Here’s another $6.00 offer from ReviewMe. This time, I’m going to write a review entitled "BackgammonMasters to Send Paris Hilton a Positive Outlet during her Jail Time." BackgammonMasters.com, the online backgammon software company is preparing to send a special personalized backgammon board to Paris Hilton so she will be able to play the popular board game in style in the event she will be serving jail time. I am curious if Paris Hilton knows how to play Backgammon or if she has a time to learn how to play this game. But one thing for sure, playing this game will really entertain people who are sentenced in jail. In case Paris do not know how to play Backgammon, here’s a short tutorial from yahoo.com:

Basics:
Backgammon is a 2 player game. The four quadrants of the backgammon board are labeled as shown. The triangular-shaped spaces that the checkers occupy are known as "points." The numbers along the top and bottom of the board indicate the names of the different points. For example, the lower right point is White's 1-point, and the point where three red checkers begin is Red's 8-point.

The object of the game is to be the first player to move all of his or her checkers off the board.

Pieces:
Each player begins with 15 checkers--also called pieces or men--which are set up on a board as shown.

Getting Started:
To begin the game, each player rolls one die. High roller moves first. Each player in turn rolls two dice, then moves his or her checkers according to the numbers shown on the dice. One checker is moved the exact amount showing on one die, then another checker--or the checker that just moved--is moved the exact amount on the other die.

Doubles:
If doubles are rolled (each die shows the same number), twice the usual number of moves are taken. For example, on rolling a pair of threes, a player gets to make four moves (of three spaces each) instead of two moves. The four moves may be divided up among any number of checkers, or may all be made by a single checker.

Piece Movement:
Red's checkers move clockwise, White's counterclockwise. Checkers must always move the full amount shown on a die except when bearing off. A checker may pass over occupied points without restriction, and it may end its move on an empty space, a space occupied by other checkers of the same color, or a space occupied by a single opposing checker, which is then sent to the bar (explained in Blots and Bars). A checker may not, however, end its move on a point occupied by two or more opposing checkers.

In determining whether a move is legal, each die roll is considered to be a separate move even if the same checker moves twice. On a throw of 3-4, for example, a checker cannot move 7--even though the point that's seven away is open--if the points that are three and four away are each blocked by two or more opposing checkers.

Blots and Bars:
If a checker lands on a point occupied by a single opposing checker, which is known as a blot, the opposing checker is removed from the space and placed on the bar. The bar is the vertical strip that separates the left and right halves of the board. It's possible for a single checker to hit two blots on one turn (one with each die roll), or as many as four on a roll of doubles.

In this position, if Red throws a 4-1, the checker marked can move 1 and then 4, bumping two opposing checkers onto the bar.

A player who has one or more checkers on the bar must bring all of them back into play before moving any checkers that are on the board. A checker moves from the bar into the opponent's inner table, entering as many points from the edge as the die roll. In this position, for example, if White throws a 2-4, the checker on the bar may either use the 2 to enter at X or the 4 to enter at Y. The unused number is then used to move the same checker again or to move another checker.

A player must use both dice rolls whenever possible, and may not play one die in such a way as to make the other die unplayable if this can be avoided. A player who can only use one die must do so, and must use the die with the higher number if possible. If no legal moves are possible, a player loses his or her turn.

The Doubling Cube:
The use of a doubling cube adds another strategic dimension to backgammon. Similar in size to a die, a doubling cube has faces showing the numbers 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64. When a game begins, the cube is normally turned so the 64 is on top. At any point during the game, a player who is about to roll the dice may turn the doubling cube so that the 2 is on top and offer it to the opponent. The opponent must then decide whether to pass, thereby conceding the game, or accept, agreeing to continue playing for twice the stakes. A player who accepts a double gains control, or possession, of the cube. At any point in the game, just before rolling, the player who owns the cube may propose a redoubling of the stakes by turning it to the next higher number and offering it to the opponent, who may pass (losing the current value of the cube) or accept (agreeing to the new stakes and gaining control of the cube).

Bearing Off
Before moving any checkers off the board, a player must first bring them all into his or her inner board. After that, a die roll may be used to move a checker off the board by moving it beyond the last point on the board.

A checker does not need to move off the board by exact count; e.g., a checker on the 4-point may move off the board with a 4, 5, or a 6. However, a player must always play the full amount of a die when possible. In the following position, therefore, with a roll of 4-3, a player may not bear off a checker from either the 2 point or 1 point. Instead, the checkers on the 6-point and 5-point must both be moved (one of them 4 and the other 3).

From the Editor’s Desk:
This is the first time I wrote an article as long as this. To tell you honestly, I really do not know how to play Backgammon before but after reading some tutorials, finally I learned how to play this game. There are a lot of medium where you can play Backgammon online and offline like in your cell phone or in your computer. Playing this game is really exciting and it really gives entertainment especially in times of boredom.

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