Added: February 27, 2015
A new variant of blackjack has been devised by a gaming company in Perth called Engaging Table Games Pty. Ltd. It could be a while before some of the Australian online casinos pick it up and introduce it in their portfolios. Lucky 13s Blackjack, as the game has been named, introduces some extremely revolutionary concepts. This blackjack variant is not played with the standard deck of 52 cards but with a special deck of 64 cards. The extra cards are 11, 12 and 13 in each of the four suits. These are different from the face cards Jack, Queen and King. The cards have 11, 12 and 13 pips respectively and are valued at their pip count.
With cards valued at 12 and 13 the player can go over 21 and bust even with his first two cards. A Protection side bet is optionally offered to compensate if this happens. The bet pays 5 to 1 on a two-card total of 22 to 25 and pays 40 to 1 if two 13s are dealt. If the dealer’s face up card is 13 these payouts are multiplied by 5. Hence when a player gets two 13s and the dealer gets one 13 the payout is a 200 to 1. These payouts are far in excess of the even money win payout and even greater than the blackjack payout of 3 to 2. So the player will want to bust with his first two cards. A player can split two 11s, 12s and 13s just like any other pair. There is a Pairs side bet that pays 12 to 1 if the player is dealt a pair. This payout is also multiplied five times if the dealer is dealt a 13. Some of the other important rules are that the dealer has to stand on hard 16 and all 17s and that the player can insure against the dealer’s ace.
Lucky 13s Blackjack was first displayed at the 2014 Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas. Vinny Sandhu, the general manager of Engaging Table Games, said that this blackjack variant was developed based on the company’s “SPA” principle. This states that the new games developed have to be simple, playable and awesome. The exact return to the player and the optimum strategy for Lucky 13s Blackjack is not yet known. However, Sandhu revealed some information that will please blackjack fans. With more high value cards in the pack the dealer will bust more frequently.
