Dec 11
14
Understanding the Dice in Craps
In craps, there is one object that’s pretty much the core of the game. Actually, strictly speaking, there are two. The game of craps uses two pieces of die. These dice are central to the game of craps and in order to form any sort of strategy in the casino game, one should first understand the dice and how they influence one’s chances of winning.
The Dice
The winner in craps is decided primarily by the dice. It’s passed around by the players throughout the casino game, depending on the outcomes. It’s also what people bet on, whether they’re aiming for the more generic bets or the more specific ones. A single die has six sides in all and is shaped like a cube. Each side has a corresponding number, from 1 to 6. Taken together, two dice can have 12 different values and 35 different outcomes.
The number 7 – an important value in craps because it symbolizes and instant win or an instant loss depending on the bet – has the highest probability of occurring because it has six different ways to roll, namely 6/1, 1/6, 5/2, 2/5, 4/3, and 3/4. As such, it has a 5 to 1 chance of coming out. The most difficult value to roll is 12 and 2, as both have only one possibly way to roll. 2 can only be achieved with 1/1, while 12 can only be achieved by 6/6.
How does this affect the game?
The effect that this has on the game is pretty simple. In craps, there are three different craps numbers, namely 2, 3 and 12. In order to get them, the player has to roll the following combinations: 1/1, 1/2, 2/1, and 6/6. The probability of doing so is considerably lower than the probability of getting an instant win, represented by either 7 or 11. 7 has 6 different ways to roll, while 11 has 2, giving eight possibilities in all.
The casino is going out on a limb in this part and is actually giving players a better chance to win. However, the casino’s edge will rear its ugly head once again should the player roll a point number, namely 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10. When you start betting on the point numbers, that’s when the game becomes rather complicated and your odds of winning are considerably lessened. Of course, the deeper you go into game, the better the rewards as well – but then it will be much harder to win and is sometimes not worth it.
