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Blackjack Rules and Shuffling


AlaskaNewbieBJPlayer
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Getting ready for my first Alaska Cruise (Celebrity Solstice) and would like to play some blackjack but won't if the rules and shuffling prevent. Specifically, are CSM in play on ships? Are they paying just 6:5 for a blackjack. Hitting soft 17? Allowing doubling after splitting? Can we re-split aces? Thanks for the help.

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Getting ready for my first Alaska Cruise (Celebrity Solstice) and would like to play some blackjack but won't if the rules and shuffling prevent. Specifically, are CSM in play on ships? Are they paying just 6:5 for a blackjack. Hitting soft 17? Allowing doubling after splitting? Can we re-split aces? Thanks for the help.
ewww ur my kinda card player.
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Getting ready for my first Alaska Cruise (Celebrity Solstice) and would like to play some blackjack but won't if the rules and shuffling prevent. Specifically, are CSM in play on ships? Are they paying just 6:5 for a blackjack. Hitting soft 17? Allowing doubling after splitting? Can we re-split aces? Thanks for the help.

With all of your criteria, why not just go sit in or just watch a few hands and see what you think?

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I'm trying to remember from my previous Reflection and Equinoix cruises. I played on the $10 tables and as I recall they have adopted most of the player unfriendly rules that Vegas has on low stakes tables. I don't know if the $25 table had better rules.

When I first encountered these rules changes in Vegas I was angry and would search for casinos that still played by the old rules. Over the years this has become more and more difficult unless you play high stakes tables (which I don't). I've just come to accept that this is the way things are today. I gamble for entertainment and realize that the odds are staked against me. These rule changes make the odds worse, and if you are a card counter who only plays to win, they are a total deal breaker. However, if you play for fun & entertainment it's kinda like a price increase on the cost of entertainment. I still have nights when I win and nights when I lose - although as the odds mandate I lose more than I win. It's still fun entertainment for me. I like the social environment of the card table and have met some great fellow cruisers there. I'll also add that I find the dealers on cruise ships to be generally more friendly and engaging than in Vegas.

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Better to ask this in the section for that cruise line. Or the Cruise Casino section.

 

On Royal, NO CSM. They have single deck and shoe games.

 

Dealer hits a soft 17, they only pay 6 to 5. And on the shoe game, there is a $6 min bet. $5 main, and a $1 sucker, I mean, side bet. Or $6 main. If you hit BJ with a $6 bed, they only pay $7.

 

They used to pay 3 to 2 on the single deck game, but with a $25 min bet.

 

You can double after splitting, and you can resplit.

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Thanks much for the response. I didn't find the Cruise Casino section earlier but will do a better job of searching in the future. I'm retired but work part time to keep the brain rust to a minimum. The hours I spend in that part time job are decreasing and I'm thinking of filling in those hours playing BJ. Your response is helpful.

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Regardless of the house rules an experienced BJ player needs to be prepared for novice players who have no clue what they are doing. If you are the type of person who loses his mind if a player uptable splits a pair of face cards or hits an 18 then shipboard playing might not be for you.

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Regardless of the house rules an experienced BJ player needs to be prepared for novice players who have no clue what they are doing. If you are the type of person who loses his mind if a player uptable splits a pair of face cards or hits an 18 then shipboard playing might not be for you.

 

That is why I always play anchor position. It becomes just the dealer and me. I can catch some flack from other players but, somebody needs to be the punching bag at the table.

 

One time while playing, an elderly man was always commenting loudly about my play. What I should have done cost him money. This went on for quite a while. Finally I offered to change seats with him. No response. Well. Time to step it up a bit. First chance I got, I split tens with the dealer showing a ten, drew until I broke on both hands. Yes, it cost me a bit to do that but, he cursed loudly and stormed off. He never sat at my table again. Peace and quiet.

 

The other players complimented me for my play, the Dealer winked at me and the Pit Boss bought me a drink.

 

I consider that to be a winner. LOL. :evilsmile::evilsmile::evilsmile:

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That is why I always play anchor position. It becomes just the dealer and me. I can catch some flack from other players but, somebody needs to be the punching bag at the table.

 

One time while playing, an elderly man was always commenting loudly about my play. What I should have done cost him money. This went on for quite a while. Finally I offered to change seats with him. No response. Well. Time to step it up a bit. First chance I got, I split tens with the dealer showing a ten, drew until I broke on both hands. Yes, it cost me a bit to do that but, he cursed loudly and stormed off. He never sat at my table again. Peace and quiet.

 

The other players complimented me for my play, the Dealer winked at me and the Pit Boss bought me a drink.

 

I consider that to be a winner. LOL.:evilsmile::evilsmile::evilsmile:

I had a similar incident on a cruise when a French Canadian at the table was chirping a young woman who clearly didn't know how to play. In a voice loud enough for him to hear I told her that she paid for the cards, could play them however she wanted and to ignore him. I also told him in my best Joual to mind his manners and he slunk off into the night.

 

The dealer quietly thanked me and for the rest of the evening I helped the young woman make some better choices. She ended up a fair bit ahead on the night. :D

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That is why I always play anchor position. It becomes just the dealer and me. I can catch some flack from other players but, somebody needs to be the punching bag at the table.

 

One time while playing, an elderly man was always commenting loudly about my play. What I should have done cost him money. This went on for quite a while. Finally I offered to change seats with him. No response. Well. Time to step it up a bit. First chance I got, I split tens with the dealer showing a ten, drew until I broke on both hands. Yes, it cost me a bit to do that but, he cursed loudly and stormed off. He never sat at my table again. Peace and quiet.

 

The other players complimented me for my play, the Dealer winked at me and the Pit Boss bought me a drink.

 

I consider that to be a winner. LOL. :evilsmile::evilsmile::evilsmile:

I like your style. No matter where I'm sitting (although I prefer 3rd base) I figure it's still me against the dealer. With a large shoe/machine, even if someone hits a 16 and gets a 10 with the dealer also showing a 6, the odds that the dealer will still bust are basically unchanged. I worry about my play and enjoy socializing with other players regardless of their skill levels. More than once I've sat at a table and lost while a fellow player ignoring all the rules keeps winning. Luck beats skill. The goal is to have a good time win or lose.

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On the $6 min. bets tables. Need to watch the dealers morning setup. From what I have seen, when they open a deck and spread the cards on the table, you might find that there are no Kings among the cards. Hummm

 

Yeah right. You don't think the players would notice no kings showing up.

 

Oh, and BTW, shorting the deck on face cards would skew the odds to the player, not the house.

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Regardless of the house rules an experienced BJ player needs to be prepared for novice players who have no clue what they are doing. If you are the type of person who loses his mind if a player uptable splits a pair of face cards or hits an 18 then shipboard playing might not be for you.

 

Wrong.

 

Do some research. The odds are based on YOUR play. How the others play do not change your odds.

 

Yes, they might cause you to lose a hand here and there, but then they also make you win a hand here and there, that you would have lost.

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Wrong.

 

Do some research. The odds are based on YOUR play. How the others play do not change your odds.

 

Yes, they might cause you to lose a hand here and there, but then they also make you win a hand here and there, that you would have lost.

You are right, however I don't think he was saying that bad players hurt your odds - just that bad players annoy some people and if you're one of those people you should probably avoid cruise ship casinos. This is one of those cases where you both are right:D

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Regardless of the house rules an experienced BJ player needs to be prepared for novice players who have no clue what they are doing.

 

That's an advantage IMHO :) The BJ table is by far the easiest way to meet strangers anywhere on the ship. Novice players who clearly don't mind some hints as they ask the dealer what to do will appreciate hints from other players. Tadaah, an easy subject "you don't want many points, you want the dealer to lose" that's far more interesting than the weather to start a conversation.

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On the $6 min. bets tables. Need to watch the dealers morning setup. From what I have seen, when they open a deck and spread the cards on the table, you might find that there are no Kings among the cards. Hummm

It was probably a Fun21 or Spanish 21 table. Special rules which vary from regular Blackjack, and there are no Kings in Fun21 and no Tens in Spanish 21.

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You are right, however I don't think he was saying that bad players hurt your odds - just that bad players annoy some people and if you're one of those people you should probably avoid cruise ship casinos. This is one of those cases where you both are right:D

Correct. My comment was directed at the OP who would seem to be an experienced BJ player but hasn't played on cruise ships. In my experience, there is a greater likelihood of encountering a novice at a BJ table on a cruise ship than at a land-based casino. I don't worry about what other players are doing but anyone who does and can't contain himself through repeated violations of Basic Strategy should find some other way to spend their evenings on a cruise.

 

That's an advantage IMHO :) The BJ table is by far the easiest way to meet strangers anywhere on the ship. Novice players who clearly don't mind some hints as they ask the dealer what to do will appreciate hints from other players. Tadaah, an easy subject "you don't want many points, you want the dealer to lose" that's far more interesting than the weather to start a conversation.

Absolutely. The BJ table is great for socializing and meeting people and should be seen in that context not as a serious gaming.

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On the $6 min. bets tables. Need to watch the dealers morning setup. From what I have seen, when they open a deck and spread the cards on the table, you might find that there are no Kings among the cards. Hummm
Interesting I will pay attention, thank you.
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Regardless of the house rules an experienced BJ player needs to be prepared for novice players who have no clue what they are doing. If you are the type of person who loses his mind if a player uptable splits a pair of face cards or hits an 18 then shipboard playing might not be for you.

 

Pretty rare (although not unheard of) for someone to hit a hard 18.

Soft 18 is a whole different ballgame. Probably the most misunderstood and misplayed hand in all of blackjack.

Per standard basic strategy, you HIT soft 18 against dealer 9, 10, or A, and DOUBLE against 3 thru 6. Only time you stay on soft 18 is against dealer 2, 7, or 8.

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Yeah right. You don't think the players would notice no kings showing up.

 

Oh, and BTW, shorting the deck on face cards would skew the odds to the player, not the house.

 

Not really. With a $6 minimum bet it encourages players to use the odd dollar to play the side bet. 20 count (2 face cards) pays off. Other combinations can pay more but much harder to come by. Sucker bet in my opinion. Count the kings. 4 decks=16, 8 decks=32 less face cards. Odds go to the house.

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Regardless of the house rules an experienced BJ player needs to be prepared for novice players who have no clue what they are doing. If you are the type of person who loses his mind if a player uptable splits a pair of face cards or hits an 18 then shipboard playing might not be for you.

A truly experienced card player would not be superstitious and realize that the cards that either the dealer or player gets when the take a hit are always random draws and independent of whether or not other players correctly or "wrongly" take their own hits or splits. Those that get upset by poor up-table play have zero understanding of the underlying mathematical probabilities of the game.

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