Backgammon variants

The board, dice and fifteen checkers have been used for many games. Some variants change only the starting position; others remove hitting altogether. Here are the main ones and how they differ from standard backgammon.

Standard backgammon

For reference: each player has fifteen checkers, set up two on the 24-point, five on the 13-point, three on the 8-point and five on the 6-point. Players move in opposite directions, a single checker (a blot) can be hit and sent to the bar, and the first to bear off all fifteen wins. The doubling cube raises the stakes, and gammons and backgammons count double and triple. The full rules are on how to play.

The variants below are described by how they differ from this. Rules for traditional games vary from place to place and family to family, so agree on the details before you play.

Nackgammon

Nackgammon was devised by Nick "Nack" Ballard, a leading American player. The only change is the starting position: one checker from the midpoint and one from the 6-point move back to the 23-point. Each side therefore starts with two checkers on the 24-point, two on the 23-point, four on the 13-point, three on the 8-point and four on the 6-point.

Four back checkers make it much harder to win by simply racing or blitzing. Games tend to be longer, with more back games and holding games and more mutual contact. Players use it to practise complex middle games, and it cuts down the advantage of memorised opening plays.

Hypergammon

Hypergammon uses the standard board and rules but only three checkers per player, placed on the 24, 23 and 22-points. Games are short and full of hitting. The doubling cube is used as normal.

Because there are so few checkers, the number of possible positions is small enough for computers to calculate the best play exactly. Hypergammon is a fun quick game and a good way to practise doubling decisions.

Acey-deucey

Acey-deucey is an old American variant, long associated with the US Navy and Merchant Marine. All fifteen checkers start off the board. They enter into the opponent's home board, using the dice like an entry from the bar, and travel round as usual. You do not have to bring all your checkers in before moving the ones already on the board.

The special roll is 1-2, the "acey-deucey". The player plays the 1 and the 2, then chooses any double and plays it in full, and then rolls again. Hitting, entering from the bar and bearing off work as in backgammon. Details such as what happens if part of the roll cannot be played vary between groups, so settle them before you start.

Tavla

Tavla is the Turkish name for the game, and it is played very widely in Turkey. The board, the starting position and the way checkers move and hit are the same as in standard backgammon. The main differences are in scoring: tavla is normally played without the doubling cube, a win counts one point and a gammon (called mars) counts two. A backgammon has no extra value. Games are usually played as a match to a set number of points.

Greek tavli: portes, plakoto, fevga

In Greece, tavli is the name for a family of three games played on the same board. Players commonly play them in rotation, one game of each in turn, as a match to an agreed number of points.

Portes

Portes is essentially standard backgammon, with the same starting position, movement and hitting. As in tavla, there is usually no doubling cube, and a gammon counts two points with no triple for a backgammon.

Plakoto

In plakoto there is no hitting. Instead, a checker that lands on a single opposing checker pins it: the pinned checker cannot move until the pinning checker leaves. Each player starts with all fifteen checkers on their own 24-point, in the opponent's home board, and the players move in opposite directions as in backgammon. Pinning is powerful, and pinning an opponent's last checker on its starting point is often decisive. Many rule sets award a win outright when that happens.

Fevga

Fevga is the Greek relative of long nardy. There is no hitting and no pinning: a point holding even a single checker belongs to its owner, and the opponent cannot land there. All fifteen checkers start on one point and both players travel the same way round the board, from opposite corners. The game is about building blocks and getting past your opponent's.

Long nardy

Long nardy is the most popular form of the game in Russia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Its rules are very different from backgammon:

• Each player starts with all fifteen checkers on one point, called the head, at diagonally opposite corners of the board.
• Both players move in the same direction, counterclockwise, each travelling round to their own home quarter.
• There is no hitting. A single checker controls a point: the opponent may not land on any point you occupy.
• Only one checker may leave the head each turn. The exception is the very first roll: with 6-6, 4-4 or 3-3, two checkers may leave.
• You may not build a block of six consecutive points unless at least one opposing checker is already ahead of it.

Because no checker is ever sent back, long nardy is a game of blocking and timing. The first to bear off all fifteen wins, and winning before the opponent has borne off any checkers (called mars) usually counts double. The same region also plays short nardy, which is close to standard backgammon.

Other formats

Chouette

A chouette lets three or more people play standard backgammon together. One player, the box, plays against everyone else as a team. One team member, the captain, rolls the dice and moves, usually after consulting the others. In most chouettes each team member has their own doubling cube, so they can take or drop the box's doubles separately. After each game the players rotate according to who won.

Matches and money play

Standard backgammon itself has two formats: money games, where each game stands alone, and matches to a set number of points, with the Crawford rule. The differences matter for doubling and gammons; see match play and the doubling cube guide. For the long story of how these games spread, read the history of backgammon.

In Backgammon Lounge you play standard backgammon, with the cube and the Crawford rule, against the computer or online. Start a game.

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