Bo Bing (Mandarin ; also known in Hokkien , or Hokkien ) 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.PRC National-level Intangible Cultural Heritage Website, Entry 453, type X-5, in Chinese, Retrieved 8 October 2025. In the Philippines, the game is widely known as "Mooncake Festival Dice Game"/"Mid-Autumn Festival Dice Game" or "Pua Tiong Chiu" (Hokkien ) among the Chinese Filipino community.
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. 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"). 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. 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 or Hokkien .
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. 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.
PrizeCombination nameNumber of cakes availableDice resultsProbabilityMandarinHokkienEnglish1st Place 狀元 / 状元 zhuàngyuán chiōng-gôan 紅六博 / 红六博 / 六紅 / 六红 hóngliùbó / liùhóng 六紅 / 六殕紅 la̍k-hông / lio̍k-phú-âng Six Fours1Six 4-faces 1/46,656 0.0021%要點六博 / 要点六博 / 六子 yàodiǎnliùbó / liùzǐ 六博 / 六卜 / 六殕烏 la̍k-pok / lio̍k-phú-o͘ Six OnesSix 1-faces1/46,656 0.0021%黑六博 / 六子 hēiliùbó / liùzǐ 六博 / 六卜 / 六殕烏 la̍k-pok / lio̍k-phú-o͘ Six of a KindSix of any number, except four or one4/46,656 0.0085%五紅 / 五红 wǔhóng 五紅 gō͘-hông / gǒ͘-hông Five FoursFive 4-faces30/46,656 0.0643%五子 wǔzǐ 五子 gō͘-chí / gǒ͘-chí Five of a KindFive of any number, except four150/46,656 0.3215%四紅 / 四红 sìhóng 四紅 sì-hông Four FoursFour 4-faces375/46,656 0.8037%2nd Place榜眼 / 探花 / 對堂 / 对堂 bǎngyǎn / tànhuā / duìtáng 對堂 / 榜眼 / 探花 tùi-tn̂g / póng-gán / thàm-hoa Three of a Kind2Scenario 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 four300/46,656 0.6430%StraightAll numbers (1,2,3,4,5,6) in sequence720/46,656 1.5432%4th / 3rd Place 進士 / 进士 / 四進 / 四进 jìnshì / sìjìn 四進 / 進士 sù-chìn / sì-chìn / chìn-sū / chìn-sǐ Four of a Kind8 / 4Four of any number, except four 1875/46,656 4.0187%3rd / 4th Place 會元 / 会元 / 三紅 / 三红 huìyuán / sānhóng 三紅 / 會元 sam-hông / saⁿ-âng / hōe-oân Three Fours4 / 8Scenario 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 dice2500/46,656 5.3584%5th Place舉人 / 举人 / 二舉 / 二举 jǔrén / èrjǔ 二舉 / 舉人 lī-kú / lī-kí / kú-lîn / kú-jîn / kí-jîn / kí-lîn Two Fours16Two 4-faces, any number for the four remaining dice.9300/46,656 19.9331%6th Place秀才 / 一秀 xiùcái / yīxiù 一秀 / 秀才 it-siù / siù-châi One Four32A 4-face, any number for the five remaining dice.17400/46,656 37.2942%
If a player makes an ultimate throw (six fours), they receive all of the other mooncakes designated for 6th to 1st place, even those which have already been awarded. This rule can be omitted to ensure all players receive a prize.
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!"
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