Backgammon Rules
All the backgammon rules, from the object of the game to backgammon doubling cube rule, bearing off, crawford rule and the rule of hitting and entering.
Playing backgammon for fun (virtual) money
Play and practice backgammon for fun and enhance your game skill.
Series (match play) and single (money game)
When playing a
live match, there are two types of game modes:
Series
(Match play) - a series of backgammon games between two
players. It ends when one player wins by accumulating the
agreed and set number of points. For each game, the number of
points won is the doubling cube value multiplied by the win
type (winning by a gammon is worth 2 points, winning by a
backgammon is worth 3 points).
Single game - the normal
style of competition, in which each backgammon game is played
independently. For each game, the loser pays the winner the
agreed initial sum multiplied by the value of the doubling
cube and further multiplied by the winning type (two for a
gammon or three for a backgammon).
Timers in the game
There are two
types of timers:
Move timer -
this timer displays the time you have left to make a move. It
is reset after each move.
Global timer - this timer
starts ticking only after the move timer expires. The global
timer is set for the entire game.
Disconnections and resuming games
If you get
disconnected, you will have to reconnect and resume
the game until your global timer expires. To do so, simply log in again and the disconnected
game will be resumed automatically for you.
If you do not
return or if you get disconnected 3 times in one game, you will automatically loose the game.
Object of the game
The object of
the backgammon game is for each player to bring all his or her
checkers into his or her home board, and then to bear them off
the board. The first player to clear all his or her checkers
off the board is the winner.
Moving checkers
Moving
backgammon checkers is determined by the rolled dice and
followed by these rules:
The checkers movement is
always forward.A player can move his checker only to an open
point with one or no opposing checkers.
Each die indicates
a separate move.
A player who gets doubles plays the
numbers shown on the dice twice.Moving the checkers in
accordance to the roll of dice has to be done unless it's
impossible.
(A player can not move his checker in
accordance to only one dice).
Hitting and entering
A point
occupied by a single checker of either color is called a blot.
If an opposing checker lands on a blot, the blot is hit and
the checker, which was on it, is placed on the bar. Anytime a
player has one or more checkers on the bar, his or her first
obligation is to enter those checkers into the opponent's home
board. A checker is entered by moving it to an open point
corresponding to one of the numbers on the rolled dice. For
example, if a player rolls 4 and 6, he or she may enter a
checker onto either the opponents' four point or six point, as
long as the prospective point is not occupied by two or more
of the opponents' checkers. If neither of the points is open,
the player loses his or her turn. If a player is able to enter
some but not all of his or her checkers, he or she must enter
as many as possible and then forfeit the remainder of the
turn. After the last of a players' checkers have been entered,
any unused numbers on the dice must be played.
Bearing off
Once a player
has moved all of his or her fifteen checkers into his or her
home board, he or she can begin bearing off. A player bears
off a checker by rolling a number that corresponds to the
point, on which the checker resides, and removing that stone
from the board. 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 the
higher numbered points, the player can remove a stone from the
next highest point. A player is under no obligation to bear
off if he can make an otherwise legal move. A player must have
all of his or her active checkers inside the home board to
bear off. If a checker is hit during the bear-off process, the
player must bring that checker back to his or her home board
before continuing to bear off.
Gammons and backgammons
At the end of
the game, if the losing player has bourne off at least one
checker, he loses only the value showing on the doubling cube
(the original wager or one point if there have been no
doubles). However, if the loser has not bourne off any of his
checkers, he or she is gammoned and loses twice the value of
the doubling cube. Moreover, if the loser has not bourne off
any of his or her checkers and still has a checker on the bar
or in the winners' home board, he or she is backgammoned and
loses three times the value of the doubling cube.
The doubling cube
Backgammon is
played for an agreed wager (or number of points in the
tournament play). During the course of the game, a player, who
feels he or she has a sufficient advantage, may propose
doubling the game sum. He or she may do so only at the start
of the turn and before the dice are rolled. A player, who is
offered a double, may refuse. In such case, he concedes the
game and pays the original wager. Otherwise, he must accept
the double and keep playing for the new higher sum. A player,
who accepts a double, becomes the owner of the cube and only
that player may make the next double. Subsequent doubles in
the same game are called redoubles. If a player refuses a
redouble, he must pay the wager that was at the sum involved
prior to the redouble. Otherwise, he becomes the new owner of
the cube and the game continues at twice the previous sum
involved. Redoubles can increase the original wager by up to
64 times.
Beavers
This is an
optional rule in single mode, in which when a player is
doubled, he or she may immediately redouble (beaver) while
retaining possession of the doubling cube. The original
doubler has the option of accepting or refusing, just like
with a normal double.
Crawford rule
Crawford rule
makes the doubling cube unavailable for a specific game in a
series of matches (a.k.a. match play), if one player is one
point below the goal.
Example: suppose, two players
play a match up to 7. If the score is 6-2, then for the next
game the doubling cube will not be available.
However, if
the game is won by the player who is behind, the score would
be 6-3 and on the next game the doubling cube would be
available.
Backgammon tournaments
A backgammon
tournament is a competition which involves a relatively large
number of competitors. Backgammon tournaments contain multiple
matches, each involving a subset of competitors. The overall
backgammon tournament winner will be determined based on the
combined results of those individual matches.
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