace as it had in war. All the League members began to argue over the spoils. Bulgaria, the country whose army had arguably performed the best, was particularly upset and in 1913 launched an ill-conceived attack against the other League members, starting the Second Balkan War. But that's another scenario...

4. DESIGNER'S NOTES

FOR BOTH PLAYERS: This is 1912, not 1944. Armies move slowly and supplies even more slowly. Use road and rail movement whenever possible and avoid trying to mount offensives through mountain ranges.For optimum game play, players should refrain from interfering with units crossing the Bosporus (hex 42,19). This includes leaving naval transport units in the crossing hex.

BALKAN LEAGUE PLAYER: Yes, you can probably win an easier victory by using all of your units against the Ottomans. However, keep in mind that you will almost certainly need to capture Scutari or Constantinople to win and taking those cities entails considerable risk of foreign intervention. If Austria-Hungary or Rumania enters the war, things could get rough. Before taking either Scutari or Constantinople, be sure you can defend your capitols!

OTTOMAN PLAYER: The situation is grim, but not impossible. You're fighting a war against multiple forces on multiple fronts. You cannot defend everything so pick the locations you think are both valuable and possible to hold. You will be receiving a large number of reinforcements, so don't give up hope. Most importantly, don't put up a static defense. There will be opportunities, particularly if the League forces overextend themselves, for some local counterattacks that can slow down or even drive back the enemy. Also, watch for any opportunity to trap League forces against the coast and deprive them of supply (divide your units to surround them if you have to).

5. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Special thanks to Oleg Mastruko for his excellent map work.Special thanks to Dragan Antulov for his help with the Balkan League forces and his excellent ideas for Austro-Hungarian and Rumanian events.
Todd Klemme