History of Sic Bo

One of the rare casino games is called Sic Bo. It is popular online, and is played in some casinos around the world. While it might not be as popular as poker, blackjack, or craps, it is an amazing game with a rich history that goes back centuries.

Perhaps no other casino game has the rich background of Sic Bo. Sic Bo literally means “dice pair.” Dice gambling games were the earliest forms of gambling that are still in existence today. It is believed the game was originally played with bricks. The game is also know as Tai Sai, “Lucky Dice” or “Hi-Lo” in the Philippines. In Malta, it is called Dai Su. And the English game of Hazard is similar. Hazard eventually morphed into the game that became craps.

Sic Bo’s set-up uses three dice and a table that looks like a roulette table, a derivative from the original game. While its exact origins are unknown, it is known that it got its start in Ancient China. From there, it branched out to other places in the Orient. A similar game was Arabic in nature,and it is likely it came from Sic Bo. Hazard allegedly first appeared during the crusades, which means it was likely borrowed from the Arabic version. The game did not come to the United States until the late 1800s and early 1900s when it was introduced by Chinese immigrants. It is still far more popular online than in real casinos.

In the Asian tradition, the dice were shaken on a small plate covered with a bowl. Then the bowl was removed to show the result. The casino game shakes the dice mechanically in a cup or basket, and the computer shows a lighted board not unlike ma slot machine. The game has started to grow again online for players who like the original version as opposed to craps, and is popular among Asian players. But it is not one of the more prominent casino games.

The current version of the game offers the following wagering options.
(The bets and returns vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction).
Big (combination between 11 and 17, no triple): Even.
Small (combination between 4 and 10, no triple): Even.
4, 17: 60-1.
5, 16: 30-1.
6, 15: 17-1.
7, 14: 12-1.
8, 13: 8-1.
9, 12: 6-1.
10, 11: 6-1.
Triple: 180-1.
Any triple: 30-1.
Double: 10-1.
Two die combination: 5-1.
Any number (1, 2, 3)-1.

The roulette style wagers allow for fun action. This is a game of chance and a gambling game, and skill does not really come into play. In the history of the gambling world, dice games came first, and every culture had some version of it. It is entirely possible that this started with Sic Bo. In recent centuries, card games have become more popular.

Besides ancient China, dice games have been found as far back as 600 B.C. in Egypt. Ancient Greece and Rome had many different versions of dice games as well. However, it did not spread to Europe until after the crusades. So the version that became Hazard was probably initially Sic Bo.

Hazard was played in Europe for a couple hundred years, and a version of it became craps in the U.S. on Mississippi Riverboats. Most modern gambling evolved from those riverboats. Sic Bo is much older, but did not come to the States until later or it might have eclipsed craps.

As it is, Sic Bo is still in existence and should continue to exist in some form, but it will likely never be as popular as other casino games.