Home > Hazard (game)

Any number may play, but only one player — the caster — has the dice at any one time.

In each round, the caster specifies a number between 5 and 9 inclusive: this is the main. He then throws two dice.

• If he rolls the main, he wins (throws in or nicks).

• If he rolls a 2 or a 3, he loses (throws out).

• If he rolls an 11 or 12, the result depends on the main:
  • with a main of 5 or 9, he throws out with both an 11 and a 12;
  • with a main of 6 or 8, he throws out with an 11 but nicks with a 12;
  • with a main of 7, he nicks with an 11 but throws out with a 12.

• If he neither nicks nor throws out, the number thrown is called the chance. He throws the dice again:
  • if he rolls the chance, he wins;
  • if he rolls the main, he loses (unlike on the first throw);
  • if he rolls neither, he keeps throwing until he rolls one or the other, winning with the chance and losing with the main.

This is simpler to follow in a table:

As long as he keeps winning, the caster may keep playing: but if he loses three times in succession, he must pass the dice to the player to his left, who becomes the new caster.

1 Betting

Bets are between the caster and the bank (the setter), which may be the remaining players acting as a group.

If the caster nicks on the first throw, he wins an amount equal to his stake.

If he throws a chance, the setter gives him odds:

For example, with a stake of £10, a main of 7 and a chance of 4, a caster stands to win £15 (3/2 × £10); with the same stake, a main of 5 and a chance of 6, he could win £8 (4/5 × £10).

2 Craps and Hazard

At its heart, craps is a version of Hazard where the main is always 7:

• if the shooter (the caster) rolls a 7 or 11 on his first throw, he wins;
• if he rolls a 2, 3, or 12, he loses;
• if he rolls anything else, that is his point (his chance); he now keeps throwing until he wins by making (rolling) his point or loses by rolling a 7.

However, betting in craps is significantly more complicated: see its entry for details.

3 References

• "HAZARD". LoveToKnow 1911 Online Encyclopedia. http://20.1911encyclopedia.org/H/HA/HAZARD.htm.
• Steinmetz, Andrew (1870). The Gaming Table, Volume II, Chaper X. (Online edition available at World Wide School.)