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                              RULES OF BACKGAMMON


       OBJECT OF GAME  -  Backgammon is a game of strategy designed for
       two players. The play consists of moving the pieces toward and
       into the home board and then taking the pieces off. The first
       player to remove all his pieces wins the game.


       THE BOARD  -  Start up game disk. After entering your name, press
       space bar to view the opening board position. The board consists
       of 24 triangles called points, numbered in "Championship
       Backgammon" from 01 to 24. The player's home board consists of
       points 01 to 06 and the computer's home points are 19 to 24. The
       strip dividing the playing board is called the Bar; it is not
       counted as a point.  Both players start with 15 matching pieces
       and a pair of dice.


       BEGINNING  -  Each player rolls one die; the player with the
       higher number moves first, using for this move the numbers on
       these two dice. Ties are re-rolled. After this first throw,
       players alternate turns, using their own pair of dice. Each turn
       consists of one roll of two dice and the moving of pieces along
       the board a certain number of points corresponding to the value
       of the dice. Players move around the board in opposite directions
       toward their respective home boards. Pieces may not be moved
       backwards.


       PLAYING  -  The player moves one piece for the number on one die
       and another piece for the number on the other die; alternately,
       one piece may be advanced twice using both dice. If both dice
       show the same number (doubles), that number is moved four times.
       So, with a roll of 3-3, the player has to make four moves of 3
       points each.  One piece or any combination of up to four pieces
       may be advanced with this roll.

           A player cannot pass a turn and must use the entire roll if
       it can be legally played. Either die may be played first, but if
       only one die can be played, and there is a choice, then the
       higher-numbered die must be used.


       MOVING  -  Only pieces of one color may occupy the same point. A
       piece may be moved to a point where there are no other pieces, or
       it may land on a point having other matching pieces. A player may
       have any number of his own pieces on one point.  Pieces may also
       be moved to a point containing one opposing piece (a blot). That
       piece is then considered hit and placed on the bar.

           A player may not move to a point having two or more of the
       opponent's pieces (a blocked point). A player's piece may move
       past points blocked by the opponent, but may not even stop in
       passing on such a point when using both dice to move one piece.












           A piece on the bar must be re-entered before any other move
       can be made. It is put back into play in the opponent's home
       board. The dice determine on which points the player may attempt
       to enter. For example, in "Championship Backgammon", with a roll
       of 3-1, the player may land on the 1st point (the 24 point) or
       the 3rd point (the 22 point) in the computer's home board. If
       points are blocked and re-entering is not possible, the player
       loses his turn.


       BEARING OFF  -  When a player has all of his pieces in his home
       board, he may start to bear off (take off pieces). One piece may
       be removed from each point corresponding to the number rolled.
       With a roll of doubles, up to four pieces can be taken off in one
       turn. If the player rolls a number higher than the points any of
       his remaining pieces are on, the piece on the next highest point
       may be taken off. For example, if a player has 4 pieces left, one
       each on the 01,02,03 and 06 points and rolls a 5-5, the piece on
       the 06 point would have to be played to the 01 point and then 3
       pieces could be taken off (1 from the 03 point, 1 from the 02
       point, and 1 from the 01 point). While bearing off, if a player's
       piece is hit by the opponent, that player cannot continue to bear
       off until all his pieces are again in his home board. The first
       player to bear off all his pieces wins the game.


       DOUBLING  -  The doubling cube begins the game with a value of
       one. However, if a player feels he has an advantage during the
       game, he can double the stakes by turning the cube before he
       rolls, offering it to his opponent. The opponent may refuse the
       offer of the cube and thereby concede the game which would be
       worth the previous number of points shown on the cube. On the
       other hand, he may choose to accept the cube, thereby doubling
       the number of points being played for and retaining possession of
       the cube. The opponent alone would have the next opportunity to
       redouble, again turning the cube to the next highest number, and
       giving the first player the same options. The game may therefore
       end in one of two ways: either being played to its natural
       conclusion or having the doubling cube offered and refused.


       SCORING  -  A game may be worth  1, 2 or 3 points. A score of 1
       point is given to the winner of a standard game. However, if a
       player wins before his opponent bears off any pieces, he wins a
       "gammon" worth 2 points. If, in addition to having borne off no
       pieces, the opponent has one or more pieces on the bar or in the
       winner's home board, he loses a "backgammon" worth 3 points. This
       score is multiplied by the current value of the doubling cube to
       determine the total number of points won in each game. Points won
       are totaled and, if desired, matches may be played to a fixed
       number of points (example: 1st player to 7 points wins).

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