Blackjack Rules and Variations
Blackjack is sometimes referred to simply as 21, as the aim of the game is to have a hand value that is closer to 21 than that of the dealer, without going over. It's important to realise that you are only playing against the hand of the dealer, NOT against any of the other players at your table. The dealer has certain rules of play that they must abide by.
Hard and Soft Totals
An Ace can be counted as 1 or 11, and its combination with another card leads to what is called a soft total. For example an Ace and an 7 is a soft total, as it could mean a total number of points of 8 OR 18. This is in comparison to a 3 and an 5, which is a hard total - it could be nothing else but 8.
International Variations
The basic idea of getting close to 21, or reaching it, and beating the dealer, is the same worldwide. However, from there on, there are a number of variations, especially between UK and US play, as shown in the table below.
| British Version | American Version |
|---|---|
| Can double on hard totals only | Can double on hard or soft totals |
| Can double on totals of 9, 10, 11 | Can double on any two cards |
| Can split any number of times | Number of splits allowed varies |
| Cannot split pairs of 4, 5 or 10 | Can split any pair |
Other Variations
Another variation is the numbers of decks of cards used to make up the pack. In the UK, 6 decks is most common, 8 decks are used in some places, and less frequently, 4. If you're playing at a game where 6 or 8 decks are being used, all players cards will be dealt face up, the dealer's first card will not. Games with fewer decks are usually dealt face down.
