Sic Bo Rules
The first time I saw a Sic Bo table, I almost gave up on the game. It looked large, complicated and I thought it had something to do with dominoes. Luckily, I stuck around to learn more and was pleasantly surprised to see how easy the game actually is. It doesn’t even have anything to do with dominoes – the pictures on the layout are just of dice arranged in patterns that look like dominoes. Yea, I have no idea why so don’t even ask.
Sic Bo is played with three dice and the object of the game is to guess how the dice will land. The players at the Sic Bo table place their bets on the layout, which shows pictures of the dice and the different winning combinations. The payouts for different bets range from 1 to 1 all the way up to 180 to 1.
Sic Bo Bets
There are quite a few bets players can make in Sic Bo, hence the big, complicated looking board. Fortunately, the layout does a good job depicting the different bets so it’s not too hard to understand. Just place your chips on the type of bet you want to make and wait for the dealer to throw the dice.
Small Bet
House Advantage: 2.78%
This bet is usually found in the top left corner of the Sic Bo layout. A bet on small wins when the three dice total 4-10. The payout is 1 to 1.
Big Bet
House Advantage: 2.78%
This bet is usually found in the top right corner of the Sic Bo layout. A bet on big wins when the three dice total 11-17. The payout is 1 to 1.
Odd
House Advantage: 2.78%
Bet wins if the total of the three dice is an odd number, except triples. If triples appear, the bet is lost. The payout is 1 to 1.
Even
House Advantage: 2.78%
Bet wins if the total of the three dice is an odd number, except triples. If triples appear, the bet is lost. The payout is 1 to 1.
Three Dice Total
House Advantage: Varies
This is a bet on a specific total for the three dice. Players may bet on any total from 4-17. The payouts vary because certain numbers are less likely to hit than others. The payouts and house advantages are listed in this chart:
| Total | Payout | House Advantage | ||
| 4 and 17 | 60 to 1 | 15.28% | ||
| 5 and 16 | 30 to 1 | 13.89% | ||
| 6 and 15 | 17 to 1 | 16.67% | ||
| 7 and 14 | 12 to 1 | 9.72% | ||
| 8 and 13 | 8 to 1 | 12.50% | ||
| 9 and 12 | 6 to 1 | 18.98% | ||
| 10 and 11 | 6 to 1 | 12.50% |
Two Number Combination
House Advantage: 16.67%
Bet that two of the dice will land in a certain combination. For example, you could wager that any two of the dice will land showing a 5 and a 6. Pays 5 to 1.
Double
House Advantage: 18.52%
Bet that any specific pair of numbers will appear. For example, you could wager that at least two 5s will appear. The payout is 10 to 1.
Triple
House Advantage: 16.2%
Bet that a specific triple will appear. For example, you could wager that three 5s will appear. The payout is 180 to 1.
Any Triple
House Advantage: 13.89%
Bet that any three of a kind will appear. Pays 30 to 1.
Any One Number
House Advantage: 7.87%
Bet on any specific number from 1-6. The bet then pays out 1 to 1 if the number appears once, 2 to 1 if it appears twice and 3 to 1 if it appears three times.