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Wild Viking
Introduction
Wild Viking can loosely be described as a roulette game using cards instead of a wheel and ball. The game will deal five cards from a 54-card deck (including two jokers). The player may bet on what the last card will be. In addition, there are poker bets that pay based on the poker value of all five cards. The game can be found at Internet casinos using Playtech software.
Rules
I will call the bets based on the last card the "roulette bets." There are various types of bets, as follows.
Roulette Bets
| Bet | Pays |
|---|---|
| Red, black, odd, even | 2 for 1 |
| Suit | 4 for 1 |
| 2-7, 8-K | 2 for 1 |
| 2-5, 6-9, 10-K | 3 for 1 |
| Single card | 52 for 1 |
| Two cards | 26 for 1 |
| Four cards | 13 for 1 |
I will call the bets based on the poker-value of all five cards the "Poker Bets." The Poker Bets pays if the final five-card hand is the poker value of the bet made or better. For example, a bet on a two pair would win if the poker value of the hand were a three of a kind. There are various types of bets, as follows.
Poker Bets
| Bet | Pays |
|---|---|
| Four of a kind | 280 to 1 |
| Full house | 150 to 1 |
| Flush | 90 to 1 |
| Straight | 45 to 1 |
| Three of a kind | 9 to 1 |
| Two pair | 6 to 1 |
| Pair -- sixes or better | 1 to 1 |
Finally, there is a progressive jackpot bet called the Wild Viking. It also pays based on the poker value of the final five-card hand. To win the jackpot the player must get a "Wild Viking," which is defined as a wild royal flush, where the first and last cards dealt are jokers. The pay table is as follows.
Wild Viking Bet
| Event | Pays |
|---|---|
| Wild Viking | Jackpot |
| Five of a kind | 1000 for 1 |
| Royal flush | 250 for 1 |
| Straight flush | 50 for 1 |
| Four of a kind | 20 for 1 |
| Full house | 10 for 1 |
| Flush | 8 for 1 |
| Straight | 5 for 1 |
| Three of a kind | 3 for 1 |
Analysis
The following table shows my analysis of the Roulette Bets. Remember that wins are on a "for one" basis.
Roulette Bets — Analysis
| Bet | Pays | Winning Numbers |
Probability | Expected Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red, black, odd, even | 2 | 26 | 0.481481 | -0.037037 |
| Suit | 4 | 13 | 0.240741 | -0.037037 |
| 2-7, 8-K | 2 | 24 | 0.444444 | -0.111111 |
| 2-5, 6-9, 10-K | 3 | 16 | 0.296296 | -0.111111 |
| Single card | 52 | 1 | 0.018519 | -0.037037 |
| Two cards | 26 | 2 | 0.037037 | -0.037037 |
| Four cards | 13 | 4 | 0.074074 | -0.037037 |
The following table shows my analysis of the Poker Bets. Remember that wins are on a "to one" basis.
Roulette Bets — Analysis
| Bet | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Expected Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Four of a kind | 280 | 10,062 | 0.003182 | -0.105956 |
| Full house | 150 | 19,422 | 0.006141 | -0.072660 |
| Flush | 90 | 30,810 | 0.009742 | -0.113454 |
| Straight | 45 | 65,514 | 0.020716 | -0.047072 |
| Three of a kind | 9 | 298,482 | 0.094381 | -0.056186 |
| Two pair | 6 | 422,034 | 0.133449 | -0.065857 |
| Pair -- sixes or better | 1 | 1,522,050 | 0.481279 | -0.037442 |
The following table shows my analysis of the Wild Viking Bet. Remember that wins are on a "for one" basis. The bet amount is one $/£/€, depending on the currency of the player.
Wild Viking Bet — Analysis
| Bet | Pays | Permutations | Probability | Expected Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wild Viking | ? | 480 | 0.000001 | ? |
| Five of a kind | 1000 | 9,360 | 0.000025 | 0.024664 |
| Royal flush | 250 | 9,600 | 0.000025 | 0.006324 |
| Straight flush | 50 | 64,800 | 0.000171 | 0.008538 |
| Four of a kind | 20 | 1,123,200 | 0.002960 | 0.059193 |
| Full house | 10 | 1,123,200 | 0.002960 | 0.029597 |
| Flush | 8 | 1,366,560 | 0.003601 | 0.028807 |
| Straight | 5 | 4,164,480 | 0.010974 | 0.054868 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 27,956,160 | 0.073666 | 0.220997 |
| Total | 35,817,840 | 0.094381 | 0.432988 + ? |
As with all progressive bets, the expected return depends on the amount in the jackpot. When I wrote this page on July 16, 2014, the jackpot was at 23,506, which equates to a total return of 46.3%.
To return for any given jackpot is 43.30% plus 1.2648% for every $10,000 in the meter. To reach break-even (return of 100%), the jackpot must get to 448,295.50.