The classic blackjack game is composed of 52 cards, and there are two types of hands: a natural (no substitutions) hand and a forced (with one or more substitutions) hand. In a natural hand, each player starts with two cards face down and discards any number of cards to arrive at a total of ten.
In a forced hand, each player starts with one card face down and discards any number of cards to arrive at a total of five. .
The goal in classic blackjack is to make as many hands as possible with an Ace high or better without going over 21. If the player has an Ace high or better and the dealer has no Ace, then the player wins the hand.
If the player has a pair of Aces and the dealer also has a pair of Aces, then the player wins regardless of what the other cards are.
There are five different ways to win in classic blackjack: hitting on 21 (or less), splitting pairs (two pairs totaling 21 or more), making a run (a sequence of cards that totals 21 or more), getting quintuple insurance (five cards that total 21 or more), and getting double insurance (two pairs totaling 21 or more).
There are also four different ways to lose in classic blackjack: going over 21, getting busted (a combination of losing all your money and being forced to put all your money back in the pool), drawing dead (being dealt an ace that cannot be played due to its rank), and splitting pairs (two pairs totaling less than 21).
In general, the odds of winning classic blackjack are about 2-to-1, while the odds of losing classic blackjack are about 16-to-1. However, this varies depending on which hands are being played and how much money is involved.
