Terminology

Forum Archive : Terminology

 
"Kamikaze play"

From:   Bill Patterson
Address:   williammovieman@gmail.com
Date:   3 June 2011
Subject:   kamikazee plays
Forum:   BGonline.org Forums

There were some discussions recently about kamikazee plays. However there
were not any examples of these plays.  Could someone please define what
kamikazee plays are with illustrations or diagrams?  Thank you.

Casper van der Tak  writes:

A kamikaze play is either an attempt to rectify bad timing, or an attempt
to get hit to have the chance to make an(other) defensive anchor. A key
element is stringing out home-board blots in the hope to get hit.

Some criteria that make a kamikaze play more likely to be correct:

- The score should make gammon losses and to a lesser extent backgammon
losses meaningless or close to meaningless.

- You need to be committed to a backgame or a deep anchor game.

- Timing should be suspect. Don't make kamikaze plays if you already have
good timing.

- You need to have more checkers recycled to get a stronger defensive
position.  Sometimes you should make the kamikaze play even to have the
chance to make the second anchor.

- Opponent should be forced to hit.

- Placement of the blots. You don't like to leave the blots in out of place
locations, harming long term prospects.  You should not leave a blot on the
ace when making a kamikaze play).

- Impact on timing. For a kamikaze play to be right, it needs to gain
timing. So ideally you make a kamikaze play if your opponents priming
position is not very strong (so that you can more easily hop over it after
your blots are hit) and difficult to extend. It also helps if you opponent
has more home points made, because that increases the chances that you'd
lose time dancing.

- Tactical considerations. Sometimes a kamikaze play runs the danger that
your opp can hit all and clear all trouble spots before you come from the
bar and rebuild your offensive. In that case, you may have all the timing
in the world, but no blots to hit, and no offense to hold any hit blots.

- Your opponent. A kamikaze play often results in difficult choices for
your opponent, so may be more correct against a weaker opponent.

Rich Munitz  writes:

Here is an extreme one:

     13  14  15  16  17  18      19  20  21  22  23  24
    +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
    | X                   X |   | X   X   X   X   X   O |
    |                     X |   | X   X   X   X   X     |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |     O                 |
    |         O       O   O |   | O   O       O         |   +---+
    |         O   X   O   O |   | O   O   X   O       O |   | 2 |
    +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+   +---+
     12  11  10   9   8   7       6   5   4   3   2   1

     O to play 1-1.

     Kamikaze play: 10/9*(2), 5/4*, 3/2

Stick  writes:

This one should work.

     13  14  15  16  17  18      19  20  21  22  23  24
    +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
    | X       O   O   O   O |   | O   O           X   X |
    | X       O   O   O   O |   | O   O               X |
    | X                     |   |                       |
    | X                     |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |   +---+
    |                       |   |                       |   | 1 |
    |                       |   |                       |   +---+
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                       |   |                       |
    |                 X     |   | X       X       X     |
    | O               X     |   | X   O   X   O   X     |
    +---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+---+
     12  11  10   9   8   7       6   5   4   3   2   1

     X to play 1-1.

     Kamikaze play: 24/21, 13/12*
 
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Terminology

Alphabet soup  (Tom Keith, Apr 2004)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Anchor and guard" position  (Chase+, Apr 2010) 
"Back game"  (Marty Storer, Jan 2004)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Baffle box"  (garyo+, Mar 2005)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Bagai position"  (Timothy Chow, Dec 2012)  [Long message]
"Banana split"  (Rich Munitz+, June 2011) 
"Banana split"  (Adam Stocks+, Sept 2004) 
"Beavers"  (Sander van Rijnswou, May 1999) 
"Beavers"  (Shuman Lloyd Lee, Aug 1991) 
"Blunder", "whopper"  (Raccoon+, July 2005)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Bot"  (Pit Bull+, Mar 2004) 
"Bronstein" clock setting  (rew+, Sept 2012) 
"Calcutta auction"  (Roland Scheicher+, Dec 2001) 
"Chouette"  (Roland Scheicher+, Mar 2002) 
"Cube provocation play"  (Chuck Bower+, Apr 2007)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Dance"  (William R. Tallmadge, May 1998) 
"Dropper"  (Robert D. Johnson, Sept 1996) 
"Duplication" and "diversification"  (Simon Woodhead, Nov 1991) 
"Equity"  (Gregg Cattanach, Aug 2000) 
"Equity"  (Gary Wong, Dec 1998) 
"Equity"  (Chuck Bower, Oct 1996) 
"Equity"  (Michael J. Zehr, Mar 1996) 
"Equity", "volatility", "claim", "market"  (Erik Gravgaard, June 1995) 
"Freeroll"  (montygram, Nov 2005) 
"Gammon price"  (Ron Karr, Aug 1996) 
"Gammon rate", "gammon price"  (David Montgomery, June 1995) 
"Gammon-go" (GG) and "gammon-save" (GS)  (Mary Hickey, Feb 2004)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Gammon-go" (GG) and "gammon-save" (GS)  (Marty Storer, Oct 2002)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Gammon-go" (GG)   (Chuck Bower, Jan 2004) 
"Golden point"  (Daniel Murphy, Dec 2004)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Holding game"  (Alan Webb+, Dec 1998) 
"In the box"  (Ken Bame+, Sept 2012) 
International phrase dictionary  (David Allen Sorensen, Sept 1997) 
"Joker"  (Richard Divdesman, Sept 1998) 
"Kamikaze play"  (Bill Patterson+, June 2011) 
"Kauder paradox"  (Carl Tait+, Nov 1995) 
"Latto paradox"  (Jean-Pierre Seiman+, July 2004) 
"Lose your market"  (Shuman Lloyd Lee+, Aug 1991) 
"MCV"  (Mislav Radica+, Oct 2009) 
"PRaT"  (Raccoon+, Jan 2007)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Phantom double hit"  (Marty Storer, May 2010) 
"Polish prime"  (Jason Lee+, Jan 2006)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Pure play"  (Daniel Murphy, Nov 2000) 
"Pure play"  (Casey Forrest+, Feb 1996) 
"Raccoon"  (Steven Keats, Feb 2011) 
"Root number"  (Ken Bame, June 2004)  [GammOnLine forum]
"Russian Bridges"  (leobueno+, Mar 2013) 
"Short play"  (AJ+, July 2012) 
"Speed board"  (Gregg Cattanach, June 2004) 
"Splot"  (mamabear, Apr 2007) 
"Squeeze", "trap play"  (Philippe Michel+, Feb 1997) 
"Suicide play"  (Brian Sheppard, Aug 1997) 
"Swing tournament"  (Carlo Melzi+, Mar 2006) 
"Table stakes"  (Carlo Melzi, Sept 2002) 
"Technical play"  (Adam Stocks+, July 2002) 
"Thematic"  (Beauregard+, Aug 2009) 
"Thorp count"  (Stephen Turner, June 1996) 
"Time," "timing," "checker," "dancing"  (Marty Storer, Apr 1992) 
Turkish names for rolls  (Lars Soezueer, Mar 1997) 
"Vigorish"  (Anthony R Wuersch, Feb 1995) 
"Volatility"  (Michael J. Zehr, June 1998) 
"Wash"  (Hardy Hübener+, Sept 2004) 
"Wash"  (Brian Sheppard, July 1997) 
"Weaver"  (Alan Webb+, May 2000) 
"Zone" of attack  (Matt Reklaitis+, Dec 2007)  [GammOnLine forum]

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