Sic Bo Malaysia — Play Sic Bo on TPOWER

Sic bo is a dice game of Chinese origin, played with three dice. The name is usually translated as "precious dice". You bet on how the dice will land: the total, particular numbers, or combinations of numbers. In Malaysia many players know it as tai sai, or simply "big small", after its best-known bets.

In live sic bo the dice are shaken once the betting timer ends, by hand under a cover or in an automatic shaker. The camera shows the three faces, and the winning areas on the board light up. The TPOWER live casino offers sic bo tables from providers such as AG, AE, CT855, Pegasus, Evolution and Dream Gaming.

Sic bo variants at live tables

The dice work the same way at every table. What differs is the pace, the shaker and, above all, the payout table.

• Classic sic bo. The full board of bets described below. Payouts on the rarer bets are set by the provider and differ from one table to another.
• Multiplier sic bo. Some tables add random multipliers to a few totals or combinations each round, and usually pay less on those bets the rest of the time.
• Speed tables. Shorter betting windows, so more rounds fit into an hour.

Sic bo rules: how the bets work

Three dice can land in 216 different ways. Some results can be made in many ways and some in very few, and that is what sets the payouts. The exact payout for each bet is printed on the table.

Small and Big

• Small wins on a total of 4 to 10.
• Big wins on a total of 11 to 17.
• Both pay even money and commonly lose on any triple, when all three dice show the same number.

Odd and Even

A bet on whether the total is odd or even. Like Small and Big, it pays even money and commonly loses on a triple.

Totals

You can also bet on an exact total from 4 to 17. Middle totals are the most likely: 10 and 11 can each be made 27 ways out of 216. The edges are rare: 4 and 17 can each be made only 3 ways. That is why a total of 4 pays many times more than a total of 10.

Singles, doubles and triples

• Single number: pick a number from 1 to 6. It wins if the number shows on at least one die, and pays more when it shows on two or three.
• Two-dice combination: pick two different numbers, such as 2 and 5. It wins if both appear.
• Specific double: pick a number that must appear on at least two dice.
• Any triple: all three dice show the same number, whichever it is. On average this happens once in 36 rolls.
• Specific triple: all three dice show the number you picked. The chance is 1 in 216, the rarest result on the board, which is why it carries the biggest payout.

Playing live sic bo on mobile and in the TPOWER app

The sic bo board is busy, so mobile tables group it into sections or a scrolling layout, with Small and Big kept close at hand. Play in your phone's browser, or install the TPOWER app for Android or iPhone from the download page.

• Watch a round or two first. See where totals, doubles and triples sit on the board and how the result is displayed.
• Check before the timer ends. Betting areas are small on a phone, so confirm your total stake before betting closes.
• Treat the result history as a record. The dice have no memory, and a run of Big or Small does not change the next shake.
• Stay connected. A round completes at the table whether or not your stream keeps up. If a settled bet looks wrong, note the table and the time and contact live support with the support button.

Tips: reading the odds and budgeting at the sic bo table

No bet on the board can be beaten over time. These tips are about knowing what you are paying for.

• Compare the payout with the probability. Small wins just under half the time. A specific triple wins once in 216 rolls, yet its payout is commonly well below the 215 to 1 that would make the bet even. That gap is the house edge, and on long-shot bets it is far wider than on Small or Big.
• Remember the triple. Small, Big, Odd and Even look like coin flips, but the triple rule tilts every one of them slightly towards the house, on every round.
• Set your stake from your budget, not from your last result. Rounds come quickly, so decide how many you will play and stop when you get there.
• Use deposit and session limits, breaks or self-exclusion if play stops being fun. The responsible gaming page explains each tool.

Sic bo is for adults aged 18 and over. If you like its pace, dragon tiger settles each round with two cards; for a card game with more to follow, try live baccarat.