Rules for playing Backgammon
Basic Rules of Backgammon
We are supposing that you already know the basic rules of backgammon. If you don't you can check here the basic rules :
Basic rules of backgammon - in English
Spielregeln fur Backgammon - in German
Le regole del Backgammon - in Italian
Basic Rules of online Backgammon
These are the rules on the Backgammon game as used in the PartyGammon games :
Check also the Advanced Rules of online Backgammon and the rules of the Hypergammon and Nackgammon.
Starting the game
At the start of the game, two of each player´s checkers are positioned on the 24 point, five on the 13 point, three on the 8 point, and five on the 6 point in the player's home board.
Before play begins the system will roll the dice (one for each player). The player with the higher number makes the first move, using the combination of his die throw and the opponent's. In the case of a tie, the system will roll the dice again until one of the players gets a higher score.
If possible, a player must move his/her checkers the number of points shown on each die. So, if a 2 and a 5 are rolled, two separate moves must be made, corresponding to the pips of the dice. The player may move two checkers, or may choose to move only one by combining both numbers. Players alternate turns after each roll.
Moving the checkers
To move a checker, either click and hold it and place it in the desired location, or double-click and the highest checker will move first. Alternatively, right click on a checker for it to move the lower number first. Each player must move his/her checkers in a forward direction onto points that the opponent has not already occupied with two or more checkers.
The player must indicate he/she has finished their turn by clicking the 'Done' button or on the dice. If a player rolls the same number on both dice the roll is called a 'doublet', and each number must be played twice. Once more, all moves are distinct. For example, a player who rolls 5-5 has to play four moves of five spaces, with between one to four checkers.
Where checkers can land
A checker can land on any vacant point (open point). It can also land on any point occupied by a player's own checkers. A checker can not land on a point occupied by two or more of the opponent's checkers.
If a player has no legal moves after rolling the dice because all of the points to which he/she might move are occupied by two or more of the opponent's checkers, he/she forfeits a turn. If a player has a legal move for one die only, he/she must make that move and then forfeit the use of the other die. If the player has a legal move for either die, but not both, he/she must play the higher number.
The player must indicate he/she has finished their turn by clicking the 'Done' button or by clicking on the dice.
Hitting checkers
Two or more checkers of one color on a point own that point. A single checker is known as a 'blot'. If one of the opponent's checkers lands on a blot, the blot is considered 'hit', and is placed on the bar. That checker is temporarily out of play.
Re-entering checkers
If a player has checkers on the bar, he/she can't move any other checker before re-entering all his/her checkers on the bar.
Any checkers on the bar must be re-introduced into the game before any other moves are made. The checker(s) must be entered on empty points or blots in their opponent's home board, according to a throw of the dice. If there are no empty points, the player must forfeit their go.
After the last of a player's checkers have re-entered the game, he/she must play the rest of the numbers shown on the dice if possible.
Bearing off
When a player has all 15 of their checkers in their own home board, he/she can start to remove them from the board; this is known as 'bearing off'. The player can bear a checker off corresponding to each number on the dice - a four will allow them to remove a checker from the 4 point. If there is no checker on the point indicated by the roll, the player must make a legal move using a checker on a higher-numbered point. If there are no checkers on higher-numbered points, the player is required to remove a checker from the highest point on which one of his checkers resides. A player is under no obligation to bear off if he/she can make an otherwise legal move.
A checker which has been borne off cannot re-enter the game. If a checker is hit during bear off, no other checkers can be borne off until that checker re-enters the game from the bar and reaches the player’s home board again.
Scoring and doubling
Backgammon is played for an agreed stake per point. Each game starts at one point.
If a player is confident of a win, he/she can use the doubling cube to increase the bet. This must only be done before the player rolls the dice. The doubling cube's faces are numbered 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64.
If the second player declines the increase in the stakes, he/she instantly loses the game and loses a point. However, when the second player accepts the doubling of the stakes he/she then takes control of the cube, meaning that only he/she can increase the stakes again.
Subsequent doublings of the stake are known as redoubles. If a player rejects a redouble, then they lose the game by the amount of points shown on the doubling cube. Alternatively, the player who accepts the redouble becomes the owner of the doubling cube.
The winner
The first player to get all his/her checkers off the board wins. The loser either loses by a single point, or by the number of points shown on the doubling cube.
The loser forfeits twice the stake if he/she has not moved a single checker off the board by the end of the game. This is known as a 'gammon'. If the loser still has checkers on the bar or in the winner's home board, they lose triple the stake. This is known as a 'backgammon'.
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