What is the Iron Cross Craps Strategy?

When craps players put together combination bets, they must keep two things in mind:

• The house edge is calculated by taking the weighted average of the house edges on all bets in the combination.

• The aggregate house edge can never be less than the value of the best individual bet in the combination.

The second point sometimes makes experienced craps players scratch their heads and ask, "What about the Iron Cross?" Even if you already know how to play craps, you should remember this technique.

The Iron Cross, also known as Darby's Field, is a combination that is supposed to accomplish the impossible. Place bets on 6 and 8 have the lowest house edges, with each having a 1.52% edge. Despite this, the house edge is stated to be 1.14%.

How is that even possible? The 1.14% figure on the Iron Cross represents the house edge per roll, and the place bets in the combination are multi-roll bets. The house edge is 2.37% if all bets are played until a decision is made. If you use this strategy well and don't make any mistakes while playing craps, you might end up with more money in your pocket.

WHAT IS THE IRON CROSS STRATEGY?

The combination contains four wagers: the field, 5, 6, and 8.

The field is a wager on the following roll being a 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12. If it wins, it pays even money on the numbers 3, 4, 9, 10, and 11. The other numbers have higher payoffs, usually 2-1 on 2 and 3-1 on 12.

Place bets are wagers that the shooter will roll your number before rolling a 7. Winners are paid 7-5 on a 5 place bet and 7-6 on a 6 or 8 place bet.

Because of the 7-6 payoff on 6 and 8, you should always place those bets in multiples of $6.

The Iron Cross would entail placing $5 bets on the field and $5 and $6 wagers on 6 and 8, for a total risk of $22. Bets can be multiplied by larger bettors.

The Iron Cross was created as a one-roll, hit-and-run gamble. Every number except 7 is a winner, but when the number 7 is rolled, all bets are lost.

The field bet loses when the place bets win. When the field bet wins, the place bets are still active. You can take the place bets and walk away with the money as well as your field winnings if you like.

HOW WOULD THE PAYOFFS WORK FOR EACH POSSIBLE NUMBER?

• 2: You win on the field and receive a 2-1 payout. That means you've won $10 and can keep all $22 of your bets for a $10 profit.

• 3, 4, 9, 10, or 11: You win an even-money payoff on the field, earning $5, and you keep your $22 in bets for a $5 profit.

• 5, 6 or 8: You’re rewarded $7 on a successful place bet. You lose $5 on the field, but keep the $17 worth of place bets, meaning you have $24 altogether or a $2 profit.

• 7: You lose your entire $22 wager.

The loss 7 is the most common roll, accounting for six of the 36 two-dice combinations. The home retains an edge, but how much of an edge depends on your point of view.

The Iron Cross was originally created for players who wanted to make one more bet before leaving the casino. They were betting that the next roll would be anything other than a 7. When $1 could purchase ham and eggs in Las Vegas, any victory at craps would provide the bettor with enough money to eat out.

They might be interested in the house edge on the following roll. The house edge on the field bet with the above payouts is 2.78%, while the house margins on place bets are 1.111% on 5 and 0.463% on 6 and 8.

Because you bet in $6 multiples on the and 8, and in $5 multiples on the 5 and field, the 6 and 8 are assigned 1.2 times the weight of the other bets when computing an overall house edge.

The Iron Cross has a one-roll edge of 1.14%. It should be noted that it is not, as promised, lower than the best component bet in the combo. The one-roll advantage on 6 and 8 is 0.463%, whereas the edge on 5 is 1.11%.

Because of the house edge, some players believe the Iron Cross is a valid bet for durations longer than one stake. They must understand the overall edge of each craps bet before making a decision. Under those conditions, the field edge is 2.78%, the place bet on 5 is 4%, and the place bets on 6 and 8 are 1.52%.

The overall house edge on the Iron Cross, played to decision on all pieces, is 2.37%, which is larger than the 1.52% on 6 and 8.

In either case, the Iron Cross is not a sure thing. It's a better combination than most, yet it has a greater overall edge than its lowest-edge component. That's exactly what it has to be-it can't defy the math.

To learn more about the Iron Cross Strategy, check out the video below!