Backgammon – 3 Main Plans
In extraordinarily simple terms, there are three general game plans employed. You must be agile enough to hop between tactics almost instantly as the action of the match unfolds.
The Blockade
This consists of assembling a 6-deep wall of checkers, or at a minimum as thick as you can manage, to barricade in the opponent’s checkers that are located on your 1-point. This is deemed to be the most adequate strategy at the start of the game. You can create the wall anyplace inbetween your eleven-point and your 2-point and then shift it into your home board as the game advances.
The Blitz
This involves locking your home board as quickly as as you can while keeping your competitor on the bar. i.e., if your opponent tosses an early two and moves one piece from your 1-point to your three-point and you then toss a 5-5, you are able to play six/one six/one eight/three eight/three. Your opposer is now in serious difficulty taking into account that they have two pieces on the bar and you have closed half your inside board!
The Backgame
This plan is where you have 2 or more pieces in your competitor’s inner board. (An anchor is a point consisting of at a minimum 2 of your pieces.) It would be used when you are decidedly behind as it greatly improves your opportunities. The better areas for anchors are near your competitor’s lower points and also on abutting points or with one point in between. Timing is critical for a competent backgame: besides, there’s no reason having two nice anchors and a complete wall in your own inner board if you are then required to dismantle this straight away, while your challenger is shifting their checkers home, taking into account that you do not have any other extra checkers to shift! In this situation, it is better to have checkers on the bar so that you can preserve your position up till your competitor provides you an opportunity to hit, so it will be an excellent idea to attempt and get your opposer to hit them in this case!