Play instantly in your browser, no download — quick match or invite a friend with a room code.
Play now — it's freeTavli is Greece's national board game: two players, 15 checkers each, and two dice deciding every move. This site plays the two most loved variants — Portes, the hitting race where you knock blots to the bar and bear off first, and Plakoto, the pinning game where you trap your opponent's checkers instead (and guard your mother — the last checker on the starting point).
Here you can play Tavli online free, straight from the browser: hit Quick Play and you are seated against a real opponent in seconds, or create a room and share its code with a friend. Win a game for 1 point, or 2 points for a diplia (gammon) when the loser bears off nothing — no doubling cube, exactly like the café table.
→ Full Tavli rules · Ελληνική έκδοση
Two players race 15 checkers each around 24 points according to two dice. In Portes you hit single opposing checkers to the bar and bear off first; in Plakoto there is no hitting — you pin enemy checkers where they stand, and pinning the "mother" wins instantly. A normal win scores 1 point, a diplia (loser bore off nothing) scores 2, and there is no doubling cube and no triple win.
Scoring stays simple, just like the Greek café:
| Result | Points |
|---|---|
| Single win (loser has borne off at least one checker) | 1 |
| Diplia / gammon (loser has borne off none) | 2 |
| Plakoto: the mother is pinned | 2 |
| Plakoto: both mothers pinned | Draw |
There is no backgammon triple: even a loser with a checker on the bar or inside your home board only loses the 2 points of a diplia, never 3.
No. Neither Portes nor Plakoto uses a doubling cube — games are worth 1 or 2 points (diplia), never more.
A diplia is a win in which the loser has not borne off a single checker. It scores 2 points instead of 1.
No. Greek Tavli has no triple win — the maximum score for a single game is 2 points.
The mother is the last checker left on the starting point where all 15 began. If the opponent pins her (after clearing their own starting point) the game ends immediately, worth 2 points. If both mothers end up pinned, the game is a draw.
Not inside your own home board: if you hit a blot there, the hitting checker must stay put for the rest of the turn. Elsewhere on the board hit-and-run is allowed.
Doubles are played four times — a roll of 5-5 gives four moves of five points. On the very first turn of Portes doubles are possible because the winner of the opening roll re-rolls two dice.
Yes — play free in your browser, no download: quick match against a real opponent or a private room code for a friend.