Pocket BlackJack

Dealer

Player

Blackjack Rules

Object

Blackjack is a betting game played against a dealer. The object is score more points than the dealer without going over 21.

Scoring

Points are totaled for each card in a hand. Face cards (Jack, Queen and King) count as 10 points, Aces may be counted as either one or 11. All other cards are counted according to their numeric value.

When Aces are present in a hand, the total displayed to its right represents the highest score, not over 21, that could be made from those cards.

Game Play

To begin a round, the player places a bet (by hitting the "Deal" button) and both the player and the dealer are dealt two cards. The dealer's first card is dealt face down while all other cards are dealt face up.

If the first two cards in a hand total 21, it's called a "blackjack" or "natural." The player wins with a blackjack unless the dealer also has a blackjack. If the dealer has a blackjack and the player doesn't, the player loses. If both have a blackjack, it is a tie ("push"). In any case, the round is over.

When neither the dealer nor the player have blackjack, the player may take additional cards, one at a time ("hit"), until he or she reaches 21 or goes over ("busts"). The player may stop at any time ("stand"). The player loses if he or she busts.

Otherwise, once the player stands, it is the dealer's turn and the dealer's down card is revealed. The dealer must hit if the point total is less than 17 and continue hitting until reaching 17 or more. If the dealer busts, the player wins.

If neither the player or dealer busts, the player wins if his or her total is higher than the dealer's. If they tie, it is a push.

Betting

The player starts with $1000.00 credit (strictly play money) and may bet any amount between $5.00 and $500.00 in increments of $5.00. The player may change this bet amount between rounds.

If the player wins with a blackjack, his or her bet is paid off at 3 to 2. Otherwise, the player is paid even money for a win. In the event of a push, the player's bet is returned.

Note that a hand of three or more cards totaling 21 is not considered a blackjack. That is, if the player reaches 21 by hitting on a hand it is not an automatic win. If the player does win with such a hand, the bet is paid at even money.

Special Plays

After the initial deal, if neither the player nor dealer has a blackjack, the player has some additional options:

The player may "split" if he or she has a pair (two cards of identical value, this includes any two face cards or a ten and any face card). See Splits below for details.
The player may "double down," meaning that the player doubles his or her current bet and receives one and only one additional card.
The player may "surrender," forfeiting the round and losing half of his or her original bet.

Buttons are automatically enabled and disabled depending on what actions or options are valid at any point in the game according to the rules.

Insurance

On the initial deal, if the dealer's up card is an Ace, the player is offered "insurance." This is a side bet equal to half of the player's original bet. If the player buys insurance and the dealer has blackjack, the player is paid 2 to 1 on this side bet. If the player buys insurance and the dealer does not have blackjack, the side bet is lost. In either case, the round continues as before with the player's original bet.

When prompted to buy insurance, click "OK" to purchase or "Cancel" to decline.

Splits

When the player is dealt a pair, he or she may split. One card is removed and placed in a new hand with a bet equal to the amount of the player's original bet.

The split hands are then played individually as follows:

An additional card is dealt to the hand.
If Aces are split, only one additional card is given to each hand (see House Rules below). The player may not hit, split or double down afterwards.
Otherwise, after the second card has been dealt the hand may be played as before (hit, stand, double down, etc.) except that the player may not surrender on a split hand.
Pairs (other than Aces) may be resplit but there is a limit to the total number of times the player can split (see House Rules below).

Once the player completes the first split hand (stands, doubles down or busts), the next hand is played and so on until all split hands have been played. Play then moves to the dealer as before.

Note: If the additional card dealt to a split hand makes a total of 21, it is not considered a blackjack. In other words, it will pay at even money if the hand wins.

When the player splits, the hand currently in play will be highlighted.

Once the dealer busts or stands, each split hand is individually compared to the dealer's to determine a win, loss or push for the player. It is possible, for example, to beat the dealer on one hand but lose on the other.

House Rules

Blackjack rules can vary. The rules used in this game are based on typical Las Vegas casino rules:

A four deck shoe is used. The player is notified whenever a new deck is put into play.
The dealer may not hit on a soft 17, that is, when the dealer has a total of 17 using an Ace counted as 11.
The player may double down on any initial two card hand.
The player may split up to three times in any round (giving a possible total of four separate hands).
If the player splits on Aces, only one additional card will be dealt to each split hand.
Aces may not be resplit.

Card Counting

Card counting is not illegal, however if a casino thinks you are card counting you can be made to leave their casino. If you become very very good at card counting you can improve your odds to an almost two percent advantage over the house. Most casinos use multiple decks, and end the shoe before all the cards are dealt, making it nearly impossible to accurately count the cards.

I've included a simple card counter in this game so that you can use it while making decisions about your play. The counter counts all 2-6 cards as a -1, and all 10-Ace cards as a +1. So, if the count is a high positive number, theres a good chance that the next card might be a low card, and vice versa.

Blackjack Basic Strategy

Your Hand	Dealer's face-up card
Your Hand	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	A
Hard totals
17-20	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S
16	S	S	S	S	S	H	H	SU	SU	SU
15	S	S	S	S	S	H	H	H	SU	H
13-14	S	S	S	S	S	H	H	H	H	H
12	H	H	S	S	S	H	H	H	H	H
11	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	H
10	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	H	H
9	H	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	H	H	H	H	H
5-8	H	H	H	H	H	H	H	H	H	H
Soft totals
	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	A
A,8 A,9	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S
A,7	S	Ds	Ds	Ds	Ds	S	S	H	H	H
A,6	H	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	H	H	H	H	H
A,4 A,5	H	H	Dh	Dh	Dh	H	H	H	H	H
A,2 A,3	H	H	H	Dh	Dh	H	H	H	H	H
Pairs
	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	A
A,A	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP
10,10	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S
9,9	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	S	SP	SP	S	S
8,8	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP
7,7	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	H	H	H	H
6,6	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	H	H	H	H	H
5,5	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	Dh	H	H
4,4	H	H	H	SP	SP	H	H	H	H	H
2,2 3,3	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	SP	H	H	H	H

The above is a basic strategy table for 3 or more decks, dealer stands on soft 17, double on any 2 cards, double after split allowed, dealer peeks for blackjack, and blackjack pays 3:2. Key:

S = Stand

H = Hit

Dh = Double (if not allowed then hit)

Ds = Double (if not allowed then stand)

SP = Split

SU = Surrender (if not allowed, then hit)

Most Las Vegas strip casinos hit on soft 17. This rule change requires a slightly modified basic strategy table -- double on 11 vs A, double on A/7 vs 2, and double on A/8 vs 6. Most casinos outside of Vegas still stand on soft 17.