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aksuur
Nov 9, 2003
Don't get me wrong, I love poker - I've spent way too much money on it to avoid stockholm syndrome.

However last time I went to Vegas and the loving Mirage, I learned me some craps. The funnest place in the casino to give your money to the house.

For all of us newbies, let us worship our lord and savior, Wizard of Odds: https://wizardofodds.com/games/craps/

Basic strategy is pretty straightfoward - before a new game starts (when the button on the table says "Off"), place a bet on Pass. You get paid for a 7 or 11, you lose on 2, 3, or 12, and any other number establishes a "point" and the button on the table switches to "On" and moves to the point. When the button moves to "On", double your Pass bet on the other side of the line, closer to you - this is called taking the odds and has zero house edge (technically you can often go higher or lower, but let's keep it simple when starting off - the simple part of it is that taking the odds as high as you can go reduces the house edge on your original Pass bet).

Now that the button is on and there's a point, dice will continue to be rolled. If you bet on a point, you'll get paid different odds based on what point you bet on if it gets rolled. Now, you don't want to see a 7 - that ends the game and all the chips on the table go to the house. You don't need to bet on points - your Pass bet and taking the odds bet will pay if the point is rolled, again until the game ends with a 7. Rolling the point also ends the game, but you get paid in that event. You can ask for your point bets to be returned in the event a point is rolled (or whenever really), and you also take back your 'taking the odds' bet from the other side of your pass bet.

Here's a video series. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9UjGOSWtE8

Don't play the bets in the middle of the board, unless you feel like gambling.

If you've never played or aren't familiar, ask the workers at the table how to approach betting, when to bet, what to say when you bet, and where to put your chips. Any chips you aren't betting stay in the rack on the rail, not on the table itself. Don't be dumb with the dice, keep them above the table and beyond the rail. You'll throw some on the floor at some point or another - mostly when rolling, it happens, especially while drunk. You should try to hit the back of the other side of the table when you roll - not necessarily throwing right at it, it can be after a bounce or two. There's a lot of weird terminology in this game and you'll probably piss some people off by being new and not knowing anything, so if it's your first time try and find an empty or relatively empty table. However once you get into the swing of things, there's a lot of camaraderie at the table.

Tell us your crazy stories!

Edit - Minimum bet info here: https://www.reddit.com/r/Craps/comments/k3at5s/casino_minimums_covid_edition_part_6/

aksuur fucked around with this message at 12:39 on Feb 3, 2021

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Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

Do people still have a lady blow on the dice for luck, like they do in old movies?

Edward Mass
Sep 14, 2011

𝅘𝅥𝅮 I wanna go home with the armadillo
Good country music from Amarillo and Abilene
Friendliest people and the prettiest women you've ever seen
𝅘𝅥𝅮
I rolled a three so many times in a row once, a guy at the table asked ‘are you going to roll another three?’ I said yes, so he put money on me rolling a three.

I rolled a three.

silvergoose
Mar 18, 2006

IT IS SAID THE TEARS OF THE BWEENIX CAN HEAL ALL WOUNDS




Leperflesh posted:

Do people still have a lady blow on the dice for luck, like they do in old movies?

I hope they don't...right now...

aksuur
Nov 9, 2003

Leperflesh posted:

Do people still have a lady blow on the dice for luck, like they do in old movies?

I'm not a lady but I did blow on the dice for luck and rolled two boxcars in a row. Confirmed it works.

Nocheez
Sep 5, 2000

Can you spare a little cheddar?
Nap Ghost
I love craps, it's my favorite game at a casino. That is all.

Smoking Crow
Feb 14, 2012

*laughs at u*

Can we talk about cee-lo itt

Beef Of Ages
Jan 11, 2003

Your dumb is leaking.
The only time I've played was with a friend who is a powernerd that can calculate the odds in his head and would direct my betting strategy. I was appreciative of this because, despite having read and loosely understood the helpful OP, I am painfully ignorant of how to play craps correctly.

I won a few bucks and the table group was a ton of fun to hang with for an hour, so that's nice.

ThomasPaine
Feb 4, 2009

We have no compassion and we ask no compassion from you. When our turn comes, we shall not make excuses for the terror.
Craps is 10/10 the most fun game but it's sadly quite difficult to find in UK casinos. Most places are packed out with slots/roulette/blackjack with maybe a couple three card poker/baccarat tables. I think I've only seen an active craps table at one place and they stopped doing it a few years back. I guess it's just less profitable for the house?

mfcrocker
Jan 31, 2004



Hot Rope Guy

ThomasPaine posted:

Craps is 10/10 the most fun game but it's sadly quite difficult to find in UK casinos. Most places are packed out with slots/roulette/blackjack with maybe a couple three card poker/baccarat tables. I think I've only seen an active craps table at one place and they stopped doing it a few years back. I guess it's just less profitable for the house?

I feel that pain, we had a table in Bristol for a little while but it never ran and generally people just wanna dump into roulette and blackjack

Fate Accomplice
Nov 30, 2006




Craps is bar none my favorite casino game, and in the 10+ years since I first played it, I am fairly certain I am within $200 of break even on it, which considering the number of hours I've spent playing it, is a win.

Murmur Twin
Feb 11, 2003

An ever-honest pacifist with no mind for tricks.
Oh hell yeah, there's a craps thread! I've been a table games dealer for almost four years now, dealt craps for the last two. That essentially makes me a newbie in terms of craps dealers, but I deal it two or three nights a week and would be happy to answer any questions people might have from that perspective.

It's definitely the most difficult game to learn to deal - there's a bunch of math, there's a whole bunch of things you need to keep track of at the same time, and players routinely throw chips and shout bets at you at the same time ( "6 dollar three-way red, 4 dollar horn, hop the hard ways, heavy 8" while throwing you three red chips) regardless of the order you're trying to do things in. That said, it's also (usually) a lot of fun to deal - I go into every night at work hoping I'll be put on the dice crew,. because there's no funner place to be in the casino than a hot craps table.

schwein11
Oct 13, 2009



I loving love craps, and in particular low limit craps where it ends up being more about the community around the table knowing you can play for hours without a chance at really losing your shirt. $5 table at a native american casino in northern michigan (Odawa) is my favorite stop during an annual trip up there.

Nth Doctor
Sep 7, 2010

Darkrai used Dream Eater!
It's super effective!


I loving love Craps. My friends all look at me weird when I want to find that table instead of go zombie eyed and slack jawed at a slot machine for hours. It's been a long rear end time since I played at a casino, but we hit up Caesars Windsor for a buddy's bachelor party years and years ago. I ended up doing well enough to pick up the bar tab for the rest of the night and then buy a new console the next day.

Murmur Twin
Feb 11, 2003

An ever-honest pacifist with no mind for tricks.

Leperflesh posted:

Do people still have a lady blow on the dice for luck, like they do in old movies?

This drives me crazy when I see it in movies!

1. Shooter has to keep the dice in one hand, over the table
2. The stickperson's sole job when the dice are out is to keep eyes on the dice at all times
3. If either of these conditions are broken, the stickperson takes the dice back and the floor has to double-check to make sure they haven't been switched

I've seen players pull down their mask to try and blow on the dice which is even dumber :argh:

aksuur posted:

Tell us your crazy stories!

I have plenty! But, in true dealer fashion, it's 8:24a as I write this, which means it's my bedtime.

poemdexter
Feb 18, 2005

Hooray Indie Games!

College Slice
I turned my last 20 dollars into 300 dollars on a single hot roller that probably threw dice 20+ times before hitting a 7. Craps be wild.

Agronox
Feb 4, 2005

schwein11 posted:

I loving love craps, and in particular low limit craps where it ends up being more about the community around the table knowing you can play for hours without a chance at really losing your shirt. $5 table at a native american casino in northern michigan (Odawa) is my favorite stop during an annual trip up there.

One of my favorite trash craps memories is from the $1 (maybe $2?) table at the El Cortez some years back. Everyone is happily throwing around pocket change and my drunken friend, in the middle of a hand just as a guy's about to throw, yells "FIFTY DOLLAR YO!"

The shooter literally stopped as he was about to roll, our half of the table went dead silent, and the rookie dealer turns to the box and asks, "...am I allowed to book that?"

ASAPI
Apr 20, 2007
I invented the line.

So I love the idea of Craps.

Everytime I go to a casino, I get one of two things:

Empty Craps table = No fun

or

Stupid high min bet.

What tips are there to (1) find an active table (time of day, location, day of week?) and (2) find a table that isn't like $50 min for a bet?

The Glumslinger
Sep 24, 2008

Coach Nagy, you want me to throw to WHAT side of the field?


Hair Elf
I remember going to a casino right after I turned 21 and my cousin tried to teach me how t play craps. 5 minutes and $100 later, he decided we should just play blackjack instead, lol



Craps is still my favorite game to play in the casino, the excitement at a hot table is hard to beat. Plus there was the one time my friend had like a 30 roll run and by the end of it, some high roller was literally just throwing chips at him :lol:

Remulak
Jun 8, 2001
I can't count to four.
Yams Fan
Craps is fun as hell and the only game I really enjoy playing in a casino. I've never left a table with more money that I came in with, but when the free Glenlivet is accounted for I never do too badly.

Pakistani Brad Pitt
Nov 28, 2004

Not as taciturn, but still terribly powerful...



I'd like to use my first post in the Craps thread to complain about how it is represented in media

At a high level, any number rolled on the dice at a Craps table could win or lose you money, depending on the phase of the game, and what you bet on. That's actually one of the beautiful things about this game in my opinion. But outside of a come-out roll (or some 'don't pass' betting which isn't the norm even if it has fractions of a % better odds..), sevens are bad. To the point where people act like you just wished death on their mother just because you said the word 'seven' in the vicinity of a craps table.

But watch any music video, movie, tv show and there will be someone throwing a 7 to an uproarious cheer. It bugs me. Are all of these people betting $100 on the pass line with no odds behind?

Doccykins
Feb 21, 2006

ThomasPaine posted:

Craps is 10/10 the most fun game but it's sadly quite difficult to find in UK casinos. Most places are packed out with slots/roulette/blackjack with maybe a couple three card poker/baccarat tables. I think I've only seen an active craps table at one place and they stopped doing it a few years back. I guess it's just less profitable for the house?

I love craps and the only place I know that still has tables with dealers reliably at them is the Hippodrome in London, one of my hottest streaks was on a Sunday evening watching NFL and rolling dice in the middle of Leicester Square. I'm normally a boring sod who just builds a three point molly (Pass -> Odds -> Come -> Odds -> Come -> Odds and wait for numbers to hit, of course the 7th roll is usually the 7 :rolleyes: ) but I've been interested in playing dark side lately and once corona's done with I might drop by and see how it goes with the Don't gods

Fuck My Ass
Mar 24, 2010
College Slice

aksuur posted:

Don't play the bets in the middle of the board, unless you feel like gambling.

Sans, the iron cross which includes a field bet. My favorite strategy.

Snazzy Frocks
Mar 31, 2003

Scratchmo

ThomasPaine posted:

Craps is 10/10 the most fun game but it's sadly quite difficult to find in UK casinos. Most places are packed out with slots/roulette/blackjack with maybe a couple three card poker/baccarat tables. I think I've only seen an active craps table at one place and they stopped doing it a few years back. I guess it's just less profitable for the house?

The short answer is yes. Craps is one of the few games that allows a 'no house edge bet' in all forms of the game you'll find.

Pakistani Brad Pitt
Nov 28, 2004

Not as taciturn, but still terribly powerful...



Snazzy Frocks posted:

The short answer is yes. Craps is one of the few games that allows a 'no house edge bet' in all forms of the game you'll find.

I feel like its less the odds bet (there are plenty of people betting on all sorts of poo poo with an atrocious house edge at a craps table) and more the sheer number of people it takes to deal a craps table (and from the outside, it seems like it requires more skill/math/awareness than dealing blackjack or roulette, etc)

Snazzy Frocks
Mar 31, 2003

Scratchmo

Pakistani Brad Pitt posted:

I feel like its less the odds bet (there are plenty of people betting on all sorts of poo poo with an atrocious house edge at a craps table) and more the sheer number of people it takes to deal a craps table (and from the outside, it seems like it requires more skill/math/awareness than dealing blackjack or roulette, etc)

good point i didn't really even think of the staffing requirements

poemdexter
Feb 18, 2005

Hooray Indie Games!

College Slice

gently caress My rear end posted:

Sans, the iron cross which includes a field bet. My favorite strategy.

I was coming back to the thread to say how much I love iron cross. As mentioned in the OP, David's videos are great for teaching you the game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0_lRk-juGA

Snazzy Frocks posted:

good point i didn't really even think of the staffing requirements

The fact that almost 50% of the playing space is occupied by casino employees when there's like 4 people at the table is wild. Even the times when I'm the only person there, there's still 2 employees.

Khanstant
Apr 5, 2007
Gambling is bad and should be illegal and so should this craps!

halokiller
Dec 28, 2008

Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves


Sometimes I just want to chill at a casino which is why I love those Bubble Craps machines because I can sit on my rear end, mess with my phone while nursing my drink. Lower mins than the tables means I can be there even longer. Sadly they're pretty rare outside Vegas.

The downside aside from the losing the interaction is that really annoying announcer that won't shut up. PUSH THE BUTTON COME ON PUSH THE BUTTON!!!

Snazzy Frocks
Mar 31, 2003

Scratchmo

halokiller posted:

Sometimes I just want to chill at a casino which is why I love those Bubble Craps machines because I can sit on my rear end, mess with my phone while nursing my drink. Lower mins than the tables means I can be there even longer. Sadly they're pretty rare outside Vegas.

The downside aside from the losing the interaction is that really annoying announcer that won't shut up. PUSH THE BUTTON COME ON PUSH THE BUTTON!!!

lmao i have the exact same feelings about that machine. best place to learn craps and still decent for experienced players who don't necessarily care for table dynamics

Pakistani Brad Pitt
Nov 28, 2004

Not as taciturn, but still terribly powerful...



Snazzy Frocks posted:

lmao i have the exact same feelings about that machine. best place to learn craps and still decent for experienced players who don't necessarily care for table dynamics

My problem with the machines (besides the lack of being able to actually throw the dice which is a given) is that they usually have a shittier odds multiplier than the tables in the same casino itself. I'm sure that's configurable by the operator but I find it really really tedious to play craps with anything less than 3x 4x 5x odds.

Poque
Sep 11, 2003

=^-^=

halokiller posted:

Sometimes I just want to chill at a casino which is why I love those Bubble Craps machines because I can sit on my rear end, mess with my phone while nursing my drink. Lower mins than the tables means I can be there even longer. Sadly they're pretty rare outside Vegas.

The downside aside from the losing the interaction is that really annoying announcer that won't shut up. PUSH THE BUTTON COME ON PUSH THE BUTTON!!!

COME ON!!! Last trip to Vegas I convinced the entire bubble craps "table" to bet Don't Pass and we were all hollering

Murmur Twin
Feb 11, 2003

An ever-honest pacifist with no mind for tricks.

poemdexter posted:

I was coming back to the thread to say how much I love iron cross. As mentioned in the OP, David's videos are great for teaching you the game.

I don't understand how people like Iron Cross because I never see people win with it, ever. Yeah you sorta-kinda make money on every non-seven roll but it's never enough to get ahead of how bad a seven-out wrecks you.

quote:

The fact that almost 50% of the playing space is occupied by casino employees when there's like 4 people at the table is wild. Even the times when I'm the only person there, there's still 2 employees.

When COVID hit, our craps table changed to "inside stick" where instead of a stickperson, the dealer on the side the dice land on is in charge of the stick. It's kind of annoying but also kind of fun to have to send the dice across the table through a minefield of hard ways and hop bets.

But yeah, staffing for craps is definitely a factor; it requires at least 2 (usually 3) people to run a game, and it's the last game most dealers learn (if they choose to at all; many don't because it's much harder work for not really much more pay).

Snazzy Frocks posted:

The short answer is yes. Craps is one of the few games that allows a 'no house edge bet' in all forms of the game you'll find.

It's amazing how often people come to the table and say "I heard craps has the best odds in the house?" and then dump their money on prop bets (pretty much all of which are really bad) or the Field :eng99:

Khanstant posted:

Gambling is bad and should be illegal and so should this craps!

Security! Kick this man out please

bort
Mar 13, 2003

I played a hell of a lot of craps between 2014-15. I have been on the 6-way Fire bet when it hit three different times, and the first two times it happened in a month. I've also seen it done when I wasn't on it two other times (although once was on a table I just left).

I rolled the All in 13 throws one time, too.

(you shouldn't play either of those bets, because the house edge is 20-25%, but if you hit them, they make up for an awful lot of terrible decisions...)

Snazzy Frocks
Mar 31, 2003

Scratchmo
my personal theory to use is chaos mode where you arbitrarily pick pass or dont pass or sometimes just bet numbers. season in prop bets very occasionally if you feel the spirit

Bill Door
Dec 30, 2008

Murmur Twin posted:

I don't understand how people like Iron Cross because I never see people win with it, ever. Yeah you sorta-kinda make money on every non-seven roll but it's never enough to get ahead of how bad a seven-out wrecks you.

Whats Iron Cross? I don't know craps very well is it a Martingale type thing?

e: This might be helpful I guess https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martingale_(betting_system)

Bill Door fucked around with this message at 23:55 on Jan 11, 2021

bawfuls
Oct 28, 2009

When I find myself in Vegas, Craps is generally the only casino game I'll play because I am bad at poker and Craps is the most fun, social, sloooooow way to lose money to the house.

bort
Mar 13, 2003

edit: removed

bort fucked around with this message at 14:48 on Sep 12, 2021

Murmur Twin
Feb 11, 2003

An ever-honest pacifist with no mind for tricks.

Bill Door posted:

Whats Iron Cross? I don't know craps very well is it a Martingale type thing?

e: This might be helpful I guess https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martingale_(betting_system)

Generally speaking, it’s betting on 5/6/8 and then betting on the field every throw. So if you have, say, $10 on 5 and $12 on 6/8, you make a $10 field bet for every throw and:

2/12: win $20 (1 in 18 chance)
3/4/9/10/11: win $10 (7 in 18 chance)
5/6/8: win $4 (7 in 18 chance)
7: lose $44 (3 in 18 chance)

So it feels good because you win money on a majority of rolls, but it’s really hard to cover the ground lost when you seven-out.

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AHH F/UGH
May 25, 2002

Love craps.

Always play don't pass, gently caress what the other people at the table say. You'll win more money, and you'll win more often.

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