Compete against your fellow players in a live Backgammon match. Roll the dice with skill and make the best of your scores in order to place your checkers tactically and block your opponent.

Aim of the game: The aim is to move all of your checkers to your "home board" (lower right) and then bear them off. The first player to remove all their checkers from the board is the winner. The game can end early if a doubling cube (large wooden cube) is used in order to double the stakes and encourage the opponent to drop the game. If the opponent accepts the doubled stakes, the game continues.

Important note about controls:
You can use the checkmark in the upper left to automatically roll the dice and save time. However, the checkmark for automatic rolling must be removed before you can use the wooden doubling cube.

How to play The playing field consists of four areas. From the players' point of view, they both begin with the white checkers in the upper right (points 19-25) and move their checkers to the lower right (points 1-6). Following the initial roll, both players take turns rolling two dice each. Each player positions his or her checkers according to the number of pips they roll. The pips on both dice are not added up, but used for individual moves, and can either be applied to one checker or, if possible, used to move two checkers. The player may decide which die to use first (provided the move is allowed). If only one of the dice can be played, it must be the die with the highest number of pips, provided a move can be made with this die. If both dice can be played, the player must play the turn in such a way that both dice are used. If both dice show the same number of pips, the player has four moves to make.

Points which are occupied by two or more of a player's checkers can no longer be used by the other player. The opponent cannot move checkers onto this point, but is still able to pass it.

If a point is occupied by only one of the opponent's checkers, that checker can be hit by another which lands on the same point. In this case, the checker is placed on the bar in the centre of the playing field, and the player must start at the beginning with this checker. No other move can be made until all checkers have been moved from the bar back into the game.

Checkers may re-enter the game if the pips of at least one die correspond to a vacant point in the starting area (upper right), or if that point is occupied by only one opposing checker. In any other event, the turn passes to the opponent. If the opponent has occupied all of the points, he or she rolls until one point is cleared again.

Scores:

1 point: Player A wins the game, Player B has borne off at least one checker
2 points/gammon: Player A wins without Player B bearing off a single checker.
3 points/backgammon: Player A wins while Player B still has one checker in Player A's home board.


Doubling cube: 1. If Player A used the doubling cube and Player B declined, Player B loses at the value of the number of pips showing on the doubling cube.
2. If Player A used the doubling cube and Player B accepted, the points must be multiplied by the number of pips showing on the doubling cube:
Example: Player A wins and Player B has not borne off any checkers (gammon = 2 points), and the doubling cube shows ""4"". Player A receives 8 points (2x4).

Determining the winner The first player to reach the required number of points wins the game.

Hint: Practice makes perfect in Backgammon!

Game keys: mouse-controlled