How to Play Mahbuse

Mahbuse follows Plakoto rules, a backgammon variant where you can pin opponent checkers. Two players, fifteen checkers each, standard dice.

Setup

• White starts with all 15 checkers on point 1.
• Black starts with all 15 checkers on point 24.
• White moves toward point 25; Black moves toward point 0.
• The first game begins after a short countdown once both players join.

Movement and dice

• On your turn, roll two dice and move your checkers forward.
• You must use both dice if any legal sequence exists.
• If only one die can be used, you must use the larger die.
• If no legal move exists, the turn ends.

Pinning

• If you land on a point with exactly one opponent checker, it becomes pinned.
• A pinned checker cannot move until the checker on top moves away.
• The mother checker is the last checker left on the starting point.

Blocking

• You cannot land on a point that has two or more opponent checkers.
• You cannot move to a point where your checker is pinned underneath an opponent checker.

Bearing off

• You may bear off only when all your checkers are in your home board.
• White home board: points 19-24.
• Black home board: points 1-6.
• Exact dice are used when possible; an oversized die can bear off only when allowed by the remaining checker positions.

Scoring

• Regular win (1 point): bear off all 15 while the opponent has borne off at least one.
• Gammon (2 points): bear off all 15 while the opponent has borne off none.
• Mother checker pin (2 points): pin the opponent's mother checker after clearing your own starting point.
• Tie (0 points): both players pin each other's mother checker and both have cleared their starting points.

Match play

A match is a series of games. The first player to reach the target score wins the match. After each game, the next one starts automatically after a short pause.

Turn time

Each turn has a time limit. If the timer reaches zero before the move is completed, the current player loses the game.

More about the game: Plakoto on Wikipedia