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The Anki Method

XG2Anki

 XG
Anki

Anki is a freely available (open source) digital flashcard programme that can be downloaded for various platforms from here:
https://apps.ankiweb.net

Your desktop and mobile Anki apps can be synchronised very easily via a free Anki account:
https://ankiweb.net/account/register

The XG2Anki service developed by Rainer Birkle allows the fully automated creation of Anki decks from XG match and position files.

You can download several free decks via this website. In addition, many particularly valuable decks, such as theme decks from Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann's position database, are offered for sale. Moreover, you can purchase Anki credit packages with an attractive discount scale, which you can then use to let create Anki cards from your XG match and position files.

For latest news please check out Rainer's Facebook page:

Please browse through the screenshot gallery to get a first impression (you can use the arrow icons on top of the picture to go to the next or previous picture or you click directly on the picture to go to the next picture). The screenshots are taken from the Android version of Anki (AnkiDroid) using its dark theme (which is highly recommended because it looks so cool with the black & white XG diagrams). So with other versions/settings the Anki cards may look a bit different but should have the same content.

Back Forward
Dirk Schiemann
(click on the picture to go to the article)

This article appears in the Winter 2026 issue of PrimeTime Backgammon which provides great backgammon content to Prime members of the U.S. Backgammon Federation. Learn more about content from the current and archived issues at (click on the link below):

PrimeTime Magazine | U.S. Backgammon Federation

Super Grandmaster
Dirk Schiemann
about The Anki Method

Dirk Schiemann

BMAB Titles

BMAB

The lower your PR[1] gets, the harder it will be to lower it even further. We humans have the problem that we only have a limited amount of time available, which means that it is not enough to invest a lot of time in studying backgammon, we also need to do it in an efficient way. So we need to find a very effective method.

After receiving my BMAB[2] title Grandmaster 1 (playing a PR below 3.0) in November 2021, I was still very ambitious to aim for the next titles such as Grandmaster 0 (PR below 2.75) and even Super Grandmaster (PR below 2.50), but I realized that this would not be so easy and indeed my PR stagnated for many months.

In September 2022, I started my collaboration with my good friend Rainer Birkle, who had just developed his Anki Method (using digital flashcards). Based on my personal position database, we created many Anki decks, each deck contained 25 positions that had a common theme (e.g. 3rd roll, Leaving the Anchor, Against Backgame, etc.).

I have to admit that while I really liked the method, at first I was a little skeptical about whether it would work for me personally. I'm so glad that I gave it a try, i.e. in the summer of 2023 I first started studying the decks we created for the general public. And a bit later I had Rainer create personal decks (usually based on mistakes I made in my matches).

And what can I say? Only a few months later, in November 2023, I received the title Grandmaster 0 and just another few months later, in April 2024, I took another important step: Super Grandmaster 3 and just another few weeks later in July 2024 I got the Super Grandmaster 2 title. Together with Mochy I am now one of the only two Super Grandmasters in the world!

Do you want to lower your PR and are you ready to work for it? Then you should definitely try Rainer's Anki Method. There is a lot of free material to get you started.

Dirk Schiemann, July 2024


[1] PR = Performance Rating, human's playing strength measured by today's best backgammon software eXtreme Gammon

[2] BMAB = The Backgammon Masters Awarding Body

Does the Anki method work for Rainer?

Judge yourself! Here are Rainer's achievements since his comeback in 2019:

2022ONLINESecond place at the WBIF (International) World Consultation Championship
November 2022LIVEBMAB Title "Master 3" - Performance Rating below 6.5
2023ONLINE1st place at the WBIF (Germany) German Team Cup
August 2023LIVEBMAB Title "Master 2" - Performance Rating below 5.5
2023LIVEMember of the German team at the WBGF World Team Championship in Skopje
2024ONLINE1st place at the WBIF (Germany) German Team Championship
2024ONLINE3rd place at the WBIF (Germany) German Team Cup
2024ONLINE2nd place at the WBIF (Germany) German Individual Championship
2024ONLINE2nd place at the WBIF (International) World Team Championship
2025ONLINE2nd place at the WBIF (Germany) German Team Cup
2025ONLINE3rd place at the WBIF (Germany) German Individual Championship
December 2025LIVEBMAB Title "Master 1" - Performance Rating below 4.75
2026ONLINE1st place at the WBIF (Germany) German Individual Cup
2026LIVEMember of the German team at the WBGF World Team Championship in London

Rainer's Next Goals:
August 2026LIVEWorldchampion with the German team at the WBGF World Team Championship in London
2026 (?)LIVEBMAB Title "Grandmaster 3" - Performance Rating below 4.0

XG2Anki Video Tutorials

Please make sure to check out my tutorials on YouTube before you start!


Other XG2Anki Videos

You may also be interested in these other Anki related videos on YouTube!

Free Decks

You can start your XG2Anki experience today completely free of charge. Just click on a title to download a deck.

Please make sure to check out my YouTube tutorials (see above) first so that you know what to do with the downloaded file(s).

Title
Click on a title to download a deck!
red = new		 # of Cards
(Checker/Cube)		 Description Last Card Modified Last Deck Upload
Backgammon Match Theory 175 This deck contains a card for each gammon value and take point in a 7-point match. For all those who, like Rainer, think that gammon values and take points are very important during a match, but don't want to calculate anything at the board, this is the optimal tool to memorize this important data. 2025-05-13 2026-07-14
Neil's Numbers 18 You need a backup plan for the match scores for which you have not (yet) memorized the gammon values and take points. With Neil's Numbers you can derive the match winning chances for any match score and then calculate important metrics like gammon value and take point. 2024-06-19 2026-07-14
1st Roll 15 (15/0) With this deck you can practice your opening rolls for tournament play. Each card shows the correct moves for unlimited games, DMP, gammon-save and gammon-go! 2026-06-02 2026-07-14
Alex Eshaghian's Cube Decisions 13 (0/13) This deck contains 13 positions from Alex Eshagians's videos Doubling Decisions in a Five Point Match and Match Score Considerations for Cube Decisions. Get Alex Eshaghian's excellent book Backgammon Backgame Strategies available on Amazon and check out his fantastic YouTube channel. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
Dirk Schiemann's
Bar Split 		25 (25/0) This is an example of several theme decks that have been created from Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann's personal position database and are available for purchase. It contains 25 checker play problems where one of the options is splitting to opponent's bar point. Each card contains a link to a short video explanation by Dirk Schiemann. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
Dirk Schiemann's
To Hit or not to Hit
(Volume 1)
free sample deck 		21 (21/0) This deck contains 21 positions from Dirk Schiemann's new book To Hit or not to Hit. You can order this great book via his homepage. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
Dirk Schiemann's
Opening vs. 55 		11 (11/0) This free sample deck has been created from Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann's personal position database. It contains 11 positions from Dirk's opening decks (3rd, 4th, and 5th roll). Dirk has dicussed these positions on his YouTube channel. As the title suggests, in all 11 positions the opponent had an early 55. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
Michihito Kageyama's
Quiz Cyprus 2022 		8 (8/0) Michihito Kageyama was kind enough to allow the creation of an Anki deck from the eight difficult problems of his quiz at the 9th Merit Open in Cyprus 2022. 2026-06-11 2026-07-14
Michihito Kageyama's
Gravity Seminar Nordic Open 2023 		14 (14/0) Michihito Kageyama was kind enough to allow the creation of an Anki deck from his Gravity Seminar he held at the Nordic Open 2023. 2026-06-11 2026-07-14
Rainer's Personal Deck
Checker Play
Cube Action 		876 (731/145) These are Rainer's personal working decks. In 2024 Rainer played 255 matches and he created an Anki card for each of his
  • cube blunders (200+ millipoints)
  • checker play blunders (100+ millipoints)
  • and all of his opening mistakes (50+ millipoints)
in order to learn from his mistakes. 		2026-06-08
2026-06-02 		2026-07-14
2026-07-14
2nd Roll (Opening Replies)
free sample deck 		39 (39/0) Practice your opening replies with this free deck. Each card shows the correct moves for unlimited games, DMP, gammon-save and gammon-go! These 39 cards are not chosen randomly from the 459 cards of its big brother, the 2nd Roll deck that is available for sale below. Rather, they are the exact positions that Mochy used in his 2nd Roll seminar at the Los Angeles Open on June 15, 2025. 2026-06-02 2026-07-14
Ryuichi Shina's
Cube Action Encyclopedia
free sample deck 		54 (0/54) This free sample deck contains 3 cards from each of the first 18 volumes of Ryuichi Shina's Cube Action Encyclopedia, see description in the "Decks for Sale" section below. 2026-06-08 2026-07-14
UBC Final 2021 37 (27/10) When the UBC Finals 2021 were played, XG2Anki had not yet been born. In 2024, I decided to create this deck, even though it may seem a bit outdated. I find the positions very interesting and educational. The deck contains all the blunders made by Dirk Schiemann and Masayuki Mochizuki in the 2021 UBC Finals matches. Quiz yourself with this Anki deck and find out on which of the 37 problems you would have done better than the champions. 2026-06-02 2026-07-14
UBC Final 2022 40 (32/8) This Anki deck was created from the UBC finals match files that Marc Brockmann Olsen was kind enough to share with the backgammon community via the Backgammon Galaxy Discord server. The deck contains all the blunders made by Sander Lylloff and Masayuki Mochizuki in the matches of the UBC final 2022. Quiz yourself with this Anki deck and find out on which of the 40 problems you would have done better than the champions. 2026-06-02 2026-07-14
UBC Final 2023 34 (20/14) This Anki deck was created from the UBC finals match files that Marc Brockmann Olsen was kind enough to share with the backgammon community via the Backgammon Galaxy Discord server. The deck contains all the blunders made by Sander Lylloff and Masayuki Mochizuki in the matches of the UBC final 2023. Quiz yourself with this Anki deck and find out on which of the 34 problems you would have done better than the champions. 2026-07-14 2026-07-14
UBC Final 2024 41 (26/15) This Anki deck was created from the UBC finals match files that Máté Fehér was kind enough to share with me directly after the last match was finished. The deck contains all the blunders made by Zdenek Zizka and Masayuki Mochizuki in the matches of the UBC final 2024. Quiz yourself with this Anki deck and find out on which of the 41 problems you would have done better than the champions. 2026-06-02 2026-07-14

Decks for Sale

There are many Anki decks available for sale, e.g. Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann has created various theme decks from his personal position database. One example is the "Dirk's Bar Split" deck, which you can download for free (see above). Each deck contains 25 cards on a specific theme and costs 9 euros.

Unless otherwise stated, the Anki decks do not come with written or video explanations!

How to order?

Just send me the total price for the deck(s) via

and put the item code(s) of the deck(s)/volume(s) together with your e-mail address in the comment field of your payment. You will get the download links via e-mail latest within 48 hours, usually way earlier. Please ensure that you add rainer@xg2anki.de to your whitelist, as emails containing links are often mistakenly identified as spam. Make sure to check your spam/junk folder when you are missing a mail.

Item Code
red = new		 Price* per Item/Volume Title # of Cards per Deck/Volume (Checker/Cube) Description Last Card Modified Last Deck Upload
UBC2026C1
UBC2026C2
UBC2026C3 		29 €
39 €
5 € 		UBC Contender 2026 (San Antonio)
UBC Contender 2026 (Istanbul)
UBC Contender 2026 (Tokyo) 		625 (429/196)
955 (679/276)
95 (64/31)

These Anki decks were created from the matches that were played at the UBC contender tournaments 2026. Máté Fehér was kind enough to share with me all the match files (already analyzed in XG++ and organized in the perfect file and folder structure). The deck contains all the blunders (80+ mp) made by all the participants. Each player has its own sub deck.

Quiz yourself with this Anki deck and find out on which of the problems you would have done better than the champions.

Máté Fehér is a great guy and you should definitely check out his YouTube channel and his website:

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that these decks do also contain all the cards from the free UBC Anki deck that you can download exclusively from Máté's website!

2026-06-22
2026-06-29
2026-06-23 		2026-07-14
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MCG1
MCG2
MCG3 		19 €
24 €
29 € 		MCG's Reference Positions 120 (0/120)
167 (0/167)
328 (0/328)

Matt Cohn-Geier is a world-class Grandmaster widely considered one of the premier technical players in the game. MCG's decks are not a collection of basic, widely known reference positions (like pure 3-roll vs. 3-roll). Instead, MCG has curated critical borderline decisions. These are the precise thresholds where a position flips from a Take to a Pass, or from No Double to Double.

By using Anki to memorize these specific boundary positions, you effectively master entire categories of backgammon situations. Once you internalize the exact dividing line, you intuitively understand that any positional improvement dictates a clear action, while anything worse requires the opposite action. While the focus is on thresholds, a selection of a few clear reference positions is included to ground your understanding. Mastering these specific reference points (along with the 7-point match score matrix included for each card) is designed to drastically sharpen your over-the-board intuition.

MCG1: Bearoffs

Bearoff cube decisions are a vital technical phase of the game where even expert players frequently lack precision and bleed equity. This deck contains 120 cards featuring non-obvious bearoff structures, such as positions where one or both sides have 5-6 checkers left but are not in a pure 3-roll state. The deck is divided into four categories of study:

  • 1. Pips vs Pips: Short bearoff thresholds where both sides have minimal wastage.
  • 2. Pips vs Rolls: Positions where the low-wastage "pippish" player is on roll against a high-wastage "rollish" opponent.
  • 3. Rolls vs Pips: Positions where the high-wastage "rollish" side is on roll against a low-wastage "pippish" opponent.
  • 4. Rolls vs Rolls: Both sides have high-wastage "rollish" (from 2-roll up to 8-roll). How much positional deviation is required from the standard N-roll reference to flip the cube decision?

Each card provides score matrices for the 2-, 4- and 8-cubes in a 7-point match. By memorizing the positions in this deck, you will build the technical expertise required to handle complex bearoffs perfectly.

MCG2: Early Game

Nothing occurs more frequently than the opening game, making your early cube action absolutely critical to your overall win rate. This deck contains 166 cards dedicated to early game cube handling, specifically focusing on what happens when you start with an early doublet (from 1-1 up to 6-6). Because many transpositions are possible in the early game, these cards are organized by the strength of your board and the number of checkers on the bar.

The deck is designed to teach you exactly how many positional improvements are required to justify a cube turn, or conversely, how many assets your opponent needs before you are forced to pass. Each card features a score matrix for a 2-cube in a 7-point match. Mastering these positions will eliminate the most frequent source of cube errors in backgammon.

MCG3: Late Hits

Late hits can generate massive equity swings with a single wrong decision, yet most players aren't sensitive enough to subtle changes in a position. This 328-card deck provides the reference positions you need to calibrate your judgment on these critical decisions. Most positions feature a score matrix for a 4-cube in a 7-point match (with the remainder covering a 2-cube). The deck is organized by the net difference in checkers remaining on the board (+5 checkers) and divided into two distinct sections:

  • Containment on Roll: The defender has hit a late shot and has turned the game around. These variations isolate the exact point of progress (based on the highest remaining point and spare distribution) required to justify a double or force a pass.
  • Straggler on Roll: The attacker had a closeout and was playing for a gammon but was hit while bearing off. These cards determine exactly how undeveloped the opponent's home board must be to justify a double or force a pass when the hit side doubles from the bar.

Additionally, 198 of these cards feature the exclusive Late Hit Matrix. Starting from the original position, this tool automatically generates variations where your opponent's home board is modified so that their remaining checkers are stacked entirely on their 1-, 2-, or 3-point. The winning chances and best cube actions are displayed in a beautifully color-coded table, allowing you to instantly visualize how gaps impact your equity.

 2026-06-01
2026-07-08
2026-06-01 		2026-07-14
2026-07-14
2026-07-14
Mochy 19 € Mochy's Blunders 260 (187/73) I downloaded 100 Mochy matches from Backgammon Studio and created an Anki card for each of Mochy's blunders, for a total of 260 cards. Take a quiz on these difficult decisions and find out where you did better than the champion! Each cube action card has a score matrix which shows you the correct cube actions for all scores in a 7-point match. 2026-06-08 2026-07-14
TOB 19 € Dirk Schiemann's
Theory of Backgammon 		217 (48/169) Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann has offered 217 positions from his book "The Theory of Backgammon" as a free download on his homepage. This Anki deck was created from these 217 positions and will certainly support you in studying his monumental masterpiece. Each cube action card has a score matrix which shows you the correct cube actions for all scores in a 7-point match. If you don't have his book yet, you should buy it NOW! It is currently available in German and English.
New (2025-09-10): For all backgammon scientists out there a second(!) score matrix has been added (1.296 standard rollouts in addition to the standard XG++ analysis)! 		2026-06-09 2026-07-14
HIT1 19 € Dirk Schiemann's
To Hit or not to Hit
(Volume 1) 		227 (225/2) This deck contains all the positions from Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann's second book To Hit or not to Hit (Volume 1), which you can order via his homepage. 2026-06-10 2026-07-14
Nick1 19 € Nick Blasier's
Adjusting to Match Play 		194 (56/138) Nick Blasier was kind enough to send me the position files from his great new book "Adjusting to Match Play" to create an Anki deck from. Each cube action card has a score matrix which shows you the correct cube actions for all scores in a 7-point match. It is the perfect companion when studying his book! Of course, Nick's explanations are very educational and a must read, so visit his website and buy his great book if you don't already have it! 2026-06-11 2026-07-14
Nick2 19 € Nick Blasier's
3rd Roll Score Cubes 		292 (85/207) Nick Blasier intended to write a sequel to his excellent book "Adjusting to Match Play", which should contain all the decisions on doubling on the third roll at the most exciting scores (such as 4-way/2-way and 3-way/2-way). Unfortunately, Nick abandoned this project, but he was kind enough to send me 207 third-roll cube decisions and 85 bonus checker play files (for analysing some interesting checker plays at these particular scores) to create an Anki deck.

For all serious tournament players this is a highly valuable tool to prevent missing very early doubles at the hottest scores.

Each cube action card has a score matrix which shows you the correct cube actions for all scores in a 7-point match! You will even find some (admittedly very close) doubles at other scores then 4-way/2-way and 3-way/2-way. 		2026-06-01 2026-07-14
Michy1 19 € Michihito Kageyama's
Opening Concepts 		134 (134/0) When Michy and I met in Stockholm 2024, we had a nice chat and agreed to create Anki companion decks for all his great books. This deck contains all the positions from his first book titled Opening Concepts. Michy's books are easy to find on Amazon, they are all a must have! You should also take a look at Michy's homepage. 2026-06-08 2026-07-14
Michy2 19 € Michihito Kageyama's
Endgame Technique 		104 (104/0) This deck contains all "question" positions from Michy's second book titled "Endgame Technique". 2026-06-08 2026-07-14
Michy3 19 € Michihito Kageyama's
Back Checker Strategy 		102 (102/0) This deck contains all "question" positions from Michy's third book titled "Back Checker Strategy". 2026-06-08 2026-07-14
François 19 € François Tardieu's
Strategic Concepts 		153 (153/0) This deck contains 153 positions from François Tardieu's fantastic book Strategic Concepts in which he covers checker play problems for seven different position types (Opening, Leaving the Anchor, One Man Back, Blitz, Prime vs. Prime, Pay Now or Later and Backgame). You can get François Tardieu's book via the French Backgammon Federation, just click here. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
Simon 5 € Simon Barget
Backgammon:
The 7-Point Match 		27 (0/27) This deck contains all the positions from Simon Barget's book Backgammon: The 7-Point Match. The score matrix on each card with all the correct cube actions in a seven point match is perfect for accompanying your study of the book. And since Simon's activity spectrum is also included in the Anki cards, you can easily compare both tables side by side and really deepen your cube action skills in a 7-point match! If you're wondering why there are 17 cards and not 18, it's because one of the quiz questions has already appeared earlier in the book.

If you don't have Simon's book yet, you should get it now via his website https://simonbargetbackgammon.com.

It would have been easy to add more "random" positions, but we wanted to follow Simon's approach to explain the activity spectrum concept with as few positions as necessary. So study each card very thoroughly! Don't rush! In combination with reading Simon's explanations in the book you can hardly avoid becoming an expert cuber in a 7-point match! The deck also contains 10 positions from the two live streams on Alex's and Rainer's YouTube channels. 		2026-05-31 2026-07-14
Hal1 19 € Hal Heinrich's
Stripped 20 13 		73 (73/0) Hal Heinrich (1990 Backgammon World Champion) has extracted these positions from his match collection. This deck contains 73 checker play decisions at various match scores where the player has a stripped mid-point and 20-point. Typically you have to decide which anchor to break or to weaken your home board. Roughly half of the positions are errors made by top players with the other half from typical tournament participants.
The original analyses are XG 4-ply rollouts with 1296 to 10368 trials. The additional analyses (neutral score, DMP, gammon save and gammon go) are done as usual with XG++. 		2026-06-10 2026-07-14
CAE01
CAE02
CAE03
CAE04
CAE05
CAE06
CAE07
CAE08
CAE09
CAE10
CAE11
CAE12
CAE13
CAE14
CAE15
CAE16
CAE17
CAE18
CAE19
CAE20
CAE21
CAE22
CAE23
CAE24
CAE25
CAE26
CAE27
CAE28
CAE29
CAE30 		39 €
9 €
5 €
19 €
19 €
29 €
39 €
59 €
99 €
9 €
19 €
29 €
39 €
19 €
59 €
19 €
79 €
89 €
19 €
19 €
29 €
29 €
29 €
19 €
49 €
49 €
59 €
69 €
49 €
39 € 		Ryuichi Shina's
Cube Action Encyclopedia
(30 volumes) 		440 (0/440)
100 (0/100)
29 (0/29)
175 (0/175)
213 (0/213)
343 (0/343)
511 (0/511)
795 (0/795)
1551 (0/1551)
141 (0/141)
244 (0/244)
333 (0/333)
475 (0/475)
273 (0/273)
713 (0/713)
216 (0/216)
1039 (0/1039)
1249 (0/1249)
256 (0/256)
253 (0/253)
319 (0/319)
391 (0/391)
387 (0/387)
265 (0/265)
596 (0/596)
565 (0/565)
731 (0/731)
977 (0/977)
570 (0/570)
534 (0/534) 		Ryuichi Shina, the author of the three-volume book set Cube Action 1000 (available on Amazon), has a gigantic position database with thousands of rolled out cube action positions. I am very happy that Ryuichi agreed on using his database to create multiple Anki decks from it. Ryuichi also created a new categorization method which uses a three-part key that is saved in the title of each Anki card, so it provides you with additional filter possibilities in Anki:
  • Part 1 (starts with #) indicates the position of the defenders checkers in the back zone (doubler's home board plus his bar point):
    • Bar = 0
    • Ace Point = 1
    • Deuce Point = 2
    • ...
    • Bar Point = 7
    • No checkers in the back zone = blank (just #)
  • Part 2 (starts with Outer) describes the defenders situation in the doubler's outfield:
    • Outer(A) = Mid point present + checker(s) on points 8 to 11.
    • Outer(B) = Mid point present + no checker(s) on points 8 to 11.
    • Outer(C) = Mid point absent + checker(s) on points 8 to 12.
    • Outer(D) = Mid point absent + no checker(s) on points 8 to 12.
  • Part 3 (starts with $) roughly divides the inner points of the doubling side into two categories:
    • $a = The doubler has not lost his 6-point and is not bearing off.
    • $b = The doubler has either lost his 6-point or is bearing off.

Ryuichi's original analyses are standard XG rollouts. The additional analyses for the score matrix are done as usual with XG++.

VolumeRyuichi's CategoryDescription
CAE1#-Outer*No Man Back
CAE2#7-Outer*1 Man Back on the 18-point
CAE3#6-Outer*1 Man Back on the 19-point
CAE4#5-Outer*1 Man Back on the 20-point
CAE5#4-Outer*1 Man Back on the 21-point
CAE6#3-Outer*1 Man Back on the 22-point
CAE7#2-Outer*1 Man Back on the 23-point
CAE8#1-Outer*1 Man Back on the 24-point
CAE9#0-Outer*1 Man Back on the Bar
CAE10#77-Outer*2 Men Back on the 18-point (anchor)
CAE11#55-Outer*2 Men Back on the 20-point (anchor)
CAE12#44-Outer*2 Men Back on the 21-point (anchor)
CAE13#33-Outer*2 Men Back on the 22-point (anchor)
CAE14#22-Outer*2 Men Back on the 23-point (anchor)
CAE15#11-Outer*2 Men Back on the 24-point (anchor)
CAE16#76-Outer* - #70-Outer*2 Men Back, one on the 18-point and one in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE17#12-Outer* - #56-Outer*2 Men Back, two blots in the homeboard
CAE18#01-Outer* - #06-Outer*2 Men Back, one on the bar and the other in the homeboard
CAE19#00-Outer*2 Men Back on the bar
CAE20#770-Outer* - #777-Outer*3 Men Back, 18-point anchor plus one extra checker in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE21#550-Outer* - #557-Outer*3 Men Back, 20-point anchor plus one extra checker in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE22#440-Outer* - #447-Outer*3 Men Back, 21-point anchor plus one extra checker in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE23#330-Outer* - #337-Outer*3 Men Back, 22-point anchor plus one extra checker in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE24#220-Outer* - #227-Outer*3 Men Back, 23-point anchor plus one extra checker in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE25#110-Outer* - #117-Outer*3 Men Back, 24-point anchor plus one extra checker in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE26#000-Outer* - #457-Outer*3 Men Back, three blots in the homeboard or on the bar
CAE27Back≥4-&12* - Back≥8-&2345*4 or more Men back, 2 or more anchors (backgames)
CAE28Back≥4-&* - Back≥4-&7*4 or more Men back, 1 or no anchor
CAE29Late Hit
CAE30Bear Off and Race
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CAE100 19 € Ryuichi Shina's
Cube Action Encyclopedia
(100 individually selected cards) 		100 (0/100)

Anyone who felt that over 14,000 cards (CAE1 - CAE30) were too many to handle effectively now has the option to work through them in smaller sets. Before you place your order (and make a payment), please let me know by e-mail (rainer@xg2anki.de) what types of positions you'd like to learn, and I'll make a recommendation.

I will use my Filter Builder Tool to create your individual CAE deck. Feel free to take a look at this tool to get an idea about what kind of filters are possible. "Doubling in the opening phase with a two-point board and the opponent has one checker on the bar." would be just one example of thousands of possibilities.

Disclaimer: Please keep in mind that you may get some duplicate cards if you already own one or more volumes of Ryuichi Shina's Cube Action Encyclopedia or if you have ordered one or more CAE100 individual decks before!

New: Catherine Seale had the - in my opinion - brilliant idea of creating CAE100 decks in which each position type corresponds to one of the chapters in Kit Woolsey's excellent two-volume book series, "The Backgammon Encyclopedia" (which contains cube reference positions).

I immediately started working on that idea, here are the first few CAE100 decks inspired by Kit Woolsey's cube reference positions in his "Backgammon Encyclopedia". You can also download each Anki filter and apply it to your Anki collection, just to see which cards of your Anki collection already match.

CAE100KIT01Early AdvantageThe Backgammon Encyclopedia - Volume 2Download Filter
CAE100KIT02The Semi-Blitz
(no man on the bar)		The Backgammon Encyclopedia - Volume 2Download Filter
CAE100KIT03The Semi-Blitz
(one man on the bar)		The Backgammon Encyclopedia - Volume 2Download Filter
CAE100KIT04One Man BackThe Backgammon Encyclopedia - Volume 2Download Filter

Disclaimer: These decks do not contain the original positions from Kit's books! The decks were created by applying a filter to the CAE1-30 decks; the filter was designed to reflect the position type as accurately as possible.

ECPE 29 € Ryuichi Shina's Endgame Checker Play Encyclopedia 1107 (1107/0) The bear off phase in the endgame is a crucial part that determines the outcome, but there are positions and dice rolls that make it difficult to play accurately. Ryuichi Shina, the author of the three-volume book set Cube Action 1000 (available on Amazon), has created this deck to help avoid costly errors. By memorizing many bear off positions with this deck, your winning rate will surely improve. In all positions you are bearing off against contact and have to find the correct move. The analyses are done with XG++. Each card shows the correct moves for unlimited games, DMP, gammon-save and gammon-go! The 1108 cards are divided into different subdecks, so that you can, for example, specifically train the bear off against the 1-point game, 2-point game, 3-point game, 4-point game, 5-point game, backgames, single blots and double blots. 2026-06-10 2026-07-14
PCPE 29 € Ryuichi Shina's Prime vs. Prime Checker Play Encyclopedia 1000 (1000/0) In a "prime versus prime" situation, not only can the cube action be very difficult, but also the checker play decisions can be very tricky and mistakes can happen very quickly. Ryuichi Shina, the author of the three-volume book set Cube Action 1000 (available on Amazon), has created this deck to help you getting used to these kind of complex decisions. In more than half of the positions the second-best move is already a blunder! The analyses are done with XG++. Each card shows the correct moves for unlimited games, DMP, gammon-save and gammon-go! The 1000 cards are divided into 4 different subdecks where the second-best move is already:
  • a blunder (80 mp+) [577 cards]
  • a half blunder (40-79 mp) [314 cards]
  • an error (20-39 mp) [104 cards]
  • an inaccuracy (1-19 mp) [5 cards]
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RCPE1
RCPE2
RCPE3
RCPE4 		39 €
39 €
19 €
19 € 		Ryuichi Shina's
Checker Play Encyclopedia
by Roll Number 		1401 (1401/0)
1268 (1268/0)
778 (778/0)
690 (690/0) 		Ryuichi Shina, the author of the three-volume book set Cube Action 1000 (available on Amazon), created these decks from his personal position database and grouped the cards by the roll number of the game the position came from. Ryuichi Shina uses these decks for his daily checker play practice by studying the positions whose roll number matches the current day of the month. This way his daily training varies from day to day and each day the positions have some kind of common theme. These decks also include positions where the original move is only a very small error, 0.001+ up to the 6th roll and 0.020+ from the 7th roll onward (as well as larger errors of course). It is intended as a collection of positions for those who want to challenge themselves in the world of BMAB / Win and Skill competitions, where astonishingly precise play has been required in recent years. The analyses are done with XG++. Each card shows the correct moves for unlimited games, DMP, gammon-save and gammon-go!
  • RCPE1 Opening to Early Middlegame Roll #2 - #10 [1401 cards]
  • RCPE2 Middlegame Roll #11 - #20 [1268 cards]
  • RCPE3 Middlegame to Endgame Roll #21 - #30 [779 cards]
  • RCPE4 Very Late Stage of the Endgame Roll #31+ [690 cards]
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OPRE 19 € 2nd Roll (Opening Replies) 464 (464/0) Practice your opening replies with this powerful tool. Each card shows the correct moves for unlimited games, DMP, gammon-save and gammon-go! 2026-06-08 2026-07-14
EMC1
EMC2 		9 € / per volume Early Match Cubes
(2 Volumes) 		25 (0/25) / per volume Each volume contains 25 early cube decisions. Each card has a score matrix which shows you the correct cube actions for all scores in a 7-point match. 2026-06-02
2026-06-02 		2026-07-14
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D3rd1
D3rd2
D3rd3
D3rd4
D3rd5
D3rd6 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
3rd Roll
(6 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume It is very important to find the correct moves in the very early stages of the game simply because these positions come up over and over again. The positions in these decks deal with typical problems in the opening, for instance: "Should I hit or rather make an important point? Should I escape with one of my back checkers or play for contact? Should I split my back checkers or should I rather try to improve my front position?".
Note that all the positions are the result of correct checker plays on the two previous moves. In that sense they are "realistic" positions.

New (May, 2025): Dirk has tagged every card manually to allow advanced filtering to make the Anki training even more effective. You find the complete list of tags and some examples for filters in the section Dirk's Tags below. 		2026-06-11
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D4th1
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D4th6
D4th7
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D4th9
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D4th11
D4th12 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
4th Roll
(12 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume Like in the 3rd roll positions it is your second decision of the game but, unlike before, your opponent has already made two moves which generally leads to more complex decisions.

New (May, 2025): Dirk has tagged every card manually to allow advanced filtering to make the Anki training even more effective. You find the complete list of tags and some examples for filters in the section Dirk's Tags below. 		2026-06-11
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D5th1
D5th2
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D5th5
D5th6 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
5th Roll
(6 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume It is your third decision of the game after both sides have already made two moves which often leads to more complex middle game decisions.

Dirk has tagged every card manually to allow advanced filtering to make the Anki training even more effective. You find the complete list of tags and some examples for filters in the section Dirk's Tags below. 		2026-06-01
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DAB 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Against Backgame 		25 (25/0) Playing against a backgame is difficult. The positions from this deck deal with the most common problems like: "Should I hit additional checkers? Should I try to get hit in order to destroy my opponent's timing? Should I keep my prime in front of my opponent's anchors or should I start breaking it?" 2026-06-08 2026-07-14
DBI1
DBI2 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
Bear In
(2 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume Many avoidable mistakes are made in the late stages of the game. Typical questions in the bear in stage are which points you should clear first, how to distribute your checkers, or whether you should take some risk to achieve more flexibility. 2026-06-08
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DBO 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Bear Off 		25 (25/0) With this deck you can improve you bear off technique. In some positions it is only about maximum safety while in others you have to decide how much risk you should take in order to win more gammons. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
DCO1
DCO2 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
Contact
(2 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume When trailing in the race by a lot, you need to hit an opposing checker to win. It is therefore desirable to create as much contact as possible. How much risk you can take in order to maximize contact is one of the main topics in these decks. 2026-06-08
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DHL 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Hit Loose 		25 (25/0) One of the most common decisions in backgammon is whether to hit loose in your homeboard. When the play works, you can often improve your position significantly. However, by hitting loose you expose yourself at least to a direct shot. After a return hit you will lose a lot of ground in the race and your position will deteriorate. The positions of this deck should give you a feel when taking the risk is warranted and when it is not. 2026-06-11 2026-07-14
DHLV 20 € Dirk Schiemann's
Hit Loose Video 		Video explanations by Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann for the Anki deck "Dirk's Hit Loose". Take a look at the free "Dirk's Bar Split" deck to see the video links in action.

Important: The tutorial video is explicitly unlocked for your YouTube account. For this, we need your e-mail address with which you are registered at YouTube.
DHD 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Homeboard Distribution 		25 (25/0) When you play against XG you will notice that the machine sometimes leaves multiple blots in its home board. In other occasions, however, it avoids a blot at all costs. The deck deals with the question when to do one thing and when the other. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
DHA1
DHA2
DHA3 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
How to Attack
(3 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume In the positions of these decks it is clear that you should make an attacking play. The question is how to do it. Do you hit twice? Do you hit loose or play pick and pass? Do you switch points? 2026-06-08
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DLA1
DLA2 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
Leaving the Anchor
(2 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume Establishing an advanced anchor is among the top priorities in the early game. At some point in the game, however, you will have to break your anchor and try to get your checkers home. This usually involves considerable risks, and thus makes it difficult to find the right time for abandoning the anchor. The positions in these decks illustrate the factors that influence the decision. 2026-06-11
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DMP 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Midpoint 		25 (25/0) The mid-point is a crucial link between your back checkers and the front part of your position. The topic of this deck is under which circumstances you may nevertheless need to give it up. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
DOB 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
One Back Step Up 		25 (25/0) Getting your lone back checker to safe territory is usually your top priority, especially when you are leading in the race. Stepping up in your opponent's home board gets the checker closer to home but comes with the risk of it being attacked. Whether you should expose yourself to the attack or whether you should stay back is the topic of this deck. 2026-06-11 2026-07-14
DOC 15 € Dirk Schiemann's
Opening Cubes 		50 (0/50) This deck contains Dirk's collection of reference positions for cubes in the early game. In each of these positions the doubling side has made no more than two moves. Dirk not only uses them to study by how much you should deviate at certain match scores but also to practice estimating wins and gammons for both sides.
New (Spring, 2026): For all backgammon scientists out there a second(!) score matrix has been added (1.296 standard rollouts in addition to the standard XG++ analysis)! 		2026-06-11 2026-07-14
DPAY 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Pay Now or Later 		25 (25/0) When your opponent is playing a holding/backgame, you are often faced with the decision whether to volunteer a shot in order to reduce contact or whether to play safe. The positions in this deck illustrate the different factors that play a role in these "pay now or pay later" decisions. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
DPSL 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Prime Slot 		25 (25/0) The fastest way of extending your prime is to slot the point that you want to make and cover the blot after it gets missed. By studying the positions in this deck you can get a feel for when the risk is worth the reward. 2026-06-01 2026-07-14
DUP 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Ugly Plays 		30 (30/0) This deck is based on a lecture by Super Grandmaster Dirk Schiemann. One option in each of the positions is to make an ugly move like playing to an existing stack or killing a checker. You can learn in which situations it is necessary to play ugly but safe and listen to Dirk's explanation in the corresponding YouTube video. Each card contains a link to the exact timestamp in the video where the position is discussed, along with the comments from Dirk's PowerPoint. The deck contains all the positions from the lecture plus seven bonus positions from Dirk. And some extra positions are added in the comparable situation(s) section of some cards based on some questions by the audience. The bonus and extra positions are without explanations. 2026-06-11 2026-07-14
DWA1
DWA2
DWA3 		9 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
Whether To Attack
(3 Volumes) 		25 (25/0) / per volume In these decks the task is not to find the best way to attack but to decide whether you should attack at all. The decision can be very tricky, especially when you can either attack or prime your opponent. 2026-06-09
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DWP 9 € Dirk Schiemann's
Which Point 		25 (25/0) It frequently happens that you have the choice between different important points. For example, you could either make an advanced anchor or a good inner board point. Once you have mastered the positions from this deck, you should have a good idea which factors to consider. 2026-06-11 2026-07-14
DPS1
DPS2
DPS3
DPS4
DPS5
DPS6
DPS7
DPS8
DPS9
DPS10 		19 € / per volume Dirk Schiemann's
Personal Studies
(10 volumes available, more volumes are in the making!) 		100 (100/0) / per volume In this new series with the title "Dirk Schiemann's Personal Studies" Dirk has tagged every card manually to allow advanced filtering to make his (and your!) Anki training even more effective.
  • DPS1 Hitting 01: This deck contains 100 middlegame positions where hitting is one of several reasonable options.
  • DPS2 Anchors and Holding Games 01: This deck contains 100 holding game positions, quite often leaving the anchor must be investigated.
  • DPS3 Splitting Slotting Running 01: This deck contains 100 positions where splitting, slotting and running are reasonable options.
  • DPS4 Prime Point Distribution 01: This deck contains positions where you often have to decide which point to make. Bear off and checker distribution are also addressed.
  • DPS5 Hitting 02: This deck contains another 100 middlegame positions where hitting is one of several reasonable options.
  • DPS6 Splitting Slotting Running 02: This deck contains another 100 positions where splitting, slotting and running are reasonable options.
  • DPS7 Hitting 03: This deck contains another 100 middlegame positions where hitting is one of several reasonable options.
  • DPS8 Mixed 01: This deck contains 100 middlegame positions of various mixed types.
  • DPS9 Mixed 02: This deck contains another 100 opening/middlegame positions of various mixed types.
  • DPS10 Mixed 03: This deck contains another 100 opening/middlegame positions of various mixed types.
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*In accordance with § 19 UStG (German sales tax law), no sales tax is charged.

Dirk's Tags

In May 2025, Dirk Schiemann made his 3rd and 4th roll decks even more valuable by manually tagging every card. Here you can find a complete list of his tags. You can use these tags to filter.

The prefix "M" (for "manual") distinguishes these tags from the tags that are automatically added when creating a card (they have the prefix "X2A", in earlier versions "XG2Anki_").

Tag
 Code Description
Anchor tag:M::Anchor Making 23, 22, 21, 20, or 18 (not 24)
Break tag:M::Break Breaking a point
Break18 tag:M::Break18 Breaking the 18-point
Break20 tag:M::Break20 Breaking the 20-point
Break21 tag:M::Break21 Breaking the 21-point
Break22 tag:M::Break22 Breaking the 22-point
BreakMid tag:M::BreakMid Breaking the mid-point
Builders tag:M::Builders Moving checkers to 9, 10, or 11
Dist tag:M::Dist Distribution
Hit tag:M::Hit
HitDouble tag:M::Hit::Double
HitLift tag:M::Hit::HitLift Pick and pass
HitPoint tag:M::Hit::Point pointing
HitLoose tag:M::Hit::Loose Hitting loose on 3 or higher
HitLow tag:M::Hit::Low Hitting loose on 1 or 2
HitOppOutfield tag:M::Hit::OppOutfield
HitOwnOutfield tag:M::Hit::OwnOutfield
HitSwitch tag:M::Hit::Switch
Point tag:M::Point
3Point tag:M::Point::3Point
4Point tag:M::Point::4Point
5Point tag:M::Point::5Point
Bar tag:M::Point::Bar
PointOutfield tag:M::Point::Outfield Making the (8), 9, 10, or 11
Run tag:M::Run Run to midpoint or to your own outfield
RunOutfield tag:M::RunOutfield Run to opponent's outfield leaving a blot
Safe tag:M::Safe Safe plays like playing 13/6 or 13/8
Slot tag:M::Slot Slot that can be hit
SlotSafe tag:M::SlotSafe Slot that can't be hit
Split tag:M::Split
SplitBar tag:M::Split::Bar Split to 18
SplitBig tag:M::Split::Big Split to 21 or 20
SplitDouble tag:M::Split::Double 2 checkers on 22, 21, 20, or 18
SplitSmall tag:M::Split::Small Split to 23 or 22
StepUp tag:M::StepUp moving up with your lone back checker
Volunteer tag:M::Volunteer pay now or later
vs55 tag:M::vs55 opponent had 55
vs66 tag:M::vs66 opponent had 66
SpecificRoll ("deck:*3rd*" OR "deck:*4th*" OR "deck:*5th*") tag:X2A::Roll::??
e.g.:
("deck:*3rd*" OR "deck:*4th*" OR "deck:*5th*") tag:X2A::Roll::33 		player has a specific roll to play (?? = roll)

Examples for Filters

You can either filter in the Anki card browser or create a filtered deck by copying one of the example codes. Please check out the topics Searching and Filtered Decks in the Anki online help.

Code Description
tag:M::RunOutfield tag:M::Split::Big Positions where making a big split and running into the outfield are options.
tag:M::Split tag:M::Slot Positions where splitting and slotting are options.
tag:M::vs55 Positions where the opponent had an early 55.


3rd Roll Master

There is a very interesting Backgammon Anki project by Kanade Kubota that is approved by Mochy (so it cannot be that bad!) which contains analyzed results of all the 3rd roll positions (23.331 positions). As a bonus it also contains a 3rd Roll chart sheet with the analyzed results of the entire 3rd roll positions. If you are a serious student of the game you should definitely check out Kanade Kubota's website. There is also a free trial version available for download!

Important note from Rainer Birkle: This is not my own project, I am not financially involved and cannot offer any support. Please always contact Kanade Kubota directly via e-mail (kuboch.sw@gmail.com).

Individual Decks

You can use the XG2Anki service to get a personal Anki deck created from your XG match and/or position files!

Basic Card Features

Additional DeLuxe Features

Important Note

Individual decks by default do not include match score matrixes!

What kind of data can be used to create individual decks?

XG Position Files (*.xgp)

This is a very straightforward way: you create an XG position file for each Anki card you want to get created. You can even add comments in XG, which are then transferred to the Anki card (plain text, without formatting). Make sure that you are already analyzing the position on the level that should later appear on the Anki card (XG++ or rollouts are recommended).

It is also possible to automatically add up to 10 comparable positions to an Anki card (only for DeLuxe cards!) by naming the XG position files according a specific naming convention, here is an example:

From these four files it would be possible to create either

XG Match Files (*.xg)

You can also send complete matches and set the following thresholds (milli point limits):

As an alternative (or addition) to defining the three thresholds cards can get created for flagged positions or positions that contain a comment.

You can even define that a position gets ignored (so that no Anki card will get created for this position) by adding the text NoAnki somewhere in the comment field. This may be useful for oversights or repeating errors!

Make sure that you are always the player on the bottom and that you are already analyzing the match on the level that should later appear on the Anki card (XG++ or rollouts are recommended).

HEROES Bookmarks

Are you using the great bookmark feature on Terje Pedersen's online playing server HEROES? If yes, you can use the export bookmarks feature on Heroes, send me the exported file (text file) and I can automatically create Anki cards for you from it! I've written a small program that uses a Heroes bookmark export file (Bookmarks.txt) to generate all the XG position files with XG++ analysis (which I can then use to automatically generate Anki cards in a second step). On Heroes, you can also use bookmarks with "::" in their names; these will later be used to generate multi-level tags in Anki. Your bookmark comment is, of course, also included in the XG file and will later appear on your Anki cards.

Recommended XG Settings for analyzing your files before sending them (XG++:)

Recommended XG Settings

How to order?

Just select one of the packages below and send me the money via

and put the code of your package together with your e-mail address in the comment field of your payment.

You can then send XG position/match files until your Anki credits have been used up. You will normally receive your new deck within a few days. If there is a lot going on at a particular time, it can take a little longer. Please ensure that you add rainer@xg2anki.de to your whitelist, as emails containing links are often mistakenly identified as spam. Make sure to check your spam/junk folder when you are missing a mail.

Important change for all Anki credits bought after 7th of July 2025: I will charge a minimum of 50 Anki credits per deck.

Prices

Basic Card = 1 Anki Credit / DeLuxe Card = 2 Anki Credits

Pro Tip: If you play matches regularly, the DeLuxe version is highly recommended. If you are hesitating because of the higher price, you should consider buying fewer DeLuxe cards rather than a larger number of Basic cards!

Since the creation of match score matrixes is quite time-consuming, it is hardly practical and/or too expensive for individual decks. For all those who are still interested, here are the match score matrix surcharges:

Code Price* Title Price per Anki Credit
ID50 20 € 50 Anki Credits Package 40 ¢
ID100 35 € 100 Anki Credits Package 35 ¢
ID200 60 € 200 Anki Credits Package 30 ¢
ID500 125 € 500 Anki Credits Package 25 ¢
ID1000 200 € 1000 Anki Credits Package 20 ¢
*In accordance with § 19 UStG (German sales tax law), no sales tax is charged.

Collaboration

Are you the author of a backgammon book and/or a BMAB grandmaster (or do you have a comparable level of playing skill) and would you like to share some interesting positions with the community?

Here's the deal: You send me the XG files (already analyzed) and I'll create an Anki deck from them and we will sell the deck exclusively via the XG2Anki website. We'll then split the sales price 50/50.

As I greatly appreciate and respect book authors and other dedicated supporters of our game, they always receive 50% of the list price, as fees and discounts are always at my expense.

Here is the list of the top players who are contributing content to the XG2Anki project so far:

Are you interested and would you like to join this exclusive group? Then contact Rainer by e-mail (rainer@xg2anki.de).

Hot News (June, 2026):

Talking about collaborations... I am very happy to announce that I have started a wonderful new collaboration in May 2026 with Frank Berger, the creator of BGBlitz.

BGBlitz Logo

Wouldn't it be great to always get a second opinion? For example, like when your doctor tells you something you don't like to hear! This second opinion, in the form of BGBlitz, is now available on all my Anki cards. The analyzing level is 4-ply with a search interval of 35 moves for checker play and 5-ply for cube action. In my opinion, BGBlitz is very similar to XG in terms of playing strength. Still, the two bots sometimes disagree. But don't get too excited just yet, because most of the time the two bots agree and chuckle at our human "creative" play.

The BGBlitz data has been created for the main XGID of each Anki card. For now there is no BGBlitz data available for the variations (like "Neutral Score", "DMP", "Gammon-Save", "Gammon-Go", "Comparable Situations" and "Score Matrixes").

Not only does each card clearly indicate whether BGBlitz matches XG or not - and you can, of course, view the BGBlitz results - but you can also perform more complex analyses by filtering by the automatically generated tags:

BGBlitz Tags available for filtering

For example, you could study only positions where the two bots agree (to avoid learning the wrong thing!?). Or you could look only at positions where the two bots disagree, which is interesting in itself.

All standard decks already include the new BGBlitz feature!

Important notice for all existing customers: Customers can redownload all the standard decks that they have bought in the past (from the section "Decks for Sale") for free via the same old links and import the decks again to add the BGBlitz data to their Anki collection. Customers who bought individual decks (via Anki Credits) can get a BGBlitz update for ALL their individual decks for a small service charge of 25 €.

Configuration (Deck Parameters)

You can influence the way each deck works via the following parameters, which you can specify in square brackets at the end of the deck name (by renaming your deck):

If you want to change the behavior of all cards of the same note type (for all XG2Anki decks), you can do so by renaming the note type in the same way (-> Tools -> Manage Note Types -> Select the entry Backgammon Position -> Rename).

Important: As soon as you have set deck parameters by renaming a deck, all deck parameters set by renaming the note type will have no effect for this deck and its subdecks anymore!

You can also set the parameters directly in the Anki cards via a new text input field in the upper right corner on the front and back side of each card.
text input field for options
Via a click on the label "Options" you will get to a description of the available parameters (this section here!). Depending on the operation system you are running Anki on, your settings will be either saved just for the current Anki session (e.g. Windows version) or permanently (e.g. AnkiDroid version). Your new settings (parameters) will take effect as soon as you load the next card.

Important: The parameters are case-sensitive, e.g. "c" (lowercase) and "C" (uppercase) are two different parameters!

Parameter Front Side Back Side Portrait Format Landscape Format Description
$ yes yes no no type in multiple-choice answer via input field instead of a clicking on one of the buttons (worth a try if the buttons do not work in your environment!)
a yes yes yes yes display match score as absolute instead of relative
b yes yes yes yes display match score as absolute AND relative (instead of just relative)
B no no yes yes show BGBlitz data automatically (instead of clicking on the BGBlitz message button)
BX no no yes yes show extended version info for the BGBlitz data
c yes no yes no hide extra data for checker play decisions (Neutral Score, Double Match Point, Gammon-Save & Gammon-Go)
C
or
C:P1:P2:P3:P4
e.g.: C:30:0:0:1 		yes yes yes yes activate the candidate list practice mode where you have to enter your candidate moves in a text field under "time pressure"
  • Parameter1: timer in seconds (number of seconds, default is 60 seconds)
  • Parameter2: show multiple-choice list (0 or 1, default is 0, which hides the multiple-choice list to make this exercise harder and more effective!)
  • Parameter3: readonly after timeout (0 or 1, default is 0, which still allows to edit the candidate list after timeout)
  • Parameter4: show move list after timeout (0 or 1, default is 0, which does not automatically show the XG solution after timeout)
Just enter the landing numbers e.g. for a double six move like 24/18(2) 13/7(2) you would enter 18 18 7 7. If you move a 43 from the mid point directly to the 6-point you would just enter 6. Enter each candidate move on a new line.
d no yes yes yes immediately show dice distribution information (instead of via button)
e no yes yes yes immediately show comparable situation(s) (instead of via button)
f no yes yes yes immediately show an additional small position diagramm at a fixed position in the upper right corner (instead of via clicking/tapping on the pipcount below the diagram)
g no yes yes yes don't repeat the original position in section with comparable situation(s)
h no yes yes yes hide appendix (extra information on the back side of a card)
i yes yes yes yes hide player info (don't show player and file names)
j no yes yes yes initially hide the results and the text for comparable situations (in order to display them later manually by clicking on the diagram of the comparable situation)
k no yes yes yes hide XG2Anki news (not recommended, because you might miss some interesting information and valuable tips!); you can always hide the news manually by clicking on the title "XG2Anki News"
knn no yes yes yes defines how often the XG2Anki news appear (default = probability of 10% = k10), k1 would show the news everytime, k2 would show the news with a probability of 50%, k3 = 33%, k4 = 25%, k5 = 20%, etc.
l no yes yes no immediately show large XG result graphics (instead of via clicking/tapping on the graphics)
m yes yes yes yes hide unlimited games info
n yes yes yes yes show names of the players below the position diagram
N no yes no yes show the notes above the diagram (instead of below the diagram)
o no yes yes no initially display the score matrix before the XG results (instead of after)
O no yes yes yes use opacity instead of split colours for borderline cases (error < 20 mp) in the score matrix
p yes no yes yes turn on pipcount trainer
P no yes yes yes when displaying the answer side (back side) initially show the final position after the best move instead of the original (starting) position
q
q1
q2 		yes no yes yes hide multiple-choice list
  • q: for checker play and cube action
  • q1: just for checker play
  • q2: just for cube action
r yes yes yes yes show roll in title
s no yes yes no scroll down to results automatically when showing the answer
t yes yes yes yes hide title
u yes yes yes yes use player names instead of Black & White
V

v 		no yes yes yes show video frame directly (instead of via click on the button)

show video frame directly (instead of via click on the button) and autoplay the video
X

x 		no yes yes yes never show the "different best moves at neutral score" hint

don't show the "different best moves at neutral score" hint for opening positions
y yes no yes yes show copy XGID button on front side as well
znn yes yes yes no zoom position diagram (e.g. "z40" = shrink position diagram to 40% of the screen width)
Znn no yes yes yes zoom comparable situation (e.g. "Z50" = shrink comparable situation to 50% of the screen width)

You can set several parameters by separating them with a semicolon.

Examples:
My Deck Name [p]
My Deck Name [p;c]
Backgammon Position [p;c]

Support

General Tip #1: Please make sure that you are always using the latest Anki version!

General Tip #2: Please make sure that you check out the official Anki Manual!

Here is a list of frequently asked questions. Please check it out and follow general tips #1 & #2 before asking for support. Thanks.

If you still have issues/questions after reading the following FAQ section, you can contact Rainer by e-mail (rainer@xg2anki.de) or Facebook.

FAQ #1: After importing a deck I see only 20 cards, but there should be more!

By default Anki offers you 20 new cards per deck every day. The easiest way to check how many cards a deck contains is this:

AnkiBrowse

FAQ #2: I have problems after importing an Anki deck on my mobile device!

Please do never import an Anki deck directly on your mobile device! Instead please always import the Anki deck via your Anki desktop application and then transfer the deck to your mobile device via Anki synchronization!

FAQ #3: Missing images on my mobile device!

Please do never import an Anki deck directly on your mobile device! Instead please always import the Anki deck via your Anki desktop application and then transfer the deck to your mobile device via Anki synchronization!

If images are still missing after Anki synchronization you should repeat the synchronization later (most likely the image upload from your desktop has not been completed yet)!

It's very important that you wait until the syncronization has really finished on your desktop device before you start the syncronization on your mobile device.

AnkiSyncronizationDesktop Make sure that the animated round arrow icon has disappeared before you start the syncronization on another device!

And also take care that the animation below the round arrow syncronization icon has disappeared before you open any cards!

FAQ #4: I have imported the same deck again, but the cards have not been updated!

Please make sure that you use the following settings when importing a deck:

AnkiImportOptions

If the issue remains, please delete the deck and import the deck again.

FAQ #5: How can I merge several decks into one single deck?

Anki allows you to easily move cards from one deck to another. Select all cards from a deck in the browse window by clicking on the first card and shift clicking on the last card, then open the context menu with a right click and click on Change Deck... and in the upcoming dialog you select the target deck and click on Move Cards.

AnkiMove1 AnkiMove2

Alternatively you can move the cards to a new deck by clicking on Add instead of on Move Cards. Just enter the name of the new deck and press OK.

AnkiMove1

FAQ #6: On my mobile device the buttons for the quiz options do not work / the keyboard is popping up!

Solution for AnkiDroid:

iPhone/iPad users (AnkiMobile) can avoid the annoying keyboard popping up with this solution:

iPhone/iPad users should first select their answer by clicking on one of the buttons and then click on "Show Answer".

Make sure that you have selected "Show Answer" for at least "Bottom Left", "Bottom Center" and "Bottom Right" under "Preferences" - "Review" - "Taps" - "When Question Shown". Otherwise a click on "Show Answer" will do nothing!

FAQ #7: What exactly is a neutral score (NS) in XG2Anki?

By neutral score I mean a score of 0:0 in a very VERY long match. Technically it is unlimited games without Jacoby and without beavers.

Rainer's Backgammon Coaching

Rainer offers individual Anki powered backgammon coaching face to face or via ZOOM. In the case of ZOOM, the session is always recorded and is available as an unlisted YouTube video so that the trainee can watch it again later as often as he wants/needs.

Unique features of Rainer's backgammon coaching:

If you are interested in private lessons with Rainer, you can contact him directly by e-mail (rainer@xg2anki.de) or Facebook.

If you are interested in private lessons in general, you should definitely take a look at this page: Hirnakrobat

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Contact

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E-Mail: rainer@xg2anki.de

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Last Updated: 2024-03-24

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