In astonishingly general terms, there are 3 main techniques employed. You need to be agile enough to hop between tactics instantly as the course of the match unfolds.

The Blockade

This is composed of building a 6-deep wall of checkers, or at least as deep as you might manage, to block in the competitor’s pieces that are on your 1-point. This is judged to be the most acceptable tactic at the start of the match. You can assemble the wall anywhere between your 11-point and your two-point and then shuffle it into your home board as the game advances.

The Blitz

This is comprised of locking your home board as quick as as you can while keeping your challenger on the bar. e.g., if your opposer rolls an early two and moves one piece from your 1-point to your three-point and you then roll a five-five, you will be able to play 6/1 6/1 eight/three eight/three. Your opponent is then in serious dire straits because they have 2 pieces on the bar and you have closed half your inner board!

The Backgame

This tactic is where you have 2 or higher pieces in your competitor’s inner board. (An anchor is a point occupied by at least two of your checkers.) It should be employed when you are extremely behind as it greatly improves your circumstances. The strongest locations for anchors are close to your opponent’s smaller points and either on abutting points or with a single point in between. Timing is crucial for an effective backgame: besides, there is no point having 2 nice anchors and a complete wall in your own home board if you are then forced to break down this straight away, while your opponent is moving their pieces home, seeing that you do not have other spare pieces to shift! In this situation, it’s better to have pieces on the bar so that you are able to preserve your position up until your opposer provides you an opportunity to hit, so it will be an excellent idea to attempt and get your challenger to hit them in this case!