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In astonishingly simple terms, there are 3 chief strategies used. You must be able to switch techniques quickly as the action of the match unfolds.

The Blockade

This is composed of creating a 6-thick wall of checkers, or at a minimum as thick as you are able to achieve, to barricade in your opponent’s checkers that are located on your 1-point. This is considered to be the most adequate strategy at the start of the game. You can build the wall anywhere within your 11-point and your two-point and then shift it into your home board as the game advances.

The Blitz

This is composed of locking your home board as quickly as possible while keeping your competitor on the bar. i.e., if your competitor tosses an early two and moves one piece from your 1-point to your 3-point and you then roll a 5-5, you can play 6/1 6/1 eight/three eight/three. Your opponent is now in big-time difficulty taking into account that they have 2 checkers on the bar and you have closed half your inside board!

The Backgame

This tactic is where you have two or more anchors in your competitor’s home board. (An anchor is a point consisting of at least two of your checkers.) It needs to be employed when you are significantly behind as it greatly improves your chances. The best places for anchors are close to your opponent’s lower points and either on adjacent points or with a single point in between. Timing is integral for a powerful backgame: at the end of the day, there is no reason having 2 nice anchor spots and a solid wall in your own home board if you are then required to dismantle this straight away, while your opposer is moving their checkers home, owing to the fact that you don’t have any other additional pieces to move! In this case, it is more tolerable to have pieces on the bar so that you are able to preserve your position up until your challenger provides you a chance to hit, so it will be an excellent idea to attempt and get your challenger to hit them in this case!