- Introduction
- The History
- Images
- Video demo-match play
- Rules
- Versions
- Glossary
- Strategies and tricks
- Play at Crapsin Flash
- Casino with Craps game
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This very old game whose origins are lost in the mists of time is one of the most difficult games to master, though to an inexpert eye it could look nothing but a banal pastime. In Craps, in fact, is not enough to throw two six-faced dices and see what happens: you must perfectly know all the kinds of stake and the game dynamics, so that you can bet on the events guaranteeing a good balance between the realization probabilities and the eventual winning.
Among online casino games, Craps is probably the most varied. The dynamic of this game is not difficult, but there are plenty of staking possibilities and, for this reason, Craps even outclasses the variety of bets that can be performed on the roulette. Just like roulette, the aim of Craps is very simple: guessing the result of a couple of classic six-faced dices. In order to do that, the players are provided with innumerable stakes: some of them predict the outcomes that are more likely to occur and they pay less the player; on the other hand, other stakes are attempts to push luck, and in these cases the payment is obviously higher and higher. Craps game can be found in most of the online casinos and in every terrestrial casino.
Craps: the History
If we want to talk about Craps history we must start from history of the dice as a gaming device. As it often occurs for casino games’ history, also dice history is wrapped in charm and mystery, but in this case a taste of mysticism is added. In fact, it seems that dices have been used even in Ancient Egypt times: then the predictors tried to foretell future just examining dices, using that kind of pseudo-science known as “astragalomancy”. In fact, they say that the dice is nothing but the physical transposition of the astragalus, a bone of our body.
Not by chance, a few rudimental examples of dices had been found in the tombs of the Pharaohs and of some other relevant person of that age; these rudimental dices were obviously tied to fate, culture or social rank of the deceased.
Also in Ancient China something similar was played, though animal bones were mostly used. The first ones who used dice as a recreational device in the today’s Europe were Ancient Greece’s inhabitants: hence, the dice became widespread in Rome, where even became Julius Caesar’s favourite game (as many written references have reported).
To have a faint idea about Craps as it is played today in the online and terrestrial casinos of the world, we must wait for the Crusades. This is the period, in France, when Craps game started to be seen as a gambling game where money didn’t lack, namely in the reign court. A Frenchman, Bernard Xavier Philippe de Marigny de Mandeville, exported this game in the US where he moved two centuries ago.
At first, Craps game wasn’t so popular with the inhabitants of the so-called New World, on the contrary. In fact, Craps was appreciated almost exclusively by Afro-Americans who were still fighting against serious racial discrimination. A game loved by Afro-Americans obviously couldn’t be also appreciated by other people. However, such was Craps popularity in a short while that it rightly entered the casino world. From then on it always remained in casino world, until Craps made it big, joining the group of the online casino games.
Some images related to the game of Craps
Video demo-match at Craps
Craps Rules
The aim of Craps game is guess the sum of the numbers drawn from the cast of a couple of six-faced dices. The player is provided with a set of variegated stakes; it is almost impossible to know them all and to remember them all by heart. However, most of these bets are rarely performed: they all are focused on the classic “Pass the Line” and “Don't Pass the Line”. In these two bets that are paid 1:1 the player must have a certain kind of result on the first go or before he hits a score equal to 7 by casting his dices.
Craps’ rules are not difficult, on the contrary, but they are a lot. The aim of the game is simply to guess the result of the launch of two six-sized dice. However, the players can opt on a very wide range of options, each one with its own features and its own payout. Obviously, combinations that are harder to obtain pay more, whilst easier combinations, though more frequent, pay definitely less.
In Craps of the terrestrial casinos, dice are cast by players themselves. In online Craps, of course, the software makes the whole work: all you need is indicate the bet you want to perform, and then click on the button usually indicated as "Roll". Every online Craps gaming round lasts very few, so it’s a very thrilling game for people who like having fun playing online casinos without break.
Generally, in Craps’ game the players must place a stake by choosing among “Pass Line” and the “Don't Pass The Line” bet. In the first case, the player needs that the result of the two dice is 7 or 11 to win (no matter the way this result is formed); in the second case, the result of the cast must be 2, 3 or 12. If any other combination may occur (4, 5, 6, 8, 9 and 10), things start to become trickier, but only conceptually.
If the player wagered on the “Pass Line” and he gets neither 7 nor 11 (winning immediately), and he doesn’t obtain 2, 3 or 12 (losing immediately), the dice result is used as a reference: to win, it is necessary to roll again the dice obtaining that combination first of having 7. On the contrary, if a player wagered on “Don't Pass the Line”, and the above mentioned conditions occur (he doesn’t win or lose immediately), he must draw 7 before having a result equal to the first dice rolling; after that, he will be rewarded. These two bets pay 1:1.
“Pass Line” and “Don't Pass the Line” are just the most famous and used stakes in Craps’games. However, they are not the only ones. In fact other stakes are available and they provide that the player indicates a result (for example, a score equal to 6 or 8) and get it before a 7 is drawn. In some online casinos, as well as in all the terrestrial casinos, there’s also the opportunity to bet on the result of one single dice rolling.
Craps versions
| Variant name Roulette | Brief description |
|---|---|
| Sic Bo | Not everyone knows that the Craps game has a variant named Sic Bo. The main difference between Craps and Sic Bo is that in the first game two dice are used, while in the second one they use up to three. In addition, Craps is a more detailed game, where different components come into play. |
Craps Glossary
Craps game is one of the more difficult games to master, not so much in terms of gaming performance, but rather for the incredible number of bets that can be performed. So, a glossary is absolutely fundamental to keep a close eye at any time on all the most used words. Placing the wrong bet because we didn’t remember its name might be very bad. However, being provided with a Craps game glossary, this never occurs. As previously said, please pay attention to the stakes: pass the line, don't pass the line, come, don't come and so on.
- “A”
- Ace deuce. A “one and two” bet in craps.
- Any. Another bet in craps game. The player wins when the sum of two craps is a specific number.
- “B”
- Big. A type of bet in craps game. The player wins if a given number occurs before a total of 7 on the next throw.
- Boxcars.Two 6s rolled in a craps game.
- “C”
- Come. The player bets that 7 or 11 come up with the second dice throw.
- Come out. The very first dice roll that determines if the player will win or lose or if he must throw the dice again.
- Craps. The name of this game also indicates a type of bet: the player wins if a total of 2, 3 or 12 come up with the next dice throw.
- “D”
- Dice. A 6-sided cube used for craps game.
- Don't come.A type of bet in craps game. The bet wins if the shooter gets 2 or 3 on the next throw; if he gets 7 or 11, he loses the game; if the come out roll is 12, the shooter ties; if the come out roll is different from the above-mentioned combinations, the player wins if a 7 is rolled before the point is repeated.
- Don't pass the line. Very similar to the “Don’t come” bet, “Don’t pass the line” is another type of bet in craps game.
- “E”
- Easy.Any dice combination of even numbers that is not a pair.
- “H”
- Hard. Any even number (4, 6, 8, etc.) which comes up only if both dice show the same face (2-2, 3-3, etc.).
- Hard way. A type of bet in craps predicting that the player will get 4, 6, 8 or 10 with the next throw.
- High low. A bet predicting that the player will get 2 and then 12 after two consecutive rolls.
- High low Yo. A bet predicting that the player will get 2, 12 or 11 after three consecutive rolls.
- “N”
- Natural. The player gets 7 or 11 on the “come out roll”.
- “P”
- Pass the line. A bet predicting that the player wins if he gets 7 or 11 after two dice rolls.
- Point. The number established by the come out roll with which one neither wins nor loses.
- “S”
- Seven out. A bet that occurs when a 7 is thrown after a point has been established and before repeating the point number.
- Snake eyes. Rolling two ones for a total of two.
- “Y”
- Yo (o yo-leven). Rolling a 6 and a 5 for a total of 11.
Craps Strategies and Tricks
There are no strategies and tricks for Craps, if we mean the opportunity to use methods for a sure win. However, it doesn’t mean that some strategy or some trick which lowers the casino advantage can’t be used. It is fundamental knowing the casino advantage in the different kinds of stake, always choosing the most convenient ones, namely the ”Pass the Line”, “Don't Pass the Line”, ”Come” and “Don't Come” stakes. Furthermore, when it’s possible, you’d better use the odds bets, as they reduce further the casino’s advantage.
Although Craps is definitely a game of chance like many other virtual casino games, it offers the opportunity to choose among many different types of bets, developing strategies and tips based on two important factors: knowledge and common sense. In fact, the player should be aware that some bets reduce the house advantage; furthermore, he should apply common sense choosing that type of bets. Best Craps strategies are: Pass the Line, Come, Don't Pass the Line and Don't Come. The house advantage for Pass and Come is of 1.41%; the house advantage for Don't Pass and Don't Come is much lower (only 1.36%).
Now, let’s compare some bet percentages:
- Field: the house advantage is of 5.6%
- Big 6 and Big 8: the house advantage is of 9.1%
- Craps: the house advantage is of 11.1%
- Horn: the house advantage is of 12.5%
- Any: the house advantage is of 16.7%.
Odds bets may be good for the player. Secret craps odds are offered only by few online and land-based casinos: these bets reduce the house advantage on any type of bet and give you the opportunity of making other bets after the first dice roll (the roll that establishes the point). While Pass Line, Don’t Pass the Line, Come and Don’t Come are paid even money, odd bets are paid at true odds and reduce the house advantage.
