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Chinese MJ question

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May 19, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/19/98

Hi group,
I have had an Email exchange with a Mah-Jongg player who bought Shanghai
Dynasty. He says that the Chinese Mah-Jongg game in Shanghai Dynasty is
totally wrong -- that it is not genuinely Chinese Mah-Jongg. I replied that
there are several varieties of Chinese MJ, and that ours is "Classical Chinese"
and that we used the rules found in books. This reply did not satisfy him --
he insists that the books are wrong, and that I am misleading the public by
calling my game "Chinese." Given the prevalence of different "house rules" in
different places, I don't think I'm guilty of misrepresentation, but I've run
out of arguments (what can you say when you cite sources and are simply told
that the sources are wrong).
I must confess that I am still a tad unclear on the differences between the
different flavors of Chinese MJ -- at first I had thought that our "Chinese"
game was "Hong Kong Old Style," but then I came to believe that it was probably
"Classical Chinese" instead, based on exchanges here on the newsgroup. I could
take a more detailed reading of my source books (primarily Millington and
Perlmen-Chan) to satisfy this question in my own mind (since I don't think I
can satisfy the customer, unfortunately), but I thought the group might be
interested in offering their opinions on the topic.
To some extent, it may be nothing more than a matter of a purist who has deeply
held beliefs in the rightness of one particular set of rules (we've dealt with
that here at the group many times before). Or perhaps my "Chinese" game really
is wide of the mark -- maybe I really did get it wrong.
Here's the exchange we had (below). If parties are interested in this
discussion, and do not have Shanghai Dynasty to review, I would be happy to
post a copy of the Shanghai Dynasty rules here so we can pick them apart.
Tom Sloper, Activision
Senior Producer, Shanghai
tsl...@activision.com
acts...@aol.com

-----Original Message-----
From: Yuii chan [SMTP:Yuii...@aol.com]
Sent: Saturday, May 16, 1998 10:31 AM
To: ACTIVISION
Subject: MAR-JONGG PROGRAM

To Activision:
First of all, the traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg game is based on the score to
separate the grades. Like decimal counting, there is a "Fan" then goes to
"Wan", and 10 Fan equal to 1 Wan. There are lots odds to get Fans and lots
patterns to get Wans. Of course, those scores are based on their statistical
possibilities. For example, in your program, some kind of Jades, Dragons,…etc.
Secondly, the players will agree the limit for "Hoo" before the game beginning.
Generally speaking, Chinese used to select 1 Wan, 3 Wan and no limit (chicken).
But remember, the "Dirty Pair" is not Chinese Mar-Jongg. To me, your program
looks it was not written by a real "Chinese" programmer. Next, the number of
Mar-Johgg each player holds. There are two major different kind games. One
called "Traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg Game(also named OLD MAR-JONGG)", the
other is "Taiwanese Mar-Jongg Game". In traditional Chinese Mar-Jahn game
without any "Seasons and Flowers", each player holds 13 dominoes. And 16
dominoes for the Taiwanese Mar-Jongg player, and "Seasons and Flowers" will be
included (replacing). Only in Taiwanese Mar-Jongg game has "Dirty Pair" (which
is released from Japanese type Mar-Jongg, they called Nico-Nico). How to
decide the Fans and Wans, we may discuss later. Now, in your program, there
are some problems. (1) One time, I tried to Hoo "Unique Wonder", what I was
waiting for is "South". My next player releases a 6 bamboo, then my opposite
player release a "South", the next step should be my "WIN" index blinking, but
it was not. What it happened is my next player "Pong" the "South" and then
"Kong" the "South", which means this program will not allow player to Hoo the
"Special Hand" under any circumstance. (2) Pure Hand in Chinese Mar-Jongg is a
very Unique combination, so that, the score is always high, but it will be
reduced if combining some "Dragons" or "Winds". How come in your program, the
player can not Hoo under Pure Hand instead of with "Odds"? (3) "Pong Pong Hoo"
is a lousy output in Chinese Mar-Jongg, unless some special patterns. But in
your program, the "Pong Pong Hoo" looks like a very outstanding performance
under any circumstance. In Chinese pattern, only some patterns, such as: "Pure
Hand Pong Pong Hoo", " All Letters Pong Pong Hoo", " Big Three Treasures
(3xC,3xF&3xB)", "Small Three Treasures (3, 3 & 2)", "Two Numbers Pong Pong Hoo
(doesn't matter what kind of dominoes combination)", "All Winds Pong (also
named 4 Happy)" and of course the "4 Kongs (also named 18 Ro-Han)". One time, I
tried to Hoo Two Number Pong Pong Hoo, but, your program disappointed me. (4)
Traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg will deal up to the last dominoes, but it seems
that your program used the Taiwanese (Japanese) way in substitute.
Over all, your program is really mash-up. Your programmer should study and
learn the Mar-Jongg game from a real Chinese. Of course, new Chinese, above
all from Mainland China today, will not know the real interesting traditional
Chinese Mar-Jongg game, and Taiwanese will not know either for there are lots
of patterns and scores to be remembered.
My next question is, how can I get a real fixed CD?

My first reply to him:

Hi Yuii Chan,
Thank you for your thoughtful Email. I'd like to reply to your concerns and
answer your questions. Look for *** in the following.

You wrote:
First of all, the traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg game is based on the score to
separate the grades. Like decimal counting, there is a "Fan" then goes to
"Wan", and 10 Fan equal to 1 Wan. There are lots odds to get Fans and lots
patterns to get Wans. Of course, those scores are based on their statistical
possibilities. For example, in your program, some kind of Jades, Dragons,…etc.

*** Your concern does not surprise me, because there are so many different ways
that Mah-Jongg is played, even in each country. Perhaps you are not aware of
any of the rules besides the ones you normally use (that would not be unusual).
There are four different Chinese rule sets that I am aware of: "Chinese
Classical," "Hong Kong Old Style," "Shanghai New Style," and "Taiwanese." We
are using the rules of "Chinese Classical." Perhaps you are used to playing a
different set of rules? Even if the game you normally play is "Chinese
Classical," there are many different ways that people play within that rule set
(there are optional rules used by any particular group of players).

Secondly, the players will agree the
limit for "Hoo" before the game beginning. Generally speaking, Chinese used to
select 1 Wan, 3 Wan and no limit (chicken).

*** Yes, we have this option in Shanghai Dynasty. Click on the Options button
to see the screen where you can set the minimum Fan for the game.

But remember, the "Dirty Pair" is not Chinese Mar-Jongg.

*** In Classical Chinese, "Seven Pairs" is allowed, I believe. The books I
have read indicate that this is so. If you look in the back of the game's
manual, you will find a listing of books we used in creating this game.

To me, your program looks it was not written by a real "Chinese" programmer.

*** It was not. Does the programmer's national origin really matter?

Next, the number of Mar-Johgg each player holds. There are two major different
kind games. One called "Traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg Game(also named OLD
MAR-JONGG)", the other is "Taiwanese Mar-Jongg Game". In traditional Chinese
Mar-Jahn game without any "Seasons and Flowers", each player holds 13 dominoes.
And 16 dominoes for the Taiwanese Mar-Jongg player, and "Seasons and Flowers"
will be included (replacing). Only in Taiwanese Mar-Jongg game has "Dirty Pair"
(which is released from Japanese type Mar-Jongg, they called Nico-Nico).

*** As I mentioned above, there are many more ways to play (even just in China)
than you have indicated.

How to decide the Fans and Wans, we may discuss later. Now, in your program,
there are some problems.
(1) One time, I tried to Hoo "Unique Wonder", what I was waiting for is
"South". My next player releases a 6 bamboo, then my opposite player release a
"South", the next step should be my "WIN" index blinking, but it was not. What
it happened is my next player "Pong" the "South" and then "Kong" the "South",
which means this program will not allow player to Hoo the "Special Hand" under
any circumstance.

*** If you have not gone to the Options screen to allow the use of "special
hands," then "Unique Wonders" would not be recognized by the game. Without
"special hands" allowed, all hands must consist of 3 pongs/chows and a pair
(and maybe the game also allows seven pairs).

(2) Pure Hand in Chinese Mar-Jongg is a very Unique combination, so that, the
score is always high, but it will be reduced if combining some "Dragons" or
"Winds". How come in your program, the player can not Hoo under Pure Hand
instead of with "Odds"?

*** The player can go for a pure hand. What is the problem? What happened?
You are welcome to send me screen shots of any problems you encounter -- the
manual describes how to make screen shots (see the section "Printing Mah-Jongg
results").

(3) "Pong Pong Hoo" is a lousy output in Chinese Mar-Jongg, unless some special
patterns. But in your program, the "Pong Pong Hoo" looks like a very
outstanding performance under any circumstance.

*** I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean. What do you expect the game do, and
what is the game doing instead? What does "Pong Pong Hoo" mean? Does it mean
"All Pong hand"? This might be a "special hand" -- if you are not using the
Options screen to turn the special hands option ON, then perhaps that is why
the game didn't recognize it.

In Chinese pattern, only some patterns, such as: "Pure Hand Pong Pong Hoo", "
All Letters Pong Pong Hoo", " Big Three Treasures (3xC,3xF&3xB)", "Small Three
Treasures (3, 3 & 2)", "Two Numbers Pong Pong Hoo (doesn't matter what kind of
dominoes combination)", "All Winds Pong (also named 4 Happy)" and of course the
"4 Kongs (also named 18 Ro-Han)". One time, I tried to Hoo Two Number Pong Pong
Hoo, but, your program disappointed me.

*** As above, I think you need to turn "special hands" option ON. I don't know
what "Two Number Pong Pong Hoo" means (I'm sorry for not understanding).

(4) Traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg will deal up to the last dominoes, but it
seems that your program used the Taiwanese (Japanese) way in substitute.

*** According to all our books on "Classical Chinese", the last 14 tiles of the
Wall are not supposed to be used.

Over all, your program is really mash-up. Your programmer should study and
learn the Mar-Jongg game from a real Chinese. Of course, new Chinese, above
all from Mainland China today, will not know the real interesting traditional
Chinese Mar-Jongg game, and Taiwanese will not know either for there are lots
of patterns and scores to be remembered.

*** Please understand that there are many different ways to play Mah-Jongg. I
think the rules we use are different from the way you normally play. Perhaps
you play "Hong Kong Old Style"?

My next question is, how can I get a real fixed CD?

*** After we fix some bugs and add some more features, we will release a free
downloadable patch -- probably in July. However, I am afraid that we will not
be adding the rules that you are looking for (I assume you play "Hong Kong Old
Style"). Please try the Options button on the Mah-Jongg game setup screen to
turn on "special hands" and to set your minimum Hoo to what you desire
(normally it's set to "Chicken"). Please write to me anytime with more
questions and comments about Shanghai Dynasty.

Reply from Yui Chan:

Mr. Sloper:
Allow me to say that the books you adopted to develop your Mah-Jongg program
are not right for Clasic Chinese Mah-Jongg game. As you say, Mah-Jongg can be
played in several ways, but, in REAL CHINESE CLASIC, there is only one rule.
And, for sure, and definitely, 7 pairs is not included in Chinese Clasic Mah-
Jongg, which is Taiwanese style, and that is relased from Japanese rule (Nico-
Nico).
The reason why I am trying to tell you is that "If you don't understand real
Chinese Clasic Mah-Jongg, that's fine, but, please, don't misleading people".
Some peole just wrote some books for making money without etheological burden,
that's real bad guy. So, books are not all correct. If you really like to know
more about Chinese Clasic Mah-Jongg, you got to "live" in it. In other words,
if you yourself had never been playing Clasic Chinese Mah-Jongg, I wonder, how
can you write a correct Clasic Chinese Mah-Jongg???
By the way, the different Chinese Mah-Jongg games are all based on the score
they granted (what I'd told you in last message) thru the statistical
possibilities output. Styles are only the NAMES.
***If you like to talk more, please reply to my e-mail add. "Yui
12...@hotmail.com"***

My second reply to him:

Hi Yui,
I am sorry that I have upset you -- I promise you it was not my intent to
mislead anyone. And I am sorry if you disagree with the source books we used,
but those books are used widely around the world.
I have received a lot of feedback from other players of the game, and sometimes
we have public discussions at news:rec.games.mahjong. You are welcome to join
us there and hear from other people about the various different ways they all
play Mah-Jongg.
I would like to know more about the scoring system you describe, and how it
differs from the "laak" system described in the book "The Chinese Game of
Mahjong" (by Perlmen and Chan) in the chapter about "New Style."
Have you also tried other Mah-Jongg games on the computer? Have you found one
that does agree with your usual system of play?
Here are some websites where other Mah-Jongg games can be downloaded:

http://www.ninedragons.com/
http://www.mimosil.co.uk/
http://www.4windsmj.com
http://www.arcanium.com/
http://www.mahjongg.com/
ftp://mirrors.aol.com/pub/mac/game/card/macjong0.20.sit.hqx
ftp://ftp.luth.se/pub/mac/games/board/mahjong1.0.2.int.hqx
http://www.aspyr.com/
http://www.ludd.luth.se/~matti/mahjong/
http://mahjong.real-time.com/

I would be interested to hear your thoughts on those games too.

Tom Sloper, Activision
Senior Producer, Shanghai
tsl...@activision.com
Acts...@aol.com
Now available: SHANGHAI: DYNASTY -- check our website for a preview and free
demo:
http://www4.activision.com/games/dynasty/

Alan Kwan

unread,

May 20, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/20/98

On 19 May 1998 22:51:08 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:

>Here's the exchange we had (below). If parties are interested in this
>discussion, and do not have Shanghai Dynasty to review, I would be happy to
>post a copy of the Shanghai Dynasty rules here so we can pick them apart.

Please do so, Tom. The demo is LARGE, and the servers crawl for some
reason.

"Live life with Heart."
Alan Kwan / ta...@notme.netvigator.com
http://home.netvigator.com/~tarot (hard-core game reviews)
(remove anti-spam section "notme." from mailing address)

ACTSEARCH

unread,

May 20, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/20/98

>From: ta...@notme.netvigator.com (Alan Kwan)

>(ACTSEARCH) wrote:
>
>
>>Here's the exchange we had (below). If parties are interested in this
>>discussion, and do not have Shanghai Dynasty to review, I would be happy to
>>post a copy of the Shanghai Dynasty rules here so we can pick them apart.
>
>Please do so, Tom.

OK, here it is. I changed it from HTML format to TXT format to keep it small,
and since this is not a binaries newsgroup, the pictures are not included.
This may be large...

Mah-Jongg

Mah-Jongg is the original centuries-old Chinese game which inspired the
creation
of Shanghai. Mah-Jongg requires four people to play, and is similar to the card

game Rummy. Players are dealt a hand of 13 tiles. The goal of the game is to go

out (declare Mah-Jongg) first, with a winning hand comprised of 14 tiles. Play
progresses counter-clockwise around the table. Simply put, each player in turn
draws and discards a tile, in an attempt to build a 14-tile hand comprised of
four groups of three tiles plus a pair of tiles. A group of three tiles can be
either three-of-a-kind or three-in-a-row.
Because each tile in the Mah-Jongg set has three identical mates, "three-of-a
kind" means three identical tiles (unlike Rummy, in which you could form a
group
with, for example, a Four of Spades, a Four of Hearts, and a Four of Clubs, in
Mah-Jongg all three of your Fours would normally have to be from the same
suit).
Three-in-a-row groups of tiles have to be in the same suit.

Suits

Mah-Jongg tiles are comprised of three suits of One through Nine: Craks (also
called Characters, Wan, or Ten Thousand), Bams (also called Bamboos or Sticks),

and Dots (also called Balls or Circles) - and other tiles known as Winds,
Dragons, and Flowers (in Mah-Jongg, Seasons are referred to as Flowers).
As in Shanghai, there are four of each tile (the exception being the "Flower"
tiles and the Jokers - there are eight different Flowers and there are eight
Jokers). Winds and Dragons are collectively referred to as "Honors."

The suit of Craks (Characters, Wan, Ten Thousand).
There are four of each tile.

The suit of Bams (Bamboo, Sticks).
There are four of each tile.

The suit of Dots (Balls, Circles).
There are four of each tile.

Honors
(East, South, West, and North Wind; White, Green, and Red Dragon).
There are four of each tile.

When Arabic Numerals are turned off in the Mah-Jongg game, the White Dragon is
shown as a plain white tile.

Flowers (including Seasons).
There is one of each tile.

Joker (Western game only).
There are eight Jokers.

Terminals
The Ones and Nines of the suit tiles are special (because they are harder to
use
in three-in-a-row combinations), and are referred to as "Terminals."
Terminals
(Ones and Nines)

Simples
That leaves us with the Twos through Eights of the suit tiles - these are
collectively called "Simples."
Simples
(Twos through Eights)

Groupings

Suit tiles (Craks, Dots, and Bams) can be used to make three-of-a-kind
combinations or three-in-a-row combinations. Honors can only be used to make
three-of-a-kind combinations (they cannot be used to make three-in-a-row
combinations). These groupings can be either in the player's hand (concealed)
or
melded (exposed) on the table face-up, for all players to see.
Pong
In Chinese Mah-Jongg parlance, a three-of-a-kind is called a "Pong." Many
Western Mah-Jongg players call this simply a "Triple."
Pongs (Triples).
A Pong of South Winds and a Pong of Three Dots.

Chow
In Chinese Mah-Jongg parlance, a three-in-a-row is called a "Chow." Many
American Mah-Jongg players call this simply a "Sequence" (or "Run" or
"Straight"). A Chow can only be made from suit tiles (Craks, Bams, or Dots).
Chows (Sequences).
A Chow of Craks and a Chow of Dots.

Kong
It is also possible to make a four-of-a-kind combination (normally these count
the same as a Pong or Triple), which is called a "Kong." Many American players
call this simply a "Quad."
Kong (Quad).
A Kong of Red Dragons.

A Complete Mah-Jongg Hand

Putting all of this together, a typical complete Mah-Jongg hand might look like

the illustration below.

Example of a Complete Mah-Jongg Hand
Four Groups-of-Three Plus a Pair
This hand contains a Chow (Sequence) of Craks, a Pong (Triple) of Craks, a Chow

(Sequence) of Dots, a Pong (Triple) of Green Dragons, and a Pair of West Winds.

Four groups-of-three plus a pair, for a total of 14 tiles.

The groupings in a Mah-Jongg hand can either be exposed or concealed, depending

on the rules and the kind of hand you're trying to build. A player may also
choose to build a Special Hand which is a defined combination of tiles which is

given a special name.

The Wall

The Wall is an arrangement of the Mah-Jongg tiles in the form of a square. A
straight line of tiles stacked two-high forms each side of the square. Part of
the transparent process of dealing the tiles includes "breaking the Wall" which

decides, by rolls of the dice, where the Wall is broken, and where the deal of
tiles starts. Tiles are dealt from this break in the Wall in a counterclockwise

manner. The "front" of the Wall is where the tiles are being drawn from, the
"back" of the wall is the opposite end. In Shanghai: Dynasty, the Wall is not
displayed onscreen. Look at the lower right corner of the screen to see the
number of tiles remaining in the Wall. In the Chinese game, play continues
until
the Wall has 14 tiles left. In the Western game, play comes to a halt when
there
are no tiles left in the Wall.

To Play Mah-Jongg

The goal of Mah-Jongg is essentially to build a complete hand before anybody
else at the table does. (There's more to it than that, but this will do for
starters if you are a novice to Mah-Jongg.)

Shanghai: Dynasty includes both the classical Chinese game of Mah-Jongg and the

Western game of Mah-Jongg (as it is played in Australia and North America). The

rules for these two games differ in some important respects (described later in

this Help file).
When you select Mah-Jongg from the Games menu, you will play against three
Artificial Intelligence ("A.I.") opponents. To play against real people (over
the Internet, a Local Area Network, or modem).
When you select Mah-Jongg from the Games menu, a dialog box appears. In this
dialog box you can select Chinese or Western Mah-Jongg, you can set up the
optional rules for the game (by clicking Options), and you can select the
difficulty settings of your A.I. opponents (you must play against A.I.
opponents
when you select a Mah-Jongg game from the Games menu). When you have finished
making your selections, click on OK to begin playing.

When the Mah-Jongg game begins, the game table is displayed. Each player is
assigned a wind. The player who is East is the "dealer" and he/she gets to go
first. If the East player loses the hand, the deal moves on to the next player
around the table. If the East player wins that hand, then he/she remains the
dealer in the following hand. Your name is at the bottom left corner; your
opponents' names are arranged across the top of the screen. The computer builds

the Wall, rolls the dice, and deals the tiles. In a real life game of
Mah-Jongg,
quite an elaborate process surrounds these events; but in Shanghai: Dynasty the

computer handles these proceedings automatically and "transparently" so that
you
can play quickly.
When the initial deal is complete, if Flowers are used in the game, the
computer
automatically arranges them off to the side. The Flower tiles are replaced from

the back of the Wall. (If another Flower tile is drawn from the back of the
Wall, it joins the others for even more bonus points!) The computer then
automatically sorts the tiles in your hand, and play can begin. If playing
Western rules, three Charleston passes occur. (See the explanation of the
Charleston in Western Mah-Jongg section.) East plays first. At the beginning of

the game, East is dealt 14 tiles (all other players are dealt 13), so East
starts by discarding a tile. To discard a tile, click once on the tile to
select
it. Then either click again or select the Discard button in the Action bar. The

tile will then be moved from your hand to the center of the table and laid down

face-up. The discarded tile is highlighted with a flashing highlight so all
players can easily see it.
When a discard is not claimed by anyone (including the next player in turn),
then the next player in turn draws a tile from the Wall. Draw a tile by
pressing
the Draw (Pass) button. A new 14th tile appears in your hand, raised and
highlighted. The previous player's discard is now no longer highlighted (that
tile is now dead, and can never be used by anyone). On your turn your name is
highlighted so all players know whose turn it is (and who's holding things up,
if you think too long).

Claiming Discards

If the discarded tile can be used by any player to form a Pong, Kong, or a win,

that player can claim the discarded tile now. (The only player who can claim
the
discarded tile to form a Chow is the next player to play in turn,
counter-clockwise). If a player other than the next player in turn claims a
discard for a Pong or Kong, the order of play is interrupted - the player who
claimed the tile discards, and play proceeds counter-clockwise from that player

(skipping the turns of any players in between).

Conflicting Claims

When two different players want to claim a discard, there are rules for how
such
a conflict is resolved. A claim for a Pong or Kong always takes priority over a

claim for a Chow. A claim for a win always takes priority over a claim for a
Pong or Kong. A tile claimed by two different players for a win goes to the
player who would be "in line" to take it. The computer handles these conflicts
automatically.

The Action Bar

The Action bar at the bottom of the screen allows you to perform all of the
actions you will need to make in a game of Mah-Jongg. The Action bar can also
be
used as a "hint" for what actions you need to take. If you are new to Mah-Jongg

and aren't sure what to do, just watch the buttons in the Action bar: they'll
light up when you can claim a tile, when you need to discard, and whenever you
can take an action. The buttons may be labeled in Chinese or Western style. To
change the labels on the buttons, go to the Preferences menu and select Button
Labels, then select either Chinese or English.

Pass/Draw
The Pass/Draw button allows you to "tell" your opponents that you are passing
on
a discarded tile and will not claim it. If the discarded tile comes from the
player on your left, the Pass button changes to Draw. So if you don't want to
claim that tile, you will draw a new tile from the Wall by pressing Draw. (Once

you press Draw, you can't change your mind.) When you play against A.I.
opponents, you don't need to press Pass after each player discards, except in
these two situations: (1) if the discarded tile could be used in your hand
(check what other buttons are highlighted) and (2) to stop the three second
timer after you have discarded, so that play can continue sooner. When you are
playing against human opponents, you will need to press Pass each time a tile
is
discarded.

Discard
When you have 14 tiles in your hand, this button lights up. Highlight the tile
you wish to discard (by clicking on an unhighlighted tile or by using the arrow

buttons to move the highlight,) and either click on the highlighted tile or on
the Discard button. If you regret having discarded that particular tile, you
have three seconds to click on the tile, taking it back into your hand. Your
turn will then end.

Urge
This button is only available when you play online (Windows 95 only) against
real people (this button is not available when playing against A.I. opponents).

Sometimes one of your opponents may take too long to think about his/her move.
Pressing this button causes "your" voice to urge that opponent to make his/her
move.

Pong/"Trip"
This button lights up when you have two identical tiles in your hand and the
discarded tile can be used to meld a Pong (Triple). Press the button or click
on
the tile to take the discard; the tile will be taken and your matching pair
will
be moved from your hand, and the three matching tiles will be melded face-up on

the table for all to see. If you don't want to claim the discard, press Pass to

signal to other players that you are not interested in claiming that tile.
Note: When you have a concealed Pong (three identical tiles contained in your
hand, not visible to the other players), you do not need to meld that Pong - it

is to your advantage to keep it concealed in your hand - thus the Pong button
does not light up in this circumstance.

Kong/Quad
This button lights up when you can make a Kong. There are a couple of different

ways you can make a Kong.
When you have a concealed Pong and you obtain the fourth matching tile (either
by someone's discarding it, or by drawing it yourself from the Wall), you may
meld the Kong. The four tiles are laid down on the table, with the two middle
tiles face-down. This is a special case called a "concealed Kong" because you
already had the Pong of tiles in your hand - although everyone knows you have
melded a Kong, the meld is made only so that you can keep the required number
of
tiles in your hand. The Kong does not disallow you from otherwise going out
with
a concealed hand (which is worth extra points).
The Kong button also lights up when you have a melded Pong (face-up on the
table
where all can see it) and you draw the fourth matching tile from the Wall. You
can add the tile to your meld and draw again (you cannot claim a player's
discarded tile for this).

Chow/"Sequ"
This button lights up when the player to your left discards a tile you can use
to meld a Chow (Sequence). Just press the Chow button to claim the discard; if
you have to use the Arrow buttons to move the highlights (see Left/Right Arrows

below), press Chow again after the desired tiles are raised and highlighted.

Left/Right Arrows
These buttons can be used to move the highlight(s) to the left or right within
the tiles in your hand. You can use the arrow to select potential discards, and

to tell the computer how you want to use a discarded tile. For example, if you
had a One, Two, Four, and Five of Dots, and the player to your left discards a
Three Dot, and you claim the discard for a Chow, the computer cannot know if
you
want to meld the One and Two or the Four and Five (or the Two and Four) with
the
Three Dot. The computer raises two tiles in your hand - you can use the Left
and
Right Arrow buttons to move the highlight to the left or right. Similarly, when

playing Western rules with Jokers, you can use the arrow buttons to tell the
computer which tiles you want to use in a Pong or Kong.

X-Ray
This button only lights up when the discard area in the center of the table is
full, and subsequent discards are placed atop earlier discards. Press B>X-Ray
to
look underneath the later discards. Especially during the later portion of a
hand, it becomes important strategically to see what was discarded before (you
don't want to be the first to discard something that an opponent needs in order

to win!).

Win
When you have drawn a tile which completes your hand (giving you the required
four groups-of-three and a pair) or when someone has discarded a tile which
completes your hand and your hand meets the required minimum score (if
applicable), this button lights up. Simply press the Win button to claim the
tile and proclaim "Mah-Jongg" (also called "going out").
Be careful, though - make sure you are aware of the rules in effect in the game

you are playing. If the Minimum Score option is not set at zero Points
("Chicken
hand") and the False Declaration Penalty is on, the Win button is always lit
up!
You should only declare a win if your hand will score enough points, otherwise
you may incur a penalty!
When any player goes Mah-Jongg, the Mah-Jongg Results box is displayed. Study
the Results to learn more about how hands are scored, and you'll be on your way

to developing your own strategy for playing.

Mah-Jongg Scoring

Shanghai: Dynasty will automatically score winning Mah-Jongg hands. However,
players who play games where the Minimum Score option is not set at zero points

(Chicken Hand) need to know how to score their own hands. If the False
Declaration Penalty option is on, and you go out with a hand that does not meet

the necessary minimum score, you will not only fail to win the hand, but you
will be penalized and some of your points will be taken away.
To score your own hand as you play, simply add up the points shown below for
the
Pongs and Kongs in your hand.

Here is a summary of Mah-Jongg scoring:

CHINESE GAME
Points:
Mah-Jongg - 20
Exposed Pong of Simples - 2
Concealed Pong of Simples - 4
Exposed Pong of Terminals - 4
Concealed Pong of Terminals - 8
Exposed Pong of Honors - 4
Concealed Pong of Honors - 8
Exposed Kong of Simples - 8
Concealed Kong of Simples - 8
Exposed Kong of Terminals - 16
Concealed Kong of Terminals - 32
Exposed Kong of Honors - 16
Concealed Kong of Honors - 32
Flower - 4
Season - 4
Pair of Dragons - 2
Pair of Prevailing Wind - 2
Pair of Own Wind - 2
Sweep - 2
Going Out on Self-Drawn Tile - 2
Completing A Pair to Go Out - 2
One Chance Chow - 2
Non-Scoring Hand - 10
Bouquet of Flowers - 1000
Bouquet of Seasons - 1000
Doubles:
Pong of Dragons - 1
Pong of Own Wind - 1
Pong of Prevailing Wind - 1
Own Flower - 1
Own Season - 1
Clean Hand - 1
Pure Hand - 3
All Honors - 3
No Chows - 1
Going Out on Loose Tile - 1
Going Out on Last Tile - 1
Robbing the Kong - 1
Fully Concealed Hand - 2
Limit: - 300 (East pays and receives double)
Opening stake: - 2000

WESTERN GAME
(Deleted)

Definition of Scoring Terms

- Prevailing Wind - Wind of the Round (look at the Round Wind marker on screen
to see which wind is prevailing). First round is East, then South, West, and
North (same as order of play).
- Own Wind - Your own Wind (look at the compass direction written after your
name on screen to see which one is your own).
- Own Flower (Own Season) - Winds correspond to the numbers on the Flower and
Season tiles thusly: E=1, S=2, W=3, N=4. E-S-W-N (the order of play). So if
your
own Wind is South, and you get a Flower or Season with a 2 on it, you earn a
Double if you go Out.
- Sweep - Making a Pong or Kong or Chow from East's first discard.
- Loose Tile - Tile drawn from the back of the wall (to replace a tile lost
from
the hand to meld a Kong, Season, or Flower).
- One Chance Chow - Filling a Chow with the one possible tile. For example, if
you have a 6 and an 8, and you go Out on a 7, or if you have an 8 and a 9, and
you go Out on a 7.
- Non-Scoring Hand - If you get 20 points for going Out but no other points at
all, and no Doubles, you get 10 points added to the 20.
- Bouquet of Flowers - Having all four Flowers, 1, 2, 3, 4. Same points for all

four Seasons. You will see a neat row of four tiles when this happens (it's
very
rare).
- Clean Hand - One suit with Honors. To qualify for the Double, there must be
no
more than one Chow in the hand.
- Pure Hand - One suit (no Honors). To qualify for the three Doubles, there
must
be no more than one Chow in the hand.
- Robbing the Kong - If a player draws a tile which he adds to a melded Pong,
and another player can use that tile to go Out immediately, that player can
claim the tile, go Out, and double his score.
- Limit - If your hand scores more than 300 points in the Chinese game or 500
points in the Western game, your score tops off at the limit. Unless East is
involved: East can receive double the limit (and East has to pay double the
limit).
- Rounding Before Doubles - If a player's score is not divisible by ten, then
the score is rounded up to the next multiple of ten (if the score is 48, it's
rounded up to 50). Then that number is doubled as applicable.
- Concealed Hand - When you have 13 tiles in your hand (no melded groupings)
and
go Out on a discarded tile.
- Fully Concealed Hand - When you have 13 tiles in your hand (no melded
groupings) and go Out on a self-drawn tile.
When the Score Display is visible, you can use the Up and Down buttons (when
highlighted) to scroll up and down the list, to see how the winning hand is
scored. When the Payments Display is visible, you can use the Next and Prev
buttons to see how other hands in the game were paid.

Printing the Mah-Jongg Results

Shanghai: Dynasty does not have any built-in printer drivers, but your computer

probably does. If you want to print Mah-Jongg results, follow these steps:
Printing Mah-Jongg Results in Windows 95
- When the Results box is displayed on screen, press Alt-Print Screen on your
keyboard.
- Switch to MSPaint, the picture accessory that comes with Windows 95 or any
other paint program (you do not need to quit Shanghai: Dynasty). If your
monitor
is set to 640x480 resolution, you can minimize Shanghai: Dynasty by moving the
cursor to the top of the screen and then clicking on the Minimize button, then
you can use Start to navigate to MSPaint (usually found at Start
button\Programs\Accessories).
- In MSPaint, you can Paste by using Edit\Paste, or by hitting Ctrl-V.
- Now you can print or save the picture. You can use any of a variety of widely

available graphics utilities to crop the picture or convert it to a picture
format that doesn't take up as much hard disk space as a .BMP file does.
- Return to Shanghai: Dynasty by going to the Start taskbar and clicking on the

"Shanghai: Dynasty" button there.
Printing Mah-Jongg Results on a Macintosh
- When the Results box is displayed on screen, press Command-Shift-3 (hold in
the Command and Shift keys while pressing the 3 key on your keyboard) to make a

snapshot.
- Hide Shanghai: Dynasty by going to the upper right corner of the screen,
where
you will find an option to do this (no need to quit the game).
- Look in the root directory of your hard drive for the file "Picture1." This
is
the snapshot you just made. If you made multiple snapshots, each one is
assigned
a higher number.
- Open the picture with a graphics program (more info on graphics programs can
be found elsewhere in this Help file). Once you are looking at the results box
in a graphics program, you can print it.

The Chinese Game

It is said that in China, Mah-Jongg has been played one way for 1000 years; in
the Western world, Mah-Jongg has been played for one year in 1000 ways. This is

somewhat exaggerated, but it makes a point. The point is that there are many
different ways to play Mah-Jongg, so Shanghai: Dynasty offers some options.
When
you click on the Chinese option in the Mah-Jongg Game Setup dialog box, you
will
see the following dialog box which gives you different options for the Chinese
Mah-Jongg game:

Flowers/Seasons
In Chinese Mah-Jongg, the Flowers and Seasons are optionally used to give a
player extra points. If you draw a Flower (or Season; for simplicity's sake
these are usually referred to as just Flowers), it is immediately placed in
your
meld area and replaced by a tile from the back end of the Wall.
Then if you go out, you'll get four points for any Flowers you drew. If a
Flower
that you drew matches your seat, and you go out, your score is doubled. Flowers

numbered 1 match East, Flowers numbered 2 match South, Flowers numbered 3 match

West, and Flowers numbered 4 match North. E-S-W-N = 1-2-3-4 (ESWN is the order
of play around the table). If you get four Flowers in a row (all the Seasons or

all the Flowers), you get 1000 points immediately.

Special Hands
Choosing this option allows you to score big points if you go out with any of a

number of special tile combinations.

False Declaration Penalty
If you declare Mah-Jongg, and it is seen that your hand is either not a winning

hand or below the minimum score, then you have to pay big bucks to all the
other
players. The hand is over. When this option is on, the Win button is always lit

up - be careful!

Thrower Pays For All
If you're the one who discards a tile that lets somebody win, you have to pay
for everybody else if this option is checked.

Payment To: All/Only Winning Hands
Check one of these options to determine who will get points at the end of a
hand
or round. Normally, only the player who goes out receives points (Only Winning
Hands). If All is checked, then all players' hands are scored regardless of
whether the player went out or not.

Minimum Score
Allows you to set the level of skill for the game. Our default setting is
Chicken Hand (you can go out on a Zero Fan, or zero doubles, hand). Users can
choose up to a maximum of a 3-Fan (three doubles) minimum hand as they improve
their skills.

Reset To Default
Clicking on this button resets all the settings of the Chinese game to their
"factory" settings.

Special Hands for Mah-Jongg
This section illustrates the special hands recognized by Shanghai: Dynasty.
There are many other special hands recognized by players around the world; we
wanted to allow for the most widely recognized or most "logical" patterns. And
we have also added one new special hand in recognition of the history of Hong
Kong, which has been very important to the history of Mah-Jongg.
Special hands are used most widely in the Western game. The Chinese game
recognizes a small number of special hands. In the West, some players require
special hands - that is to say, a normal legal hand of chows and pongs and a
pair does not qualify for a win. When playing "special hands required," it is
recommended to play with the Jokers (otherwise, most players believe that
Jokers
make the game too easy). Some players prefer to play without special hands.
Most
players allow their use and just award bonus points when one is attained.
Sometimes you can find a special hand described one way in one book, and find a

different description of that hand in a different book - or find the same hand
with two different names. And sometimes even different spellings. Sometimes
"honors" are considered as including only Winds and Dragons - sometimes as
including Winds and Dragons and Terminals. Mah-Jongg players have to be
flexible! The hands are shown here in their natural state (without Jokers). By
their very nature, many special hands must be concealed. It is not possible to
meld (expose) a pair or a single "unconnected" tile during the course of play,
and "knitted" pongs or pairs also cannot be melded. Each of the hands below is
marked as to whether it is Concealed or Exposed, and how much it earns.

Jewel Hands

To understand the "jewel" hands it is important to keep two concepts in mind.
Firstly, the Bams suit is comprised of "green" tiles (2, 3, 4, 6, 8) and "red"
tiles (1, 5, 7, and 9) - for the purposes of the Jewel hands, the other suits
also are broken into identical groups.
The Green Bams
The Red Bams

Secondly, in Western Mah-Jongg each suit is associated with a dragon. The Red
Dragon is associated with the Craks (and, in the case of Ruby hands, with the
Red Bams), the Green Dragon is associated with the Bams, and the White Dragon
is
associated with the Dots.

Craks
Red Dragon

Bams
Green Dragon

Dots
White Dragon

The concepts of "player's own wind" and "round wind" are significant. Each
player (seat) is associated with a wind, and each round is associated with a
wind. The associations change as the game progresses (always in the order
ESWN).

(NOTE: Western-only hands are deleted from this file to keep it small.)

Imperial Jade - Exposed - Double Limit - Western and Chinese games
Pongs or Kongs (many include no more than one Chow) of Green Dragons and Green
Bams, with a pair of Green Bams.

Pearl Dragon - Exposed - Double Limit - Western and Chinese games
Pongs or Kongs (many include no more than one Chow) of White Dragons and 2, 3,
4, 6, 8 Dots with a pair of Dots (those numbers only).

Imperial Ruby - Exposed - Double Limit - Western and Chinese games
Pongs or Kongs of Red Dragons and Red Bams, with a pair of Red Bams.

Pair Hands

Dirty Pairs - Concealed - Half Limit - Western and Chinese games
Seven pairs of anything.
(Also called: Small Seven Pairs)

Clean Pairs - Concealed - Limit - Western and Chinese games
Seven pairs in one suit (Winds or Dragons allowed).

Sequence Hands

Gate Hands

Heavenly Gates - Exposed: Half Limit - Concealed: Limit - Western and Chinese
games
Pongs of ones and nines, plus a run of 2-8 (all in one suit), plus any one tile

of that suit.
(Also called: Nine United Sons, Nine Connected Sons, Nine Gates)

Honor Hands

All Winds and Dragons - Exposed - Limit - Western and Chinese games
Pongs or Kongs and a pair of Winds and Dragons only.

All Honors - Exposed - 3 Doubles - Western and Chinese games
Pongs or Kongs and a pair of Winds, Dragons, and Terminals.

Heads and Tails - Exposed - Limit - Western and Chinese games
Pongs or Kongs and a pair of ones and nines (Terminals) only.

Unique Wonders - Concealed - Double Limit - Western and Chinese games
A one and nine of each suit (effectively, "knitted Pongs" of ones and nines)
plus NEWS plus one of each dragon plus one additional tile of

ACTSEARCH

unread,

May 20, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/20/98

Continuing the Chinese MJ rules of Shanghai Dynasty (AOL truncated it)

=====================

Unique Wonders - Concealed - Double Limit - Western and Chinese games
A one and nine of each suit (effectively, "knitted Pongs" of ones and nines)

plus NEWS plus one of each dragon plus one additional tile of any of the above
(effectively making one pair in the hand).

Big Three Dragons - Exposed - Limit - Western and Chinese games
Pongs of all three Dragons, plus any Pong or Chow plus a pair in the same suit
(or a pair of Winds).
(Also: Three Great Scholars)

Big Four Winds - Exposed - Limit - Western and Chinese games
Four Pongs of Winds plus a pair of anything.
(Also: Four Blessings)

All Kong - Exposed - Limit - Western and Chinese games
Four Kongs of anything plus a pair of anything. Note: Some players require that

all four Kongs be in the same suit, but Shanghai: Dynasty isn't quite so
strict.

Playing a Complete Game of Mah-Jongg

A complete game of Mah-Jongg consists of four rounds. Each round has its own
special wind, and all four winds must be played for a hand or a round to be
complete. A round is complete when the deal has passed completely around the
table. The deal passes around the table only if the dealer (East at the
beginning of the game) does not win that hand. So a complete game of Mah-Jongg
normally consists of sixteen or more hands. This should give you enough
information to begin playing Mah-Jongg. There are many fine points you'll need
to learn (all described hereafter), but if you are just starting, you should
jump right in and play against A.I. players and observe what goes on. When you
have questions, consult this Help file or the manual.
When playing offline (against A.I. opponents only), you can save an unfinished
game and continue again at a later time. When playing online (against other
people), you will most likely play as many hands as the four of you can manage
-
saving is not possible when playing online.

Strategies For Playing Mah-Jongg

- Keep a Pair. It's harder to make a pair if you have only one tile than it is
to make a Pong if you have a pair. So if you have a pair, don't be too quick to

claim a matching tile to form a Pong.
- Have Patience. When first learning to play, it's typical to grab every
opportunity to meld a Pong or Chow. In the early stages of a game, you should
instead keep in mind that there are a lot of good tiles available for drawing
from the Wall - and by not melding your tiles, you don't clue everyone as to
what you're doing, and you stand a chance to get a Concealed Hand.
- Be Flexible. As you build your hand, be ready to abandon your earlier
thinking
about how to build it as you see what kind of tiles others are discarding. If
you are playing Western Mah-Jongg with restrictions on winning hands, don't be
too quick to form your only Chow; there will be other chances.
- Don't Let Someone Else Win. As much as you want to go out yourself, sometimes

it's wiser to keep anybody else from winning. Especially, you don't want to
"feed" a high-scoring hand. If a player has melded three sets of all one suit,
that's especially dangerous (you might feed a Pure or Clean hand, and have to
pay a high price); thus the player announces the danger when making a third
meld
in one suit.
- Watch the discards and watch the number of tiles in the Wall (at the lower
right corner of the screen). As it approaches zero (fourteen in the Chinese
game), the tension increases - and it's more important to be careful what you
discard when there are fewer tiles remaining to be drawn. If the number of
tiles
in the Wall is getting low, don't discard any tiles which you do not see in the

discard area.
- You can vary the challenge by how you allocate the difficulty setting of your

A.I. opponents. When playing offline against A.I. opponents, A.I.#3 will always

be the player to your left (the player whose discards can be used for Chows),
A.I.#2 will always be the player across from you, and A.I.#1 will always be the

player to your right. You might try setting A.I.#3 to Easy (so that player will

be somewhat friendly in discarding tiles that you might be able to use), A.I.#2

to Hard, and A.I.#1 to Medium difficulty. You can experiment with other
combinations too.

Some Answers to Commonly-Asked Mah-Jongg Questions

I am new to the game of Mah-Jongg. Is there a tutorial for learning how to
play?
There are many ways that players new to the game of Mah-Jongg can learn how to
play.
- The manual: it provides step-by-step information on starting a game, options,

and strategies.
- This Help file: it contains updated step-by-step instructions and
information.
- The Status/Hint Box: once you are in the game, the Status box under the
Action
bar will display useful information on what actions have taken place in the
game
and what you need to do. If you click on the box, you will get more helpful
hints and information on what you need to do.
- The Action Bar: the buttons will light up when you can take an action, so
keep
your eye on it.
- Suggest A Move: you can either select this in the Help menu or by typing
Ctrl-M. The computer will suggest an action for you (it may not ultimately help

you win, but it will certainly keep you goingÉ).
- Context-sensitive information: right-clicking (Macintosh users:
Ctrl-clicking)
on the tiles (anywhere on the table) will tell you the name of the tile and
offer some courses of action.
- "The sink-or-swim" method: just start a game and click on anything. You'll
find out how the game moves by watching other players' actions, watching the
Action bar and what buttons light up, and by reading the messages in the
Status/Hint box.
How do I know when it's my turn?
Look on the screen to see whose name is highlighted in yellow. Also, you will
know that it's your turn if you have 14 tiles in your hand. If you're playing
online (against other human players), you will know soon enough when the other
players hit the Urge button and tell you to "Play." When playing against A. I.
opponents offline, it's your turn most of the time.
The game has started, the tiles are dealt, and I have a bunch of tiles in my
hand. What do I do next?
- First, look to see if it's your turn, by looking at your name at the bottom
of
the screen on the left. (If your name is highlighted in yellow, it's your
turn).
If it's not your turn, wait for your turn.
- If it's your turn, then you need to draw and discard a tile. Drawing happens
automatically if the player to your left discards a tile that you cannot claim.

Look at the Action bar to see which buttons are lit up (the Discard button
should be lit and you should have 14 tiles, one of which is highlighted). To
discard, click on a tile to select it, and then click on the Discard button or
click on the tile again. After discarding a tile, you have three seconds to
change your mind. Click on the discarded tile while it's flashing to take it
back.
I need to discard a tile. What tile should I discard?
- Click on the Status/Hint box for additional instructions or more information.
- First, look at your hand and see what tiles you have in each suit, and which
tiles you cannot use to make a Chow, Pong, or Kong (see the explanation of
suits, terms, and examples in the manual). Discard a tile that is least useful
(that seems to be "by itself") and that you have the least chances of doing
something with. For example, if you have a 3 Dot in your hand, and there are
three 3 Dot tiles already discarded or in someone's exposed melds, then you
will
have less chances of making a Pong with your 3 Dot (unless you have Jokers) and

you will not have a chance of making a Pair with it. Discard it.
- If still not sure, click on Suggest a Move in the Help menu. The computer
will
suggest a tile that you can discard, based on what it "thinks" is a reasonable
strategy.
- When playing against A.I. opponents, you can change your mind after
discarding. There is a three-second delay during which you can click on the
tile
and take it back. To bypass the three-second delay, press Pass.
The Pass button is lit up in my Action bar, but I know it's not my turn. What's

going on?
If you're playing offline (only against A.I. players), that means you can use
the tile that has just been discarded. Check what other buttons are lit in the
Action bar, and see what action is available. If you don't want to claim that
tile, then just click Pass to let the computer know that you're not interested
in claiming that tile (see the manual for more information on Claiming
Discards)
and to let the other players take their turns.
If you're playing online (against other human players), then you need to press
the Pass button every time a player discards a tile, to signal that you are not

thinking about claiming that tile and to keep the play going. If you don't do
that quickly enough, other players will hit the Urge button to tell you to
hurry. If you take too long, the computer will take over for you.
Someone discards a tile and I can use it. What do I need to do?
- First of all, see if it's your turn (the player whose name is highlighted).
- If it's not your turn, check to see if these buttons on your Action bar are
lit: Pong/Triple, Kong/Quad, or Win. If any of them are lit, then check your
hand to see where you can use that tile (see this Help file for explanations of

terms and rules), then click on the button to claim the tile.
- If it's your turn (if your name is highlighted in yellow), then check to see
if these buttons on your Action bar are lit: Chow/Sequence, Pong/Triple,
Kong/Quad, and Win. If any of them are lit, then check your hand to see where
you can use that tile and click on that button to claim the tile.
- If it's not your turn and none of the above-mentioned buttons are lit, then
you cannot claim that discarded tile (see this Help file for more information,
or check the manual).
I think I have a winning hand. What do I need to do?
It is a good idea to read the manual or these Rules & Strategies prior to
starting to play, to see what constitutes a winning hand, and what options
apply. If you have already done this, follow the steps below:
- Check if the Win button is lit up on the Action bar. (But be careful: If
you're playing the Chinese Rules and you have selected the False Declaration
Penalty option, the Win button will always be lit, regardless.)
- If the Win button is lit and False Declaration Penalty option is OFF, then
click on Win and "your" voice will declare a win, and the score box will
appear.
- If the Win button is not lit and you think you have a Special Hand, then
check
the Special Hands section to see if your Special Hand is recognized by the
game.
If it's not on the list, then the game does not support that hand.
- If the Win button is not lit, then check the tiles in your hand to see if the

hand scores the required minimum. If below the required minimum, then you can't

win (see the manual or Rules & Strategy for more information).
I'm not sure what rules I want to play: Chinese or Western. How do I know which

one I want?
- Read the manual or Rules & Strategy for a description of the basic game, and
the various options offered by each rule. The Chinese game is easier to learn;
this game is the basic game from which most other ways of playing evolved. The
Western game is a little more complicated. If you want to play using actual
tiles on an actual table, against three other people, then you should probably
select the game that most closely resembles the rules used by those people.
- If you still don't know what to choose, just click OK in the Mah-Jongg Game
Set-up box and a game will start, according to the default settings. By playing

that game a little and by trying different options, you will learn about the
differences in rules. The default setting is the Chinese game.
- If you start playing a game offline and you change your mind about the
settings you picked, go to the Games menu, select Mah-Jongg, and the Mah-Jongg
Game Set-up dialog box will appear. You can select new options and start a new
game.

Alan Kwan

unread,

May 21, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/21/98

On 20 May 1998 19:26:55 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:

>>Please do so, Tom.
>
>OK, here it is. I changed it from HTML format to TXT format to keep it small,
>and since this is not a binaries newsgroup, the pictures are not included.
>This may be large...

Oops, sorry that I forgot to say that I only need the section on
scoring. The other rules are pretty constant among those variations.

Yes, Tom, cutting the pics is a wise move. The HTML tags also will
only get in the way and do no good.

Alan Kwan

unread,

May 21, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/21/98

On 19 May 1998 22:51:08 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:

>Hi group,
>I have had an Email exchange with a Mah-Jongg player who bought Shanghai
>Dynasty. He says that the Chinese Mah-Jongg game in Shanghai Dynasty is
>totally wrong -- that it is not genuinely Chinese Mah-Jongg. I replied that
>there are several varieties of Chinese MJ, and that ours is "Classical Chinese"
>and that we used the rules found in books.

Hi Tom and group,

I've read the rules of SD-mj that Tom posted. Those rules do look
like "Classical Chinese" mahjong, but there are some rules that I am
hearing about the first time. I guess they're from Millington, are
they not, Tom? (I still haven't got at that book.)

I tried to search the local public library for archaic Chinese text on
the subject, but met no success. Maybe some university library have
them in the East Asian section, in the reference section. I don't
know. If one were to obtain highly reliable information on the
history of the game, those would be the best source.

> This reply did not satisfy him --
>he insists that the books are wrong, and that I am misleading the public by
>calling my game "Chinese."

Well, SD-mj is at least reasonably close to Chinese Classical. (I
cannot tell how close until I luckily find some reference material.)

> Given the prevalence of different "house rules" in
>different places, I don't think I'm guilty of misrepresentation, but I've run
>out of arguments (what can you say when you cite sources and are simply told
>that the sources are wrong).

Well, the really reliable sources, IMO, are archaic Chinese text,
and text based on direct study thereof. Anything else has a chance
to be "wrong", including anything I say (until I have done said
study).

>I must confess that I am still a tad unclear on the differences between the
>different flavors of Chinese MJ -- at first I had thought that our "Chinese"
>game was "Hong Kong Old Style," but then I came to believe that it was probably
>"Classical Chinese" instead, based on exchanges here on the newsgroup.

Cantonese/Hong Kong Old Style came about for the very purpose of
simplifying the game through omission of the triplet-point system.
Thus SD-mj, which counts points, is not HK Old Style.

>-----Original Message-----
>From: Yuii chan [SMTP:Yuii...@aol.com]
>Sent: Saturday, May 16, 1998 10:31 AM
>To: ACTIVISION
>Subject: MAR-JONGG PROGRAM
>

>>First of all, the traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg game is based on the score to
>>separate the grades. Like decimal counting, there is a "Fan" then goes to
>>"Wan", and 10 Fan equal to 1 Wan.

Yuii is either describing a very early, pre-"Classical" version of MJ
that few knows now, or one of the later variants that has been mostly
lost, or he has a poor understanding of or has written a poor
description of the Classical triplet-point system.

>>Secondly, the players will agree the limit for "Hoo" before the game beginning.
>>Generally speaking, Chinese used to select 1 Wan, 3 Wan and no limit (chicken).

As far as I know, the proper way of playing Classical Chinese mahjong
is to play without a minimun limit. In early versions of Classical,
there is only 1 3-double pattern, namely Pure One-Suit. Dragons, Seat
Wind (Prevailing Wind is a later addition), and Mixed One-Suit are the
only 1-double patterns. Other than limit hands, everything else (such
as "All Triplets") is worth only points. Thus, playing with 1-double
min would be very restricting, and playing with 3-double min is
atrocious. My conjecture is that the practice of minimum fan limits
came about when players began to get bored with plain Old Style
(because of too many "small" hands).

>> But remember, the "Dirty Pair" is not Chinese Mar-Jongg.
>
>*** In Classical Chinese, "Seven Pairs" is allowed, I believe. The books I
>have read indicate that this is so. If you look in the back of the game's
>manual, you will find a listing of books we used in creating this game.

Alternatively, it may be an earlier but very localized rule, that got
passed to Japan but not to Old Style.

>Next, the number of Mar-Johgg each player holds. There are two major different
>kind games. One called "Traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg Game(also named OLD
>MAR-JONGG)", the other is "Taiwanese Mar-Jongg Game". In traditional Chinese
>Mar-Jahn game without any "Seasons and Flowers", each player holds 13 dominoes.
> And 16 dominoes for the Taiwanese Mar-Jongg player, and "Seasons and Flowers"
>will be included (replacing).

I would not believe that seasons and flowers are an inverse import
from Taiwan.

>How to decide the Fans and Wans, we may discuss later. Now, in your program,

>there are some problems.
>(1) One time, I tried to Hoo "Unique Wonder", what I was waiting for is
>"South". My next player releases a 6 bamboo, then my opposite player release a
>"South", the next step should be my "WIN" index blinking, but it was not. What
>it happened is my next player "Pong" the "South" and then "Kong" the "South",
>which means this program will not allow player to Hoo the "Special Hand" under
>any circumstance.
>
>*** If you have not gone to the Options screen to allow the use of "special
>hands," then "Unique Wonders" would not be recognized by the game. Without
>"special hands" allowed, all hands must consist of 3 pongs/chows and a pair
>(and maybe the game also allows seven pairs).

Tom, strictly speaking, "special hands" (limit patterns) are a
standard part of the game, and should not be optional (if you're
counting scores at all). It's a good idea to set the default as
"allowed" (for standard "special hands" such as UW, Big Four Winds,
Heavenly Hand, etc.). "Unique Wonders" is (almost, at least)
universally recognized in all 'standard' versions of mah-jong,
classical or modern. Except in 'one's first game', I think few or no
players disable this in their house rules.

>
>(2) Pure Hand in Chinese Mar-Jongg is a very Unique combination, so that, the
>score is always high, but it will be reduced if combining some "Dragons" or
>"Winds". How come in your program, the player can not Hoo under Pure Hand
>instead of with "Odds"?
>
>*** The player can go for a pure hand. What is the problem? What happened?
>You are welcome to send me screen shots of any problems you encounter -- the
>manual describes how to make screen shots (see the section "Printing Mah-Jongg
>results").

It is likely that the restriction of "at most one sequence" (which I
am hearing about the first time) got in the way. (Is this rule from
Millington?)

>(3) "Pong Pong Hoo" is a lousy output in Chinese Mar-Jongg, unless some special
>patterns. But in your program, the "Pong Pong Hoo" looks like a very
>outstanding performance under any circumstance.
>
>*** I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean. What do you expect the game do, and
>what is the game doing instead? What does "Pong Pong Hoo" mean? Does it mean
>"All Pong hand"?

In early Classical, "All Triplets" is worth only 10 points, no
doubles. Later, it got inflated to a double. Since Old Style, it got
inflated again to 2, and then 3 fan (doubles). Maybe he felt that the
1 double in SD-mj was too high a value, relative to the early
Classical one.

>In Chinese pattern, only some patterns, such as: "Pure Hand Pong Pong Hoo", "
>All Letters Pong Pong Hoo", " Big Three Treasures (3xC,3xF&3xB)", "Small Three
>Treasures (3, 3 & 2)", "Two Numbers Pong Pong Hoo (doesn't matter what kind of
>dominoes combination)", "All Winds Pong (also named 4 Happy)" and of course the
>"4 Kongs (also named 18 Ro-Han)". One time, I tried to Hoo Two Number Pong Pong
>Hoo, but, your program disappointed me.
>
>*** As above, I think you need to turn "special hands" option ON. I don't know
>what "Two Number Pong Pong Hoo" means (I'm sorry for not understanding).

"Two Numbers" is in New Style. It may be a very early pattern that
was once dropped later (from 'Classical' and Old Style), or it might
be a very late addition in the first place. I don't know.

>(4) Traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg will deal up to the last dominoes, but it
>seems that your program used the Taiwanese (Japanese) way in substitute.
>
>*** According to all our books on "Classical Chinese", the last 14 tiles of the
>Wall are not supposed to be used.

Serious Chinese mah-jong players, including Hong Kong mah-jong doctor
Mr. KAN Yi-Ching, consider drawing to the last tile of the wall a
distorted style of play, contrary to the mathematical principles of
the game. Leaving some tiles is either the original rule, or a very
early (and good) addition.

>Over all, your program is really mash-up. Your programmer should study and
>learn the Mar-Jongg game from a real Chinese. Of course, new Chinese, above
>all from Mainland China today, will not know the real interesting traditional
>Chinese Mar-Jongg game, and Taiwanese will not know either for there are lots
>of patterns and scores to be remembered.
>
>*** Please understand that there are many different ways to play Mah-Jongg. I
>think the rules we use are different from the way you normally play. Perhaps
>you play "Hong Kong Old Style"?

Yuii is not playing HKOS. HKOS have few "patterns and scores to be
remembered". He is playing either a pre-"Classical" version, or a
very localized version.

>Reply from Yui Chan:
>
>Mr. Sloper:
>Allow me to say that the books you adopted to develop your Mah-Jongg program
>are not right for Clasic Chinese Mah-Jongg game. As you say, Mah-Jongg can be
>played in several ways, but, in REAL CHINESE CLASIC, there is only one rule.

The rules developed and changed over the ages. There are few written
records, so now it is very hard to tell which rules are when and
where.

>And, for sure, and definitely, 7 pairs is not included in Chinese Clasic Mah-
>Jongg, which is Taiwanese style, and that is relased from Japanese rule (Nico-
>Nico).

Most Japanese rules have been imported from China, without many
Chinese people realizing the fact.

Some time ago, a Hong Kong person published a book on Taiwanese
mahjong. One of the biggest errors in the book is the citation of the
pattern "Two Identical Sequences", with the Japanese /kanji/ name
(which is incorrect, strictly speaking, from a Chinese point of view)
AND a wrong definition of the pattern based on a mis-interpretation of
/another/ Japanese kanji name for the pattern, and insisting that the
hand be concealed above that.

(The original name of "Two Identical Sequences" is "Same Height",
/ippankoo/ if we take a Japanese reading. The Japanese have lost the
correct kanji, and put together three meanigless kanji, /iipeekoo/,
in their place. An alternative name, "2IS" literally, is
/isshokuniijyun/, "one-form-two-sequence" kanji-by-kanji.
Incidentally, the kanji for "form" is the same kanji as for "suit".
Consequently, in that book, the author mis-interpretated the pattern
/iipeekoo/ as "any two sequences in one suit" in a concealed hand.)

I wouldn't really say more, until I've read Millington and, hopefully,
one of those elusive (rare?) archaic Chinese texts.

cofa...@my-dejanews.com

unread,

May 22, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/22/98

In article <3563c617...@news.netvigator.com>,

ta...@notme.netvigator.com (Alan Kwan) wrote:
>
> On 19 May 1998 22:51:08 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:
>
> >Hi group,
> >I have had an Email exchange with a Mah-Jongg player who bought Shanghai
> >Dynasty. He says that the Chinese Mah-Jongg game in Shanghai Dynasty is
> >totally wrong -- that it is not genuinely Chinese Mah-Jongg. I replied
that
> >there are several varieties of Chinese MJ, and that ours is "Classical
Chinese"
> >and that we used the rules found in books.
>
> Hi Tom and group,
>
> I've read the rules of SD-mj that Tom posted. Those rules do look
> like "Classical Chinese" mahjong, but there are some rules that I am
> hearing about the first time. I guess they're from Millington, are
> they not, Tom? (I still haven't got at that book.)
>

> (snipped)

> > This reply did not satisfy him --
> >he insists that the books are wrong, and that I am misleading the public by
> >calling my game "Chinese."
>

> (snipped)

Hi All,
Tom, I guess the nature of the question of your customer is whether you
should claim your rules to be Chinese mahjong rules when in fact they are not
100% Chinese rules.
To avoid the problem, give a new name to YOUR rules and explain a little bit
how these rules were derived.
Best wishes,
COFA TSUI
cofa...@aicom.com
5/22/1998

-----== Posted via Deja News, The Leader in Internet Discussion ==-----
http://www.dejanews.com/ Now offering spam-free web-based newsreading

ACTSEARCH

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May 22, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/22/98

Thanks, Alan, for such a detailed commentary.

You wrote:
>I've read the rules of SD-mj that Tom posted. Those rules do look
>like "Classical Chinese" mahjong, but there are some rules that I am
>hearing about the first time. I guess they're from Millington, are
>they not, Tom? (I still haven't got at that book.)

*** No, I only acquired a copy of Millington after the game's Chinese rules
were already set. Our Chinese scoring system was based on the following
sources instead:
- Eleanor Whitney
- Thompson & Maloney

>Well, the really reliable sources, IMO, are archaic Chinese text,
>and text based on direct study thereof. Anything else has a chance
>to be "wrong", including anything I say (until I have done said
>study).

*** That's pretty much what Yui Chan was saying, I guess. IMO, a commonly-held
view of what constitutes "classical" Chinese is good enough. No poring through
archaic texts is needed to satisfy me.

Cantonese/Hong Kong Old Style came about for the very purpose of
simplifying the game through omission of the triplet-point system.
Thus SD-mj, which counts points, is not HK Old Style.

*** All my sources on "classical" agree that a triplet-point system is used.
Thompson & Maloney show a 20-point win score, but Whitney and Millington say 10
points.

>>First of all, the traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg game is based on the score to
>>separate the grades. Like decimal counting, there is a "Fan" then goes to
>>"Wan", and 10 Fan equal to 1 Wan.

*** Hmm. . .

*** So there are elements of "New style" in his game. . .

>> But remember, the "Dirty Pair" is not Chinese Mar-Jongg.

I believe that Seven Pairs is a very late addition, probably later
than the development of Old Style, based on the fact that Seven Pairs
is not a "standard" rule in Old Style. I do not know its place of
origin, though (mainland) China is possible.
Alternatively, it may be an earlier but very localized rule, that got
passed to Japan but not to Old Style.

*** I checked my 3 source books. Mr. Chan is right -- Seven Pairs is not
included in Thompson & Maloney, Whitney, or Millington's classical Chinese
game. Looks like I erred there. Probably because I was ignorant of the
difference between HK Old Style and Chinese Classical. I took HKMJ and Four
Winds as my "authority" for including the Seven Pairs hand in my "Chinese"
game. In retrospect I don't feel too badly about it, though (and am not
inclined to spend the effort to remove it). . .

>Next, the number of Mar-Johgg each player holds. There are two major different
>kind games. One called "Traditional Chinese Mar-Jongg Game(also named OLD
>MAR-JONGG)", the other is "Taiwanese Mar-Jongg Game". In traditional Chinese
>Mar-Jahn game without any "Seasons and Flowers", each player holds 13
dominoes.
> And 16 dominoes for the Taiwanese Mar-Jongg player, and "Seasons and Flowers"
>will be included (replacing).

I would not believe that seasons and flowers are an inverse import
from Taiwan.

*** Flowers and seasons were included in the 1922 version of the game imported
into the USA by J.P. Babcock. Flowers and seasons usually come with Japanese
sets, even though Japanese never use them -- and the game was introduced into
Japan (from China) about a decade before the USA. So I believe that the
flowers go back to at least 1900. I don't know when HKOS style came about. My
use of the flowers in Shanghai Dynasty's Chinese game was based on my knowledge
of HK-style play, however. Now that I check my books, I see that Millington
supports the use of flowers, T&M do not, and Whitney does not (but then
Whitney's book is mostly about Japanese rules).

*** I was primarily considering the novice player in setting this default. In
retrospect, I'd do it differently, but I don't think this is a serious enough
oversight to warrant the time it would take to fix. The user should click the
"options" button anyway, and set the desired options (that's a very easy
"workaround").

>(2) Pure Hand in Chinese Mar-Jongg is a very Unique combination, so that, the
>score is always high, but it will be reduced if combining some "Dragons" or
>"Winds". How come in your program, the player can not Hoo under Pure Hand
>instead of with "Odds"?
>
>*** The player can go for a pure hand. What is the problem? What happened?
>You are welcome to send me screen shots of any problems you encounter -- the
>manual describes how to make screen shots (see the section "Printing Mah-Jongg
>results").

It is likely that the restriction of "at most one sequence" (which I
am hearing about the first time) got in the way. (Is this rule from
Millington?)

*** We only use this optional rule in our Western/American game. I still don't
know what his original complaint was, if it was not that he had not checked out
the Options screen.

>In Chinese pattern, only some patterns, such as: "Pure Hand Pong Pong Hoo", "
>All Letters Pong Pong Hoo", " Big Three Treasures (3xC,3xF&3xB)", "Small Three
>Treasures (3, 3 & 2)", "Two Numbers Pong Pong Hoo (doesn't matter what kind of
>dominoes combination)", "All Winds Pong (also named 4 Happy)" and of course
the
>"4 Kongs (also named 18 Ro-Han)". One time, I tried to Hoo Two Number Pong
Pong
>Hoo, but, your program disappointed me.

"Two Numbers" is in New Style. It may be a very early pattern that

was once dropped later (from 'Classical' and Old Style), or it might
be a very late addition in the first place. I don't know.

*** I'm beginning to think he uses some kind of cross between "classical" and
"new style". . .

Yuii is not playing HKOS. HKOS have few "patterns and scores to be
remembered". He is playing either a pre-"Classical" version, or a
very localized version.

*** Yep, looks that way. . .

>And, for sure, and definitely, 7 pairs is not included in Chinese Clasic Mah-
>Jongg, which is Taiwanese style, and that is relased from Japanese rule (Nico-
>Nico).

Most Japanese rules have been imported from China, without many
Chinese people realizing the fact.

*** Same for Western/American rules too, of course (1922).

*** Hmm, very interesting!

I wouldn't really say more, until I've read Millington and, hopefully,
one of those elusive (rare?) archaic Chinese texts.

*** I don't think it's necessary after all. Your words above (and my finally
getting off my seat and opening the books again) are enough to reassure me. I
have mixed in one HK special hand into the game, and perhaps the use of the
flowers should not have been included in "pure" Classical Chinese. But I don't
think that's all that bad.
Thanks, Alan!

ACTSEARCH

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May 22, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/22/98

Cofa Tsui wrote:
Tom, I guess the nature of the question of your customer is whether you
should claim your rules to be Chinese mahjong rules when in fact they are not
100% Chinese rules.
To avoid the problem, give a new name to YOUR rules and explain a little bit
how these rules were derived.

*** OK then, I hereby dub my "Chinese" game "Mostly Classical Chinese, with
maybe one or two elements of Hong Kong Old Style mixed in." The explanation
is in another posting here on the newsgroup.

Alan Kwan

unread,

May 24, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/24/98

On 20 May 1998 19:26:55 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:

>Minimum Score
>Allows you to set the level of skill for the game. Our default setting is
>Chicken Hand (you can go out on a Zero Fan, or zero doubles, hand). Users can
>choose up to a maximum of a 3-Fan (three doubles) minimum hand as they improve
>their skills.

As I have indicated, this is misleading. Minimum Fan requirements are
adopted not to raise the "level of skill" in the game (quite the
opposite, in fact), but to create more opportunities for the
excitement and satisfaction of completing big hands.

>Sometimes
>"honors" are considered as including only Winds and Dragons - sometimes as
>including Winds and Dragons and Terminals.

In Chinese (and Japanese) usage, we have it the other way round. When
we say "terminals", we sometimes refer to ones and nines only, and
sometimes include honors too. When we say "honors", the terminals are
excluded.

>Heavenly Gates - Exposed: Half Limit - Concealed: Limit - Western and Chinese
>games
>Pongs of ones and nines, plus a run of 2-8 (all in one suit), plus any one tile
>
>of that suit.
>(Also called: Nine United Sons, Nine Connected Sons, Nine Gates)

I disagree with Chan, and think "Sons" is not an accurate translation
of the Chinese character "zi" in the name of this pattern. That
character can mean "son", but in this context, it means a game piece
in a table game, such as a chess piece, a go piece, or a mah-jong
tile. Thus, the name IMO should be translated as "Nine Connected
Pieces" or "Nine Connected Tiles". Though, "Heavenly Gates" or "Nine
Gates" or simply "Nine-Way Call" might be better names, avoiding the
translation problems.

Alan Kwan

unread,

May 24, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/24/98

On 20 May 1998 19:28:08 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:

>All Kong - Exposed - Limit - Western and Chinese games
>Four Kongs of anything plus a pair of anything. Note: Some players require that
>
>all four Kongs be in the same suit, but Shanghai: Dynasty isn't quite so
>strict.

"Four Kongs" is a standard limit pattern in Classical Chinese, with no
restrictions on the identity of the Kongs. It was once an Irregular
Hand, with no need to match the eyes after the 4th kong.

A Pure One-Suit hand with 4 kongs is worth at least 54 points with 4
doubles, and would be a limit hand arithmetically even if not
pre-defined as one. Thus that definition by "some players" would be a
bit superfluous ...

>Strategies For Playing Mah-Jongg
>
>- Keep a Pair. It's harder to make a pair if you have only one tile than it is
>to make a Pong if you have a pair. So if you have a pair, don't be too quick to
>claim a matching tile to form a Pong.

The underlying principle behind this rule is that one should not claim
a discard that does not 'advance' his hand. Consider B-23677 D-45
with two other sets. The hand is one tile from calling. Pong the B7,
and it is still one tile from calling. Thus pong'ing the B7 may not
be a good move.

Consider the following counter-example:

B-677 D-2345

Even though the hand has only one pair, if B7 is discarded, it should
be pong'ed, because that advances the hand to calling, and not a bad
calling shape too. (Note that the only differene between this hand
and the last one is that the B-23 is changed to D-23.)

ACTSEARCH

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May 25, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/25/98

Alan Kwan wrote,

>Minimum Fan requirements are
>adopted not to raise the "level of skill" in the game (quite the
>opposite, in fact), but to create more opportunities for the
>excitement and satisfaction of completing big hands.

*** OK, I'll change that wording then.

>In Chinese (and Japanese) usage, we have it the other way round. When
>we say "terminals", we sometimes refer to ones and nines only, and
>sometimes include honors too. When we say "honors", the terminals are
>excluded.

*** Oh, OK -- I'll amend my text to make it clear that this "way round" refers
to Western usage.

>>Heavenly Gates - Exposed: Half Limit - Concealed: Limit - Western and Chinese

>>games

>>Pongs of ones and nines, plus a run of 2-8 (all in one suit), plus any one
tile
>>of that suit.
>>(Also called: Nine United Sons, Nine Connected Sons, Nine Gates)

>I disagree with Chan, and think "Sons" is not an accurate translation
>of the Chinese character "zi" in the name of this pattern. That
>character can mean "son", but in this context, it means a game piece
>in a table game, such as a chess piece, a go piece, or a mah-jong
>tile. Thus, the name IMO should be translated as "Nine Connected
>Pieces" or "Nine Connected Tiles". Though, "Heavenly Gates" or "Nine
>Gates" or simply "Nine-Way Call" might be better names, avoiding the
>translation problems.

*** I just used the names I found in English-language books. Not my intention
to correct any historical misunderstandings (which would possibly just confuse
the reader even more). . . (^_~)

>>- Keep a Pair. It's harder to make a pair if you have only one tile than it
is
>>to make a Pong if you have a pair. So if you have a pair, don't be too quick
to
>>claim a matching tile to form a Pong.

>The underlying principle behind this rule is that one should not claim
>a discard that does not 'advance' his hand.

*** Good suggestion -- I'll amend that text too!
Thanks, Alan.

ACTSEARCH

unread,

May 25, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/25/98

>From: acts...@aol.com

>Alan Kwan wrote,
>>Minimum Fan requirements are
>>adopted not to raise the "level of skill" in the game (quite the
>>opposite, in fact), but to create more opportunities for the
>>excitement and satisfaction of completing big hands.

I responded,

>
>*** OK, I'll change that wording then.

As I went to change the wording, I realized that I didn't want to! My wording
was:

>their skills.

So I wasn't saying that the Minimum Score setting was there to just increase
the skill factor -- I was assuming that the reader of this would mainly be
novices, and I believe that novices should start by playing for Chicken Hands.
So I just was saying that the players could adjust the Fan setting as desired
after getting over the learning curve.

Alan Kwan

unread,

May 25, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/25/98

On 25 May 1998 01:12:03 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:

>*** OK, I'll change that wording then.

Yes, please. (It's not merely different wordings, but entirely
different concepts we're talking about.)

>>In Chinese (and Japanese) usage, we have it the other way round. When
>>we say "terminals", we sometimes refer to ones and nines only, and
>>sometimes include honors too. When we say "honors", the terminals are
>>excluded.
>
>*** Oh, OK -- I'll amend my text to make it clear that this "way round" refers
>to Western usage.

That's not really necessary, since that is understood. I was just
making a remark.

>>I disagree with Chan, and think "Sons" is not an accurate translation
>>of the Chinese character "zi" in the name of this pattern. That
>>character can mean "son", but in this context, it means a game piece
>>in a table game, such as a chess piece, a go piece, or a mah-jong
>>tile. Thus, the name IMO should be translated as "Nine Connected
>>Pieces" or "Nine Connected Tiles". Though, "Heavenly Gates" or "Nine
>>Gates" or simply "Nine-Way Call" might be better names, avoiding the
>>translation problems.
>
>*** I just used the names I found in English-language books. Not my intention
>to correct any historical misunderstandings (which would possibly just confuse
>the reader even more). . . (^_~)

I think this is not a "historical" misunderstanding, but merely Chan's
(or Perlmen's).

>>>- Keep a Pair. It's harder to make a pair if you have only one tile than it
>is
>>>to make a Pong if you have a pair. So if you have a pair, don't be too quick
>to
>>>claim a matching tile to form a Pong.
>
>>The underlying principle behind this rule is that one should not claim
>>a discard that does not 'advance' his hand.
>
>*** Good suggestion -- I'll amend that text too!

In Chinese Classical, the 'distance to calling' is a very important
concept along with 'partial sets', and is necessary for a player to
promote from a beginner to an intermediate player.

Alan Kwan

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May 25, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/25/98

On 25 May 1998 01:48:49 GMT, acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) wrote:

>
>So I wasn't saying that the Minimum Score setting was there to just increase
>the skill factor -- I was assuming that the reader of this would mainly be
>novices, and I believe that novices should start by playing for Chicken Hands.
>So I just was saying that the players could adjust the Fan setting as desired
>after getting over the learning curve.

The requirement for a player to play smoothly under MFR is not really
"skill", but familiarity with the scoring rules, so I think it helps
if you make that specific.

Wei-Hwa Huang

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May 27, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/27/98

acts...@aol.com (ACTSEARCH) writes:
>Hi group,
>I have had an Email exchange with a Mah-Jongg player who bought Shanghai
>Dynasty. He says that the Chinese Mah-Jongg game in Shanghai Dynasty is
>totally wrong -- that it is not genuinely Chinese Mah-Jongg. I replied that

[snip]

[Yuii says:]

>To me, your program looks it was not written by a real "Chinese" programmer.

>*** It was not. Does the programmer's national origin really matter?

Well, Tom, if you ever think it matters, I'm a real "Chinese" programmer
that will be looking for a job after I graduate in a month or two! :-)

I'm not as well-read on Chinese Mahjong as Alan, though -- not enough
Chinese literature gets here to the States.

--
Wei-Hwa Huang, whu...@ugcs.caltech.edu, http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~whuang/
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Smoking cigarettes are bad for you, so smoking cigarettes is bad for you.

Alan Kwan

unread,

May 27, 1998, 3:00:00 AM5/27/98

On 27 May 1998 07:20:06 GMT, whu...@ugcs.caltech.edu (Wei-Hwa Huang)
wrote:

>I'm not as well-read on Chinese Mahjong as Alan, though -- not enough
>Chinese literature gets here to the States.

Hi Wei-Hwa,

I have yet to find any pre-modern literature in Chinese. I learned
about Chinese Classical and New Style from (English) books in an
American university library, and also (NS) from Perlmen & Chan. I
learned about Modern Japanese from Japanese books. There is also some
info about MJ and (a bit) CC from Mahjong Walker site. And Mr. Kan
Yi-Ching's book helped a bit. The last one is about the only
meaningful Chinese book I've found on the topic.

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