Bear off

How it works in play

Bearing off is the last phase of every game. Once all fifteen of your checkers are home, each die removes a checker from the matching point, and a number higher than your highest occupied point takes a checker from the highest point. If a checker is hit while you are bearing off, it has to come all the way around before you may bear off again.

Related terms

• Off — A checker that has been borne off the board.
• Home board — A player’s inner table — points 1–6 from their perspective.
• Wastage — Pips lost to inefficiency in the bear-off — rolling a 6 when only a 1 was needed.
• EPC — Effective pip count — the raw pip count plus expected wastage; the standard measure in bear-off positions.
• Race — A position with no remaining contact between the two sides.

Go deeper

• Rules: bearing off
• Pip counting: effective pips and wastage
• Backgammon strategy, from first roll to bear-off

In other languages

• العربيةالإخراج (Bear off)
• ΕλληνικάΜάζεμα (bear off)
• فارسیخارج کردن (Bear off)
• עבריתהוצאת אבנים (Bear off)
• РусскийВыброс (bear off)
• TürkçeToplama (Bear off)