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Introduction

Balut is a game invented at the end of World War II by an American soldier lacking playing cards for playing poker. He was stationed on Cebu (the Philippines) and initially named the game Poker Dice. Years later, in the early 1970ies a Dane named Niels Lumholdt working for Thai Airways traveled to the Philippines frequently and picked up how to play the game but decided to name the game Balut when he brought it with him back to Bangkok, Thailand. The word "balut" in Filipino is the name of an unhatched duck egg and are sold by street sellers walking around screaming BALUUUUT. In 1979 Søren Milholt changed the rules of the game by introducing incentive points. Around 1997 a Dane living in the Philippines named Troels T. Carstensen added the Jackpot element to the game and Jackpot Balut was born.
This ruleset is for the Balut game invented in 1979 by Søren Milholt.

The origins of craps is believed to be in the 17th century. John H Winn is renowned to be the founder of the modern craps game read about other games here

Scoresheet

If you wish to play the game at home with friends or family you will need 5 dices and a scoresheet each. You can download a scoresheet for Balut by clicking the PDF icon below.

After downloading the PDF file you can print as many copies as you want. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader in order to view and print the scoresheet.

Objective of the Game

The game consists of 28 rounds. In each round, you roll the dice and then score the roll in one of 7 categories. You must score 4 times in each category. This means that during the game, normally at the end, you may have to settle for scoring zero in some categories. If the total score in each category meets the requirement for that category (apart from one) you are awarded some points. One category is special, see the section on scoring below. The object of the game is to maximize your number of points. The game ends once all 4 fields in all 7 categories have been scored.

Rolling the Dice

You have five die, which you can roll. First you must roll all the die. After you roll all the die, you can either score the current roll, or re-roll any or all of the five die. To re-roll some of the die, select the die you wish to re-roll by clicking on them and push the "Throw Dice" button below the die. You can roll the die a total of three times -- the initial roll (in which you must roll all the dice), plus two re-rolls of any or all dice. After rolling three times, you must score the roll somewhere on the scoresheet. Once you have scored the roll, you roll again. You continue until all 4 fields in all 7 categories have been filled on the scoresheet, at which time the game is over.

Scoring

Once you have the dice face combination you want to score, you score the roll in one of the 7 categories. Once a field has been scored, it is closed out for the rest of the game; you cannot change a field's score once it has been set. Each category defines its own scoring rules, as described below.

Fours, Fives and Sixes
In the first three categories you total only the specified die face. So if you roll:

and score in the Sixes category, your total for that entry would be 18. This same roll would yield zero (represented with a line "-") if you scored it in the Fives and 4 if you scored it in the Fours category.

Straights
The fourth category is named Straights. Like in poker, a straight is a sequence of consecutive die faces. A small straight is 5 consecutive faces, starting from 1. A large straight is 5 consecutive faces starting from 2 and ending at 6. A small straight yields a score of 15 (1+2+3+4+5) and a large straight 20 (2+3+4+5+6). Thus, if you rolled:

you could score a small straight of 15.

Full House
Again as in poker, a Full House is a roll where you have both a 3 of a kind, and a pair. Full house yield a score equal to the total number of eyes on all five die.

Choice
Choice is the catch-all roll. You can roll anything and you simply total all the die faces values.

Balut
A Balut is a 5 of a Kind (i.e. all the die faces are the same), and it yields a score of 20 plus all the die faces values. Thus, if you roll

you score 25 (5 times 1 plus 20).

Points

You get points per category. In order to get points you have to fullfill some criteria for each category. Here is the table that shows how many points you can get in each category and what you need in order to get them

Required	Points awarded
52 or more in Fours	2 points
65 or more in Fives	2 points
78 or more in Sixes	2 points
All Straights	4 points
All Full Houses	3 points
100 or more in choice	2 points

Points are also given for the number of Baluts rolled, each Balut is 2 points.

Finally points are awarded based on your total score as follows:

Score	Points awarded
0-299	-2 points
300-349	-1 point
350-399	0 points
400-449	1 point
450-499	2 points
500-549	3 points
550-599	4 points
600-649	5 points
650-812	6 points

29 point is thus the theoretical maximum you can score.

Registering a result

When you have finished playing one game a check code will appear below the scoresheet.

If you wish to register your score you must take this information, points, scores, number of Baluts and the code and fill into the form below the scoresheet together with your name and e-mail address and a comment if you like.

Superstition in Gambling: Holdem and Craps etc

Gambling superstitions are as common as dice and cards. However, are there any benefits to them? Here are some gambling superstitions and how useful they are to the players who believe in them.

New Cards, Dice, Dealers, Seats

Many players may feel like a change of venue will improve their results. They think that the cards, dice or even the dealers are unlucky, and that a replacement will change their luck.

The reality is that in a casino or online texas holdem room, all the cards, dice and other randomizing apparatus are completely random. In a game like poker, in which marked cards or a dealer in collusion with a player can put you at a disadvantage, changing the cards or dealers can help avoid this problem.

However, most casinos are so closely monitored that these are not real dangers. Making changes is not necessary.

Counting Chips

There’s a legend that counting chips at the table is bad luck. In reality, not counting is bad luck. Its important that you know where you stand so that you know if it’s time to quit or if you can afford to take a shot at higher stakes without putting too much of your bankroll in jeopardy.

In poker, you need to know how much pressure you can put on your opponents with your chips. If knowing how much you are up or down will affect your play, this is something you need to learn to control before sitting down at the table.

Lucky Items

People think that carrying a lucky token or wearing lucky clothing will improve their chances to win. In and of themselves, they will not.

However, anything that makes you feel more confident at the table may help you focus and play in the best way possible to minimize the House edge. In a way, feeling lucky makes you lucky, and if you play better with your lucky item, then it is “lucky” for you.

Other Superstitions

Knowing gambling superstitions can be fun, but you should never let superstitions supersede your knowledge of the correct way to play a game. Don’t play hunches at the table. Follow proper strategy at all times and you’ll increase your chances of booking a nice win.