How to Play Backgammon
Backgammon is a race. Each player has fifteen checkers and moves them round the board towards home, and the first to bear every checker off wins.
Dice decide how far you move, but the choices you make with those numbers decide the game. It is the oldest board game still widely played, and it rewards a little study enormously.
Play BackgammonHow to play
- Roll two dice and move checkers that many points, either one checker twice or two checkers once each.
- You must use both numbers if there is any legal way to do it, and if only one can be played, play the larger.
- Doubles are played twice over, so a pair of fives gives you four moves of five.
- A point with two or more enemy checkers is closed to you. A point with exactly one is a blot and you can hit it.
- A hit checker goes to the bar and has to re enter in the opponent's home before that player moves anything else.
- Once all fifteen of your checkers are home you start bearing off, and the first player to bear all of them off wins.
How you win
The whole game is a race to bear your checkers off, and you cannot start until all fifteen of them are in your home board. Each roll then takes a checker off a point matching that number, so a five takes one off the five point.
If the number is higher than your highest occupied point, you bear off from the highest point you still have. If it is lower and nothing sits on that point, you have to move a checker along instead, which is why an even spread beats a tall stack when you are close to finishing.
Win while your opponent has borne none off and it counts double, a gammon. If they also still have a checker on the bar or in your home board, it counts triple, a backgammon.
The doubling cube
At the start of your turn, before rolling, you can offer to double the stake. Your opponent either accepts and takes ownership of the cube, or declines and loses the current value immediately.
Used well it is the sharpest tool in the game. Offer when you are clearly ahead but the position is still volatile, and decline when taking would leave you needing a miracle.
Strategy worth knowing
Make points rather than spreading out. Two checkers on a point are safe and they take that point away from your opponent.
Your five point and the opponent's five point are the most valuable real estate on the board. Fighting for them early pays off all game.
Leaving a blot is sometimes right. Count how many rolls actually hit it before playing safe out of nerves.
Frequently asked questions
How do you win at backgammon?
By bearing all fifteen of your checkers off the board before your opponent does. Winning while they have borne none off is a gammon and counts double.
What happens when you get hit?
Your checker goes to the bar and has to re enter in your opponent's home board before you can make any other move.
Do I have to use both dice?
Yes, if there is a legal way to play both. If only one number can be played, you must play the higher of the two.