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The Basics of the Backgammon Board
The backgammon board might seem complex to comprehend, after all, the triangles and the lines all sound confusing. The appearance doesn't seem friendly enough like the ones on the chess board. However, here is some information about the backgammon board to help you in getting the hang of it:
The first thing you'll notice about the backgammon board is the twenty-four triangles on the edge of the board. These are referred to as "points" where the discs or the checkers are placed. These are where the checkers travel around in order for you to be able to bear them off the home board.
The home board is where you have to navigate your checkers to. The home board can be placed either on the right or left. Usually, the player with the white checkers places the home board on his or her right. Therefore, let us assume that, in this particular backgammon board, you are the player with the white checkers and your opponent has the black ones, and the home board is at your right.
To the left of the home board is the outer board. The outer board and the home board are separated by a thick line called the bar. When referring to a specific point, count in a clockwise manner, starting from your lower-right as one-point, all the way to the upper-right on the opponent's side as the 24-point.
The initial positions of the backgammon board have two black checkers on the 1-point. The six-point contain your five white checkers. After the bar, the eight-point has your three checkers. Then, farthest away from the bar on your side is the 12-point, where there are five checkers of your opponent's. Your opponent is required to contrast the locations of your checkers on his or her side.
There are also some terms pertaining to the backgammon board. The mid-point refers to the point where you have to traverse thirteen triangles to bear your checkers off. The bar-point refers to point on the outer board that has no checkers at all. Your ace-point is the triangle at your lower-right, meaning you have exactly one move to bear off your checkers as soon as you arrive on the ace point. However, your opponent's two checkers occupy your ace-point and vice versa.
The backgammon board might take a few moments to comprehend, but all it takes is a little patience to appreciate it completely. As you venture and learn from yourself in the backgammon table, you can master the basics of the board in due time.