Game Rules for Multi-Player Progressive Blackjack

Rule Authority:

InterCasino Multi-Player Progressive Blackjack is played and programmed according to Atlantic City blackjack rules.

Authority: New Jersey Casino Control Commission.

Rule Exceptions: The deck of cards is shuffled after each hand, and pair may not be re-split. Players may not draw any additional cards on split aces.

Premise:

In Multi-Player Progressive, before beginning the player has the option of making a $1 side bet, which allowed them to take part in additional pay outs. After wagering the player and the dealer are both dealt two cards. The objective of progressive Blackjack is to accumulated cards that add up closest to 21 than the dealer's cards, without going over 21. Face cards are worth, cards from 2-10 are worth their value and aces are worth either 1 or 11, depending on what will make a better hand, which will be assumed by the computer. If the value of the player's hand is closer to 21 than that of the dealer, the player wins. However, if the dealer's hand is higher the player loses. If the hands are of equal value, then the deal is a push and the player's money is returned. If the player has 22 or more (a busted hand) they lose regardless of whether or not the dealer also busts.

Summary of Rules:

1. 8 52-card decks are used
2. The deck is re-shuffled after approximately one-third of the shoe (the 8 decks of cards) has been dealt.
3. Dealer stands on all 17s
4. Doubling after splitting allowed
5. No re-splitting of cards allowed
6. No surrender
7. Only one additional card allowed on each Ace when splitting a pair of Aces

How to Play:

InterCasino Progressive Blackjack is played with 8 decks of fifty-two cards. Immediately after each game has been played the used cards are then shuffled back into the deck. All face cards are valued as 10, and cards from 2-10 are valued by their number. Aces can be valued at either 1 or 11, which does not need to specified as it is assumed that it will be valued to the card that will give the best hand.

Your chips are first stacked by denomination ($1, $5, $25, $100, $500) at the bottom of the gaming window. The player then selects the amount they want to wager on a given hand by clicking on the chip of the denomination they would like to use.

The player then places their bet on the Baccarat table by clicking on one of the bet fields. The player can also specify a bet that is not equal to an existing chip denomination by clicking on a different chip denomination after placing the last chip on the table. For example, placing a $25 chip and then a $5 chip would make the total of the bet $30.

The player is also able to withdraw their entire wager simply by clicking on the right mouse button. The total of the bet being played will appear in the "Bet" section just below "User". The player may repeat their last bet by clicking on the shortcuts that are summarized below. If the player places a wager that is below the table bet limit, the bet will automatically be put to the minimum bet limit.

For the player to qualify for the Bonus jackpot they need to place a $1 bonus bet, which can be done by clicking on the flashing chip holder at the beginning on the hand. The player may place a bonus bet before playing their hand, as long as the lights are still flashing. Players may win a bonus if they receive two or more consecutive Aces within the first cards dealt to them in their hand. The amount of the Jackpot increases with every bet, and this is displayed at the left-hand or right-hand side of the screen depending on the seat position. The player may also qualify for a bonus payout based on the suit and number of aces held in a hand (see the Bonus Payout Table).

Within the multi-player version of Blackjack, the table is able to accommodate five players plus the dealer. You space on the table will be shown by a white light. You may change your position on the table by clicking on the desired spot between the hands around the table. Each player starts by placing a bet on the table. Once all the bets have been placed on the table the player may chose to skip the given deal, before your first card is dealt, by clicking the Pass button. Or the player may proceed with the bet by pressing the Deal button. If the player does not bet or pass within 15 seconds of being dealt their cards then they will automatically be excluded from the hand. If a player joins the table in the middle of a hand they must wait until the round is over and they will be able to bet on the next hand. Each player will receive two cards facing upwards, and the dealer receives one face up and one faced down.

After the player has placed their bets they will then receive two cards face up. The dealer will also receive two cards - one facing upwards and one down. Once the player has been dealt their cards (and based on the nature of the cards) they may do the following by clicking on the appropriate button:

Hit:

Hit requests another card. The player may do this as many times as they like, but if the total then exceeds 21 they will "bust" and lose their hand.

Stand:

A Stand requests that the player receive no more cards. The hand as it then stands will be judged against the dealer's own hand.

Split:

If the player received two cards of the same denomination, then a Split button will appear. This option will only be active immediately after the player receives their first two cards. The player is then able to split their hand into two and play each hand separately. The original bet will then be duplicated for the new hand. Each hand will then be played as usual, except when splitting aces, where only one additional card per hand is dealt. A white box will appear displaying the player's card total of each hand, and will also indicate which hand is active.

The split option may only be used once per hand- you cannot split a part of a split hand. Any winning 21 total is then paid one to one.

Double Down:

After selecting the Double Down button three things may happen - the player will receive one more card, the players turn will end, and the bet will be doubled. This option is only available immediately after the player received their first two cards.

Insurance:

When the dealer's up-card is an Ace, the player has the option to take insurance for half the amount of the bet.

If the player wants to take insurance, they must click the Insurance button. If the player does not want to take the insurance they may press the Pass button to continue with the When the player buys insurance they are betting on the idea that the dealer's down card is a ten or a face card (i.e a natural blackjack card).

If the dealer does possess a 10 ranking card then the player is immediately paid 2 to 1 on the insurance bet, but the original wager is lost unless the player has a blackjack too and pushed with the dealer. If the dealer does not have a natural blackjack then rest of the hand is played as usual, and the player loses their insurance money.

Note: The Double Down and Split options are only available after the player receives their firs two cards. If the dealer has an ace face up, then the player will be offered a chance to buy insurance for half of the amount they have bet. When the player buys insurance they are making a second bet, in effect. The player is betting that the dealer has a natural Blackjack, the player will collect a payoff of 2 to 1 on their insurance. If the dealer does not have a natural, the rest of the hand is played out and the player will lose their insurance money.

If the player wins the hand, they will get the original bet plus the same amount in profit. A hand that consists of an ace and any ten value card is called a natural 21 or natural blackjack (except in the case of a Split hand - see details above). If you win with a natural BlackJack, you will be paid off at 3 to 2 odds, which means you get your original bet plus 150% profit.

Payoffs:

Result	Payoff
Winning hand	1 to 1
Blackjack	3 to 2
Insurance	2 to 1

Bonus Payout:

Bonus Bet Payouts are received when consecutive aces are the first cards dealt in a hand. The payout varies for different combinations of consecutive aces. Winning Bonus Bets will be paid to the player at the end of the round when all other bets are paid.

Result	Payoff
4 Red Aces OR 4 Black Aces	JACKPOT
3 Suited Aces	$2500
4 Unsuited Aces	$1500
3 Unsuited Aces	$250
2 Suited Aces	$100
2 Unsuited Aces	$25

Betting Limits:

$2 minimum bet

Individual tables may have different higher and lower bet limits. There are two ways to determine the table bet limit for a specific table - by placing the mouse over the specific table which will give a box stating the table number and minimum and maximum bet. Or, the player may click on a specific table and a new window will open displaying this information.

Setting your table bet limit:

You are also able to set your table limit to below the maximum specified limit by selecting Bet Options on the Game Menu. The Modify Table Bet Limit will then appear, and to reduce the maximum type in the new limit in the appropriate box. Then click OK to complete this update. Please be aware that you can only modify your table bet limit once a week (Friday 12:00 AM EST), and using the Modify Table Bet Limit affects the limit for ALL games and not just your current one.

Basic Multi-Player Progressive Blackjack Strategy Table:

Basic Progressive Blackjack strategy is named as the proper play of cards, knowing only your hand and the dealer's revealed card. It does not involve card counting or remembering cards played previously. The basic progressive Blackjack strategy is created through intensive computer simulations, which make complete combinatorial analysis. In this way, the computer 'plays' against tens of thousands of hands for each Blackjack situation possible and statistically decides which decision best favours the player.

The basic strategy is normally printed as tables with the dealer's up card in the first row, and the player's two-card combination in the first column. The other columns in the table tell the player what they need to do (Stand, Hit, Double-Down, Split) with the different combinations of dealer and the player's hands. Basic Blackjack strategy tables for InterCasino rules (8 decks, dealer stands on 17, double-down on any two cards, double after split allowed, no re-splitting of cards allowed, no surrender) are shown below for hard totals, soft totals and pairs along with a legend.

Legend:

• S - Stand
• H - Hit
• D - Double
• Y - Yes, split
• N - No, don't split

Hard Totals

	Dealer's Upcard
Your Cards	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	A
17	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S
16	S	S	S	S	S	H	H	H	H	H
15	S	S	S	S	S	H	H	H	H	H
14	S	S	S	S	S	H	H	H	H	H
13	S	S	S	S	S	H	H	H	H	H
12	H	H	S	S	S	H	H	H	H	H
11	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	H
10	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	D	H	H
9	H	D	D	D	D	H	H	H	H	H
8	H	H	H	H	H	H	H	H	H	H

Soft Totals

	Dealer's Upcard
Your Cards	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	A
(A,9)	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S
(A,8)	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S	S
(A,7)	S	D	D	D	D	S	S	H	H	H
(A,6)	H	D	D	D	D	H	H	H	H	H
(A,5)	H	H	D	D	D	H	H	H	H	H
(A,4)	H	H	D	D	D	H	H	H	H	H
(A,3)	H	H	H	D	D	H	H	H	H	H
(A,2)	H	H	H	D	D	H	H	H	H	H

Pairs

	Dealer's Upcard
Your Cards	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	A
(A,A)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
(10,10)	N	N	N	N	N	N	N	N	N	N
(9,9)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
(8,8)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
(7,7)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	N	N	N
(6,6)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	N	N	N	N
(5,5)	N	N	N	N	N	N	N	N	N	N
(4,4)	N	N	N	Y	Y	N	N	N	N	N
(3,3)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	N	N	N
(2,2)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	N	N	N

Chatting:

To begin chatting, click on the Chat button at the bottom left-hand corner of the game console. A chat window will pop-up in the top-left hand corner of the game console. You may chat with others at the table by typing in a message in the chat window and pressing Send. Your message and the messages of others will appear in the top part of the game window. The actual location depends on your seating position. If you prefer not to chat, you may close the chat window by clicking on the "x" button in the top right hand corner of the chat window. You may reopen the chat window at any time by clicking on "Chat" in the top menu bar.

Please refrain from using any language or discussing topics that others may deem offensive. Failure to comply with this rule may result in your removal from InterCasino. If you feel that someone is abusing this rule, please send an e-mail to our support team and we will look into it.

Numeric Keyboard Shortcuts:

Keyboard Entry	Action
0	Repeat last bet
Enter	Deal, Stand
+	Hit
-	Take Insurance
*	Double Down
/	Split
1	Pass, Refuse Insurance
Up Arrow	Increase bet by $1
Down Arrow	Decrease bet by $1
"<Shift>Up Arrow"	Increase bet by $10
"<Shift>Down Arrow"	Decrease bet by $10

For keyboards without keypads, you must use the "Fn" key plus the shortcuts above (e.g. 'Fn' + Enter). Please note that these keyboard shortcuts are given as a suggestion only. Some computers may function differently, and the shortcuts may not work on some computers.

Note: You are able to turn on and off the sound, voice and animation at anytime by clicking on the Options button that is located on the lower left-hand area of the console. The setting is turned on is the box is checked and off when it is unchecked, you must exit and re-enter the game to re-activate the animation feature.

References:

For further information on blackjack, please consult the following references:

• Carlson, Bryce. Blackjack for Blood, Compustar Press, 1992.
• Humble, Lance and Cooper, Carl. The World's Greatest Blackjack Book, Doubleday, 1987.
• Scoblete, Frank. Best Blackjack, Bonus Books, 1996.
• Tamburin, Henry. Reference Guide to Casino Gambling, Research Services Unlimited, 1993.
• Uston, Ken. Million Dollar Blackjack, Carol Publishing Group, 1994.