Hazard (game)
Any number may play, but only one player — the caster — has the dice at any one time.
In each round, the caster specifies a number between 5 and 9 inclusive: this is the main. He then throws two dice.
- If he rolls the main, he wins (throws in or nicks).
- If he rolls a 2 or a 3, he loses (throws out).
- If he rolls an 11 or 12, the result depends on the main:
- with a main of 5 or 9, he throws out with both an 11 and a 12;
- with a main of 6 or 8, he throws out with an 11 but nicks with a 12;
- with a main of 7, he nicks with an 11 but throws out with a 12.
- If he neither nicks nor throws out, the number thrown is called the chance. He throws the dice again:
- if he rolls the chance, he wins;
- if he rolls the main, he loses (unlike on the first throw);
- if he rolls neither, he keeps throwing until he rolls one or the other, winning with the chance and losing with the main.
| Main | Nicks | Outs | Chance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 5 | 2, 3, 11, 12 | Anything else |
| 6 | 6, 12 | 2, 3, 11 | |
| 7 | 7, 11 | 2, 3, 12 | |
| 8 | 8, 12 | 2, 3, 11 | |
| 9 | 9 | 2, 3, 11, 12 |
As long as he keeps winning, the caster may keep playing: but if he loses three times in succession, he must pass the dice to the player to his left, who becomes the new caster.
| Table of contents |
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2 Craps and Hazard 3 References |
Betting
Bets are between the caster and the bank (the setter), which may be the remaining players acting as a group.
If the caster nicks on the first throw, he wins an amount equal to his stake.
If he throws a chance, the setter gives him odds:
| Main | Chance | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 5 | 4/3 | - | 4/5 | 2/3 | 4/5 | 1/1 | 4/3 |
| 6 | 5/3 | 5/4 | - | 5/6 | 1/1 | 5/4 | 5/3 |
| 7 | 2/1 | 3/2 | 6/5 | - | 6/5 | 3/2 | 2/1 |
| 8 | 5/3 | 5/4 | 1/1 | 5/6 | - | 5/4 | 5/3 |
| 9 | 4/3 | 1/1 | 4/5 | 2/3 | 4/5 | - | 4/3 |
For example, with a stake of £10, a main of 7 and a chance of 4, a caster stands to win £15 (3/2 × £10); with the same stake, a main of 5 and a chance of 6, he could win £8 (4/5 × £10).
Craps and Hazard
At its heart, craps is a version of Hazard where the main is always 7:
- if the shooter (the caster) rolls a 7 or 11 on his first throw, he wins;
- if he rolls a 2, 3, or 12, he loses;
- if he rolls anything else, that is his point (his chance); he now keeps throwing until he wins by making (rolling) his point or loses by rolling a 7.
References
- "HAZARD". LoveToKnow 1911 Online Encyclopedia. http://20.1911encyclopedia.org/H/HA/HAZARD.htm.
- Steinmetz, Andrew (1870). The Gaming Table, Volume II, Chaper X. (Online edition available at World Wide School.)
