Mexican dice game (Mia) online: rules, ranking and odds

How to use this Mia dice roller

In short

How do you play the Mexican dice game Mia? Each player rolls two dice under a cup, peeks and announces a value, which may be a lie. The next player either believes it, rolls and must call higher, or lifts the cup. If the dice show less than the call, the liar loses a life; otherwise the caller does.

At the table, each player shakes two dice in a cup, tips up the edge to peek without anyone else seeing and announces a value. Here it works the same way with a single phone that goes round the group.

Press Roll or drag the dice and release them over the tray. The page reads the roll the way the game does: the higher die goes first, so a 3 and a 1 make 31, a 6 and a 4 make 64 and two fives are double 5. A 2 and a 1 shows as Mia.
Below it you will see the roll's rank among the 21 possible values and the chance that a fresh roll beats it. That is the number the next player cares about.
Announce a value out loud, true or not.
Press Cover before passing the phone. The dice are hidden, as if under the cup. The next player decides whether to believe you, in which case they roll again and must call higher, or to lift the cup and check.

The page does not keep track of lives. Everyone records them however they like: with a separate die counting down, with chips or on a piece of paper.

Mia rules step by step

What you need

Two six-sided dice, an opaque dice cup and something to turn it onto, which acts as a lid. Any number can play, though it works best with three or more. Each player starts with an agreed number of lives: most English-language rules use six, while in Germany a tally of ten points is common.

A round

The first player shakes the dice under the cup, peeks and announces a value. They can tell the truth, claim more than they have or even claim less. There is no minimum for the first call of a round.
They pass the covered cup to the next player, usually to the left.
The receiver has two choices. Believe: shake again, look and announce a value higher than the previous one, lying if necessary. Call: lift the cup for everyone to see.
If the dice show less than the announced value, the announcer lied and loses a life. If they show the announced value or more, the caller loses a life.
The round ends with the call. The next one starts again with no minimum.

Mia

21 is the highest value and cannot be beaten. A player handed an announced Mia can only call or give in. In the most common form, giving in without looking costs one life; calling and finding a genuine Mia costs two; if it was not Mia, the announcer loses one.

Lives and the end of the game

Players with no lives left drop out, and the last player with any remaining wins. Some groups end the game as soon as the first player hits zero. Mia is widely known as a drinking game, with sips taking the place of lives; with chips or a tally on paper it plays exactly the same.

Things to agree before you start

Who starts the next round

Depending on the group, the winner of the call, the loser or the player whose cup was lifted.

Passing without rolling

Many tables allow you to pass the cup on without rolling, calling higher or, under some rules, the same value. Whoever passes takes responsibility for what is underneath.

Stacked dice

If one die lands on top of the other, the cup has to be lifted; depending on the group, the roll is redone or there is a penalty.

Ranking of values and the odds of beating each one

In Mia the dice are not added together. The higher die is the tens and the lower die the units, so a 5 and a 2 make 52, never 25 and never 7. Two dice give 36 possible rolls but only 21 different values: each double can only be rolled one way (1/36), and each value made of two different dice can be rolled two ways (a 6 and a 2 or a 2 and a 6, 2/36). The last column shows how often a fresh roll comes out above the value; a tie is not enough.

Rank	Value	Chance of rolling it	Chance of beating it
1	21 (Mia)	2/36 = 5.6%	0%
2	Double 6	1/36 = 2.8%	5.6%
3	Double 5	2.8%	8.3%
4	Double 4	2.8%	11.1%
5	Double 3	2.8%	13.9%
6	Double 2	2.8%	16.7%
7	Double 1	2.8%	19.4%
8	65	5.6%	22.2%
9	64	5.6%	27.8%
10	63	5.6%	33.3%
11	62	5.6%	38.9%
12	61	5.6%	44.4%
13	54	5.6%	50.0%
14	53	5.6%	55.6%
15	52	5.6%	61.1%
16	51	5.6%	66.7%
17	43	5.6%	72.2%
18	42	5.6%	77.8%
19	41	5.6%	83.3%
20	32	5.6%	88.9%
21	31	5.6%	94.4%

This page uses the German order, with double 6 as the top double. Many English-language Mia rules reverse the doubles so that double 1 is the highest; the probabilities shift accordingly, but the 21 and the mixed values stay where they are.

What the numbers tell you

Mia comes up once in every 18 rolls

(2/36, 5.6%), twice as often as any single double. The top value is more common than double 6.

All six doubles together

Add up to 6/36, or 16.7%. Include Mia and an honest roll reaches double 1 or better 22.2% of the time.

54 is the exact middle

A fresh roll beats 54 half the time. Below 54, beating the value is more likely than not; above it, the reverse.

62 is nowhere near the middle

It looks average as a number, yet only 38.9% of rolls beat it, because every double and Mia sit above it.

The step from 65 to double 1 is small

A 65 is beaten 22.2% of the time, a double 1 19.4%. After that, each higher double takes away only another 2.8%.

Against double 5 or better, lying is almost compulsory

An honest roll beats it only once in twelve (8.3%), and usually with a Mia.

Bluffing strategy in Mia

Mia is a bluffing game in which the dice only do half the work. These points follow directly from the table above.

Check the odds before you call

If you have to beat 61, an honest roll does it 44.4% of the time; against 65, only 22.2%. The lower that figure, the more likely the previous player was lying and the more likely you will have to lie too.

Lie small

When you have to invent, call the value just above the previous one. A 63 on top of a 62 is believable; jumping to double 5 leaves the next player no room and practically forces them to call.

Understating is a move too

If your real roll is very high, you can announce something lower that still beats the previous call. If you are called, you win, because the dice show more than you said.

Think about who comes next

Whatever you announce is what they have to beat. A high call makes life hard for them, but also gives them a reason to doubt you.

An announced Mia is the big bluff

A genuine one comes up only 5.6% of the time, but calling a real Mia usually costs double. Against someone who calls it often, lifting the cup pays; against someone who hardly ever lies, giving in is often cheaper.

Vary your style

Players who always tell the truth or always exaggerate are read within a few rounds. Mixing honest calls with bluffs makes your values harder to read.

Names and regional versions: Mia, Mexican, Mäxchen, Meyer

Because it has been passed on by word of mouth, the game has dozens of names and house rules. In English it is mostly called Mia, also Mexican, Mexicali or Mexican liars. In Germany it is Mäxchen, Meiern or Mäxle, among many others; in Denmark it is Meyer; in Italy, Tokyo or "bluff a 21"; and in France it appears as Kinito, with the same way of reading the dice. It is regarded as a relative of liar's dice, played with just two dice and one shared cup.

Variations you may come across

31 as the second-best value

In Denmark the game is often played with lille Meyer (31) just below Meyer and above the doubles; in Italy the same idea is called Tokyetto, and in English little Mia. Under this rule the midpoint of the ranking moves from 54 to 61. Some German groups also let a set value such as 31 trump Mäxchen, after which the sequence starts again.

A special 32

In some Danish groups 32 cancels the round and everything starts again; elsewhere it has other special functions.

42 above Mia

In one German variant, 42, known as the "Hamburger" or double Mäxchen, ranks above 21. Italy has a similar rule with 42 and 63.

Reversed doubles

In many English Mia rules, double 1 is the highest double and double 6 the lowest. German Mäxchen and Danish Meyer put double 6 on top.

Equal instead of higher

At some tables it is enough to call the same value as the previous player.

Adding up the pips

Some groups score non-double rolls by the total of the dice (62 and 53 would both be 8), keeping the doubles and 21 as special values.

Mexican dice and Mexico: not the same game

If you search for the "Mexican dice game", you will also find Mexico. It uses exactly the same ranking, with 21 on top, but there is no bluffing: each player rolls in the open up to three times, the first player sets how many rolls everyone gets, and the lowest roll of the round loses a life or pays into the pot. A 21 in Mexico usually doubles the stake for that round.

Frequently asked questions

How do you play the Mexican dice game Mia?

Each player rolls two dice under a cup, peeks and announces a value, which may be a lie. The next player either believes it, rolls and must call higher, or lifts the cup. If the dice show less than the call, the liar loses a life; otherwise the caller does.

What is the ranking in Mia?

From highest to lowest: 21 (Mia), the doubles from 6 down to 1, then 65, 64, 63, 62, 61, 54, 53, 52, 51, 43, 42, 41, 32 and 31, the lowest value. Many English groups reverse the doubles so that double 1 is the best.

Why is 21 the highest roll?

It is simply the convention of the game: a 2 and a 1, one of the lowest numbers if read literally, becomes Mia and beats everything. It comes up 2 times in 36, or 5.6%.

What happens if I lift the cup and the value is exactly what was called?

You lose. The announcer only lied if the dice show less than the call; the same value or more counts as the truth.

What are the odds of rolling Mia?

2 in 36, or 5.6%, about once every 18 rolls. Any particular double comes up 1 time in 36, or 2.8%.

Is Mia the same as liar's dice?

It belongs to the same family of bluffing games, but liar's dice usually means several dice per player and bids on the whole table. Mia uses two dice and one shared cup.

Is the Mexican dice game the same as Mia?

The name is used for both. Mia, also called Mexican liars, is the bluffing game; Mexico is a game with the same ranking but no bluffing, where the lowest open roll loses.

What is Mäxchen or Meiern?

They are German names for the same game. The basic rules are identical: two dice, a cup, announce a value, then beat it or call.

Can you play Mia without drinking?

Yes. Although it is well known as a drinking game, the rules are the same when lives are counted with chips, a die or on paper.

How do I play with this online dice on one phone?

Roll, read the value, announce it out loud and press Cover before passing the phone. The next player decides whether to lift the cup or roll again and call higher.