Acey-deucey is a variant of backgammon

Backgammon

Backgammon is one of the oldest board games for two players. The playing pieces are moved according to the roll of dice, and players win by removing all of their pieces from the board. There are many variants of backgammon, most of which share common traits...

. Since World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, it has been a favorite game of the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

, Marine Corps, and Merchant Marine. Some evidence shows that it was played in the early 1900s aboard U.S. Navy ships. The game is believed to be rooted in the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

, Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

, or Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

, where there were variants in which the game started with pieces off the board.

Compared to standard backgammon, acey-deucey is more like a race than a strategy game. It features a differing starting position, opening play, and rules for the endgame. Because pieces may be retained in one's opponent's home board, the game offers substantial opportunities for backgame play.

Initial setup

The components of acey-deucey match those of backgammon, including identical boards, number of pieces, and dice. Unlike standard backgammon, all of both players' pieces are off the board when the game begins. Acey-deucey does not use the doubling cube.

Opening play

The initial play is markedly different from that of standard backgammon. Pieces are entered onto the opponent's inner board as if they were on the bar. Once a piece has been entered, it can be moved even though other pieces haven't been entered. One strategy in the game is to keep one man, called an "Oscar" off the board until it is needed for defensive purposes.

Play

Play passes back and forth, with each player rolling both dice.

A player who rolls doubles may move a total of four times, each move traversing as many spaces as the rolled amount (two fives rolled result in four moves of five points each). After rolling these doubles, the player takes another turn.

If a player rolls an acey-deucey (= a 1 and a 2), he plays the 1-and-2; then he chooses any number from 1 to 6 and acts as if had just thrown a double of it; then he takes another turn.

After the opening, gameplay is nearly identical to that of backgammon, with some notable differences:

1. Upon rolling doubles or acey-deucey, the player must roll and move again.
2. A roll of acey-deucey counts as a 1-2, and as doubles of the player's choice.
3. Upon reaching one's own home board, a piece may not be moved again until all others have arrived.
4. An exact roll is required to bear off.
5. A player can move pieces even if he has pieces on the bar.

Terminology

The terminology of acey-deucey is somewhat different from that of backgammon. The initial rolling of one die is called the peewee or piddle. The bar is the fence, and a single man is kicked rather than hit. The opponent's inner table is called the entering table or starting quarter, and one's own inner table is the finishing quarter.

Variants

Variants of the above rules exists that makes the game more restrictive.

1. Upon rolling acey-deucey, the player does not choose the doubles for his next move. Instead, he rolls one die and uses that number for the doubles choice
2. If a player rolls acey-deucey but is unable to utilize both the 1 and 2 (most likely because he is blocked), his turn ends. He does not get any doubles, and he does not get another roll.
3. If a player rolls doubles but is unable to utilize all 4 moves (most likely because he is blocked), his turn ends. He does not get another roll. This rule also holds for doubles following an acey-deucey
4. Pieces may be freely moved inside one's home (bear-off) area until all other pieces have arrived. This is the opposite from the description above
5. Once all pieces have arrived to the player's home area, they may not move any more.
6. Unlike regular backgammon, you may only bear off pieces that exactly match the dice roll. For instance, if the 6 and 5 points are open and you roll a 6-5, you may not use that roll to bear off a checker from the 4-point.
7. Pieces may be only moved from the bar upon rolling doubles.
8. The ability to take extra rolls for doubles and acey-deucey during bearing off have the same rules stated above. If you roll an acey-deucey but cannot bear off a checker from both the 1-point and the 2-point, you are not entitled to a roll for doubles or another turn. If you roll a 6-6 and only have three checkers on your 6-point to bear off, you may not take another turn (although you can bear off the three checkers from that point).