Welcome to Tournament BBS BackGammon

                           written by Joe W Mahurin

                            Using door routines by
                                 Scott Baker



          This  instruction file is not intended to be a tutorial on
          backgammon,  but  only  presents  basic rules of the game.
          For  further  instruction I recommend that you read one of
          several  good  books  on  the subject.  I highly recommend
          Beginning  Backgammon  by  Tim Holland,  published  by
          Tartan  Books.




                          The Rules of Backgammon

        The game is played by two people.
        The movement of pieces is governed by the roll or two dice.
        Doubles require four plays of the number of the dice.
        No piece may be placed on a spike held by two or more of the
opponent's pieces.
        When a play lands on a spike occupied by a single man of the
opponent's, such a man is hit and must be taken from the board and placed
on the bar.
        A player that has a piece on the bar may not move any other
piece until the piece is moved off the bar.
        When taking pieces off the board to place home, you may remove
a piece from a spike corresponding to the number on a thrown dice, or
from from the highest occupied spike which is lower than the number
indicated on a die.  If a number is rolled for an unoccupied spike, no
piece in a lower spike can be taken home while a piece remains on a
higher spike.  You are not required to take a piece home if you can move
if you are able to move a piece forward on the board.
        The game is won by the player who first takes all his pieces
home.


        A gammon is won if the opponent has no taken a single piece home.
A gammon doubles the bet.
        A backgammon is won if the opponent has not taken a single piece
home, and still has one or more men on the bar.  A backgammon triples the
bet.
        The doubling cube:  a)  The number on the doubling cube shows the
multiple of the bet.  Example:  If the bet is one point, and the doubling
cube reads 4, then the actual bet is 4 points.  b)  a roll of doubles
on the dice automatically doubles the bet (increases the bet by a multiple
of two.  c)  Either player may challenge his opponent to double before he
rolls the dice.  d) You may accept or decline a double at no penalty.
e)  A gammon doubles the amount on the doubling cube.  A Backgammon triples
the amount on the doubling cube.










        The Play:

        The actual game play consists of a) moving a piece the exact
number of spikes indicated by the number on each of two dice thrown.  b)
placing a piece in your opponent's home board, on a spike that corresponds
to the number on a thrown die.  c)  taking your pieces off your opponent's
home board and putting them home.  d) when none of your, or your opponent's
pieces remain on the board, or on the bar, and all of your, or your
opponent's pieces reside in home, the game is over.  The player with all
pieces of his pieces home is declared the winner.