Tips for Playing Online War

By Cali Cutta
9-01-06

Who hasn’t played war when they were kids? My brother and I spent endless hours, and that was just for the fun (?) of it. He always won. How could that be? It seemed like sooner or later I would get the edge, but no, my brother was one “lucky” cheater.

Imagine my relief when I discovered that there was such a thing as casino war. No way can a machine cheat (well, it can, but it better not).

Here is how the game basically works. Played with six decks, the cards are ranked just like in poker, with aces high. After you place your ante, you and the dealer get one card and the two are compared. If your card is higher, it’s even. If it’s lower, you lose.

This is where the war comes in. If you and the dealer pick the same card, you have two options; either surrender and forfeit half your bet or go to war. If you do that you must raise your bet by an amount that’s equal to your original ante. After the dealer burns (places face down) three cards then you and the dealer get one more card. You win war and you win even money on the raise and the original bet is pushed. If the dealer’s card is higher, you lose it all. You win on a second tie and your pay is 1:2.

If you play a bonus tie war, this pays 10:1 if your first two cards tie and the bonus is played before the round starts. If you cannot decide before then, you will be
disconnected from your server and your game will be saved until you return. Think of it as an internet slap on the wrist.

There are also multi-player games that seat up to 5 players. The difference here is that once you place your bet, you can choose to skip that deal before your first
card is dealt. You have to think quickly because you only get 15 seconds.

If you are a mathematical genius and can keep track of 6 decks of cards in your head at once, you might get a slight edge. If, on the other hand you are like me, you let someone else do the math and check out their results. So I have done the research for you and this is what I have found: If you do not war, the casino edge is 3.7%. If you do, that percentage is dropped to 2.9%. If you get as far as the second war, you may get that 10:1 payoff but the casino’s edge is a whopping 18.7. What does this mean besides a lot of “if’s”? First of all it means that you go on a budget. As is all casino games, it is easy to get carried away and think, “Wow, I invest $10 I can win $100!” Think again. Try it this way.

Ante your $1 and go for the first war, then put in another dollar and if (there it is again) win, you get $3 dollars. You break even if you tie with the dealer. Stop before you get to that tempting 10:1. Instead, be patient, play again a few times. If you find yourself ahead by a few dollars, take your cheater of a brother out for a drink or two.

Ed Note:  For the best Online War, be sure to visit Gold Palace Online Casino.