In exceptionally general terms, there are 3 basic strategies used. You want to be agile enough to switch game plans almost instantly as the course of the match unfolds.
The Blockade
This consists of building a 6-thick wall of checkers, or at a minimum as thick as you can achieve, to lock in your opponent’s pieces that are on your 1-point. This is deemed to be the most suitable tactic at the begining of the match. You can assemble the wall anywhere inbetween your eleven-point and your 2-point and then shuffle it into your home board as the match progresses.
The Blitz
This consists of locking your home board as fast as as you can while keeping your competitor on the bar. For example, if your opponent rolls an early two and shifts one piece from your 1-point to your three-point and you then toss a 5-5, you are able to play six/one 6/1 8/3 8/3. Your opposer is then in serious difficulty taking into account that they have 2 checkers on the bar and you have closed half your inner board!
The Backgame
This strategy is where you have 2 or higher pieces in your competitor’s inner board. (An anchor is a point occupied by at a minimum 2 of your pieces.) It needs to be played when you are significantly behind as it greatly improves your opportunities. The best locations for anchor spots are close to your opponent’s smaller points and either on adjacent points or with one point separating them. Timing is crucial for an effective backgame: at the end of the day, there is no reason having two nice anchor spots and a complete wall in your own inner board if you are then required to dismantle this right away, while your competitor is shifting their checkers home, taking into account that you don’t have other extra pieces to move! In this situation, it’s more tolerable to have checkers on the bar so that you are able to preserve your position up till your competitor gives you an opportunity to hit, so it may be a wonderful idea to attempt and get your opposer to get them in this case!
This entry was posted on February 27, 2024, 2:25 am and is filed under Backgammon. You can follow any responses to this entry through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.