Six of Diamonds

The Six of Diamonds is one of the Diamonds game and an eliminatory game of Blackjack that takes place in a restaurant. It was cleared by Shuntaro Chishiya on his first day of sojourn and was featured in the fourth side story.

Game Overview[]

Set-Up[]

Player Limit: 5 Required
Time Limit: 1 Hour
Prize: Pistol magazine

Once all participants are seated with a noose around their neck, the game officially begins. Players are given chips equivalent to the number of hours they have left on their visa.

Rules[]

Standard Blackjack Rules[]

A hand closest to or equivalent to 21 wins. Hands with the same points end in draw.
Face cards (J, Q, K) are considered 10 points. Ace cards are considered 1 or 11 points, depending on what best suits the player's hand.
The non-dealers places chips as their bet. The maximum bet is equivalent to the dealer's maximum number of chips.
The dealer deals two cards to all non-dealers. Once dealt, the dealer will flip one of his cards open and leaves the other face down.
The non-dealer will be able to stand (stop drawing cards) or hit (draw one card). A double down, split or a non-dealer Blackjack can double the winnings.
The dealer must hit if they are at 16 points or below. However, the dealer must stand if they are at 17 points or higher.
A bust occurs if the number of points in the player's hand exceeds 21. In the event the dealer and non-dealer both bust, the non-dealer loses.
If the non-dealer wins, they receive their betted chips in addition to the equivalent they betted from the dealer.
If the dealer uses up the deck during the allotted time, a new dealer will take over.

Other[]

Once a player's chip count reaches 0, it is Game Over.
It is Game Clear for the last surviving player.
Players are not allowed to leave their seats at any point of the game.
If more than one player remains by the end of 1 hour, it is Game Over for all players.
Illegal transfer of chips and illegal restraint will result in Game Over.
In the event that a player is caught cheating, the other players will have a chance to exact judgement and shoot them, giving that player a Game Over. However, this can only be done once per player throughout the entire game.

Strategy[]

Explanation of Card Counting Theory[]

Using the chips as an abacus, Chishiya was able to come up with a card counting method to calculate when it is best to bet greater or smaller quantities. First off, it should be noted that the non-dealer has an easier time of managing bust than dealers, since dealers must hit if they are under 16 and stand if they are over 17. Because of this, the non-dealer has to gamble their way above the chance of a dealer's bust. A surplus of 9's, 10's, and aces in a deck is the non-dealers advantage, since it leads to a high chance of a bust from the dealer. Oppositely, a surplus of cards 2-8 is the dealer's advantage. In an undisturbed deck of cards, there are 52 cards total and 24 9, 10, and ace cards. 52/24 is approximately 2.17. As more of the aforementioned 3 cards are used up, 52 is divided by a lesser value, and in turn the quotient becomes greater. As this ratio increases, the dealer's at a high advantage, so it is optimal to bet less. As this ratio decreases, the non-dealers are at an advantage, and the dealer is at a disadvantage, so it is optimal to bet more, since statistically, there is a greater chance of winning the bet.

In conclusion, as the ratio of total cards over the sum of 9, 10, and ace cards increases, it is optimal to bet more as the non-dealer since the dealer is at a statistical disadvantage. Vice versa.

Cheating Methods[]

During the game, all players cheated at least once. Chishiya made a weird hand gesture claiming it was a good luck ritual, and used the distraction to do a turnover, where he flipped the deck of cards as a dealer. The first man to be eliminated used a shiner, a ring specifically designed to reflect the mark of a card. The magician used second dealing (also known as dealing seconds), a method of manipulating a deck of cards by dealing the second, rather than the top card of the deck. The woman marked a card with her nails, and the card mechanic sleeved 2 cards. Cheating is obviously, a high risk gambit. It should only be done if playing fairly is even risker or if cheating could turn the tides of the game.

Potential Solution[]

It is unknown as to if every game in the Borderlands features a solution with no deaths, although the vast majority of them do. This game is one of the hardest ones to determine. The rules themselves state that if more than 1 player remains by the end of the time limit, everyone gets a Game Over. It is possible however that there may be a solution hidden- If everyone decides on 1 player who will remain playing and win to register a Game Clear, everyone else can take turns cheating. Then, one of the other players can shoot at them, but deliberately shoot the rope above their head. Then the cheating player will lose on purpose, but the rope would no longer be attached to their neck. It would require intelligence to come up with this, as well as figuring out how to play the game and how to cheat properly. It is also theoretically possible using outside equipment like a switchblade to cut the rope would be possible but would require the game end with a winner since some arenas

Six of Diamonds Participants[]

Shuntaro Chishiya	GAME CLEAR Last remaining player	Old Lady	GAME OVER Lost all her chips
Mechanic	GAME OVER Shot after being caught cheating	Magician	GAME OVER Shot after being caught cheating
Bad Cheater	GAME OVER Lost all his chips