Blackjack, or 21, is a Card Game almost as popular in the casinos as poker.
The dealer gives themselves one card face down (the "hole card") and one card face-up for all the players to see. Each player makes a wager, then gets two cards face-up, and can opt to receive more cards. The goal is to get a score of 21, or if not, a higher score than the dealer (each player is in competition with the dealer, not the other players). If you get 22 or higher, you've gone bust. If both you and the dealer go bust, the dealer still takes your wager. Getting and ace and a card worth 10 with the first two cards (and thus having 21) is a blackjack, sometimes called a "natural", and in casinos will earn a higher payout.note The dealer will look at their face-down card before proceeding with play, if those two cards are a blackjack all players automatically lose and all bets are collected (unless they have a blackjack themselves, in which case the bet is returned.)
Cards are valued thus:
- Pip cards 2 to 10 are at face value.
- Royal cards are all valued at 10 each.
- First ace in a hand is valued at 11, subsequent aces are valued at 1 each. However, you can re-evaluate your only ace as 1 if it keeps you from going bust. For example, you have 3♠ and A♦ (adding up to 14), and then the dealer gives 8♥. You've just gone bust at 22, unless you re-evaluate your ace as 1, in which case you're only at 12. Although maybe this re-evaluation is pretty much automatic in modern play. A hand where one of the first two cards is an ace is known as a soft hand, for example the 3♠ and A♦ mentioned above would be called a "soft 14", whereas 6♠ and 8♦ would be a "hard 14".
Suit does not matter. And since several decks are used in a single round of blackjack, it is quite possible to get two or more cards matching in both rank and suit (e.g., two of the 7♦). After shuffling, the dealer might show all the cards face up to the players for a brief moment before putting them into the "shoe."
Even with eidetic memory, a player might not completely perceive the sequence of cards. What card counters usually do is keep track of the average value of the face-up cards that have been dealt so far. When the average is low, the theory goes, high-value cards are coming up and players should make bigger bets. However, there are plenty of charts out there that show what the smart play is mathematically depending on the cards dealt (here's one
from The Other Wiki's page on blackjack), many casinos will let players refer to a chart while they're playing, so long as they aren't holding up other players. Making the mathematically smart play on every hand can reduce the "house edge" down to 0.5% under the right conditions.
A plastic divider is sometimes put in the shoe to put some cards out of play, increasing the likelihood that some rank and suit combinations will come up more frequently than others.
In some cases, you're allowed to split a hand into two separate hands, but the exact rules vary in each casino. For example, if you get two tens, you probably shouldn't get another card because you would almost certainly go bust. However, if you split them off into two separate hands, you might be able to win on both.
The wager is usually split into two smaller equal wagers, or you might be required to attach a separate wager of the same value to the split-off hand. Theoretically, some casinos allow infinite splitting, but probably most casinos limit how many times a hand may be split.
Some casinos allow you to split a ten and a royal card, some don't. A few casinos allow you to split any pair that adds up to 16, e.g., 7♥ and 9♠. Some British casinos forbid the splitting of cards valued at 10 even if they match in rank, as well as splitting 4s and 5s (splitting fours is almost always a bad idea anyway).
Splitting aces might be a good idea depending on the dealer's hole card. If you split a pair of aces, you might only be allowed to draw one more card for each hand. Some casinos forbid splitting aces altogether.
If you're not counting cards, splitting eights is probably a good idea. But if you are counting cards, you should still probably keep eights together only if you're absolutely certain the next card is an ace, a two, a three, a four, or a five.
Very few casinos allow you to discard a split hand (in which case the wager associated with that hand probably goes back to your remaining hand).
In casino games you also have the option to double down, where by placing another bet equal to the original bet you are given one (but only one) more card, this is usually only done if the player's first two cards add up to 10 or 11. You are also give the option to surrender, where you can simply fold a deal that is very unlikely to win (like being dealt a 15 while the dealer is showing a 10 or ace) and have half your original bet returned. Both of these options may be available on split hands, depending on the casino.
Once all the players have stood, the dealer reveals their face-down card. They may deal themselves more cards just like they do for the players but with the following constraint: if they're at 16 or less, they must deal themselves another card, and if they're at 17, they must stand (some blackjack tables have the rule "Dealer must draw to 16 and stand on all 17s" written on them).note Obviously, a dealer can't split their hand, right?
This card game contains examples of:
- Instant-Win Condition: You win the game if your cards score 21.
- Luck-Based Mission: While you can weigh your odds of the next card helping your game, bar counting cards, this game ultimately comes down to luck.
