Logic Masters Deutschland e.V.

I am back after 5 years! I have been been sidelined by work, life and...backgammon, a beautiful game. I was inspired on a long flight to create a puzzle combining two of my great passions (why should Chess variants have all the fun?). I apologize for the long post, but I want everyone to have the same basic background knowledge. I hope you all enjoy. Or I hope there are at least a few backgammon enthusiasts out there who do :)

The first step to becoming a strong Backgammon player is to learn how to play the best opening rolls: 6-5, 6-1, 5-3, 4-2, 3-1. The chart below shows you how it's done.

Rules: Find nine non-overlapping 3×3 boxes hidden in the grid. Fill each box with the digits 1–9, once each. Digits cannot repeat in any row or column. Cells outside the 3x3 boxes are unused. Each opening roll (6–5, 6–1, 5–3, 4–2 and 3–1) is "played" exactly once by either red or blue, as shown in the opening diagrams above. Each play starts independently from the printed position. Exactly six distinct starting "checkers" are used, assigned the digits 1–6 in some order. A moved checker’s starting and destination cells must both lie inside boxes and contain the same digit. For example, blue playing 6–5 requires R2C12 = R6C1. When two checkers make a point, their digits may occupy the two destination cells in either order.

Exactly five "dice" pairs lie inside the boxes, showing the five opening rolls once each, with the digits in either order. Digits on thermometers strictly increase from the bulb end. Cells joined by a black dot have a 2:1 ratio. Each dice pair, thermometer, and pair of cells joined by a black dot must lie entirely inside or entirely outside the boxes. Clues may cross between boxes but cannot include both used and unused cells. Clues outside the boxes are ignored.

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