Book of Dead Beginner's Guide: Step-by-Step

Danny PierceSlot Review Editor · About the author

Quick Answer

Book of Dead is one of the simplest slots to learn. Set your bet, activate all 10 paylines, press spin. Land 3 Book symbols anywhere to trigger free spins. Watch which symbol expands during the bonus. The only real decisions are bet size and when to stop. Everything else is handled by the RNG.

Step 1: Set Your Bet

Open Book of Dead at your casino. Find the bet controls, usually +/- buttons or a slider. Set your coin value based on your budget: for a $50 budget, use $0.10–$0.20 per spin. Keep all 10 paylines active (do not reduce paylines to cut costs — lower your coin value instead).

Step 2: Understand the Goal

Your goal is to trigger the free spins bonus by landing 3 or more Book scatter symbols anywhere on the 5 reels. The base game produces occasional small wins from the paytable but the vast majority of Book of Dead's value comes from the free spins round.

Step 3: Free Spins Trigger

When 3+ Book symbols appear, free spins begin. The game immediately displays which symbol has been chosen as the Special Expanding Symbol. This is random, you cannot influence it. Rich Wilde is the most valuable choice; card royals are the least valuable. Then 10 free spins play automatically.

Step 4: Watch the Expanding Symbol

During free spins, whenever the chosen symbol appears as part of a winning combination, it expands to fill the entire reel. If this happens on multiple reels in one spin, the potential payout is very large. If 3+ Book symbols appear during free spins, you receive 10 additional spins.

Step 5: Know When to Stop

Book of Dead is high volatility, it can go 200+ spins without a bonus trigger. Decide your loss limit before starting (e.g., "I will stop if my balance drops by 50%"). Stick to that limit regardless of how close a bonus trigger feels. There is no "almost triggered" in a slot machine, it either triggers or it doesn't.

Key Things to Remember

Always play all 10 paylines
Check the RTP in the paytable before playing (should show 96.21%)
The Book symbol is both wild and scatter, it is the most important symbol
High volatility means long waits between bonuses — budget accordingly
Play the demo first if you are completely new to slots

Your first 10 spins: what to do, in order

Verify the RTP build. Click the info button (usually a question mark or 'i'). Confirm it says 96.21%. If lower, find a different operator.
Set all 10 paylines. They should already be on by default.
Set the coin value to $0.01. This gives you $0.10 total bet. Start small while you learn.
Spin manually 10 times. Get a feel for the win sounds, the symbols, the speed.
Once you've spun 10 times: if you want to play longer, increase to $0.50 or $1.00 only if you have the 200x bankroll for it.

Symbols you will see most often

Symbol type	Frequency on reels	What to expect
Royals (10, J, Q, K, A)	~60% of all symbol appearances	Most hits will be these
Scarab	~12%	Mid-value wins
Horus / Anubis	~7-8% each	Decent base game hits
Pharaoh	~5%	Solid wins when 4-5 hit
Rich Wilde	~3%	Rare, payoff is big
Book (wild/scatter)	~5%	3+ trigger the bonus

Statistics throughout this page are sourced from SlotTracker's public dataset of 8.3 million tracked Book of Dead spins, cross-referenced with our own 10,000-session Monte Carlo simulation calibrated to the canonical 96.21% RTP build.

Frequently asked questions

Is Book of Dead a good slot for beginners?

Mixed. The mechanics are simple (one bonus, one expanding symbol), making it easy to understand. But high volatility means you'll experience long losing stretches that can be discouraging. New players sometimes prefer medium-volatility slots like Fire Joker first.

How much should I deposit to start?

Whatever amount you can afford to lose entirely. Treat it as entertainment budget, not investment. $20-50 is typical for a first try at $0.10-0.20 bets.

Can I lose all my money in one spin?

Only if you bet your entire balance on one spin. At normal bet sizes (1-5% of bankroll per spin), even a long losing streak takes 30+ spins to drain your balance.

Do I need any skill to play?

No. Slots are pure chance games. The only player decisions are bet sizing, when to stop, and which operator to play at (RTP build). No spin-by-spin skill applies.