backgamon

Backgamon is an alternative spelling of backgammon, a traditional two-player board game. The standard spelling is backgammon; the term appears as a typographical variant in some texts. The game is played on a wooden or synthetic board with 24 triangular points, arranged in four quadrants. Each player has 15 checkers, two dice, and a doubling cube marked with the typical progression. The starting position places two checkers on the opponent’s 24-point, five on the 13-point, three on the 8-point, and five on the 6-point for each player.

Players alternate turns, rolling two dice and moving checkers the number of points indicated. Checkers move in opposite directions; a blot (an occupied point by a single opposing checker) can be hit, sending the blot to the bar. A checker on the bar must re-enter onto the opponent’s home board before any other moves. When all of a player's checkers are in their home board, they may bear off, removing checkers from the board according to the dice rolls. The first player to bear off all 15 checkers wins. If the opponent has not borne any checkers and the mover bears off, the win may be a gammon, which scores extra.

Backgamon, i.e., backgammon, has roots in ancient games played in Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean. Modern rules crystallized in early modern Europe, with the doubling cube adopted in the 20th century, expanding strategic depth. The game combines luck, via dice, with skill, timing, and probability-based decision making. It is played socially in clubs and online, and there are formal tournaments and federations worldwide.