The Physics of Dice: How Physics Influences Craps Outcomes

Craps is quite a unique casino game as it involves dice instead of cards or wheels and balls. When you play craps at a land-based casino, you are given two dice and have to shoot them onto the table. In online casino gaming, this is done for you by a croupier.

You can place a bet on what numbers the pair of dice will roll up, and there are several wagers to pick from. Once the dice are shot, anything can happen, making each round of craps completely random. Or is it?

Here, we will look at the physics of throwing a die or a pair of dice. Debunking old myths and theories about loaded dice or tricks to throwing a dice.

Physical Properties of Shooting Dice

There are lots of different ways to construct dice, and even the smallest nuances can have a impact on how the dice rolls. The material used, finish, radius of the rounded edges and construction of the pips (pattern of dots), can all have an impact on how the dice rolls.

After throwing a pair of dice, several forces affect how the dice rotate and soar through the air. Gravity, centrifugal forces and air resistance change the way the dice soar through the air. After hitting the table, the friction of the table surface and the gained centrifugal momentum will determine how many times the dice roll across the table.

A dice throw can only be valid if both die bounce off the back wall. If they don’t hit the side of the table, the shot does not qualify. This back wall is not simply a smooth surface like the craps gaming table. The wall is made up of a bumpy pyramid-grooved surface. This complicates matters, as your dice will not bounce off the wall in a symmetric trajectory. Your dice are more likely to hit an angled surface and bounce off in another direction.

How a “Fixed” Throwing Method Would Work

You must hit the back wall when rolling your dice, which randomizes the results. It rules out any kind of fixed throwing method, but that does not mean you cannot use one. The most common craps throwing method we found was one in which the dice only spins on the Z axis.

The idea is to minimize the forward or reverse spinning across the X axis, along the longitudinal table axis. Also, the dice must be cast from a tight angle, reducing the time spent in the air (on the Y axis). This way, the player has more control over what numbers will show on the top face of the dice when they stop.

Diagonal spin across the X and Z axis is the worst, as it reduces the control to a minimum. The diagonal spin can go flying off in nearly any direction after hitting those pyramids in the back wall. The Z-axis spun dice have a smaller chance of bouncing off like that. In theory, the colliding surface should be completely straight when hitting the pyramids. If the dice are low enough to the table, they should not spin on the X axis after impact and should stop near the wall.

Physical Attributes of Casino Gaming Dice

The physical attributes of a simple 6-sided dice can make all the difference in the world when thrown. For example, casino dice tend to be made of plastic, with no indented pips but smooth surfaces, and square corners. The plastic is quite light, allowing for the dice to fly further and roll more times. Having indents in the pips affects how heavy each side is. Six pip sides are lighter than the 1 pip sides, which changes the way the dice rotate in the air and roll on the table. You will not find any pipped dice at the most prestigious Vegas casinos.

These dice also have square corners, reducing any minimal differences in the friction on the edges. Good quality casino dice have to be new, without any signs of wear and tear. Depending on the venue, the casino may change its dice every 8 hours, just to ensure they are fault-proof. Retired dice often get sold at gift stores, or are recycled. You can spot these easily as the sides have holes drilled through them, to make sure they are not used again at the casino.

How Loaded Dice Work

Another important aspect of Vegas casino dice is that they have to be clear. It is very easy to spot any defects on a translucent dice. For example, any air pockets within its body or if they have been tampered with in any way. This leads us to loaded dice.

One trick that can be used to control the roll in dice is by loading the dice. It can be achieved by putting extra weights inside the pips, into edges, corners, or onto the faces of the dice. The weights we are talking about are so minimal that they would not really be easy to detect by holding the dice. But the results would be quite outstanding. The probability of each edge is always 1/6, but these loaded dice can rig the games and improve the chances of the dice landing on specific sides.

The dice will usually land on the loaded side. If a single edge is loaded, then it will usually roll over this edge to land on one of the adjacent faces. Loaded corners are also more likely to end on the bottom, therefore any of the three faces on the opposing sides will be more commonly shot. That is, if the dice has only 1 loaded corner, and not two (which would make more sense).

What Are Clockwise and Counterclockwise Dice

Dice are symmetric and must follow the same rules, in that the opposite faces of a dice must always add up to seven. 1 and 6, 2 and 5, and 3 and 4 are always on opposite sides. But the position of the 3 and 4 can be swapped around without upsetting the system. Western casinos generally use counterclockwise dice or Right Handed Dice. Chinese casinos (such as Macau Casinos) will generally use Left Handed or clockwise dice. There is no real difference between these dice, apart from if you are trying to use a special throwing system.

If you are, then you may need to learn how to use your other hand to throw the dice. That’s the only way you can really pull off the throwing technique using either dice format.

Conclusion for Craps Gamers

Vegas dice have quite a fascinating lifetime. Dice survive around half a day in the casino before getting scrapped. They are designed to roll a lot, and to fly through the air with minimum resistance. The notion of controlling your dice roll becomes all the more difficult because of the pyramid back wall. Plus, there is also every chance that your dice will collide with each other, prompting all sorts of random trajectories.

From Las Vegas to the Atlantic City Casinos, all esteemed gambling venues buy high quality dice. Chessex is one of the most highly esteemed manufacturers, but there are several high-grade dice makers.

The sheer number of variables really does make this a completely random process, that is nearly impossible to control. There are better alternatives than perfecting an ideal throw. Namely, trying out alternative craps betting types or revising your betting strategy. There are no other ways about it, and a good strategy can also work on online craps games where you cannot shoot the dice.

When playing craps or similar dice-based casino games, the foremost important rule is to remember that there are no guaranteed winners. You should not play with more money than you can afford to lose. Remember, these games are intended to be fun. Keep your gaming simple and responsible.