Multi-Gam

1. Equipment

• The Board: A quarter backgammon board consisting of 6 points (numbered 1 to 6).
• The Goal: There is an OFF area (beyond Point 6) and a BAR area (Point 0).
• The Pieces: 4 Players. Each player has 5 Checkers.
• The Dice: 2 standard six-sided dice.

2. Setup

• All 20 checkers (5 per player) begin on the BAR.
• Players are designated Player 0, 1, 2, and 3. Play proceeds clockwise.

3. Object of the Game

• Move all 5 of your checkers from the BAR, through points 1–6, to the OFF area.
• The game continues until 3 players have finished.
• Scoring (Reverse Prime):
  • 1st Place: 5 Points
  • 2nd Place: 3 Points
  • 3rd Place: 2 Points
  • 4th Place: 1 Point

4. Starting the Game (The High/Low Split)

• All players roll one die.
• The player with the highest roll goes first.
  • Tie-breaker: If there is a tie for highest, only the tied players re-roll.
• The First Turn: The starting player does not roll two fresh dice. Instead, their roll consists of:
  1. The Highest die (the one they won with).
  2. The Lowest die currently visible on the table (from the losing players).
  • Note: This guarantees no doubles on the first turn.

5. Movement

• On their turn, a player rolls two dice.
• Each die constitutes a separate move. You may use them on the same checker or different checkers.
• Doubles: If you roll doubles (e.g., 3-3), you play the number four times.
• Direction: All players move in the same direction: Bar → 1 → 2 → 3 → 4 → 5 → 6 → OFF.

6. Legal Moves & Blocking

• A checker may move to a point corresponding to the die roll (Current Point + Die).
• The Prime Rule (Blocking): You cannot land on a point occupied by 2 or more opponent checkers (a “Prime”).
  • Note: Primes are owned by a specific opponent. You cannot co-habit a point with an enemy.
• Friendly Stacking: You may stack as many of your own checkers on a point as you wish.

7. Hitting (The Bowling Ball Rule)

• The Blot: A point occupied by exactly 1 opponent checker is called a “Blot.”
• The Hit: If you land on an opponent’s Blot:
  1. The opponent’s checker is sent immediately to the BAR.
  2. Your checker occupies the point.
• Note: Hitting is mandatory if it is the only legal move, but otherwise optional if other moves exist.

8. The Bar (Jail)

• If you have checkers on the Bar, you must attempt to enter them onto the board (Points 1–6).
• The “Loose Bar” Rule: Unlike standard backgammon, you are NOT required to clear your Bar before moving other pieces.
  • If you roll a 6 and a 1: You may use the 1 to enter from the Bar, and then use the 6 to move that same checker (or another checker) further.
  • This enables the “Snipe”: Enter on Point 6 -> Move to OFF in a single turn.

9. Bearing Off

• You may bear off a checker if you roll a number that lands it exactly in the OFF area (Point 7).
• Overshoot Rule: You may use a die roll higher than necessary to bear off (e.g., rolling a 6 to clear Point 5) ONLY IF you have no other checkers further away from the exit (on lower-numbered points or the Bar).
• You do not need to clear your Bar before bearing off other pieces.

10. Game End

• As soon as a player bears off all 5 checkers, they are locked into their finishing rank.
  • Their remaining turns are skipped.
• The game ends when the 3rd player finishes. The remaining player automatically takes 4th place.