How to play Backgammon
Backgammon is one of the oldest board games in the world, a race with a dash of luck and a lot of judgment. You and Carol, the computer, each have 15 checkers. You both roll dice and move your checkers round the board in opposite directions, and the first to bring all 15 home and off the board wins. You play the light checkers; Carol plays the dark ones.
The board
The board has 24 narrow triangles called points, numbered from your side. You move your checkers from point 24 down towards point 1. Points 1 to 6 are your home board: at the bottom right on a computer or tablet, and at the bottom left on a phone, where the board is turned on its side. Carol's checkers travel the other way, to Carol's home board on points 19 to 24.
Moving
- Each turn you roll two dice. Move one checker by the number on one die and one by the other, or the same checker by both. Doubles count twice: a roll of two 4s lets you move four times by 4.
- Tap a checker to pick it up; gold dots show where it can go. Tap a dot to move it there.
- You can't land on a point that holds two or more of Carol's checkers: that point is blocked.
- You must use both dice if you can. If only one can be used, you must use the larger one if possible. If neither can be used, your turn passes.
Hitting and the bar
A single checker on its own is called a blot. If you land on one of Carol's blots, you hit it: it goes to the bar in the middle of the board and has to start again. The same can happen to yours. A checker on the bar must come back in, on Carol's home board, before you can move anything else: a roll of 1 brings it in on point 24, a 6 on point 19, as long as that point isn't blocked.
Bearing off and winning
Once all 15 of your checkers are in your home board, you can start bearing off: removing them from the board. A 4 bears off a checker from point 4. If you roll higher than your highest checker, you may bear off from the highest point instead. The first player to bear off all 15 checkers wins.
If the loser hasn't borne off any checkers by then, it's a gammon, worth two games, and if the loser still has a checker on the bar or in the winner's home board, a backgammon, worth three. We leave out the doubling cube, which is used for betting, so every game here is played just for fun.
Tips
- Make points in your home board. Two checkers together can't be hit, and every point you hold in your home board makes it harder for Carol to come back in from the bar.
- Learn a few good opening moves. With 3 and 1, move 8 to 5 and 6 to 5, making your 5-point. With 6 and 1, move 13 to 7 and 8 to 7. With 4 and 2, move 8 to 4 and 6 to 4.
- Be careful with blots. A single checker within six points in front of one of Carol's checkers is easy to hit. Leave blots where Carol is least likely to reach them.
- Watch the race. The pip counts above the board show how far each side still has to travel. When you're well ahead, get your checkers home safely; when you're behind, you need to hit or block.
- Ask for a hint. It looks at every way to play your roll and explains its choice: making a point, hitting, or leaving fewer blots.
Questions
Are the dice fair?
Yes. The dice for every turn are decided in advance by the game number, evenly, like real dice. Carol never knows what will come next, and Undo can't change a roll: if you take back a move, you'll get the same dice again. The same game number always gives the same dice, so you can share a game with a friend.
How good is Carol?
You choose in Settings. On Normal, Carol weighs every way to play each roll; on Easy, Carol often picks a weaker move. In our own tests, Normal beat Easy in about 82 games out of 100. Because of the dice, even a strong player loses plenty of games: between two equally good players, each wins about half.
Is any money involved?
No. Backgammon here is played just for fun: there's no betting, no doubling cube, no prizes and no real money, and nothing to buy.
How long does a game take?
Usually 10 to 15 minutes: in our tests, a game lasted about 28 rolls each. Your game saves itself after every move, so you can stop at any time and carry on later on the same device.
Can I take back a move?
Yes. Undo takes back your last move, and Carol's reply if Carol has played since. It's a good way to learn what works.