Blackjack Plus - Basic Strategy Please?

Hi all,

I live in Perth, Australia and the one and only Casino here offers a variant of Blackjack they call Blackjack Plus. The rules are as follows:

Dealer Stands on soft 17
Standoff if dealer hits 22
4 Decks using a CSM
No Surrender
Blackjack pays 3:2
Dealer has only one card dealt and it is face up (European style)
Players are paid out immediately upon hitting 21 or Blackjack
Double is allowed on any 2 or 3 cards. This is true for splits as well
If the player draws 5 cards without busting, the player instantly wins
Player loses all bets made if the dealer hits Blackjack
The player can split up to having 3 hands, Aces can not be re-split
Split aces only draw one card

This is a common game across all of Australia yet I can't seem to find a single basic strategy chart for this game. I imagine it would be similar to Blackjack Switch (due to the push 22 rule) but I suspect it would be a fair bit different due to the instant payouts and the doubling rules.

Does anyone know if a chart for this game exists and if not, can anyone generate one somehow and perhaps also calculate the house edge (I'm guessing it would be around 4.5%)? It would be very much appreciated ;)

See Blackjack Rules Variations on the Wizard of Odds site. Link is at the bottom of this page.

Been there. This variant isnt listed. I came to this forum from there hehe :)

Quote: Corpsecreate

Been there. This variant isnt listed. I came to this forum from there hehe :)

A lot of these *are* listed; you can use the Wizards HE calculator first,

https://wizardofodds.com/games/blackjack/calculator/

then find the other variants and add or subtract with his variations page,

https://wizardofodds.com/games/blackjack/rule-variations/

I'll let you do the grind. Any not listed?

[edits]

Sorry. I just googled the words Australian Blackjack Plus basic strategy. It brought me right back to the Wizard's site and a whole bunch of basic strategy charts for different Australian cities. I assume you've tried that?

Quote: odiousgambit

A lot of these *are* listed; you can use the Wizards HE calculator first,


then find the other variants and add or subtract with his variations page,


I'll let you do the grind. Any not listed?

[edits]

I've been here too, none of these tell you the basic strategy, only the house edge (which doesn't really matter to me as I already know its 4.5ish%).

I googled the same thing 1BB. I always google extensively before asking a question on a forum. I still never found a strategy chart for Blackjack Plus though. The closest I found was Blackjack Switch which also has the push 22 rule but not the other rules that make Plus different. If you found one for Blackjack Plus, could you link me please?

Thanks!

I have some idea of the right strategy to follow but there are a few decisions that I'm not sure of (ie, when hitting a 4-card hand, hoping for a 5-card charlie, takes precedence over standing -- I'd have to look at the dealer's chances of busting with each up-card. The dealer is never > 50% to bust so you are certainly hitting all 4-card hands 14 and below, and some 4-card stiffs as well that you would not normally hit as well)

From your description I'm not sure what happens if you get an 11 v a dealer's ace or 10, double, catch a 10 for 21, and then the dealer has blackjack. You say that you automatically win with 21 or 5-card charlie, but also automatically lose if dealer has blackjack -- which takes precedence?

I'd have to simulate it for exact answers -- I could probably play pretty close to correctly but there are some close calls that I would have to simulate. Eg, the 5-card charlie rule probably makes you want to split 2,2 less often -- I'm just not sure how much less often.

If it's the only blackjack game in Perth, maybe the Wizard will create a page for it on WoO? I'm not sure how widespread a game has to be to get a page -- I thought that it just had to be present in a casino somewhere?

If you have an 11 v a dealer Ace or 10 and then you hit 21 then you win right away. You get paid on the spot and your cards will be swiped away before the dealer takes their second card. Your hand doesn't have to be a Blackjack either, so long as you hit 21 then you will receive an instant payout. For the players that remain (those that haven't busted and those that haven't already instant-won), they will lose all bets made if a dealer hits a natural blackjack. You can never push a blackjack because if you hit one, you'd have already been paid out.

They have regular blackjack in Perth too, but the cheaper tables are all Blackjack Plus. As far as I know, it is everywhere among all Australian casinos, not just Perth.

Quote: Corpsecreate

If you have an 11 v a dealer Ace or 10 and then you hit 21 then you win right away. You get paid on the spot and your cards will be swiped away before the dealer takes their second card. Your hand doesn't have to be a Blackjack either, so long as you hit 21 then you will receive an instant payout. For the players that remain (those that haven't busted and those that haven't already instant-won), they will lose all bets made if a dealer hits a natural blackjack. You can never push a blackjack because if you hit one, you'd have already been paid out.

They have regular blackjack in Perth too, but the cheaper tables are all Blackjack Plus. As far as I know, it is everywhere among all Australian casinos, not just Perth.

Is a 5-card charlie also instantaneous? (ie, does it beat a dealer BJ)

Quote: Corpsecreate

I've been here too, none of these tell you the basic strategy, only the house edge

oops!

Sorry!

Quote: Corpsecreate

I already know its 4.5ish%

after crunching all of it myself, I get 5.5ish%

I hate to be so dismissive, but the push on 22 is so murderous [-6.91%] that the game should be avoided at all costs unless there are some other advantage-to-player rules that you have forgotten or I have missed.

Quote: AxiomOfChoice

Is a 5-card charlie also instantaneous? (ie, does it beat a dealer BJ)

Yep. You are paid out immediately if you hit 5 cards.

Quote: odiousgambit

I hate to be so dismissive, but the push on 22 is so murderous [-6.91%] that the game should be avoided at all costs unless there are some other advantage-to-player rules that you have forgotten or I have missed.

Yeah I know, the push 22 is dreadful isn't it? I personally avoid this game, but friends of mine are only willing to play these tables (because they are cheapest ones here) so at the very least, I'd like to be able to offer them the best strategy so they lose the least money in the long run. I also find it a little unusual that theres very little info about this game listed anywhere hmmmm.

Anybody? ;/