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Blackjack
(also known as twenty-one), is a descendant
of Baccarat and Chemin-de-Fer and is often considered
one of the world's most popular casino table
games.
Object
of the Game
The
object of the game is achieve a higher card
count than the dealer without exceeding 21.
How
to Play
This
version of Blackjack uses eight decks of cards.
The deck is shuffled after each hand.
The Bets. Select an initial bet
amount and click Deal to begin the game.
There is a minimum bet of $5 and a maximum
bet of $100.
The Cards. Aces may be considered
1 or 11. Face cards have a value of
10 and all other cards are counted as their
face value.
The Deal. A card is dealt face
up to the player followed by one to the dealer.
A second card is then dealt face up to the
player, and a second card face down to the
dealer. At this point, the player may
choose to stand or draw one
or more cards to improve their hand total.
The dealer takes additional cards only after
the player has completed his or her hand(s),
following specific rules (see Dealer Strategy
below). The player's hand is completed
when the player:
draws
Blackjack (a natural 21 consisting of an
Ace and a 10 or face card)
chooses
to stand
busts
(the hand count exceeds 21).
The
winner is determined by which hand's total is
closest to 21. A Blackjack beats all other hands
totaling 21 (this applies to the dealer as well).
If both the dealer and player draw a Blackjack,
it is considered a push (tie) and neither hand
wins nor loses.
Player
Options
The
player is initially dealt two cards. After
these cards are dealt, the player has the option
of making the following additional wagers:
Splitting Pairs. This option is
available to the player when the two original
cards are of the same value (6's, 8's, etc.).
The player splits the cards into two hands and
plays each hand individually. Additional
pairs can not be split again. A pair of
Aces may be split but each Ace receives only
one additional card. Except when splitting
Aces, the player has the option to double down
(see below) after splitting. In all cases,
the player must wager an additional amount equal
to the original bet when splitting.
Double Down. If the first two cards
do not total 21, the player has the option to
double down. Should the player feel that
he or she can win with only one additional card,
the player may double the original bet and receive
one more card. The player may also double
down after splitting a pair unless the pair
consists of Aces. In this case the player
is only entitled to receive one card after splitting.
Insurance. If the dealer's first
visible card is an Ace, the player has the option
of buying insurance. Insurance is a wager
equal to one-half the player's original bet
which pays two to one if the dealer draws a
Blackjack. If the dealer does not draw
Blackjack, the player loses his or her insurance.
Dealer
Strategy:
The dealer must:
Be hit on a count
of 16 or less
Stand on Soft 17
Stand on a Hard 17
or more
Soft
Hand: A hand where an Ace may be counted
as either 1 or 11 without the total exceeding
21.
Hard Hand: A hand with no Aces
or one where the Ace must count as one so as
to not exceed 21.
Payouts
A
player's Blackjack (a natural 2 card 21) pays
3:2 unless the dealer draws a Blackjack as well.
A Blackjack also beats any three-or-more-card
21. A two-card 21 is not considered a
Blackjack for split hands.
All other winning bets are paid even money (1:1).
If the dealer draws a Blackjack, the player
only loses his or her original bet when the
player has doubled down or split.
When both the dealer and player's hand totals
are equal, it is called a standoff or
push and neither hand wins nor loses.
If the player's hand total exceeds 21, he or
she busts and loses his or her bet.
Placing
Bets
Each
time you left-click inside the white circle
near the edge of the blackjack table, you will
place your current bet amount on the table --
adding to any chips that might already be there.
To remove your current bet amount from the table,
right-click inside the circle.
You can change the amount you will be adding
or subtracting from your bet by selecting one
of the chips in the lower left corner of the
table. The chip with that is highlighted
in blue represents the amount by which you will
change your bet. For example: If you wish to place a $25
bet, make sure the $25 chip in the lower left
corner of the screen is selected by clicking
on it. It should then be highlighted in
blue. You can now left-click in the betting
circle to place a $25 bet. If you left-click
a second time in the betting circle, you will
add another $25 chip to your bet for a total
of $50. You could then select the $5 chip
and click in the betting circle to increase
your bet to $55. Right-clicking in the
betting circle performs the opposite function
by removing the amount from your bet.
Starting
the Deal
Once
the minimum bet has been placed, the DEAL
button will illuminate to indicate that it may
now be clicked to start the deal. Once
the DEAL button has been clicked, the
game will begin and you can no longer add to
or remove from your bet.
You may also notice that the DEAL button
may be illuminated, but you do not have a bet
placed on the table. In this case, clicking
on the DEAL button will quickly and automatically
start the deal by using the same bet used for
the previous hand. If, for example, you
wagered $10 on the previous hand, you may find
that the DEAL button is enabled even
though you have not placed a new bet on the
table. Clicking the DEAL button
will then start the next deal with the same
$10 starting bet. If you do not have sufficient
funds to repeat your previous bet, or this is
your first hand of blackjack during this session,
then clicking the DEAL button with no
bet on the table will start the next deal using
the currently selected chip amount as your bet.
Playing
the Game
The player uses the buttons at the base of the
Blackjack table to make his or her decisions
when playing the game. Buttons will illuminate
when you have the option to click them.
Your mouse pointer will also change to a pointing
hand as you move your pointer over any button
that you are allowed to click.
STAND.
If you are satisfied with your hand total,
click STAND. You will not receive
any more cards and the dealer will complete
his hand. The winner will then be determined
by the hand total that is closer to 21.
Note that if a hand total reaches 21, it will
automatically stand. If you are playing
split hands, clicking STAND on the
first hand completes that hand and allows
you to play the second hand. Clicking
STAND on the second hand completes
your play and the dealer will finish playing
his hand.
HIT.
If you wish to receive another card to try
to bring your card total closer to 21, click
the HIT button. You are permitted
to hit your hand as many times as you like,
until you decide to Stand or your hand busts
(its total exceeds 21). Note that if your
hand total reaches 21, your hand will automatically
stand.
SPLIT.
If you have two cards of the same value (two
sevens, two tens, a king and a jack, etc.),
you may click SPLIT to split the cards
into two separate hands. This requires
an additional bet to be made that is equal
to your original bet. You will not be
given the option to split if you do not have
sufficient funds. Note that when splitting
a pair of Aces, each hand only receives one
additional card. The dealer then completes
his hand and the game ends.
INSURE.
When the dealer's face-up card is an ace,
the player has the option to purchase insurance
by clicking the INSURE button.
Buying insurance is a side bet and requires
an amount equal to half your original wager.
The option to buy insurance will not be available
if you do not have sufficient funds.
Once insurance has been purchased, the dealer
will check the hand for Blackjack. The
insurance bet will pay 2:1 if the dealer has
Blackjack. If the Dealer does not have
Blackjack, the insurance bet is lost, and
the hand continues normally.
DOUBLE
DOWN. Before you decide to hit or
stand, you have the option to click DOUBLE
DOWN if you believe that your hand can
win with just one additional card. Doubling
down requires an additional bet up to
your original bet. If you do not have
sufficient funds to place an additional bet
equal to your original bet, your remaining
funds will be used. Once you have doubled
down, your hand will receive one more card
and play then moves on to the dealer who will
complete his hand to determine the winner