Getting to know the craps creu

Before you start to play, you need to understand who’s who at a craps table. The following four people man a standard craps table. (You can also check out Figure 8-2 to see where these people stand during play.) They’re listed according to how much you interact with them during a session at the craps table.

Two dealers: Each dealer covers one wing of the table. The dealer’s job is to change your currency into chips, help place your bets, and pay off winners.

Stickman: The stickman, who stands at the middle of the table and opposite from the dealers, is in charge of the dice. His job is to retrieve and deliver the dice to the felt in front of the shooter by using a long, straight, putter-shaped stick. The stickman also makes the call (announcing the results of the roll to the entire table), oversees the central betting area (placing all bets in that area for players), and instructs the dealers to pay out winners.

Boxman: Sitting across from the stickman at the center of the table, the boxman is also the bossman, overseeing the entire game, releasing stacks of chips to the dealers, and collecting cash for the house. He watches the bets and keeps a wary eye on the dice, the other dealers, and you and the other players to make sure everything’s on the up and up.

Shooting for the whole table

The shooter is a key character in craps because she’s the player who’s rolling the dice. In craps, shooting, or dice rolling, is a rotating affair. Each player gets a turn to roll for the entire table, and the honor moves clockwise around the table. When your turn comes around, the stickman pushes five dice toward you, and you select two. The only requirement to shoot is that you have a bet riding.

If you’re a craps newbie, you can refuse your turn to roll the dice. But I recommend you give it a try. Shooting is part of the experience of craps. Even if your first roll goes completely off the table or lands in someone’s drink, pocket, sleeve, mouth, or cleavage, the game continues, and nobody gets too upset. The stickman (when he’s done laughing at you) calls, “No roll.” Then the boxman inspects the errant die and gives you another shot at getting it right.