Simple Guide For The Newbie Backgammon Player

Backgammon, a game that has been played for centuries by several different cultures, is still one of the most popular board games played today, and is enjoyed by people worldwide in real live circumstances and also online backgammon is enjoyed nowadays as well, where people can download backgammon software or play for free. New players to the backgammon board game could start to learn how to play backgammon by learning some of the basics every beginner should know. This includes understanding the backgammon board, backgammon set up, the object of the backgammon game, and backgammon instructions.

The board used for the game is compromised of four quadrants, each quadrant containing 6 "points," which essentially add up to 24 long pointy triangles, 12 on each side of the board (2 quadrants on each side). The points on the backgammon set may be numbered 1 through 24 starting in the lower right hand corner and going around clockwise to understand backgammon setup, and checkers are set up on the board in a specific sequence. 2 checkers are placed on the 24 point, 5 on the 13 point, 3 on the 8 point and again 5 on the 6 point for one of the players. The checkers for the second player are set up directly opposite the board with the same number of checkers, so that there are 2 checkers placed on the 1 point (which is directly across the 24 point), 5 on the 12 point (directly across the 13 point), 3 on the 17 point, and 5 on the 19 point.

The goal of the backgammon game is simple. With each turn the player rolls their dice and moves their checkers according to what the numbers on the dice add up to. If a player gets two of the same number, or a double, they get to move their checkers double their turn. For example, if a player gets a double 6, they can move a total of 24 spaces, but they must move each checker in lumps of 6. Each player is moving their checkers in the opposite direction around the board, first to get all their checkers into their homeboard, and then slowly bearing them off.

To start the game, each player rolls the dice once, and the player with the higher number gets the first turn. Winning the game is dependent on both luck and skill. Luck comes, obviously, with the roll of the dice, and skill comes when players must choose which checkers are the best to move. When a checker is left alone, unguarded by another checker, the opponent can "hit" that checker by landing on it if they get the right number on their dice roll to land exactly on the same point, and that checker that is hit then goes to the bar, where it can only be brought down again with a roll that allows for it to land on an empty point. These are the several simple aspects of the game, and perfection and skill comes with practice and patience.