Backgammon: How to Play

Object of the Game
Simply put, the object of backgammon is to migrate your 15 checkers around and off the board with a series of dice rolls. The first player to do so wins the match. Although the object of the game is quite simple, the game has extremely deep strategic elements. The more one plays, the more one realizes that backgammon has many layers, each more complex than the previous one. The deeper you develop your understanding of the game, the better your results will be.

Rules
Here are the basic rules of backgammon: Each player begins with 15 pieces of a different color (also referred to as men or checkers). The men are placed on designated spaces of a 24-position backgammon board. These positions are triangular and called points. For clarification sake, we can number the points from 1 to 24. We'll designate positions 1 through 6 to be your opponent's 6-point home board. You start with two men on his 1-point, and they must travel 24 points to bear off (the process of removing one's checkers from the board after all of a player's checkers are in his own 6-point home board). In addition, using the designated numbering arrangement, you would start with five checkers on your 12-point, three checkers on your 17-point, and five checkers on your 19-point. The pieces are borne off in accordance with the numbers rolled on the dice. Once a checker is taken off, it does not re-enter the same game. Players compete to bear off all their checkers before their opponent can do so.

Start of the Game
At the start of a game, each player rolls one die onto his right side of the board. (The playing surface is divided into two sides and four quadrants.) The player who rolls the higher number (ties are rerolls) makes the first move, using both numbers on the dice as the opening roll. Subsequently, players alternate turns and roll two dice from a dice cup to determine their move. Both dice always must come to a stop flat on the board (not cocked or resting on top of a checker). A reroll of the dice is required if either or both are cocked or go off the board. A legal move must be made in accordance with the dice. Rolling doubles (6-6 and so on) lets the player move twice the number rolled (in our 6-6 example, a player would move 24 spaces).

For example, if I roll a 5 and a 3 (5-3), I must move one piece three positions (or pips), then the same piece (or another piece) five positions. I also can move one piece five positions, then the same piece (or another piece) three positions. While moving the same checker five then three versus three then five may seem like the same movement of eight positions, there may be an important difference. Since a player cannot land a piece on a point occupied by two or more of his opponent's men, it is often necessary to move the eight positions in a specific order. This is where strategy comes into the equation.

Which checker or checkers should a player use to complete his 5-3 move? That decision is typically based upon the shooter's relative checker position in that specific game, the future well-being for his pieces, which points (if any) contain an opponent's blot (a piece resting alone on a point, thus vulnerable to be hit), and which points cannot be landed upon due to an opponent having more than one piece on those points.

The Bar
I mentioned hitting a blot, but didn't elaborate. What happens in that case? The lone piece (the blot) is picked up and removed from the board. The checker is placed on the middle ridge that separates the two sides of the playing board. This ridge is known as the bar, and is a holding area. A player whose blot is hit must re-enter from the bar onto an available space (a point containing no more than one opponent piece) within his opponent's home board. Upon being hit, the player must re-enter prior to making any other move. For example, if my opponent has made the 6-point, the 3-point, and the 1-point in his home board, I can enter with a roll of 2, 4, or 5 on either of my dice. I use the other number on the dice to complete my move with the same checker or a different one.

If a player cannot make a legal move with one or both of his dice (all points to which he might otherwise move are occupied by two or more opponent checkers), he forfeits that portion of his turn. For example, let's say that I have borne off 13 men, and I now occupy my opponent's 5-point with both remaining checkers. If I roll 6-4, I can bear off only one man (using the 6 on one die), assuming my opponent has two or more pieces on his 1-point. My 4 on the second die is blocked; thus, I forfeit that part of the move. The advantage builds, as one player prevents his opponent from advancing his pieces. Furthermore, a player must bring his checker to his home board before he can continue bearing off.

Bearing Off
This is the final part of the game. When all of the chips are in your home board, you may begin to bear off your chips. Your dice rolls dictate the ability to remove the chips from the board. A roll of 5-1 will thus allow you to bear off chips from your 5 position and your 1 position. If your roll is higher than any of your occupied positions (for example, your chips are on the positions 1 through 3, and you roll a 6-4), you must bear off chips closest to your highest occupied position (from position 3, in our example).

Scoring the Game
The winner of a game gets one point if the doubling cube was never turned, or the cube was offered and declined. Otherwise, the winner gets the value of the cube. However, there are two circumstances in which the value of the game is doubled or tripled. They are when one player gammons another, and when one player backgammons another. Gammon occurs when one player bears off all his pieces before the opponent bears off any. This is scored as a double game (the winner gets twice the value of the doubling cube). Backgammon occurs when one player bears off all his pieces before the opponent bears off any and the opponent still has at least one piece in the winner's inner (or home) board. In the United States, we value this occurrence as a triple game (the winner gets three times the value of the doubling cube). Some areas of the world do not recognize triple games.

Doubling Cube
The doubling cube is used to speed up matches and to increase the intensity of the game. It can be argued that skillful use of the doubling cube is its own game within the game of backgammon. A typical doubling cube has six sides, and is engraved with these numbers: 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64. A game begins at a value of one betting unit with "the cube" placed in neutral possession (the 64 on top designates one unit at the start of a game). During a game, if either player believes it is advantageous to play for double the stakes, before rolling the dice when it is his turn, he may offer the cube to his opponent at twice the current stakes.

So, the first offer of each game would be from one unit to two units. The doubling cube would be picked up by the doubler and placed on the opponent's right side board with the numeral 2 facing up to indicate the choice to the opponent: either play this game for double the starting value or forfeit (resign) at a one-unit loss. Should the opponent accept the challenge, he "takes," and the game value moves to two units. The right to double again (redouble) always belongs exclusively to the player who last accepted the doubling cube. There is no limit to the number of doubles that can take place during a game. For example, the value of a game may rise to 128, 256, and higher.

Game Variants
Beavers is a common rule that allows for the immediate redouble when offered the doubling cube. Beavers are commonly used when playing backgammon for money game by game, and are not allowed in matches. Another rule commonly associated with money play is the Jacoby Rule, which makes gammons and backgammons count for their respective double or triple points only if there has been at least one use of the doubling cube. Another rule, the Crawford Rule, dictates that when a player is one point short of winning the match, neither player may offer the doubling cube for a single game. Finally, Chouettes allow for team play, in that one player is designated as the "Box" player, but the entire team makes the decisions, with the captain having final say on how to play each roll. Each player has his own doubling cube that he may offer to the Box player independently of the other players.

Backgammon Strategy
In backgammon, there are three basic strategies that a player needs to learn and be able to successfully implement during a game. The first strategy is the Blockade, and it involves building a wall of checkers that disallows the opponent from advancing his checkers. The second strategy is the Blitz, and it involves keeping your opponent on the bar while you advance and bear off your chips. The third strategy is the Backgame, and it involves keeping a 2-point "anchor" on your opponent's home board for blocking purposes, or for the intention of hitting your opponent's vulnerable chip. This is a defensive strategy that makes one less likely to lose if one is behind.

Gambling on Backgammon
Although predominantly a skill game, there exists an exciting element of gamble in backgammon. The game can be played for money in a variety of ways. One way to gamble on backgammon is by wagering on which player will be first to reach a predetermined number of points. Another way is to assign a monetary value to each point and play until a predetermined number of points is reached. Yet another way is to assign a monetary value to each point and play until either player chooses to stop. Either way, increasing the stakes of the game, and skillfully using the doubling cube, will make for some of the most intense and exciting matches any game can provide for its players.