Backgammon Glossary Dictionary: D

Dance: [From the action a player makes as he reaches to enter his checker, then pulls his arm back when he notices the numbers are blocked.] To throw numbers which fail to enter a checker from the bar.
Dead Checker: A spare checker deep in the player’s home board where it serves no useful purpose. See: Bury a Checker.
Dead Cube: A doubling cube with no further doubling value. In match play, the cube is said to be dead when the player owning the cube has no reason to double. For example, a player who owns a 2-cube when he is two points away from winning the match will never double because he can win the match with the cube at its current level.
Dead Man: Dead checker.
Dead Number: A specific number on the dice which cannot be played in the current position; see kill a number.
Decline a Double: Refuse a double.
Deep: On a low-numbered point, usually the one-point or two-point.
Deep Anchor: An anchor on the opponent’s one-point or two-point.
Deuce: A rolled die showing the number 2.
Deuce-Point: Traditional name for the two-point.
Dice: [Plural of die.] Two small cubes, each with faces marked with spots (pips) representing the numbers 1 to 6. Dice for backgammon usually have rounded corners so they roll more easily. You throw a pair of dice at the start of each turn, and move your checkers according to the numbers thrown.

Dice Combination: One of the 36 possible rolls using two dice.
Dice Cup: A container, often of leather or plastic, used for shaking and rolling dice. Dice cups often have a ridge around the inside of the open end designed to “trip up” the dice as they leave the cup. Dice cups make dice manipulation harder and help ensure randomness of the rolls.

Dice Manipulation: Any unfair means used to influence the roll of the dice. See post by Kit Woolsey.
Dice Mechanic: A person skillful in the use of unfair means to control the dice.
Die: Singular of dice.
Digital Clock: An electronic chess clock with digital displays showing the time remaining for each player. A display shows 00:00 when a player has run out of time. Digital clocks typically have a time delay feature which makes them particularly well suited for backgammon. Compare: Analog Clock.

Dilly Builder

A spare checker which bears only on points deep in a player’s home board.

Direct Hit

A hit using the number on just one die. You must be within six points of a blot to be able to hit it directly. Compare: Indirect Hit.

Direct Range

Reachable using a single number from one die. For example, a blot is in direct range of being hit if it is six points or less away from an opposing checker.

Direct Shot

A chance to hit a blot six points or less away using a single number from one die.

Disengage

To break all contact and turn the game into a pure race.

Disjointed Position

A position that is poorly connected, in which a player’s army is divided into two or more groups with large gaps between them.

Diversification

The spreading out of your checkers to increase the number of good rolls on your next turn. See post by Simon Woodhead. Compare: Duplication.

Division

One of the sections in a tournament into which players are divided according to their ability and experience. For example, a tournament might have a novice division, an intermediate division, and an open division.

DMP

Double match point.

Double

An offer made by one player to his opponent during the course of a game (just before the player rolls the dice) to continue the game at twice the current stakes. The opponent may refuse the double, in which case he resigns the game and loses the current (undoubled) stakes. Otherwise, he must accept the double and the game continues at double the previous stakes. A player who accepts a double becomes owner of the cube and only he may make the next double in the same game.

Double Bump

Double hit.

Double Direct Shot

Double shot.

Double Ducks

The roll of 2-2 on the dice (double 2’s).

Double Elimination

A tournament format in which a competitor continues playing until he has lost twice. Compare: Single Elimination.

Double Game

Gammon.

Double Hit

To hit two opposing blots on one turn.

Double Jeopardy

Potential for awkward rolls both next turn and the turn after.

Double Match Point

A match in which both players need just one more point to win.
A game in which the doubling cube has reached a high enough level that a win by either player also wins the match.

Double Oneself Out

To offer a double which, if accepted, will win the match for that player if he goes on to win the game.

Doubler

Doubling cube.

Doubles

Two thrown dice with identical numbers on their upper faces.

Double Shot

One blot which can be directly hit two different ways, or two blots each of which can be directly hit one way. Compare: Single Shot.

Doublets

Doubles.

Doubling Block

Doubling cube.

Doubling Cube

A cubical block, slightly larger than a regular die, with the numbers 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, and 64 marked on its faces. It is used for keeping track of the increase in stakes of the game and the player who next has the right to double. The cube starts in the middle with the number 64 facing up (representing a value of 1). When you offer a double, you turn the cube to its next higher value and pass it to your opponent. If he accepts your double, he places the cube on his side of the board and becomes the owner of the cube.

Doubling on the Come

Offering a double in anticipation of a good roll.

Doubling Window

The range of game winning chances which are both a proper double and a proper take.
The range of game winning chances which would be a proper double and a proper take if neither player could use the cube again.

Draw

The random pairing of competitors in a tournament to determine who will play whom or who will get byes.

Drop

Refuse a double.

Dropper

[From the server message: Player xxx drops connection.] A player on a backgammon server who avoids a reduction to his rating by intentionally leaving a match he is about to lose before the result recorded.

Drop Point

The maximum game winning chances at which it is correct for a player to refuse a double; the point at which a player is equally well off accepting a double or refusing a double; take point.

Drop-Take

In a chouette, an agreement between two players after a double by the box that one player will accept the double, the other will refuse, and they will share their combined earnings or loss.

Ducks

Double ducks.

Duplicate Backgammon

A form of tournament play in which in which multiple pairs of competitors play with the same dice rolls in separate games and compare their results. See: How to Play Duplicate Backgammon.

Duplicate Dice

Using the same sequence of random rolls to roll out two or more positions being compared. The idea is that lucky rolls for one position will also tend to be lucky for the other position, so when the results are compared less of the difference will be due to luck. See post by David Montgomery.

Duplicate Tournament

See: Duplicate Backgammon.

Duplication

A position in which the same number can be used in more than one way. For example, when your opponent can use a 5 to hit either of two blots, his 5’s are said to be duplicated. All else being equal, a position which duplicates the opponent’s good numbers is better than one which does not because it means the opponent has fewer good rolls in total. See post by Simon Woodhead.

Dutch Backgammon

A backgammon variant in which the players start with all their checkers off the board. See: How to Play Dutch Backgammon.

Dyscommunication

[Coined by Danny Kleinman in Double Sixes from the Bar.] The negative impact on flexibility of having spare checkers exactly six pips apart.

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