In very simple terms, there are three chief game plans employed. You must be able to hop between game plans instantly as the action of the game unfolds.
The Blockade
This is composed of building a 6-thick wall of checkers, or at a minimum as thick as you might manage, to barricade in the competitor’s checkers that are on your 1-point. This is considered to be the most suitable tactic at the begining of the match. You can create the wall anywhere within your eleven-point and your two-point and then shuffle it into your home board as the game continues.
The Blitz
This is comprised of locking your home board as fast as as you can while keeping your opponent on the bar. e.g., if your opponent tosses an early 2 and shifts one piece from your one-point to your three-point and you then roll a 5-5, you can play 6/1 six/one eight/three eight/three. Your opposer is then in serious dire straits taking into account that they have 2 pieces on the bar and you have closed half your inner board!
The Backgame
This strategy is where you have 2 or higher checkers in your opponent’s inner board. (An anchor spot is a position occupied by at least 2 of your checkers.) It must be employed when you are significantly behind as it greatly improves your chances. The best locations for anchor spots are towards your competitor’s smaller points and also on adjoining points or with a single point in between. Timing is critical for a competent backgame: at the end of the day, there is no reason having 2 nice anchor spots and a solid wall in your own inner board if you are then required to dismantle this right away, while your challenger is getting their checkers home, taking into account that you do not have other additional pieces to move! In this case, it is more favorable to have pieces on the bar so that you can preserve your position until your challenger gives you an opportunity to hit, so it may be an excellent idea to attempt and get your challenger to hit them in this case!
This entry was posted on December 1, 2025, 8:25 pm 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.