If you’re intimidated by complicated
casino games or those which
require some sort of skill (like Blackjack), you should
definitely opt for a no-brainer which makes it possible to win
money on a coin-toss like event or on the spin of a reel.
Slot machines are great for such fun, but quite frankly they’re
rather impersonal and after a while they may end up boring for a
player who’s not a fanatic.
Such people can play Casino War, which is the simplest card-game
available in a casino. As children, we’ve all played war. For
those of you who may not be familiar with the game, it’s about
betting on whether or not the card one player draws is higher
than the card the other player gets. This is exactly what Casino
War is about and here are the detailed rules:
Casino War is played with 6 decks. The card rankings are the
same as in poker (2 is the smallest card, A is the biggest, and
Aces are always high), suits are not considered.
Players place their wagers and then the dealer hands everyone
one card including himself.
Cards are then compared and if a player has a higher card than
the dealer he wins even money on his wager.
If the dealer happens to draw the higher card, the player loses
his wager.
Sometimes the dealer’s card will match the player’s card, in
which case a draw is declared. Under such circumstances, the
player can choose to either surrender and to get one half of his
wager back, or to go to war against the dealer. Here’s where it
gets tricky. If the player does go to war he will have to raise
his initial wager with the same amount (to double it up) and the
dealer will raise his too. Then the dealer burns 3 cards and
deals the player another card then deals himself one too. The
only problem for the player is that if he loses the bet, he
loses both his wagers. If the dealer wins, he loses his second
bet but the first one is considered a push.
This is where the house edge and the negative EV for the player
creeps into the equation. Many a player believes Casino War is
basically a 50-50 game, and will therefore favor it over
roulette, craps or whatever else. The House edge is induced by
the above described rules.
If the player tries to avoid the house edge by avoiding the war,
he still won’t get far because surrender means he’ll forfeit
half his initial bet, which is a sure loss.
Casino War may not require you to strain your brain over
strategic intricacies but make it a part of your strategy to
always go to war when you happen upon a draw. If you surrender,
the house edge against you will be 3.7%. If you go to war every
time, it will only be 2.8%.
At some casinos and
online casinos, the second
tie (another tie following the first one) in Casino War results
in a bonus equal to the size of the initial wager. Some casinos
are trickier about it. They say the raise pays 3-1 but the
initial bet loses, which pretty much means the same thing
mathematically.
A bet on the second tie is also available and this bet pays
10-1.
Whatever casino game you play, make sure you take full advantage
of a loyalty scheme, be that a comp point based one or a
rakeback type one. That’ll
soften the house edge somewhat.
