When I started smoking back in the late 1980s in Chicago, I met numerous people who believed it unlucky to light more than two cigarettes off of one match. The origin of this superstition, so it was said, was that if you were in combat, the time it takes to light three cigarettes is enough time for the enemy to spot you. Is there any truth to that notion, or is it just an UL?
The way I heard it was that if three soldiers were huddled around one match, someone’s back was to the enemy lines and thus vulnerable. Two people can stand side by side, three people form a circle. (Triangle)
FWIW, the wiki article says:
That sounds plausible. Take or leave as you will. It might not be recommended simply because it leads to burnt fingers, though.
It is certainly a legend (though I wouldn’t call it an “urban legend.” That doesn’t mean it can’t be true, of course, but in this case I don’t think that it is.
Opie & Tatem’s masterful collection of superstitions quotes sources for the practice as far back as the Boer War. Tellingly, they note that while lighting three cigarettes was taboo, lighting four from the same match was no problem. So probably the legend became popular because it explained a pre-existing superstition. And in any case, even if it were true, that would hardly explain the superstition’s prevalence in 1980s Chicago, unless conditions on the streets are worse there than I’ve been led to believe.
I think this one is broadly comparable to “thirteen at the table,” the belief that if thirteen sit down to dinner, one of them will die (when they get up, within the year, sooner rather than later). There’s a great book on this called, I believe, “13: The Story of the World’s Most Notorious Superstition,” which has a lot of good information about the way such number superstitions evolve.
In general, superstitious behavior arises because of magical thinking and / or survival of tradition. Aetiological legends often explain their origin, but I can’t think of a single case where the origin of a superstition is known without a doubt. I’m sure someone will be along to correct me any minute…
“No, no. Three on a Midget is Bad Luck”
– Groucho Marx in The Marx Brothers at the cIrcus, refusing a proferred midget (holding a match), who’s already lit two cigars.
My dad’s explanation was from World War 2. He said the guys in the infantry used it (he was in the 69th I.D.). Their rule of thumb was that a sniper would spot the match as the 1st cigarette was lit, draw aim as the 2nd cigarette was lit, and shoot the third guy. It was more a reminder to be cautious than any kind of issue about luck.
Lit matches or smokes really could get you killed in night combat. I have a bound collection of articles from Stars and Stripes that was published during WWII. One of the articles is a collection of sketches made by staff artists at the front. One sketch shows a crouched Marine with his head under a jacket. The caption indicates that this was how they smoked at night on the front lines. The light from a match or glow from a cig attracted enemy fire.
For real, common sense would tell you not to light a damn lighter in combat. Light=visibility for the enemy.
What if all 3 stood in a line and just past the match on?
Then it would only take one bullet to bring them all down. 
What if you were behind a tree? Or in daylight? Or in a tank? Or had a really long match? Or you smoked pipes? Huh? Huh? What then?
But the shooter is standing in front of them! And there all standing side by side, making a wall.
First cigarette draws attention to the light at night.
Second cigarette gives the range.
Third cigarette allows a leisurely shot.
Empirical evidence is only a book away.
(However smoking may be hazardous for your health!)
What if the sniper has night vision goggles? The match or cig or whatever might draw more attention, but he can see you anyway.
And, if the bullet is placed on a rapidly moving treadmill, at the moment it is fired…
As Dr. Drake has already mentioned, this is an old superstition, which may or may not be based on field experience by soldiers; wikipedia has got it wrong.
My 1931 copy of “Soldiers’ Song and Slang,” by Eric Partridge–an authority on historic slang–gives this note:
[Italics are Partridge’s].
Common sense says to use the enemies brand of matches - only a fool would fire on his own matches…
Well, if you’re in a triangle, each soldier can watch the line of sight bisecting the other two soldiers, thus providing a 360 degree field of view.
When I was growing up ,the story was that it was started and spread by a guy who sold matches. There was a movie about it. Ivar Kreugar was the manufacturer who came up with it.
I was always told that it was two cigs,the first light being the match being struck.