Bo Bing (game)

Bo Bing

Six dice in a bowl: a roll of 1-2-3-4-5-6 is a Bangyan, and its prize is the second largest mooncake
Other names	Po̍ah-piáⁿ Po̍ah-chiōng-gôan-piáⁿ Poa̍h-tiong-chhiu
Years active	17th century - present
Genres	Dice game
Players	2+
Chance	High
Materials required	Six dice, a bowl

Bo Bing
Traditional Chinese	博餅
Simplified Chinese	博饼
Literal meaning	Gamble for Pastry
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin bóbǐng IPA [pwǒ.pìŋ] Yue: Cantonese Jyutping bok^3 beng^2 Southern Min Hokkien POJ po̍ah-piáⁿ
Alternative Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	博狀元餅
Simplified Chinese	博状元饼
Literal meaning	Gamble for Champion Pastry
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin bó zhuàngyuán bǐng Southern Min Hokkien POJ po̍ah-chiōng-gôan-piáⁿ
Pua Tiong Chiu
Traditional Chinese	跋中秋
Literal meaning	Gamble for Mid-Autumn
Transcriptions Southern Min Hokkien POJ poa̍h-tiong-chhiu

Bo Bing (Mandarin Chinese: 博餅; pinyin: Bóbǐng; also known in Hokkien Chinese: 博餅 / 跋餅; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Poa̍h-piáⁿ, or Hokkien Chinese: 跋狀元餅; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Po̍ah-chiōng-gôan-piáⁿ) as known in Mainland China, is a Chinese dice game from Southern Fujian traditionally played as part of the celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Mooncake Festival. It is traditionally played with six dice and a china bowl. Bo Bing is a national-level intangible cultural heritage of China as of 2008.^[1] In the Philippines, the game is widely known as "Mooncake Festival Dice Game"/"Mid-Autumn Festival Dice Game" or "Pua Tiong Chiu" (Hokkien Chinese: 跋中秋; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Poa̍h-tiong-chhiu) among the Chinese Filipino community.^[2]

The game dates back to the 1600s when it is said to have been invented by the Chinese general Koxinga of the Southern Ming, along with his lower officer Hong Xu. Zheng was stationed with his troops in Amoy planning the Siege of Fort Zeelandia to take Dutch Formosa, which had been occupied by the Dutch since 1624. The game was an attempt to boost the morale of Koxinga's homesick troops during the Mid-Autumn Festival.^[3] The game became popular in Amoy (now Xiamen) and is considered a folk game.

The Hokkien Chinese name Po̍ah-piáⁿ translates as "gambling for cakes", and the game traditionally has 63 different sized mooncakes as prizes for the winning players: 32 of the smallest cake, half as many of the next largest, and so on ending with a single large Chiōng-gôan-piáⁿ ("champion cake").^[3] These days in mainland China, the game's instructions are often printed on mooncake packaging, although the game is also played with prizes of daily necessities, household appliances or money.^[3] In the Philippines, the prizes are often usually money and/or daily necessities and household appliances for adults and sometimes toys, school supplies, junk food, various snacks and hobby items for the youth or sometimes for various ages, the prizes may also variously include mooncakes known in Hokkien Chinese: 中秋餅; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: tiong-chhiu-piáⁿ or Hokkien Chinese: 月餅; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: ge̍h-piáⁿ.

Rules

The game requires six dice and a wide mouthed bowl. The first player is assigned by the eldest or most senior player rolling two dice and counting clockwise until the sum is achieved. The first player throws the six dice into the bowl and wins a specific prize depending on the dice combination. The dice are then passed to the next person clockwise, and the process is repeated until there are no prizes left.^[4] A throw is declared invalid and the thrower's next throw forgone if at least one of the dice lands or bounces outside the bowl.^[2]

Prize	Combination name			Number of cakes available	Dice results		Probability
	Mandarin	Hokkien	English
1st Place 狀元 (Trad.) / 状元 (Simp.) zhuàngyuán (Pinyin) chiōng-gôan (POJ)	紅六博 (Trad.) / 红六博 (Simp.) / 六紅 (Trad.) / 六红 (Simp.) hóngliùbó / liùhóng (Pinyin)	六紅 / 六殕紅 la̍k-hông / lio̍k-phú-âng (POJ)	Six Fours	1	Six 4-faces		1/46,656 0.0021%
	要點六博 (Trad.) / 要点六博 (Simp.) / 六子 yàodiǎnliùbó / liùzǐ (Pinyin)	六博 / 六卜 / 六殕烏 la̍k-pok / lio̍k-phú-o͘ (POJ)	Six Ones		Six 1-faces		1/46,656 0.0021%
	黑六博 / 六子 hēiliùbó / liùzǐ (Pinyin)	六博 / 六卜 / 六殕烏 la̍k-pok / lio̍k-phú-o͘ (POJ)	Six of a Kind		Six of any number, except four or one		4/46,656 0.0085%
	五紅 (Trad.) / 五红 (Simp.) wǔhóng (Pinyin)	五紅 gō͘-hông / gǒ͘-hông (POJ)	Five Fours		Five 4-faces		30/46,656 0.0643%
	五子 wǔzǐ (Pinyin)	五子 gō͘-chí / gǒ͘-chí (POJ)	Five of a Kind		Five of any number, except four		150/46,656 0.3215%
	四紅 (Trad.) / 四红 (Simp.) sìhóng (Pinyin)	四紅 sì-hông (POJ)	Four Fours		Four 4-faces		375/46,656 0.8037%
2nd Place	榜眼 / 探花 / 對堂 (Trad.) / 对堂 (Simp.) bǎngyǎn / tànhuā / duìtáng (Pinyin)	對堂 / 榜眼 / 探花 tùi-tn̂g / póng-gán / thàm-hoa (POJ)	Three of a Kind	2	Scenario 1: 2 sets of three of the same number, except four.		200/46,656 0.4287%
					Scenario 2: 2 sets of three of the same number, including four		300/46,656 0.6430%
			Straight		All numbers (1,2,3,4,5,6) in sequence		720/46,656 1.5432%
3rd Place / 4th Place[a]	進士 (Trad.) / 进士 (Simp.) / 四進 (Trad.) / 四进 (Simp.) jìnshì / sìjìn (Pinyin)	四進 / 進士 sù-chìn / sì-chìn / chìn-sū / chìn-sǐ (POJ)	Four of a Kind	4	Four of any number, except four		1875/46,656 4.0187%
4th Place / 3rd Place[a]	會元 (Trad.) / 会元 (Simp.) / 三紅 (Trad.) / 三红 (Simp.) huìyuán / sānhóng (Pinyin)	三紅 / 會元 sam-hông / saⁿ-âng / hōe-oân (POJ)	Three Fours	8	Scenario 1: Three 4-faces, any number for the three remaining dice except for other 1 set of three of the same any number.		2400/46,656 5.1440%
					Scenario 2: Three 4-faces, any number for the three remaining dice[clarification needed]		2500/46,656 5.3584%
5th Place	舉人 (Trad.) / 举人 (Simp.) / 二舉 (Trad.) / 二举 (Simp.) jǔrén / èrjǔ (Pinyin)	二舉 / 舉人 lī-kú / lī-kí / kú-lîn / kú-jîn / kí-jîn / kí-lîn (POJ)	Two Fours	16	Two 4-faces, any number for the four remaining dice.		9300/46,656 19.9331%
6th Place	秀才 / 一秀 xiùcái / yīxiù (Pinyin)	一秀 / 秀才 it-siù / siù-châi (POJ)	One Four	32	A 4-face, any number for the five remaining dice.		17400/46,656 37.2942%
A blank dice denotes a result of any number outside the given exceptions

Mooncakes

If a player makes an ultimate throw, they receive all of the other mooncakes designated for 6th to 1st place, even those which were already awarded. This rule can be omitted to ensure all players receive a prize.^[4]

Big prizes such as 状元/狀元, 对堂/對堂, and 三红/三紅 may be chased (追饼/追餅) by other players, wherein a prize already won by another player can be taken by another player who has rolled the dice combination corresponding to a prize that has already been completely taken. In the case of 状元/狀元, where there is only one prize, the hierarchy of 状元/狀元 size determines if it can be taken; only players who roll a higher combination of 状元/狀元 than the last can take the prize.

Rituals

Some players believe in rituals when playing the game that they believe will give them good luck and success during the year. The winner of the largest prize (状元/狀元) will sometimes wear a champion hat (状元帽/狀元帽/zhuàngyuánmào) to symbolize success. Additionally, the winner of the largest prize will sometimes be responsible for the purchase of the following year's mooncakes to share the fortune. Other reported practices include throwing the dice with one or two hands, or exclaiming "Chiong Wan!"^[2]

Notes

1. Sometimes, the 3rd and 4th place are switched by game event organizers.

References

1. PRC National-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Website, Entry 453, type X-5, in Chinese, Retrieved 8 October 2025.
2. See, Stanley Baldwin (17 September 2015). "Playing the Mooncake Festival's centuries-old dice game". GMA News. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
3. "Mooncake gambling odds-on festival favourite". China Daily. 28 September 2008. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
4. "Chinese Moon Festival Dice Game" (PDF). Westchester Association of Chinese Americans. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 29 January 2017.