Terms of use
gammonchain is operated as an independent, non-commercial project. These terms cover this instance; another operator's instance is theirs.
What this is
A free backgammon server. There is nothing to buy, no currency, no wagering and no prizes. Ratings and leaderboard positions have no monetary value.
Fair play
Do not use an engine, bot or another person to choose your moves in a rated match. The point of the fairness machinery here is that the dice can be proven honest; it cannot prove that a human made the moves. Every finished match is published and analysable, so consulting an engine mid-game tends to be visible after the fact.
Do not run scripts against the server, open connections in bulk, or attempt to disrupt other people's matches. Requests are rate limited; working around the limits deliberately is abuse.
Choose a username you would be comfortable seeing on a public leaderboard. Operators may reset or remove usernames that are impersonating, abusive or unlawful.
Your account and your key
If you play as a guest, your key exists only in your browser. Clearing your browser data loses it, and with it your rating and history. That is a consequence of nobody else holding it — it cannot be recovered by anyone, including the operator.
If you register, your key is stored with your account so a sign-in link can restore it. Keep access to your email account secure: anyone who can read your inbox can request a sign-in link.
Published match records
By playing, you accept that finished matches are published as signed, permanent, publicly downloadable records containing the moves, the dice and both players' public keys. This is the core function of the service and cannot be opted out of. Records cannot be altered or withdrawn afterwards — a record that could be edited would prove nothing, and your opponent depends on it to verify their own game.
Availability
The service is provided as-is, with no guarantee of uptime, data retention or continued existence. Matches in progress may be lost if the server restarts. Back up anything you care about by downloading the record.
Liability
To the fullest extent permitted by law, the operator provides this service without warranty of any kind and is not liable for any loss arising from its use, including lost ratings, lost records or lost account access. Nothing here limits liability that cannot lawfully be limited.
Licence
The code your browser runs to check a match — the rules engine, the dice derivation
and the verifier, served at /src/core and /src/verify — is MIT
licensed. The rest of the server's source is not currently published.
Who runs this
gammonchain is operated as an independent, non-commercial project — not a company. There is no entity to invoice, sue or be a customer of. Questions and reports go to [email protected]. For a bug, the board can save a report of what it offered you at the moment it went wrong; attaching that says more than a description can.
Changes
These terms may change as the software does. Continuing to use the service after a change means accepting it.