For this exercise you will need a pair of casino dice. Used casino dice are available at most casino gift shops. You can also order new casino-quality dice on-line from a number of sources, including www.axispowercraps.com. Purchase several sticks (a set of five matching dice) in different colors to use when practicing your precision shooting.

Orient the dice in front of you as shown in graphic 2.1.

Compare that to the random roll in which eight of the thirty-six combinations of the dice are naturals that add up to seven or eleven. Naturals will appear only 22% of the time. Net out the four combinations that result in come-out losers – the two, three, and twelve craps – and the percentage drops to 14%. The probability of dice combinations determines the odds of the payout. The following chart shows the dice combinations needed to roll each number. The two and twelve are the hardest to roll since only one combination of dice is possible. The game of craps is built around the dice roll of seven, since it is the most easily rolled dice combination.

Graphic 2.1 – All Sevens Pre-Set

This is one of the most powerful pre-sets for the come out roll. It is called the All Sevens Set because the seven shows on all faces of the dice. It is also known as the 1-6/1-6 Axial set. This designation is derived from the numbers that appear on the left and right side or lateral faces of the dice. Another name for this set is the 4-2/3-5 set because the left die has the 4 up and the 2 facing the shooter and the right die has the 3 up and the 5 facing the shooter. Confusing? Just pick a term you can remember easily and go for it. The “All Sevens Set” will do fine.

Imagine you have your dice in this pre-set and there is a steel rod or axle running them as shown in Graphic 2.1. The axle runs through the center of the one-spots and prevents the dice from tumbling any way but forward and backward. If you could toss dice like this in the casino, what would be the results?

Graphic 2.1 – Forward Axial Rotation

With the axial model of dice control the number of possible combinations of the dice is reduced from thirty-six to sixteen. With 100% axis control there are only four faces that can come up on each die when rolled on axis. Additionally, under this model you would never hear the stick person call two, three, or twelve craps. Why? Because there are no ones or sixes showing when the dice are rolled on the All Sevens pre-set. The one and six are taken out of the equation, and without them you can’t roll a Craps.

Now take a moment to count the number of combinations of the dice that add up to seven when using this set. If you come up with four, you are absolutely correct. When rolled on axis the All Sevens Pre-Set yields a natural winner 25% of the time – with NO craps losers. That’s a powerful first step toward playing craps with a positive expectation.

Compare that to the random roll in which eight of the thirty-six combinations of the dice are naturals that add up to seven or eleven. Naturals will appear only 22% of the time. Net out the four combinations that result in come-out losers – the two, three, and twelve craps – and the percentage drops to 14%. So pre-setting to the All-Sevens and rolling on axis can equate to about an 11% advantage over a random Come-Out roll. And that goes a long way toward making craps a positive expectation game.

Here is the distribution of numbers that will appear when the All Sevens Pre-Set is rolled on axis:

Table 2-1 – All Sevens Pre-Set Number Distribution

By the way, the All Sevens pre-set contains ALL of the hardway numbers – a favorite and notoriously bad wager made by many precision dice shooters. Hardway numbers roll 6.25% of the time when the dice stay on axis. Compare that to the 2.8% performance random rollers experience and you’ll understand why these high vig bets are popular with some dice setters. In fact, often these players will arrange the dice on the 6-1/6-1 axis so that they are pre-set to the hardways. For example, they might set the 5-5 Hard Ten facing up. The hard four would be face down on the table. The hard eight and hard six would be facing up and down table, respectively. The axis numbers remain the same – 6-1/6-1. The hardway pre-set is simply another permutation of the All Sevens Axial Pre-Set. They are both part of the same “family” of pre-sets. Here’s what it looks like:

Graphic 2.2 – Hardway Set

Now let’s compare the All Sevens pre-set to another popular arrangement of the dice – The V-3 Hard Six set, also known as the 16/25 Axial pre-set. Some players refer to it as the 3-2/3-6 set, reading the top and front faces of the left die, then the right die. Here’s how it looks:

Graphic 2.3 – V-3 Hard Six Set

This is one of the most powerful pre-sets for use after the come out roll. Like the All Sevens pre-set, when rolled on axis there are only sixteen possible combinations of the dice instead of the random thirty-six. But unlike the All Sevens set, only two of these combinations add up to seven – the 3-4 and the 4-3. In other words, when rolled on axis the seven will only appear 12.5% of the time. Compare that to the random roller, who sees the seven on 16.7% of his rolls, and the potential power of this arrangement becomes abundantly clear.

Let’s examine the distribution of the remaining numbers utilizing this pre-set:

Table 2.4 – V-3 Hard Six Pre-Set Number Distribution

Look at the number of combinations that add up to six and eight. There are three ways to make each of these numbers, compared to two combinations that add up to seven. So the axis adjusted odds are 3-2 in favor of the six and eight, and the five and nine are even money. But since the five and nine place bets are paid off at 7-5, these wagers carry a positive expectation as well.

Like the All Sevens pre-set, the V-3 Hard Six has many permutations. While most players prefer to arrange the dice with the hard six on the top faces, some prefer to have the eleven facing up and the hard six and hard eight facing up and down table. Others will rotate one 180° on axis – presenting the eleven on the top faces, but arranging the dice so the 3-4 and 4-3 face up and down table. This variation is popular with many precision shooters on the come out roll. While these variations can be powerful and effective tools for the experienced precision shooter, initially we recommend that the beginner stick with the specific arrangements pictured in this book.

We’ve just looked at the two most powerful pre-sets available to precision shooters. As you can see, using the correct pre-set at the correct time and adjusting your bets accordingly clearly puts the precision shooter in command of the game. Now that you grasp the concept, let’s take a look at all six of the basic axial pre-sets. Remember, there are many variants of each of these sets, but for now let’s stick with these:

Graphic 2.5 – Dice Pre-Sets

The pre-sets shown on the top row are all seven-rich arrangements. They are the Straight Sixes, the Parallel Sixes, and the All-Sevens sets. When rolled on axis, each of these arrangements contains four combinations of numbers that add up to seven. For that reason they are often used when the shooter wants to toss sevens. Conversely, the pre-sets shown on the bottom row are point rich sets. There are only two combinations of numbers that add up to seven when these arrangements are rolled on axis, making these arrangements popular with controlled shooters once the point is established. When tossed on-axis each set has its own particular strengths and weaknesses.

Since we have already covered the All Sevens and the V-3 pre-set arrangements, let’s take a look at the number distribution tables for the other four basic dice sets. First on the list is the Straight Sixes – or the 34/34 Axial pre-set.

Table 2.6 – Straight Sixes Pre-Set Number Distribution

At first glance this looks like an excellent pre-set for the come out roll. There are four ways to win with the seven and two ways to win with the eleven. But further scrutiny reveals four ways to lose on the come out as well – the 2, 3, and 12. There is also a possibility of establishing the four or ten as the point – both difficult numbers to hit with any pre-set.

Craps Dice Combinations Chart