Black Jack Playing Rules and Black Jack Playing tips

The name this game goes under, depends on where and with whom you are playing. Black Jack, Twenty one and Pontoon plus other language equivalent names are the most common. Its origins are shrouded in the mists of time but one commonly accepted view is that it is based on a French game called 'Chemin de Fer' which literally translates to way of iron or railway.

The game can be played with from one to six packs of cards being used. Normally a minimum of two and a maximum of six packs are used. These are placed in a box called a shoe and cards are dealt from this box. There is a high level of skill involved in this game. Some players have an uncanny ability to recall cards that have been played . It is fairly easy to recall the high cards that have been played when you are playing with a single pack The difficulty increases with the number of packs used in the shoe. Casinos frown on the practice of counting cards. If you are slowing down the game or are obviously trying to count cards, you will be quickly shown the door.

The Joker is not used in this game. Picture cards are assigned a value of ten (jack ,king, queen) and aces count as either 1 or 11 depending on your election. If you have a picture card and an ace you, you would have to be a born looser to want to count it as one when you can count it as 11 and have a perfect score, a black jack plus win one and a half times the amount wagered in most casinos! All other cards are counted as per their face value. Remember that there are more tens in the shoe than any other card value because of the way picture cards are counted.

You must place your bet at the beginning of each round on a circle on the table in front of you. If you don't place a bet, you can't play.

The dealer deals all players and himself two cards in a rotating pattern from left to right around the table. Each player can look at his or her cards but only one of the dealer's cards are dealt face up. You have to assess your hand and choose to 'hit' (be dealt more cards) or 'stand' (sit on the cards you have been dealt). The aim of the game is to equal or get as close to 21 as possible without exceeding that number. To win your hand must be better than the dealers. If you exceed 21, you have gone 'bust' and the dealer wins the amount you wagered.

We always considered the dealers face down card as having a value of ten. If his card facing up had a value of seven, we assessed his hand as seventeen, the number we had to beat. In reality, his face down card could be an ace or any other card as low as 2. If your hand adds up to nineteen, you will at least draw with the dealer. If the dealer's face up card is a low number, there is a fair chance that the dealer will hit to increase his or her chance of getting closer to 21. If the dealer goes bust all players win double their stake. A player can elect to 'double down' that is to buy another card but this requires you to double your original stake. The value of this card is added to the value of your existing cards. If you go bust, your total amount wagered is lost. Some casinos have rules as to when you can double, usually your hand has to total less than 11 and cannot contain an ace. If your initial two cards are of the same value, you can 'split' them into two separate hands and be dealt one more card for each hand. This is then the same as playing with two separate hands.

If the dealer's hand contains an ace, (after the initial cards are dealt) some casinos have a thing called an 'insurance bet'. With this you are betting that the dealer has a black jack. If you are right, you get paid double your bet. This is not a value for money bet as it is a fairly rare occurrence. In some casinos you can 'surrender.' In these circumstances you loose only half of your bet.

After all players have their additional cards, the dealer will decide to hit or stand. The dealer will decide to stick on a total that is either equal to or under 21. If the dealer should go bust you get double your stake provided you have not gone bust. Normally when a player's cards total more than the dealer's cards, the player receives an amount equal to the amount wagered. When your cards equal the dealers cards, you 'push'. That means that your bet lies for the next round.

The next round is ready to begin when all bets are settled for the current round.

The River Belle Casino has a very realistic free to play blackjack game that you can access from the Free Games link on the main index on this page.

May lady luck always ride upon your shoulder when ever you choose to play!