Stand.Why basic strategy says stand
Hard 12 only busts when it draws a ten-value card, but against a 4 the dealer busts often enough that standing and waiting is the better play.
Engine explanation: Stand with hard 12 against 4. Keep this total under the selected rules. This is a long-run basic-strategy decision, not a prediction of the next card.
Hard 12 against every upcard
H hit · S stand · D double · P split. Select a cell for its page.
Nearby hard totals against a 4
| Hand | Move | |
|---|---|---|
| Hard 5 | Hit | Why → |
| Hard 6 | Hit | Why → |
| Hard 7 | Hit | Why → |
| Hard 8 | Hit | Why → |
| Hard 9 | Double | Why → |
| Hard 10 | Double | Why → |
| Hard 11 | Double | Why → |
| Hard 12 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 13 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 14 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 15 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 16 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 17 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 18 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 19 | Stand | Why → |
| Hard 20 | Stand | Why → |
Related questions
Do I stand on 12 against a 4?
Yes, stand. Against a 4, 5 or 6 the dealer busts about 40% of the time, which is enough to make standing on 12 the better of two poor options; hitting risks an immediate bust on roughly 31% of draws for only a modest improvement when you survive. The margin against a 4 is slim, which is why 12 against a 2 and a 3 flips to a hit. Six-deck S17 rules; the answer is the same under H17.
Training rules: six decks · dealer stands on soft 17 · no surrender
This is a separate educational profile. Rules can differ between app tables and other games.
- Six decks. Dealer stands on all 17s, including soft 17.
- US hole card and peek: decisions assume the dealer has checked and does not have blackjack.
- Double any first two cards, including after splitting. Doubling ends the hand after one extra card.
- Split equal card values into at most four hands. Split aces receive one card each; no resplitting aces.
- No surrender. A natural blackjack pays 3:2; 21 after splitting is not a natural.
- Total-dependent strategy. No card counting or expected-value estimates.
Profile six-deck-s17-das · rules 1.0.0 · strategy 1.0.0. The trainer asks for one decision per hand; it does not simulate wagers or settlement.