In exceptionally general terms, there are 3 general techniques used. You want to be agile enough to hop between game plans almost instantly as the course of the match unfolds.
The Blockade
This is composed of building a 6-thick wall of pieces, or at a minimum as thick as you can manage, to barricade in your opponent’s pieces that are located on your 1-point. This is judged to be the most acceptable tactic at the begining of the game. You can create the wall anywhere inbetween your 11-point and your two-point and then shift it into your home board as the game progresses.
The Blitz
This is comprised of locking your home board as quick as as you can while keeping your opponent on the bar. e.g., if your opposer rolls an early 2 and moves one checker from your one-point to your 3-point and you then roll a 5-5, you are able to play 6/1 6/1 8/3 8/3. Your competitor is then in serious difficulty since they have two checkers on the bar and you have locked half your inside board!
The Backgame
This strategy is where you have two or more anchors in your competitor’s home board. (An anchor is a point consisting of at a minimum two of your checkers.) It should be used when you are decidedly behind as this plan greatly improves your circumstances. The better places for anchors are close to your opponent’s lower points and either on abutting points or with one point in between. Timing is integral for a powerful backgame: after all, there is no point having 2 nice anchor spots and a solid wall in your own inner board if you are then forced to break down this right away, while your competitor is moving their checkers home, taking into account that you do not have any other extra pieces to move! In this situation, it’s better to have pieces on the bar so that you can maintain your position until your competitor provides you an opportunity to hit, so it will be a good idea to try and get your challenger to get them in this case!
September 13th, 2015
Lee
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