Double It Up

The doubling cube is an interesting variant applied to most backgammon games today. It allows you to double your points from a victory, but it also means that any following rounds will also have their points doubled. Knowing when to use the doubling cube is an important skill necessary for successful play in games where it is involved. If you use it at the wrong time, you may end up handing your opponent an advantage. If you use it at the right time, your opponent will have no choice but to accept.

Because of this, most people don't use the doubling cube unless they are sure they will win. Often, they will do so just before they start moving their checkers off the board. This is the safest way to use the doubling cube. You are almost ensure victory, and thus there is little risk in hurting yourself by doubling. However, if you are going to do so late in the game, you need to make sure that your opponent is way behind. If you're both mostly home, you probably don't want to double. Your opponent can, with just a few lucky rolls, take the advantage away from you and put you over the fire for using the doubling cube.

Sometimes, it's better to use the cube midway through the game. While this leaves open the risk that your opponent can still win, doing so may trick your opponent into worrying more about your checkers than his or her own. They may begin to concentrate on knocking your pieces off the board, and ignore moving their own pieces into their home.

The doubling cube can be used not just as a way to increase the stakes of the game, but also to trick your opponent into taking risky moves that will pay off for you instead of him or her.