Deathworld?

The science fiction books Deathworld, Deathworld 2, and Deathworld 3, as well as the short story "The Mothballed Spaceship," were written by American author Harry Harrison. Deathworld was first published in 1960 and was serialized in Astounding Science Fiction. Deathworld 2 was originally titled The Ethical Engineer and serialized in Analog (1973, written as part of a tribute to John W. Campbell). A gambler who becomes entangled with colonists on a very hostile planet is the story's main character. Jason dinAlt, a professional gambler who exploits his unstable psionic powers to manipulate the odds in his favor, is the protagonist of Deathworld. He receives a challenge from Kerk Pyrrus, an ambassador from the planet Pyrrus, while visiting the planet Cassylia, to use gambling at a state-run casino to turn a substantial sum of money into an enormous sum. He prevails and escapes the frantic attempts of the planetary administration to recover the money. The city need not perish with the junkmen who are unwilling to adapt. There are many valuable worlds out there that are too harsh for colonization by regular people. Where others fail, Pyrrans can endure.