How do you Wargame a Legend?

When you sit down to wargame a well-documented period like World War II or the Napoleonic Wars, you can lean on endless reference material. Uniforms, battlefield maps, after-action reports—they’re all out there, ready to be turned into tabletop scenarios. But when you step back further into history, into the shadowy world of the Late Bronze Age, the picture gets much hazier. And that haziness is exactly what makes the Trojan War such a fascinating challenge for miniature wargamers.

Our main source for the war is Homer’s Iliad, written centuries after the supposed events. It’s a masterpiece of storytelling, but it was never meant to be a reliable battlefield report. Gods appear on the field, warriors pause to deliver grand speeches mid-combat, and armour shines with almost supernatural brilliance. Wonderful for poetry, less helpful when you’re designing an army list.

Archaeology gives us another perspective. The site of Troy at Hisarlik shows layers of fortified cities, some destroyed violently. We find pottery, weapons, and walls that hint at real conflict. But the evidence is fragmented, and scholars still debate which, if any, corresponds to Homer’s Troy.

For wargamers, this leaves us in a fascinating position. Do we focus on the archaeological record and try to reconstruct a plausible Late Bronze Age battle? Do we embrace the mythic elements, letting gods, Amazons, and epic heroes onto the table? Or do we, as many do, find a balance—grounding our armies in archaeology but borrowing themes and atmosphere from Homer?

That’s the joy of tackling poorly documented periods. There’s no single right answer. Instead, there’s space for creativity, interpretation, and conversation within the hobby. One gamer’s Trojan War might be a siege campaign rooted in Hittite tactics. Another’s might be a skirmish of epic heroes shaped by the gods. Both are equally valid, and both keep the story alive.

In this video, I dig into these challenges and opportunities, asking what it means to wargame a story that might be more myth than fact. If you’re a historical wargamer, a miniature painter, or just someone who enjoys hobby discussions, I think you’ll find plenty to spark your imagination.