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Sharp Shooter
Introduction
Sharp Shooter is a dice game by 1x2, a supplier of software for Internet casinos. The object of the game is for the player to roll every number represented in a dealer roll in as few throws as possible.
Rules
- Play begins with the player making a bet.
- The dealer shall then roll three dice. These shall be referred to as the Target Dice.
- The player shall then roll three dice.
- Any face represented in the player's roll shall be checked against the Target Dice. Any specific player die that matches a specific dealer die shall be said to eliminate that die. Any player die can eliminate at most one of the Target dice. For example, if the Target dice are 3-6-6 and the player rolls 1-2-6, then only one of the sixes will be eliminated.
- The player shall keep rolling until all Target Dice are eliminated, or three times, whichever happens first.
- If the player eliminates all the Target Dice, then he shall be paid according to how many throws it took and the pay table below.
Sharp Shooter Pay Table
| Rolls | Pays |
|---|---|
| 1 | 8 to 1 |
| 2 | 7 to 5 |
| 3 | 1 to 2 |
Example
Following is an example game. Click on any image for a larger version.
In the image above, the dealer's roll was a 1-1-4, which are the Target Dice.
The player's first roll is a 3-4-6. The 3 and 6 don't help, but the 4 eliminates the 4 from the Target Dice. After the roll, the Target dice are 1-1.
The player's second roll is a 3-3-3. That doesn't help at all. The player will need at least two ones in the final roll to win. The probability of that is 7.41%.
The player's third roll is a 1-1-2! That eliminates both ones from the Target dice and the player wins. Since he won on the third roll the $100 bet pays 1 to 2, or $50.
Analysis
An analysis of this game is a fun exercise in combinatorial mathematics. The following table shows the conclusion of such analysis. The lower right cell reflects a house edge of 4.40%.
Sharp Shooter Analysis
| Event | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win after one roll | 8 | 46,469,376 | 0.021348 | 0.170782 |
| Win after two rolls | 1.4 | 383,888,160 | 0.176356 | 0.246898 |
| Win after three rolls | 0.5 | 494,330,550 | 0.227092 | 0.113546 |
| Loss | -1 | 1,252,094,250 | 0.575204 | -0.575204 |
| Total | 2,176,782,336 | 1.000000 | -0.043978 |
Comparison to Six Shooter
1x2 Gaming has a very similar game called Six Shooter. The differences are:
- In Six Shooter, the dealer rolls six dice instead of three.
- In Six Shooter, if the player rolls any face, all of that face will be eliminated from the Target Dice, instead of the one to one relationship between dice in Sharp Shooter.
- The pay table is different.
The house edge in Six Shooter is higher at 5.88%, so you're better off with Sharp Shooter, if you must play one of them.
Written by:Michael Shackleford
