iPhone app Pai Gow Master

Pai gow (tiles) is perhaps the oldest casino game.
The name roughly translates to make nine.
In fact, the concept of scoring by the ones digit only, as in baccarat, likely stems from pai gow.

Of all the casino games, there can be little debate that pai gow is the hardest to learn.
Before playing the game, one should learn the ranking of 16 pairs of tiles.
To the westerner, or anybody not steeped in Chinese mythology, this ranking will likely seem arbitrary and thus difficult to memorize.
However, there is a legend behind the game, and acquainting oneself with that legend can aid in understanding the order of the pairs.

The Chinese legend of the creation of the universe to help with the explanation.
Here it is:

Part 1 - The Supreme Pair

Supreme Creator (Gee Joon): Chinese name of the Supreme Creator, which came before anything else.

Part 2 - The Civilian Pairs

Heaven (Teen): The Creator first made the stars to fill the void of space.

Earth (Day): Then he made the earth.

Man (Yun): Then he created man to live on the earth.

Goose (Gor): Then he created geese for man to eat.

Plum flower (Mooy): Then he made flowers to give the earth beauty.

Long (Chong): Then he made long robes so man could clothe himself.

Board (Bon): Then he made boards to make benches for man to sit on.

Hatchet (Foo): Then he made hatchets for man to chop wood.

Partition (Ping): As mans family grew, he made partitions to separate rooms in mans house.

Long Leg Seven (Tit): Mans seventh child had long legs.

Big Head Six (Look): Mans sixth child had a big head.

Part 3 - The Military Pairs

Finally come the mixed pairs, which represent the military.
The greater the number of dots, the higher the rank.

Nine(Gow), Eight(Bot), Seven(Chit), Five(Ng)

[Japanese]

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