How Do I Set Up A Backgammon Board?

The backgammon board looks confusing, but is really very simple! It consists of 24 triangles in two alternating colours. These are called points and are the spaces that the playing pieces (checkers) occupy. Each point is numbered from 1 to 24, but no numbers appear on the board. This is because the two players sit opposite each other, and so move in opposite U-shaped directions around the board.  Number 1 for player A is actually number 24 for player B!

The points are split into 4 groups, with points numbered 1 to 6 known as the home board, and points 7 to 12 the outer board. The aim of the game is to travel from the outer board to the home board, then be the first to bear off all 15 checkers. A bar runs through the centre and checkers may be removed to here during play.

Backgammon is always set up in the same way. Each player lines their checkers on certain points; 5 checkers on points 6 and 13, 3 checkers on point 8, and 2 checkers on the 24 point.  Checkers from both players are on either side of the backgammon board, but do not share any point.

A pair of dice is used to determine the amount of moves each player can make. A dice with the numbers 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64, known as the cube, is used for strategic play. It challenges the other person to double the stake. Now the board is understood, you just need to learn how to play!