How to play
Royal Queens 21 is classic six-deck blackjack with two optional side bets on your first two cards. Both are settled the moment the cards land, before you play the hand.
- Choose a chip and tap Bet for your main blackjack bet.
- Optionally tap Twenty Queens and Suited Royals to add side bets (10 to 100 each).
- Press Deal. The side bets are paid right away, then you play the main hand: Hit, Stand, Double or Split.
Blackjack rules. Six decks. The dealer stands on all 17s and checks for blackjack under an ace or a 10. Blackjack pays 3 to 2. Double on any first two cards, double after split, split up to four hands. There’s no insurance at this table (see the FAQ).
Twenty Queens
Twenty Queens wins when your first two cards make 20. An ace counts 11, so ace-9 is 20 as well.
| Your first two cards | Example | Pays |
|---|---|---|
| Pair of Queens of Hearts, and the dealer has blackjack | Q♥ Q♥ | 1,000 to 1 |
| Pair of Queens of Hearts | Q♥ Q♥ | 200 to 1 |
| Matched 20: two identical cards | K♠ K♠ | 25 to 1 |
| Suited 20 | K♠ Q♠ | 10 to 1 |
| Any 20 | K♠ 10♥, A♦ 9♣ | 4 to 1 |
Only the best line pays. With six decks there are six Queens of Hearts in the shoe, so the top hands do happen, just rarely.
Suited Royals
Suited Royals wins when your first two cards are the same suit:
| Your first two cards | Example | Pays |
|---|---|---|
| King and Queen of the same suit | K♦ Q♦ | 25 to 1 |
| Any two cards of the same suit | 4♣ 9♣ | 5 to 2 |
A 5 to 2 win on a bet of 10 returns 35: your 10 back plus 25.
The odds
We calculated both side bets exactly, counting every combination of cards from the six-deck shoe:
| Bet | Return to player | House edge |
|---|---|---|
| Twenty Queens | 82.36% | 17.64% |
| Suited Royals | 93.33% | 6.67% |
The Suited Royals figure is easy to check: after your first card, 77 of the remaining 311 cards are the same suit, and 6 of those complete a suited King-Queen when your first card is a King or Queen. Twenty Queens pays big but rarely: about nine deals in ten lose it.
Tips
- The side bets cost more than the main game. Following the hint, the main hand gives up well under 1%. Suited Royals gives up 6.67%, Twenty Queens 17.64%.
- Twenty Queens is a long shot. Any 20 comes about one deal in ten; the Queen of Hearts pair about once in 3,200 deals.
- The side bets don’t change how to play. The hint only looks at the main hand. A 20 is still a stand.
For other side bets, try Side Bet 21, Over/Under 21 or Dealer Bust 21.
If you enjoy Royal Queens 21, try Russian Poker or Safari Ways next.
