Blue Samurai Slot Guide to the Paytable, Free Spins and Samurai Bonus
Blue Samurai has two different ways to take you away from the regular reels. Three scatters start free spins. Three Samurai on an outside reel open a separate bonus board. They use different symbols, different triggers and different payout rules.
Another rule is that the base game needs four matching symbols on a payline. Three matching regular symbols do not pay there. During free spins, the minimum drops to three.
The Blue Samurai slot game is part of the Stake Originals slots on Stake. Its Japanese setting brings together Samurai, weapons and colored symbols, but the first things to check are the reel layout and the paytable.
Get to Know the Reels
Blue Samurai uses five reels in a 3-4-4-4-3 formation. The first and fifth reels each show three positions. The middle three reels each show four, giving you 18 visible positions.
Those extra positions in the middle don’t turn the game into a way to win a slot. Blue Samurai uses 40 fixed paylines. A payline is a set line of reels that the game checks for winning combinations.
All 40 lines are active on every spin. You cannot switch some off, select a favorite line or reduce the number of lines to make more spins for the same wager. To change what you spend, adjust the bet amount.
Matching symbols also need to land along a paying route. Four matching pictures scattered around the screen are not automatically a win.
Four Matches in the Base Game
The regular game pays for four or five matching symbols on a payline. A three symbol match can look promising, especially if you are used to slots that pay from three, but it doesn’t qualify under Blue Samurai’s regular matching symbol rule. Let the game highlight the winning lines after a result.
Also, there’s a difference between a line win and a feature trigger. Three scatters can start free spins even though it’s not a four symbol match. They are checked under their own feature rules.
How to Play Blue Samurai
Start by looking through the regular paytable, the free spins rules and the separate Samurai bonus table.
Before you spin, check the full cost of the bet. Regular line payouts are calculated using the bet per line, which is different from the total you spend on a spin.
Pick an amount you’re comfortable spending, then spin the reels. Watch for matching symbols on a payline, three scatters on the middle reels, or three Samurai filling either outside reel. There’s no timing trick to learn. Pressing the button at just the right moment won’t change where the symbols land.
Start with manual spins so you can take your time between rounds. If you want to check a payout or read the rules after a feature, you can pause before placing another bet.
Blue Samurai Paytable
The Blue Samurai paytable separates regular line wins from feature awards. Start with the regular symbols, then check the other modes. Everything below is drawn from the paytable in the Blue Samurai slot game itself, which is worth opening alongside this guide.
The following numbers are the regular game values, expressed as multipliers.
Four matching bow and arrow, swords, red or blue symbols pay 1.50x the per line bet. Five matching symbols pay 3.00x.
Green and purple symbols also pay 1.50x for four matches. Check the in game paytable for their five symbol payouts.
Yellow, orange and cyan symbols pay 2.00x for four matches and 4.00x for five.
Red Samurai has the highest payout listed: four matches pay 2.50x the per line bet, while five pay 12.50x.
Stake online casino guide groups green and purple with the 3.00x five symbol payouts, while other published tables differ. The live in game table should settle those entries before you use them to calculate a return. These figures could be different in the live game.
What the Red Samurai Pays
Five Red Samurai give the highest regular combination listed above: 12.50x the per line bet. Four pay 2.50x.
That jump makes the fifth matching symbol particularly valuable for this combination. It doesn’t mean every result featuring a Red Samurai pays that amount, or that 12.50x is a multiplier of your entire spin stake.
It’s also a regular game figure. Do not use it as the maximum for the Samurai bonus or as a substitute for the free spins paytable.
Read the Multiplier Against the Right Bet
A multiplier needs a starting amount. If a line bet were 0.10 units, a 12.50x payout on that line would return 1.25 units. A 2.50x payout would return 0.25 units. Units are the currency of your choice.
Those calculations describe that line’s payout. To work out whether the complete spin made a profit, compare all returns from the spin with its total cost.
This is why a highlighted win can still lower your balance. A winning line and a profitable spin are different things.
Wilds Help Complete Line Wins
Wilds can appear anywhere on the reels and replace any regular paying symbols. Suppose a paying route contains matching regular symbols with a wild between them. The wild can substitute for that regular symbol when the game checks the line.
This combination has a limit: wilds do not replace scatters. Two scatters and a wild do not become the three scatters.
When more than one wild is part of a winning combination, the highest applicable multiplier is triggered. You don’t have to choose what a wild represents. The game evaluates the combination and credits the applicable award. Checking the highlighted result afterwards is the clearest way to follow it.
Scatters Start Blue Samurai Free Spins
Scatters do a different job. They trigger a feature instead of filling gaps in ordinary symbol combinations.
In Blue Samurai, scatters are restricted to reels 2, 3 and 4. Those are the taller middle reels. Three scatters in view trigger 10 free spins.
You are looking for a feature triggering scatter result, rather than a regular line win of four symbols. A screen can fail to give an ordinary matching symbol payout and still award free spins. The outside reels are not places to watch for scatters. They have a separate role in triggering the Samurai bonus.
Three Matches Can Pay During Free Spins
The biggest change during Blue Samurai free spins is the lower matching symbol requirement. A qualifying line can pay with three matching symbols, instead of the four required in regular mode. A three symbol combination that would fall short in the base game can become a paying combination during the feature.
So the starting award is more than ten spins played under the usual rules. The feature uses a different minimum for qualifying line wins.
That doesn’t guarantee a return from every spin. The symbols must still form a valid winning combination. Nor should you use the regular table to calculate every feature payout: check the free spins information for the amounts that apply in that mode.
Retriggers Can Extend the Feature
Three more scatters during free spins retrigger the feature. The free spins award can extend up to a cap of 180 spins.
The initial award remains ten. The larger figure is the limit reached through retriggers, rather than the number you receive every time you enter. There’s no guarantee that a feature will go beyond its opening award. Ten spins without another trigger are still a complete feature.
Watch the counter when more spins are awarded. It tells you what remains. The cap is a limit on the feature, not a target.
The Samurai Bonus Has Its Own Trigger
The separate Blue Samurai bonus opens when three Samurai symbols land on reel 1 or reel 5 in the same spin.
The position is essential. You need three together on one qualifying outside reel. Finding three Samurai spread across different reels does not meet that trigger. Since each outside reel has three visible positions, a qualifying result fills that reel with the required symbols.
This is not the scatter feature. Scatters in the middle start free spins; Samurai on an outside reel start the special board.
Five Attempts on the Board
The Samurai bonus awards five attempts on a board dedicated to Samurai icons. Its prizes depend on how many Samurai land, with the award scale covering counts from one to twelve.
The board has its own paytable. You are counting Samurai for a special award, rather than checking ordinary four or five symbol line combinations.
Open the game information and select the “Bonus Round” box to view that special table. Match the number of Samurai with the matching award, then check which bet amount the displayed multiplier uses.
Do not transfer a regular Red Samurai payout onto this board. Similar names don’t mean the symbols and awards follow the same rules.
The Round Cannot Retrigger Itself
The Samurai bonus cannot be retriggered from inside the round. You receive its five attempts, the result is settled, and play returns from the feature.
This is another difference from free spins, where more qualifying scatters can extend the award. A board that finishes short of twelve Samurai has not left a task for you to complete through further paid spins. Once the round ends, that result is finished. A later trigger starts another round under the same rules.
Two Features, Two Different Triggers
The easiest way to tell them apart is to watch which symbols land and where. Three scatters on the middle reels start 10 free spins. During the feature, line wins pay from three matching symbols. Another three scatters add more spins, up to a total limit of 180.
Three Samurai together on reel 1 or reel 5 open the Samurai bonus board instead. You get five attempts, with prizes based on how many Samurai land. The board uses its own paytable, and you cannot retrigger the round.
Both features are sometimes called a “bonus round,” so check whether the description means scatters and free spins or Samurai and the bonus board.
There’s no set number of paid spins before either feature appears. Even after a long wait, neither is guaranteed to land on the next spin.
Blue Samurai RTP and House Edge
The Blue Samurai RTP is 96.70%, meaning that there’s a 3.30% house edge.
RTP describes the return across a very large amount of play. It doesn’t mean a $100 deposit will leave you with $96.70, or that each session loses exactly 3.30%.
Total wagers also differ from your starting balance. Money returned by one spin can be wagered again, so the amount staked over a session can exceed the original deposit.
RTP Does Not Tell You When a Feature Will Land
A single RTP can’t tell you how many spins you will wait for scatters, how often the Samurai board will appear or what your next feature will pay. It also doesn’t turn the two features into separate games you can choose between on demand. Their triggers come from the reel results.
Treat the percentage as information about the game’s mathematics. For the session in front of you, the amount per spin and the number of spins you play determine how much money you put at risk.
Check the Mode Before Checking the Payout
Once you know the basics, reading the result is simple. In regular play, look for four or five matching symbols on a payline. During free spins, remember that the minimum drops to three. On the Samurai board, use the Samurai count and its separate prize table.
Wilds help with regular combinations. Scatters trigger free spins. Three Samurai together on an outside reel open the special board. Keeping those jobs separate prevents most of the confusion.
After a spin, check how much came back into your balance. You can land a winning line and still get back less than you spent on the spin. The same goes for a bonus round: the animations might be impressive, but the amount credited tells you what you actually received.
You don’t need to increase your next bet because the last few spins lost or paid very little. Stick with an amount you’re comfortable spending. If you reach the limit you set before playing, return to the game some other time without chasing losses.