If you are a first timer to play the board game of backgammon then it is very confusing to understand the game. The board set up is totally different. The placements of the coins are also very different. There are specific rules to be followed while playing Backgammon which are very unique and boost the game play. If you learn these rules you will be able to play backgammon vey easily.

First you need to set up the board by either selecting the black or white chips. Then you will have to roll the dice to start the game. To find out who has to start the game, every player has to throw the dice, but if both the players get the same number then you will have to throw until someone gets a higher number. For this purpose you will need to throw both the dice.

The game has to be played in such a way that the chips have to be moved in the frontwards. It has to start from the upper corner in the right side. The chips have to be moved in the anti clock wise direction. Even your opponent’s coin has to be moved the same way. You have to move the chips according to the numbers that you get. It ranges from 1 to 24. It has to be moved to the inner board which is on your side. When you throw the dice the number that is shown is the point that you get. For example if you throw 1 and 3 then you get 1 point and three points respectively.

Once you roll the dice you can choose to move one or two chips. This will depend on the strategy that you would like to follow. It also depends on the availability of the place. So for the said example of the dice rolled you can move one chip by 1 point and the second chip by 3 points or one chip by 4 points if the course ahead is clear. To find a clear course it is very difficult. You are not allowed to land on a place where your opponent already has 2 chips. This is called a block. You can only land if your opponent has only one chip or you have one chip or if it is not occupied at all. If none of them is possible then you need to give up that turn. Then you can move if you have a legal moving chip and not the others.

There is a special case when you get doubles on the dice. Then you are allowed to make your own choice. For example if it is two 4s then you can choose to move 16 on one chip, or two chips to 8 each, or one to 12 and another 4, or one to 8 and other two to 4 each or even four to 4 points each. When you get to land on a place where your opponents has a chip already you call this an attack. Your opponents chip is called a blot. The blot has to be removed and kept on the bar in the centre of the game.

So until your opponent moves the chip legally he cannot make any other moves. The blot has to be kept on the inner board and should start again. Same applies to you. To win you need to place all your chips on the inner board. After that you start the bear off which is to move the chips off the board. The person to do that wins. It is double victory if the opponent is not able to bear off even one. It is triple victory if the opponent has not reached the bear off stage.