Craps: The rules of play

In Craps the "shooter " first roll of a new round is called the "come-out roll." On the come-out roll, if the shooter rolls 7, 11, 2, 3 or 12, the round ends , and the shooter must roll another come-out roll. A roll of 2, 3 or 12 is called 'craps' while a roll of 7 or 11 is called a 'win' or a 'natural.' When any other number (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10) is rolled on the come-out roll, this number becomes the point. Once the point is established the shooter will re-roll the dice until either a 7 is rolled, or the point is rolled again. If the shooter rolls the point again, the round ends and the game starts over with the same shooter rolling another come-out roll. If the shooter rolls a 7 instead of the point, this is called a 'seven-out,' the round ends, and the dice pass to the next player.

The casino craps table usually has four casino employees: a boxman who guards the chips, supervises the dealers and handles coloring out players; two base dealers who stand to either side of the boxman and collect and pay bets; and a stickman who stands directly across the table from the boxman and announces the results of each roll and then collects the dice with an elongated wooden stick. He is also in charge of managing the bets made on the center of the table (hardways, yo, horn, etc).

A new shooter, who must bet the table minimum on either the "pass" line or the "don't pass" line to play, is presented five dice by the stickman and picks two.

The dealers will usually insist that the shooter roll with one hand and that the dice bounce off the wall surrounding the table. If a die leaves the table, the shooter will usually be asked to select another die from the remaining three but can request using the same die, if it passes the boxman's inspection. This requirement is used in an effort to reduce cheating the game by players substituting loaded dice for the regulation dice.

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Fire Bet: Before the shooter begins, some casinos will allow a bet known as a fire bet to be placed. A fire bet is a bet for between 1-5 dollars (the Rio in Las Vegas allows up to $10) in the hopes that the next shooter will have a hot streak of setting and getting many points of different values. As different individual points are made by the shooter, they will be marked on the craps layout with a fire symbol.

The first three points will not pay out on the fire bet, but the fourth, fifth and sixth will pay out at increasing odds. The fourth point pays at 25-1 (a maximum of $125 for a $5 bet), the fifth point pays at 250-1 (a maximum of $1,250 for a $5 bet) and the 6th point pays at 1,000-1 (a maximum of $5,000 for a $5 bet). Note that the points must all be different numbers for them to count towards the fire bet. A shooter who successfully hits a point of 10 twice will only garner credit for the first one on the fire bet.

Pass line: The shooter is required to make either a Pass Line bet or a Don't Pass bet if he wants to shoot. The fundamental bet in craps is the pass line bet, also called the win line . A pass line bet is won if the come-out roll is a 7 or 11. If the come-out roll is 2, 3 or 12, the bet loses. If instead the come-out roll establishes a point, and that point is rolled again, the bet wins. If a point is established and a 7 is rolled before the point is re-rolled, the bet loses.

Don't pass: The opposite of the pass line bet is the don't pass bet. The don't pass bet is opposite in that it loses if the come-out roll is 7 or 11 and wins if the come-out roll is 2 or 3. 12 will draw, (this depends on the casino), either way a player cannot lose if 12 is rolled. A draw (the word "BAR," printed on the Craps layout, means "Standoff"), on 12 is done to ensure the casino maintains a house edge regardless of whether players are betting pass or don't pass. If a point is established and that point is rolled again, the don't pass bet loses. If a 7 is rolled instead of the point being re-rolled, the don't pass bet wins. Betting on don't pass is often called "playing the dark side," and it is considered to be in poor taste, or even taboo, because it goes directly against conventional play.

Pass odds: If a 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10 is thrown on the come-out roll (i.e., if a point is set), most casinos allow pass line bettors to take odds by placing from one to five times (and at some casinos, up to 100 times) the pass line bet behind the pass line. This additional bet wins if the point is rolled again before a 7 is rolled (the point is made) and pays at the true odds of 2-to-1 if 4 or 10 is the point, 3-to-2 if 5 or 9 is the point, and 6-to-5 if 6 or 8 is the point.

Don't pass odds: If a player is playing don't pass instead of pass, they may also take odds by placing chips behind the don't pass line. If a 7 comes instead of the point coming, the odds pay at true odds of 1-to-2 if 4 or 10 is the point, 2-to-3 if 5 or 9 is the point, 5-to-6 if 6 or 8 is the point. For most players the perceived disadvantage of putting up the long side of the bet makes the don't pass odds less desirable, however putting up the long side reduces variance.

Names of Rolls in Craps