THE BASICS Blackjack is played with cards against a dealer.

The object of the game is simply to beat the dealer by getting a better hand than him, or to simply survive the game. As you play, you will get cards. The best hands to get are ones where the cards total 21, such as an eight, a four and a nine, or, even better, an ace and a king. Be wary though, if your cards end up totaling more than 21, you are “busted” and lose that hand. The dealer can bust as well, so, if your hand is low, you still may be able to win.

As far as the cards are concerned, each card is worth its face value, so twos are worth two, nines are worth nine, etc. Tens, jacks, queens, and kings are all worth ten. Aces are worth either one or eleven. You choose the value that best helps your hand.

HOW TO PLAY Everyone, including the dealer receives two cards each. Since the only person you are playing against is the dealer, the cards dealt to you will be up If someone at the table has a better hand than you, fear not—the dealer is the only person you have to worry about. One, but not both, of the dealer’s cards will be up as well. This might seem unfair, but the dealer has to operate under very strict rules to balance this out.

The dealer must hit on any combo of cards that equals less than 16 and stay on any combo of cards equaling 17 or more.

The two basic moves are hit—take another card, or stay—not take another card. There’s no limit to how many cards you can take, although you must remember if your cards end up totaling more than 21, you bust. Once you have decided to stop taking cards, the dealer will move onto the next person around the table before moving to himself. The dealer will take or stay depending on what he has, and then you will either win or lose depending on how your cards stack up.

If you and the dealer both have the same total in front of you it is called a push. You don’t win any money, but you don’t lose.

If you beat the dealer, you win an amount equal to what you bet. Thus, with a “100” chip as your bet, you would get back your bet, plus another “100” chip.

BLACKJACK If you receive an ace and a ten-value card, thus totaling 21, itis called a blackjack. As long as the dealer doesn’t have a blackjack as well, you win. A blackjack pays out twice what you put in, thus a “100” will get you “200” in play chips. A blackjack can only occur on the first two cards you are dealt.

DOUBLE DOWN In some instances, you can (and should) double your money on a bet. This is called a double down. If, for example, you have a total of eleven showing, you want to double down, effectively doubling your bet. If you had a “100” in, you would put a second “100” down. What you are betting on with an eleven is the chance of getting a ten-value card as your next card.

There is a risk. If you double down, you can only get one more card, and you have to take it, whatever it is. The likelihood of a ten-value card coming up is far greater than any other card (generally) as there are more ten-value cards in the deck than any other card.

You can double down on any combo of your first two dealt cards. Although it’s advisable only in the case of elevens, some people like tens as well, since you’re likely to get a respectable twenty.

SPLIT You can also split in some instances. A split can happen only in your first two cards, and only when you have the same card twice, such as two aces or two eights. What you do is split apart your doubles, making each its own hand. You then double your bet, covering each hand separately, and get dealt cards for each of those two new hands.

You can split twice in a hand, as in the case of splitting eights and getting a third eight on one of your new hands. You cannot split more than twice.

Aces can be split, but you can only get one card on each. If you get a ten-value card on one of your split aces, it does not count as blackjack, just a normal twenty-one. Remember, blackjack is only on the very first two cards of your hand.

There are times where it’s not advisable to split. Two very low cards aren’t wise to split, because you’re already in a bad spot to begin with. It’s also not wise to split two similar ten-value cards, such as two queens, as you’re already in a good spot to win. Why potentially screw that up?

SPLIT AND DOUBLE DOWN You can double on split hands. If, for instance, you split eights and then get dealt a three on one of your eights (making eleven), you can then double your bet on that hand and try for a ten to make 21.

That’s a lot of rules for one of the simplest gambling games around. As with any of the games featured at a Jackpot Casino events party, you can ask any of the dealers for a refresher on the rules of the game. The dealers are there to make sure you are comfortable playing any game you choose and are having a good time.