The Different Backgammon Variants and How They Are Played
Being a complex game apart from being one that is also very much popular and widely played all across the countless countries and societies all around the world, it is hardly surprising that the game of backgammon has numerous games under it that can be considered as its variants. Variants are games that are more or less the same with their parent games but they feature certain distinct rules and customs that distinguish them apart.
Of all the variants of backgammon that are in existence, Acey-Deucey is perhaps that one that is most distinguishable from all the rest due to its rather peculiar rules. This is because in Acey-Deucey, all of one's game pieces start off the game board and they enter and move in it in very much the same way that game pieces move in the regular version of backgammon.
Another aspect that makes it unique is the fact that one's game pieces enter and start off in the opponent's side of the board and they have to get into one's home board in order for them to be bore off the board. Because the game starts with the pieces off the board, this variant can be quite lengthier than the regular way of playing the game.
Another widely played backgammon variant is the hyper-backgammon variation of the board game. In this version, each player has only three game pieces under their command with each piece placed on the points numbered 22, 23, and 24. The doubling cube, a paraphernalia whose use is entirely optional, is required in the revised rules of this variant. The Jacoby rule is also in place in matches involving this particular variation.
One variant that can be considered as unique to a certain area is the Tapa version of backgammon. This incarnation of the popular board game has its roots in Bulgaria and Macedonia which makes it hardly surprising that this variant is almost the only way that backgammon is played there. Tapa adopts most of the rules and regulations that are in place in the regular version of the game aside from one essential departure from the normal rules. In Tapa, a game piece is not taken out when hit by the opponent. Rather, the piece that hit it would be put on top of the game piece that has been hit thereby creating a point.
These variants all offer backgammon players some alternative to the normal way that the game is played thereby providing them with refreshing experiences that can broaden their understanding of the game and reinvigorate their interests for it.
