The social center of every casino that offers the game is always the craps pit for the players surrounding the dice-throwing action.

The social center of every casino that offers the game is always the craps pit for the players surrounding the dice-throwing action.

Known for its fast action and tremendous swings, more money reportedly is wagered on craps than any other table game offered in casinos.

The social aspect of craps makes it unique among all other games. Players need the help of other gamblers (called shooters) to throw the dice and produce the winning points needed to make money.

Those who hit their points with regularity and produce winning table runs are rock stars, while the unlucky transform into Carrot Top.

The rules of craps are simple: You want to stay away from rolling a 7 once your point is established — but the board can be difficult to navigate without a proper introduction.

Here's a list of the common bets players make at a table, both good and bad:

THE GOOD
 Pass Line: The most popular bet in the pit, the shooter must establish a point with his initial throw, which is called a come-out roll. If the roll is a 7 or an 11, the shooter doubles everybody's money at the table that has a bet on the “pass line,” and everybody with money on the “don't pass line” loses.
Odds: Once a point has been established, players can back their pass line bets with extra money that produces various payouts depending on the number rolled. If the point is harder to hit, such as a 10 or 4 since there are only two dice combinations, it pays more than if it's a number like a 6, 8 or 9.
Come bet: If a point is already established, a come bet is essentially a restart of the “pass line bet,” where a player assumes the next qualifying number thrown by the shooter.

THE BAD
Field bets: The field looks sexy, but the math tells a different story. You double your money any time the shooter rolls a 3, 4, 9, 10 or 11 and will be paid 2:1 or 3:1 depending on the casino when a 2 or a 12 is rolled. You lose every time a 5, 6, 7 or 8 is rolled.
Odds: Yep, you have more numbers that can win with a field bet, but the majority of the dice combinations fall in the losing range producing a house edge of around 5 percent.
Place bets: There is an option to bet on any individual number between 4-6 and 8-10, where the payouts fluctuate like they do with an odds bet. Players can bet the numbers at any time once a point is established and take the bet off at any time they wish. With the exception of the 6 and the 8, players voluntarily give the house an approximate 5 percent edge.

THE INSANE
Hard bets: A hard bet is when a player bets on a number and bets that it will be rolled as a double (example: a hard 8 is when both dice come up with a 4) before a 7 or the easy number (such as a 6 and 2) is thrown. Terrible odds; the payout is good if you win, but you're giving up about 10 percent edge to the casino.
All prop bets: These are all the numbers in the middle of the pit, where players can bet on mathematically flukish rolls such as Aces (two ones) or Boxcars (two sixes).