Backgammon

The Race with Complications · 2 players · Ages 8+ · 15–45 min per game

Backgammon is one of the oldest known board games, with roots tracing back nearly 5,000 years to Mesopotamia. It combines dice luck with deep strategic decision-making: moving all 15 checkers around the board and bearing them off before your opponent does the same. The doubling cube adds a gambling dimension that rewards positional judgment.

Equipment

Board with 24 narrow triangles (points) numbered 1–24 from each player's perspective
15 checkers per player (traditionally dark and light colored)
2 standard six-sided dice per player (each player rolls their own)
1 doubling cube (numbered 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64)
Optional: Dice cups (for shaking)

Board Layout

The board is divided into four quadrants of six points each:

Your home board (inner board): Points 1–6
Your outer board: Points 7–12
Opponent's outer board: Points 13–18
Opponent's home board: Points 19–24

The bar divides the board into two halves. Points are numbered from each player's perspective—your point 1 is your opponent's point 24.

         OUTER BOARD        HOME BOARD
    13  14  15  16  17  18 | 19  20  21  22  23  24
    |                      |                       |
    |  ↓  ↓  ↓  ↓  ↓  ↓   |   ↓  ↓  ↓  ↓  ↓  ↓  |  BLACK moves →
    |                      BAR                    |
    |  ↑  ↑  ↑  ↑  ↑  ↑   |   ↑  ↑  ↑  ↑  ↑  ↑  |  WHITE moves ←
    |                      |                       |
    12  11  10   9   8   7 |  6   5   4   3   2   1
         OUTER BOARD        HOME BOARD

Starting Position

White checkers (moving from Black's perspective right to left, i.e., from 24 toward 1): - 2 checkers on point 24 - 5 checkers on point 13 - 3 checkers on point 8 - 5 checkers on point 6

Black checkers (moving in the opposite direction, from 1 toward 24): - 2 checkers on point 1 - 5 checkers on point 12 - 3 checkers on point 17 - 5 checkers on point 19

This setup is mirror-symmetrical.

Object

Move all 15 of your checkers around the board in your direction and then bear them all off the board. The first player to bear off all checkers wins.

Movement

Rolling and Moving

Each turn, roll both dice and move checkers according to the numbers shown. The two dice represent two separate moves—you may move one checker twice or two checkers once each.

Movement direction: Checkers always move in one direction (from higher-numbered points to lower-numbered points in your home board). White moves from 24 → 1; Black moves from 1 → 24 (from their own perspective, always toward their home board).

Legal destinations: A checker may land on: - Any empty point - A point occupied by one or more of your own checkers (no limit on stack size) - A point occupied by exactly one enemy checker (hitting that checker—see below)

A checker may NOT land on a point occupied by two or more enemy checkers (a prime or made point).

Doublets (Doubles)

When both dice show the same number, you move four times that number instead of two. Example: rolling 3-3 means four moves of 3 each, applied in any combination.

Using Both Numbers

You must use both dice values if legally possible. If only one value can be used, you must use the higher one if both cannot be played. If neither can be used, you lose your turn.

Hitting and the Bar

When you land on a point occupied by exactly one enemy checker, you hit that checker. The hit checker is placed on the bar (the center divider).

A checker on the bar must re-enter before any other checkers can be moved. To re-enter, roll the dice and place the checker on the opponent's home board at the point corresponding to the die value (point 1–6 from the opponent's perspective, which is point 19–24 from yours). If no legal re-entry is possible, the entire turn is lost.

If you cannot re-enter because all entry points are blocked by two or more enemy checkers, you forfeit your turn and must keep trying each subsequent turn until entry is possible.

Blocking and Primes

Any point occupied by two or more of your checkers is a made point or blocked point. Enemy checkers cannot land there.

A prime is a consecutive series of made points—the longest possible prime is six consecutive points, which completely traps any enemy checker behind it (since dice can produce at most 6). Primes are powerful defensive and offensive structures.

A closed board (all six points in your home board made) prevents re-entry of any checker the opponent has on the bar.

Bearing Off

Once all 15 of your checkers are in your home board (points 1–6), you may begin bearing off.

To bear off a checker: Roll the dice. You may remove a checker from the corresponding point (roll a 3 = remove from point 3). You may also use the roll to move a checker to a lower point within the home board.

Higher roll than available: If you roll a number higher than any point with checkers, you must bear off the checker on the highest occupied point.

If hit during bearing off: You must return to re-entering the hit checker before bearing off continues. The checker must re-enter, travel all the way to the home board, then bearing off resumes.

The race: Once both players are bearing off with no contact possible, the game is purely a dice race.

The Doubling Cube

The doubling cube is marked with powers of 2: 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64. It tracks the current stake of the game.

Starting: The cube sits in the center of the bar with 64 facing up (indicating it is available to either player, worth 1 unit before the first double).

Offering a double: Before rolling your dice, you may offer to double the stake. Present the cube with the new value facing up (first double = 2).

The opponent may: - Accept: Takes the cube, placing it on their side of the board. The game continues at the new stake. Only the cube holder may offer the next double. - Refuse (drop): Concedes the game immediately, paying the old stake (1 unit for the first double).

Redoubling: The player holding the cube may offer to double again (2 → 4, then 4 → 8, etc.), and so on. The cube can pass back and forth any number of times.

Optimal doubling: Offer a double when you have roughly a 50–80% chance of winning. Accept a double when your winning chances exceed 25% (since refusing costs 1 unit while accepting a losing position costs 2). These thresholds shift based on gammon and backgammon risk.

Scoring

Single game: Winner scores 1 point (× cube value).

Gammon: If the winner bears off all 15 checkers before the loser bears off any, the winner scores double: 2 points (× cube value). A gammon is not possible if the doubling cube has been accepted (by convention this varies by house rules—some play that gammon scoring always applies, others that a take negates gammon/backgammon).

Backgammon: If the winner bears off all 15 checkers while the loser still has checkers on the bar or in the winner's home board, the winner scores triple: 3 points (× cube value).

Match play: Players compete to a set number of points (typically 5, 7, 11, or 15). Gammons and backgammons can win a match outright if the point total is reached or exceeded. The Crawford Rule applies in match play: when one player is one point away from winning, the doubling cube is not available for one game (the Crawford game). After the Crawford game, the cube is available again.

Key Strategic Concepts

Race vs. Contact

The game changes character based on whether checkers are still in contact (can hit each other) or racing without contact. Different strategies apply: - Race: Maximize your pip count efficiency; bear off smoothly. - Contact: Use primes, back games, and blot exposure carefully.

Pip Count

The total number of pips (points of movement) needed to bear off all checkers. Lower pip count = ahead in the race. Calculate pip counts to gauge whether to accept doubles.

The Back Game

Deliberately holding two or more points in the opponent's home board while building a prime in front of them. A high-risk, high-reward comeback strategy.

Anchor

A made point in the opponent's home board. Anchors give your hit checkers a safe landing point and restrict opponent's bearing-off options.

Blot and Slot

Blot: A single checker on a point, vulnerable to being hit.
Slotting: Deliberately placing a blot on a key point, hoping to make it on your next turn.

Timing

Late in the game, avoid breaking your prime too early, even if individual moves look appealing. Timing the breakdown of your prime relative to your opponent's re-entry attempts is critical.

Variants

Nackgammon: Extra checkers added to starting position; more complex opening.

Hypergammon: Each player begins with only 3 checkers on point 24. Highly tactical, short games.

Acey-Deucey: Popular US military variant; rolling 1-2 earns an extra turn and any double you choose.

Tavla: Turkish variant with different starting position and no doubling cube.

See also: Chess (pure strategy), Mancala (deterministic capture racing)