Mid Backgammon Game Strategy Moves
In a backgammon game the longest period is called mid-game. It is here that players try to make all the correct moves so that they can stay ahead in the game and eventually win it. A successful end derives directly from the mid-game dessisions. Some of the more common mid-game moves include building primes, doubling the game’s stakes and hitting the opponent. This article takes a deeper look at them.
Priming Priming is when both backgammon players try to block each other and each player is tries to free his back checkers. Although both players might each have, for example, a four prime block (ie. four rows of checkers blocking the other player), this does not necessarily mean that both players are in an equal position. There are many factors to consider if we are trying to figure out who is the stronger player of the two. Things to look out for include: The position of the trapped checkers (checkers right behind the prime have a better chance of escaping than those further back); possibility of advancing checkers (if a player has checkers to advance and the opponent does not, the player is in a better position as he can still advance without breaking the prime. The best-case scenario will be if the opponent needs to start breaking up his prime to continue in the game); how big is the prime? (a four-prime block is less effective than a five-prime one, while a six-prime block stops the opponent from advancing altogether). Hitting Moving a checker to an occupied point is called hitting. One should not consider hitting all the time and a backgammon players should ask himself some questions before. Including: Where is the opponent’s checker? Should I make this point? Can I hit two checkers instead of one? The Stakes Doubling If the backgaoon game is for money, it is a good idea to use a doubling cube. Depending on their position, players may want to raise the stakes of the game during mid-game. When a player offers to double the stakes of the game, the doubling cube will then show two. Every time the stakes are doubled again, the cube will show 4, 8, 16, etc. When the opponent does not ecepts the doubling, he forfeits the game and all bets to the other player. When thinking wether to offer or accept a double a player must take several things into acount. For instance: how the checkers are spread, the pip count, the gammons and the backgammons.
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