Backgammon

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In astonishingly general terms, there are 3 main tactics employed. You want to be able to switch tactics almost instantly as the course of the game unfolds.

The Blockade

This consists of assembling a 6-deep wall of checkers, or at least as thick as you can manage, to block in your opponent’s pieces that are located on your 1-point. This is judged to be the most acceptable tactic at the start of the match. You can create the wall anywhere within your 11-point and your two-point and then shuffle it into your home board as the game continues.

The Blitz

This is comprised of closing your home board as fast as as you can while keeping your challenger on the bar. i.e., if your competitor rolls an early two and shifts one piece from your 1-point to your 3-point and you then roll a 5-5, you will be able to play six/one six/one 8/3 8/3. Your opposer is now in serious calamity taking into account that they have two pieces on the bar and you have closed half your inner board!

The Backgame

This plan is where you have 2 or more anchors in your opponent’s inner board. (An anchor is a position consisting of at least 2 of your checkers.) It would be played when you are significantly behind as it greatly improves your circumstances. The strongest areas for anchor spots are close to your competitor’s smaller points and either on adjoining points or with a single point in between. Timing is essential for an effective backgame: at the end of the day, there is no reason having two nice anchors and a complete wall in your own inner board if you are then forced to break up this straight away, while your challenger is shifting their pieces home, considering that you do not have any other additional checkers to shift! In this case, it’s more tolerable to have checkers on the bar so that you can maintain your position up until your challenger provides you a chance to hit, so it can be a great idea to try and get your challenger to get them in this case!