| Updated: Dice games have been played for centuries, with rules and payouts that vary dramatically across countries and regions. Today, the most popular casino dice game is standard bank craps, but players may also encounter a wide range of variations, including craps-based games with very different rules or even games that do not use dice.
Multiple versions of the classic game have been developed in recent years, each promising better odds than those offered in standard bank craps. However, casinos have adopted most of these rule changes with one clear purpose: to increase the game’s house edge. Before playing an exotic, non-standard version of craps, whether in a land-based casino or online, players should take a closer look at the game’s rules and the payouts for the various winning bets.
Most Famous Craps Variations
Bank Craps vs Street Craps
Die Rich Craps Card-Based CrapsBank Craps vs Street Craps
Bank craps is the dice game commonly found today in online and brick-and-mortar casinos. Its rules were standardized more than 60 years ago after gambling was legalized and popularized in Las Vegas. The rise of casinos and the city’s development as a gambling and entertainment hub over several decades made games like craps fashionable. Gradually, casinos worldwide adopted these rules, and today, the same craps tables can be found wherever the game is legal.
However, an informal version of the game remains popular in many places around the world. This version, also known as Dice, Shooting Dice, or Street Craps, is much simpler than standard bank craps. The most obvious difference is the absence of a dealer or banker who would otherwise handle the money and monitor bets and payouts. Instead, bettors play against each other. Because there is no dedicated craps table with a betting layout, players throw the dice on the ground or on the floor when playing indoors.
There are also dozens of regional rule variations. Most of the time, only two betting options are available, similar to the Pass Line and Don’t Pass bets in bank craps. In some informal dice games, the rules resemble those of standard casino craps: the shooter wins with 7 or 11, loses with 2, 3, or 12, and establishes a point with any other number. In the second phase, the shooter loses if he rolls a 7 and wins if the dice show the point.
Interestingly, a game called Street Craps was introduced by a Las Vegas casino in 2014. It resembles the popular informal dice game, but a dealer oversees the betting process and pays out winnings. Once again, only a couple of bets are offered, making the game much simpler. However, the house edge on the Pass Line is relatively high at 5.02%.
When discussing the street version of craps, it is also important to warn players that in most countries, unregulated gambling games are deemed illegal. If caught, players and any bankers involved could face fines and possibly other legal penalties.
Die Rich Craps
One of the more recent variations of craps is called Die Rich Craps. It is a single-die version of the game in which the shooter wins even money if he throws a 6. If the die lands on 1, the shooter loses, while any other number establishes a point. As in the classic game, there are two phases. After the point has been established, the shooter has three additional rolls to make that point number. If he makes it on the first or third roll, he receives a payout of 2:1. If he makes the point on the second additional roll, the payout is even money (1:1).
There are also six proposition bets, one for each possible number, which pay 4:1 when successful. This is clearly a much simpler version of standard casino craps and is easier for beginners to understand. However, after Die Rich Craps was introduced in 2006 by a casino in Las Vegas, it failed to gain widespread popularity and is now almost impossible to find. The house edge for this game is around 3.70%.
Card-Based Craps
Several casinos have also introduced craps variations in which the pair of dice is replaced by cards. The main reason for developing these unusual games was to comply with gambling restrictions in certain US states. As a result, players could bet on the outcome of two cards dealt onto the table. Two shoes containing cards ranked ace through 6 are used, and the cards are dealt from a continuous shuffling machine to prevent card counting.
Aside from substituting cards for dice, the game is played in exactly the same way. The two cards dealt on the table represent the first and second die, and their total value determines the outcome of each “roll.” The standard bets remain, and the game consists of a come-out deal rather than a come-out roll, followed by subsequent deals.
Some craps variations use custom cards rather than standard decks of playing cards. In some of these games, players will find red and blue cards bearing images of dice. Once again, the rules follow classic craps gameplay, except that cards are used instead of dice. Some variations combine dice and cards to produce truly random outcomes for each “roll.”
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Other Popular Craps Variations
There are, of course, many other versions of dice games, most of which are available only locally. Some, however, have achieved modest popularity and can be found in various land-based casinos or even online. Players are often eager to try these new variations because they believe the odds or house-edge percentages are more favorable.
In reality, though, craps games with exotic rules typically introduce complex mechanics, unconventional bets, and overall lower expected returns.
Crapless Craps Simplified Craps High Point Craps New York Craps Open Craps Scarne CrapsCrapless Craps
This is one of the most popular variations of standard casino craps, and its appeal lies in its name. The term “crapless” refers to the rule that 2, 3, and 12 are not losing numbers on the come-out roll. Instead, they are regular numbers that can become points, meaning that Pass Line bettors cannot lose on the come-out roll. The game, invented by the late Las Vegas casino owner, entrepreneur, and gambler Bob Stupak, has a house edge of around 5.382% on the Pass Line bet.
By comparison, players face a house edge of only 1.41% when playing the Pass Line in regular craps. The difference stems from the rules. Although there are no craps numbers, 11 is not a winner on the come-out roll as it is in the standard game. In other words, Pass Line bettors never lose on the come-out roll, but they also have a lower chance of winning it.
In standard craps, eight possible dice combinations result in an instant win on the come-out roll: 6 ways to throw a 7 and 2 ways to throw an 11. The probability of this event is therefore 8/36, or about 22.22%. In Crapless Craps, however, the Pass Line wins only if a 7 is rolled, giving a probability of 6/36, or 16.67%.
Moreover, if the point is 2, 3, 11, or 12, Pass Line bettors are more likely to lose than to win during the subsequent rolls. The probability of rolling a 2 or 12 is 1/36 (2.77%), while the probability of rolling a 3 or 11 is 2/36 (5.55%). Meanwhile, the bet loses if a 7 appears, which happens 16.67% of the time. This means that an apparently appealing feature is actually unfavorable for the player.
Simplified Craps
Simplified Craps is, as its name suggests, a much simpler version of the classic game. The rules have been simplified to such an extent that the game has almost nothing in common with standard craps, except that both use a pair of identical dice. In Simplified Craps, there are no come-out rolls, no points are established, and every bet is settled on the next roll of the dice.
Players do not have many betting options. The shooter wins if he rolls 2, 3, 4, 10, 11, or 12, and he loses if he throws 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9. The game is much simpler than regular craps, making it suitable for beginners. One interesting aspect is that the payout varies depending on the number rolled:
- Dice show 2: 3:1
- Dice show 3 or 4: 1:1
- Dice show 10 or 11: 2:1
- Dice show 12: 5:1
Although there are more winning totals than losing totals in this game, the losing middle numbers are more likely to appear because they have more possible dice combinations. Combining all possible outcomes gives 12 winning combinations and 24 losing combinations. The odds against winning are therefore 2:1, meaning players are twice as likely to lose as to win. The overall house edge is approximately 2.80%.
High Point Craps
High Point Craps is an interesting version of the game. It is much simpler than casino craps and can be found at only a limited number of casinos. There are no craps numbers in this variation. If the shooter rolls a 2 or 3, the roll is ignored, and the shooter must throw the dice again. However, 7 is not a winning number. Instead, it is one of the point numbers. The shooter wins only if he throws an 11 or 12, and both numbers pay 1:1.
Once a point has been established, the shooter must throw a total that is higher than the point number in order to win. Any other total results in a loss. This variation is not more favorable than standard craps. The odds against winning on the come-out roll are 11:1, while the payout is only 1:1. The overall house edge in High Point Craps is 2.35%.
New York Craps
New York Craps is an interesting version of bank craps that differs considerably from the original. As its name suggests, it is most common on the East Coast of the US, although some sources claim that it is also played in the UK, the Bahamas, and several countries of the former Yugoslavia. This version uses a different table layout called a double-end-dealer table, and the house edge is relatively high at 5.00%.
There are many other differences, and the altered layout largely reflects the absence of Come and Don’t Come bets. Furthermore, there are no Place bets, although players can bet on box numbers (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10). Bets in this unusual version pay at true odds, but a 5% commission, also called vig from vigorish, is charged on all “right” bets.
Open Craps
Open Craps is a street or private version of craps that is played without dealers or bankers. Certain bets, however, are made against the “book,” the person responsible for tracking wagers and collecting the money. The book takes 5% of all “right” money wagered in the game, and this fee is known as the vig. Such private games are usually unregulated and often illegal forms of craps.
There are not many betting options. The layout includes only the Win Line, the Lose Line, and the box numbers (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, and 10). The shooter is required to place his bet in the center of the betting layout, called the Win Line. If he wins, he collects all the money placed in that section by himself and the other players. If he loses, the other bettors retrieve their wagers and divide the shooter’s bet among themselves.
This variation of craps also includes a wide variety of side bets that are usually made among the players, so the book does not charge the regular vig on them. However, the game can also have a very high house edge that varies dramatically depending on the specific rules and payouts, which can differ greatly.
Scarne Craps
Scarne Craps is named after its creator, the famous magician, gambler, and gambling author John Scarne. The aim of this version was to generate larger profits for casinos, especially those outside Las Vegas. As a result, the game became popular in South America and the Bahamas, but it is no longer available.
What is known about Scarne’s version, and more specifically how South American casinos interpreted its rules, is that it did not include Come and Don’t Come bets. The house did not charge a commission on “right” bets. Nevertheless, the game was known to have a higher house edge than standard casino craps.