Backgammon Computer Game: How to Play Backgammon

Playing backgammon with computer software can help a novice to learn. A good backgammon program will show you what moves are possible, and you can also undo them. You can save the game at any time. These rules are for some backgammon games. There are slight variations from live backgammon.

In backgammon, the objective is to bring all of one's checkers to one's home board and then remove them from the board.

THE BOARD

Backgammon is played on a board divided by a "bar," with 2 facing rows of triangles on each side totaling 24. If you picture the board as a square made up of 4 quarters (each quarter with 6 triangles in it), the lower left where Player 1 sits is their home board. The one in front of them is Player 2's home board.

Each player has 15 checkers or "men." At the start of every game, each player has 5 checkers on their 6th triangle or "point," 3 checkers on their 8th point, 5 checkers on their 13th point and 2 checkers on their 24th point.

To begin the game, the dice are rolled and the player with the higher number plays first. They roll their dice and move their checkers accordingly. If a 4 and a 2 are rolled, the player may move a checker 4 points, and another checker 2 points, or they may move one checker 6 points. If both dice yield the same number, such as two 4's, they may be used twice.

Players' checkers always move in the same direction toward one's home board (thus one player is always clockwise and the other always counter-clockwise).

A checker may be moved on any point that is: a) unoccupied b) occupied by own checker b) occupied by one opposing checker

In the last case, the opposing checker is "hit." It is known as a "blot" and the checker is put "on the bar."

If it's not possible to move a checker to any point according to the roll of dice, the player must forfeit their turn. A player may not forfeit their turn if there is at least one possible move.

The player whose checker has been hit cannot make a move until that same checker re-enters the board. It may re-enter if there is an open point for it in the opponent's home board. The player counts from their 24th point (the opponent's 1st point) to see if the checker may re-enter.

Once a player has all of their checkers on their home board, they may begin to carry or "bear off" their checkers one by one. A 5 and 2 means one can bear off a checker on the 5th and 2nd points respectively. If no checker lies on a point corresponding to a die, the player is obligated to move a checker that can make that move.

A player stops carrying off their men if one of them gets hit during the bearing off stage. The bearing off may resume once the man returns to its home board.

BACKGAMMON WINNING

There are three ways to win in backgammon:

1) If both players have borne off at least one checker each, the first to bear off all of their checkers is the winner.

2) If the losing player loses without bearing off any checkers, the winner wins "by a gammon."

3) If the losing player loses without bearing off at least one checker, and with at least one checker on the bar or in the winner's home board, the winner wins "by a backgammon."

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