Teach me to play craps

[asterion]

Craps can be a fun game, especially at a full table with everyone winning. However, the volatility can really kill you, especially with large odds bets. My general rule for most casino games--depends on the game of course--is to buy in with at least 10x what I plan to bet. With craps (which I rarely play due to insufficient bankroll to deal with such volatility) I think I'd rather buy-in with a 50x minimum and maybe even 100x or more.

The following are sucker bets:
All proposition (one-roll) bets. This includes the Horn and the individual bets (2, 3, 11, and 12) that make up the Horn, Any Seven, C&E (2, 3, or 11), the Field bet, and so on.
Big 6 and Big 8. Same bet as place bet on 6 or 8 but pays 1:1, so the house edge is higher. (Are the Big 6/8 actually prop bets? I've never seen anyone dumb enough to bet it.)
Hardways. (I admit I make this bet from time to time, but for table min only.)

As for the number bets, placing 6 and 8 are the only really reasonable bets, with a house edge of 1.52%. Placing 5 and 9 are much worse, with a house edge of 4.0%. As for 4 and 10, they should always be bought (with 5% commission) and not placed, as the house edges are 4.76% vs. 6.7%. Of course, if you can find a casino or a table that offers free buy bets on 4 and 10, those become somewhat better bets due to the lower house edge. Exact effects will depend on the rule and the amount bet. Look at the craps section of http://www.wizardofodds.com for more info.

There's nothing inherently wrong with come bets. They're the same as a pass line bet on the come-out roll and can be played the same. If you really want to get a lot of money on the table, you can make several come bets and then take odds on those. That's not that bad a strategy overall, assuming your bankroll can take it.

And ignore at least half of what NajdorfDefense said. Dice control is crap (no pun intended), the dice have no memory so it doesn't matter when you start making come bets, the shooter of course doesn't matter, and don't buy the 6 and 8 but place the 6 and 8 instead. Your decision on whether or not to press a bet, of course.

So, I say, make the pass line bet. Put as much as you can (or are comfortable with) behind the line as an odds bet. If you want to get a little more action on the table, make place bets on 6 and/or 8 in increments of $6 (getting this wrong will make you look foolish and/or inexperienced and don't worry if you don't have exact change as the dealers will take care of it). If you want, make come bets and take the odds on those points as well. Avoid all other bets.