Introduction

Backgammon is a classic two-player board game with a history dating back thousands of years. The game involves moving checkers around the board based on dice rolls, with the objective of being the first player to remove (bear off) all their checkers. It’s a mix of strategy, probability, and timing.

Game Setup

• Players: 2
• Board: The backgammon board has 24 long triangles called points, divided into four quadrants.
• Checkers: Each player has 15 checkers of their own color.
• Dice: Two six-sided dice are used, plus an optional doubling cube.

Each player places their checkers in a standard starting position:

• 2 checkers on the opponent’s 24-point
• 5 checkers on the 13-point
• 3 checkers on the 8-point
• 5 checkers on the 6-point

Objective of the Game

The goal is to move all your checkers into your home board and then bear them off before your opponent does.

Basic Rules of Play

1. Starting the game: Each player rolls one die. The higher number goes first, using both dice values for their opening move.
2. Movement: Players move their checkers according to the numbers rolled on the dice. Each die represents a separate move.
3. Direction: Each player moves checkers in opposite directions around the board.
4. Hitting: If a checker lands on a point occupied by a single opponent checker, that checker is “hit” and placed on the bar.
5. Entering from the bar: A player must re-enter any checkers on the bar before making other moves, using dice that correspond to open points in the opponent’s home board.
6. Bearing off: Once all checkers are in a player’s home board, they can start bearing them off according to dice rolls.

Winning the Game

The first player to bear off all 15 checkers wins. If the opponent has not borne off any checkers, it’s called a Gammon (double win). If the opponent still has checkers in the winner’s home board or on the bar, it’s called a Backgammon (triple win).

Optional Rule: Doubling Cube

The doubling cube is used to raise the stakes of the game. At the start, it shows 64, meaning no multiplier. A player can propose doubling the current stakes, and the opponent must either accept or resign.