Overview
In order to use this basic strategy, look up the up card of the dealer along the left vertical edge. A stands for ace in both cases. The hard totals, soft totals, and splittable hands are listed from top to bottom. Depending on whether the dealer hits or stands on a soft 17, there are two charts.
Basic Blackjack Strategy (4-8 decks used)
The other rules of basic strategy
Don’t take insurance or “even money.”
In the absence of a row for splitting (5s and 10s), look at your hand as a hard total (10 or 20).
If there is a limit on re-splitting, you must look at your hand as a hard total, except if you have aces. If you have a pair of aces you cannot re-split, and drawing to split aces is allowed, then double against a 6, otherwise hit.
For those of you who play a mix of six-deck games, some where the dealer hits a soft 17, and others where he stands, and wish to memorize only one strategy, I recommend memorizing the one where the dealer stands on a soft 17. By playing the wrong strategy, the cost of errors is 2.3 times higher playing a soft 17 game, with a hit on 17 strategy, than vice versa.
