Baccarat or Baccara – basically this means “zero” and refers to the value of face and 10 cards during play. The aim of the game is to get a hand which totals 9, or at least get closer than the dealer.

Bank Bet – this bet bets against the player, in favour of the bank.

Banker – the banker can be a player or the dealer. How refreshing! It is the name given to the person who deals the cards and monitor the table. OK, so it’s usually the dealer, but some casinos are generous!

Bankroll – this is the same as always; the amount of money to be gambled with. The bit that you want to grow.

Basic Strategy – all games have a basic strategy that suggests when to stand or take another card. The idea is that if followed strictly, it will provide the best possible return. Don’t forget the money management side though!

Croupier – the name of the person with the grand job of being in charge of the Baccarat table. There are variations; the croupier doesn’t deal in American baccarat, unlike with mini and online versions.

Dealer – obviously the person who deal the cards but in mini and online baccarat, this job falls to the croupier. In American baccarat it is the banker that deals the cards, with secondary dealers at the ends of the table handling the bets.

Face Card – important cards in any game. Jacks, Queens and Kings all have a value of zero and enable a strong hand including a natural.

Ladderman – only found in live casinos but a cool name and job! The person that oversees the baccarat game from a chair that sits above the table.

Loss Bet – a bet which bets against the bank. So a player bet would be a loss bet as it needs the bank to lose.

Mini-baccarat – A miniature version of the game with a smaller table and fewer seats. Much more up close and personal.

Natural – the best possible hand which totals 8 or 9 and is dealt immediately.

Player Bet – this bets against the banker, in the player´s favour.

Push – a different name for a tie between the player and the dealer: the player’s stake is returned. So if both got a total of 7, the player doesn’t lose out. Bets on the dealer or player lose, but a tie bet will pay out.

Tie Bet – a bet that predicts the player and the dealer will get the same result. More popular than you might first imagine.

Mini Baccarat

This is the most commonly found form of Baccarat in American Casinos and online casinos; it is very similar to traditional baccarat but with lower limits to enable wider accessibility. Other variations include: a smaller table, only the dealer handles the shoe, and the table is worked by one dealer only.

Chemin-de-fer

If the name wasn’t enough of a give away, this is a French variation of the originally Italian game, Baccarat. It’s translation ‘railroad’ doesn’t sound quite so romantic but quite fitting due to the main difference between Chemin-de-fer and traditional baccarat; namely that the French variation insists on the passing of the shoe from one player to the next when the first player has lost his hand; this ensures a railroading of the shoe around the table.

Super Pan Nine

This is a slim lined version of traditional baccarat; the decks are reduced by having the 7, 8, 9, and 10 cards removed from the decks. To compensate for the low numbers present three cards are dealt rather than two, with an option for drawing a fourth. In this version a hand of 3 or 4 only will result in the banker drawing a fourth card.

Private Baccarat

This is an unusual variation of baccarat in which the banker may choose whether to deal one or two hands to the player. Should he choose to deal the player two, the player then has the choice to play them both or to pick which one to play. If he picks one the game is as a traditional baccarat game. If however he choose to play both hands he must win both of them in order to beat the dealer; winning one and loosing one results in a tie.

Baccarat en Banque

In this French variation the player is dealt two hands, whilst the dealer is dealt one; betting on the dealers hand is prohibited in this game, and the shoe does not pass from player to player but rather stays with the dealer constantly.

Those are all the variants I know of; I’m sure that 007 could probably enlighten me as to some more, and maybe if I was lucky give me a little tutelage. For the most part it is traditional baccarat or mini-baccarat that you will find; however, it’s always good to be prepared.

Play revolves around to hands dealt for the ‘Banker’ and the ‘Player’. These names are titles for the dealt hands only and there is no real banker or specific player. Players place their bets on which hand they think will win. Hand scores are calculated by taking the face value for all cards worth less than ten, one for an ace and zero for tens and face cards. The value of hand is the total of the cards value but if it comes to more than ten you drop the first digit. For example, 8-ace-jack is worth 8 plus 1 plus zero = 9. But 9-5-5 is also worth 9 (9+5+5 = 19, drop the first digit = 9). The card suit makes no difference to value of the cards.

Players take it in turn to act as ‘dealer’ although this only involves turning over the cards. A player usually continues to act as dealer as long as the ‘banker’ keeps winning. The dealer starts by dealing two cards face down for the ‘banker’ and another two cards for the ‘player’. Depending on the totals the casino dealers may instruct the ‘dealer’ to deal another card. With all cards dealt winning wagers are paid out or losses collected.

A third card may be dealt to either the ‘player’ or the ‘banker’ depending on the following rules.

If either the Player or the Banker has 8 or 9 no further cards are drawn. If the Player has a total of 0-5, the Player hits a single card but stands on 6-7.If the Player did not hit, the Banker hits if he has 0-5, and stands on 6-7.If the Player drew a 2 or 3, the Banker hits if he has 0-4, and stands on 5-7.If the Player drew a 4 or 5, the Banker hits if he has 0-5, and stands on 6-7.If the Player drew a 6 or 7, the Banker hits if he has 0-6, and stands on 7.If the Player drew an 8, the Banker hits if he has 0-2, and stands on 3-7.If the Player drew an ace, 9, 10, or face-card, the Banker hits if he has 0-3, and stands on 4-7.

Essentially a game of chance, what it lacks in skill it makes up for in the size of the bets involved. In many casinos the minimum bet can start at $25 and dedicated players often wager hundreds or even thousands of dollars on a single game that gives baccarat its exotic atmosphere.

The perfect hand consists of two cards that total nine, with the second-best hand being two cards that have a total point value of eight. These are the two “natural” hands in the game of Baccarat. If any player in the current game has a two card hand equaling a natural eight or nine then the other players may not draw a third card. The hand closest to nine always wins. When neither hand has a natural, there is no automatic winner, and additional cards are drawn to determine the outcome of the hand. The only hand that beats the natural eight is the natural nine. If there is a tie, all bests are called off.

Aces have a value of one, picture cards (Kings, Queens, Jacks) have a value of 10 and the remaining cards keep their face value. If your hand total is in double figures, then the first figure is ignored, meaning a hand totaling 18 would count as eight. Drawing two picture cards or two tens would give you a value of zero. A draw of a picture card or a ten and an eight or nine gives you the natural hands and no further cards would be drawn in this case with the natural hand being declared the winner.

The banker deals three hands of two cards each, face down. These hands are for two players, one to the right and one the left of the banker, plus his own hand. Other players at the table may bet on either hand or both to beat the banker’s hand. If a player declares “banco”, it means they are betting the total value of the bank’s funds and all other bets are withdrawn.

If either player has a count less than eight or nine, he may stand or get one more card face up. The player must stand on six or seven and must draw on four or less.

Eventually, mini-baccarat came to the scene. It’s the same game, but without all the ceremonious moves. The game is conducted on a Blackjack-style table with one dealer and a shoe. The shoe holds multiple decks of cards.

The game itself is incredibly easy to play, which is surprising considering how low the house advantage is. In fact, Baccarat is one of the best casino plays around.

In a nutshell, the game consists of two hands-Banker and Player. Each hand is dealt two cards. Depending on the value, each hand may take one additional card. The hand then ends and a winner is declared. Face cards are worth 0 (or 10 if you rather) and the object is to get as close to 9 as possible.

So, a hand of a King and a 4 has a value of four. A hand of a 9 and 4 has the value of three, because ten equals zero and the count restarts.

When you first walk up to a table, you’ll notice that there are three betting areas. There’s the Player wager spot, the Bank wager spot and the Tie wager spot. For each hand you play, you’ll need to select something to wager on. There are three possible outcomes to each hand. If it’s not a tie, which is rare, the Bank or the Player wins.

It’s important to note that the Bank has a slight edge-since it goes last in the playing sequence. Because of this, there’s a 5% vig to pay for each winning wager you place on the Bank.

If you love holding the cards and getting into the game, Baccarat isn’t for you-unless you can play the high-roller version. In the mini-Baccarat version, the dealer performs all the action. You just place your wagers as desired.

When you win with the Bank or Player, you’ll be paid even money. Ties are paid 9 for 1, which is the same as a saying they pay 8 to 1. The vig from bank wins can be paid at anytime. Usually, you’ll want to pay it whenever it equals your normal betting unit.

For instance, let’s say you’re betting $5 units. Each Bank win will cost you 25 cents. It would be more convenient to let it accumulate until it hits $5.

If you’re playing in the real world, there should be a hand tracker sheet and a writing instrument at the table. Most Baccarat players track the hands to look for trends, which is part of the strategy we’ll go into in another article.

Online players can just use whatever they have around the house-unless the online casino tracks hands for you.

That’s all there is to this simple game. In another article, we’ll talk about the hands and the rules that determines if the Player and Bank stand or take a card.