| Ah, the game of craps. The ideal Vegas game, full of excitement, interaction, and (after a few of the free rounds at the table) winnings out of this world to be spent in the nearest night club. Craps could be the mascot of the gambling world. And so, it’s an important game to master. As complicated as it might see, it’s certainly manageable and can result in a lot of fun- whether you win or lose.
Casino Craps is also known as Bank Craps, though usually the single term “Craps” is heard. It’s a dice game, based on the rolls and outcome of a pair of dice, against the bets and wagers of the players. The table is specially built for the game, and there aren’t a whole lot of ways to substitute other playing surfaces considering most of what constitutes the game is on the table itself. The other playing tools, the dice, are held to extremely high standards, and inspected routinely for any damage or tampering. Just to be sure, the dice on an active table are replaced after about 8 hours of use. Most on-land casinos even have rules as to how gamblers are permitted to touch and handle the cubes.
The player may only touch the dice with one hand when it is their turn to throw. Also, the dice must be thrown with enough force so as to cause them to hit the opposite wall of the table. If one (or both, though less frequent) of the dice bounce off the table, it must be inspected by the stickman before it goes back on the table. Many times, the dealers will prefer to substitute the die for another, the players choice, but if the gambler insists, he may use the same die, provides it passes inspection.
The crap table is big enough to fit around 20 people around it to play a game. Each of the gamblers will get a turn at throwing the dice, also know as “shooting” the dice for this game. If you’d like to participate in betting on throws without rolling the dice yourself, you can simply bet on the thrower. There are a variety of bets that can be placed while playing craps. The dealer crew includes a stickman (who, appropriately, has a stick with which to move the dice on the table, and is in charge of calling the rolls and managing center table bets), the box man (who is responsible for chip distribution and safety, and supervises the dealers) and the two dealers (who manage the bets on the table.)
Now, how to play. It’s a relatively simple game to get the hang of, once you’ve watched the table for a while. When a person rolls the dice for the first time, it’s called a Come Out roll. All new games start with a Come Out roll. A Come Out roll is made when a new shooter takes dice from the previous to start a new game; this occurs when the previous shooter fails to make a winning roll (that is, fails either to make the Point, or to Seven out, but we’ll get to that.)
New games begin with a new shooter, or the person throwing the dice. He or she will throw the dice and if they roll a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10- it is called “making a point” and the marker puck is placed over that number on the table. The object of the game, now, for the shooter is to roll that number again before they roll a 7 and “seven out.” Rolling other numbers is acceptable, and active bets on the table will be paid out accordingly after each roll. If the point is made, that is to say, if the shooter achieves throwing the number twice before they roll a 7, they continue throwing the dice. The players take turns after someone fails to make their point. The dice are passed clockwise around the table.
There are simple parts of the game as well. For example, instantaneous wins can be made on Come Out rolls, and it’s an easy way for a player to get a feel for the game by playing on a active table, while learning. There are Pass and Don’t Pass bars on the table. Bets on these bars immediately win or lose if particular numbers are thrown on a Come Out roll. If you’ve money on the Pass bar, and the roll is a 7 or 11, you win. If, however, you’ve money on the Pass bar and the roll is 2, 3 or 12, you lose. The opposite applies to the Don’t Pass bar- 2, 3 win and 7 or 11 lose, and 12 is a tie.
The dice, as previously stated, are rolled along the length of the whole craps table; they must hit the opposite wall on a roll or it doesn’t count. The layout of the table is specifically designed for the game and includes three areas: two mirrored sides, divided by the center. The sides of the table include the Pass and Don’t pass bars, Come and Don’t Come bets, Odds bets, Place wagers, and Field wagers. The center area is played by both sides of the table simultaneously and contains the Proposition bets.
| | 
Home | | |
