Backgammon is a board game for two players in which the playing pieces are moved according to the roll of dice. A player wins by removing all of his pieces from the board. There are many variants of backgammon, most of which share common traits. Backgammon is a member of the tables family, one of the oldest classes of board games in the world.
Although luck plays an important role, there is a large scope for strategy. With each roll of the dice a player must choose from numerous options for moving his checkers and anticipate possible counter-moves by the opponent. Players may raise the stakes during the game. There is an established repertory of common tactics and occurrences.
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backgammon
I like the part about the Doubling cube
To speed up match play and to provide an added dimension for strategy, a doubling cube may be put into play. A standard doubling cube is a six-sided die marked with the numbers 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64
3 of the numbers are present, just a thought ;-)
A few more things to point out:
- Variants (Variables) - The Jacoby rule. (Name says it all)
- Cheating Numerous cheating methods have been used in backgammon. These include moving the checker the wrong number of spaces; using magnetic, shaved, or weight-loaded dice; using special throws to produce the dice number desired; assistance from software or a third party.