In extraordinarily general terms, there are three general game plans employed. You must be able to hop between techniques almost instantly as the action of the match unfolds.
The Blockade
This is composed of building a 6-thick wall of pieces, or at a minimum as thick as you might achieve, to lock in the competitor’s pieces that are on your 1-point. This is deemed to be the most adequate procedure at the start of the match. You can assemble the wall anywhere between your 11-point and your two-point and then shift it into your home board as the game progresses.
The Blitz
This is composed of closing your home board as fast as possible while keeping your competitor on the bar. For example, if your challenger tosses an early two and moves one checker from your one-point to your three-point and you then toss a 5-5, you are able to play 6/1 six/one 8/3 eight/three. Your opposer is then in serious difficulty since they have two checkers on the bar and you have locked half your home board!
The Backgame
This tactic is where you have two or higher anchors in your competitor’s home board. (An anchor is a point occupied by at least two of your checkers.) It would be played when you are significantly behind as it much improves your chances. The better locations for anchors are towards your competitor’s lower points and either on abutting points or with a single point separating them. Timing is integral for a powerful backgame: after all, there’s no point having two nice anchor spots and a complete wall in your own inner board if you are then required to break down this straight away, while your opponent is shifting their checkers home, taking into account that you don’t have any other spare checkers to move! In this case, it’s more favorable to have pieces on the bar so that you are able to maintain your position up until your competitor gives you an opportunity to hit, so it can be a great idea to try and get your competitor to hit them in this situation!