Dou Di Zhu

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Dou Di Zhu, (simplified Chinese: 斗地主; traditional Chinese: 斗地主; pinyin: Doù Dìzhǔ; literally "Fight Landlord") is a card game in the genre of shedding and gambling. Dou Di Zhu is one of the most popular card games played in China. Dou Di Zhu is played with three people with one pack of cards, including the two jokers. The game starts with players bidding for the Cop (simplified Chinese: 地主; traditional Chinese: 地主; pinyin: Dìzhǔ; literally "Landlord") position. Those who loose the bid enter the game as the Bandit (simplified Chinese: 农民; traditional Chinese: 農民; pinyin: Nóngmín; literally "Peasant") team competing against the Cop. The objective of the game is to be the first player to have no cards left.


Dou Di Zhu is described as easy-to-learn but hard-to-master requiring mathematic and strategic thinking as well as intended execution. Suits are unnecessary in playing Dou Di Zhu. Players can easily play the game with a set of Dou Di Zhu playing cards, without the suits printed on the cards. Currently, there are no cards manufactured specifically for Dou Di Zhu, despite its popularity.

Less popular variations of the game do exist in China, such as four-player and five-player Dou Di Zhu played with two packs of cards.

Contents

[edit] Game play

A shuffled pack of 54 cards is dealt to three players. Each player is dealt 17 cards each, with the last three leftover wild cards detained on the playing desk exposed to all players.

All players first review and appraise their own cards without showing their cards to the other players. Then, players take turns to bid for the Cop position by telling the other players the risk stake they are willing to accept.

There are three kinds of risk stakes, 1, 2, and 3, with 1 being the lowest and 3 being the highest. Generally, the more confident a player is in the strength of one's cards, the higher the risk stakes one is willing to bid. In most of the online game rooms, the first bidder is chosen randomly by the system. In reality, players usually make up their own rules as to who gets to bid first.

A player may accept the prior player's bid by passing their turn to bid or one may try to outbid the prior player as long as the prior player did not bet 3 as the risk stake. In other words, 1 can be out bidden by 2 or 3; 2 can only be out bidden by 3; and 3 cannot be out bidden.

The highest bidder takes the Cop position; and the remaining players enter the Bandit team competing against the Cop. The three leftover wild cards are revealed to all players before dealt to the Cop.

The Cop wins if he or she has no cards left. The Bandit team wins if either of the Bandits have no cards left.

[edit] Features of the Game

  • The rules are not complicated, basic knowledge of poker hand rankings helps players to get started. Many of Dou Di Zhu's rules are different from that of Poker and Big Two.
  • There is an element of luck involved, but what counts is not only luck but also skill of playing and strategy. Poor player with great hands may be defeated by skillful player with poor cards.

[edit] Rules

A few fundamental and exceptive rules are essential for understanding the game play of the game. Some rules are structured differently from the other popular card games. Players who have prior experience with other card games, such as poker, and Big Two, often prejudice the rules.

  • Individual cards are ranked. Colored Joker > B&W Joker > 2 > Ace (A) > King (K) > Queen (Q) > Jack (J) > 10 > 9 > 8 > 7 > 6 > 5 > 4 > 3.
  • Suits have no value. Players can play the game fine with all the suits erased from the cards!

[edit] The Nuke and the Bomb

The Nuke and the Bomb are worth specific mentioning since they are a very different breed in terms of game play. They defy normal category rules. Players may gain a better understanding of the rules by studying them separately as a special category.

Special Category Description Example Special Note
Nuke Colored Joker and B&W Joker Colored Joker + B&W Joker It can beat everything in the game.
Bomb 4 cards of the same rank 3-3-3-3 (the lowest ranking Bomb)
2-2-2-2 (the highest ranking Bomb)		 It can beat any other category and individual card except Nuke or another Bomb with a higher rank.

[edit] Category of hands

The game uses the concept of hands, similar to the hands in poker, except there are more variations and not necessarily consisted of only five cards.

  • Compare only the same Category. A player can only beat the prior hand using of the same Category but not the others.
  • Compare only the Chains with the same length. Beat the prior hand using the same number of cards is a basic doctrine which only the Nuke and the Bomb may violate. For example, although both 9-10-J-Q-K and 3-4-5-6-7-8-9 are Single Chains, 9-10-J-Q-K cannot beat 3-4-5-6-7-8-9, nor vice versa.
  • Compare the rank in the Primal cards only. The Kicker's rank is irrelevant to the comparison.
  • Jokers and 2 are inconsecutive cards. Colored Joker, B&W Joker, and 2 cannot be used in any of the Primal cards of the Chains since they are not traditionally considered as the consecutive cards sequentially next to the Ace. Examples of illegal Chain: 2-3-4-5-6, 2-2-2-3-3-3 w/ A-A-7-7, K-A-2 + B&W Joker + Colored Joker
The Longest Chain possible column is only applicable to a hand with twenty cards, which the Cop possesses after seizing the three leftover wild cards.
Category Description Example
Primal with (/w) Kicker Chain Lowest rank
and/or Shortest Chain		 Highest rank
and/or Longest Chain possible
Solo Х Chain ≥ 5 consecutive individual cards 3-4-5-6-7 3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-J-Q-K-A
Pair Х — Two matching cards of equal rank 3-3 2-2
Pair Х Chain ≥ 3 consecutive Pairs 3-3-4-4-5-5 5-5-6-6-7-7-8-8-9-9-10-10-J-J-Q-Q-K-K-A-A
Trio — — Three of a Kind: Three individual cards of the same rank 3-3-3 2-2-2
Trio — Chain ≥ 2 consecutive Trios 3-3-3-4-4-4 9-9-9-10-10-10-J-J-J-Q-Q-Q-K-K-K-A-A-A
Trio Solo — Three cards of the same rank with a Solo as the kicker 3-3-3 w/ A 2-2-2 w/ 4
Trio Solo Chain ≥ 2 consecutive Trios with each carries a distinct individual card as the kicker 3-3-3-4-4-4 w/ 2 + Colored Joker 10-10-10-J-J-J-Q-Q-Q-K-K-K-A-A-A w/ 3-4-5-6-9
Trio Pair — Three cards of the same rank with a Pair as the kicker 3-3-3 w/ 5-5 2-2-2 w/ 8-8
Trio Pair Chain ≥ 2 consecutive Trios with each carries a pair as the kicker 3-3-3-4-4-4 w/ 2-2-7-7 J-J-J-Q-Q-Q-K-K-K-A-A-A w/ 2-2-5-5-6-6-8-8
Four → Bomb Four must carry a Kicker. Four cards of the same rank without the Kicker is called Bomb, which defies category rules, even beats Four /w a Kicker. 3-3-3-3 2-2-2-2
Four Dual Solo Х Four cards of the same rank with two distinct individual cards as the kicker 3-3-3-3 w/ 2-A 2-2-2-2 w/ 5 + B&W Joker
Four Dual Pair Х Four cards of the same rank with two sets of pair as the kicker 3-3-3-3 w/ 3-3-Q-Q 2-2-2-2 w/ 10-10-K-K

[edit] Illegal Play with the Kicker

Beginners and players who are familiar with some other card games with similar but different hand's rules often misinterpret some of the rules that involve the Kicker causing illegal play.

Illegal Play Example Correction
Rank of the Kicker = Rank of the Primal cards Trio Chain /w Solo is 3-3-3-4-4-4 /w 3-K When using any Kicker attached to Primal Cards, the Kicker card cannot be the same card rank of any Primal Cards used.
Dual Solo = Pair Four /w Dual Solo: 3-3-3-3 /w J-J Dual Solo must consist of two cards with different ranks, such as J-K.
Dual Pair = 4 Cards of the Same Rank Four /w Dual Pair: 3-3-3-3 /w J-J-J-J Dual Pair must consist of two sets of pairs of different ranks, such as 3-3-7-7.
Nuke = Kicker cards Four /w Dual Solo: 3-3-3-3 /w Colored Joker + B&W Joker. Only one of the Jokers can be used as a Kicker card in a Single or Dual Solo Kicker.

[edit] Scoring rules

There are 4 elements that will affect the score in a round: Bid of the risk stake, the position of the player (Cop/ Bandit), Nuke and Bomb, No deals played.

  • Bid of the risk stake. There are three kinds of risk stakes, 1, 2, and 3, from low to top. It is the basic score of the game in a round.
  • The position of the player (Cop/ Bandit). The Cop shoulders the risk of lose while the 2 Bandits share it. The Cop wins double score while 2 Bandit share it.
  • Nuke and Bomb. Each Nuke and Bomb dealt by each player doubles the score in a round.
  • No deals played. If the player doesn’t deal any card in a round, the final score will be double.

Since there are so many elements affecting score of the game in a round, it is hard to predict how big one will win or lose.

[edit] Basic strategy

  • Players can deal with unrelated or useless cards by making them the Kicker Card.[1]
  • Nuke and Bomb are the ultimate weapons in the game. If they are in one's hand, one should make full use of it when time comes. Be warned, if players do not possess high confidence in winning, they should think it twice whether dealing a Nuke/Bomb or not. Because once the Nuke/Bomb is dealt, the risk stake of the round will be doubled for each Nuke/Bomb dealt. Players will either win or lose double for each Nuke/Bomb dealt.
  • Bandits should co-operate together to fight against the Cop.
  • Bid high for Cop with the best hand. If a player has the best hand, bid high for the position of Cop enables him to win a bigger pot.

[edit] History

The game is originated and popularized in Huangshan District[2] and Anhui.[3] Dou Di Zhu popularity spreads to Shanghai and Chengdu in China, which are among the four direct-controlled municipalities.

[edit] Origin of the Name Dou Di Zhu

The class struggle during the Cultural Revolution in China reportedly authorized the peasants to violate the human rights of the landlords who were among the Five Black Categories and Stinking Old Ninth, whence the name Dou Di Zhu, (simplified Chinese: 斗地主; traditional Chinese: 斗地主; pinyin: Doù Dìzhǔ; literally "Fight Landlord"). China's Generation Y, who are among one of the most enthusiastic player groups, has no personal experience of the class struggle. Nowadays, the name of the game carries no negative connotation.

[edit] Tournaments

In 2005 117,931 people participated in the Dou De Zhu online tournament held by GICQ, an online game development and operation company in China.

In 2006 another Dou Di Zhu online tournament held by www.vnet.cn, attracted 200,000 players to compete with each other.

In September 2007 YunNanHong held a traditional competition of Dou Di Zhu in Kunming, China, where over a hundred people competed for the first prize (source: yndaily.com).

Dou Di Zhu tournaments are held in Chinese cities every year, the winners not only receive high prize but also become popular experts in Dou Di Zhu.

[edit] Popularity

Dou Di Zhu was once just a provincial game in China. Thanks to the debut of Dou Di Zhu online, Dou Di Zhu has become more wide spread and is now a national game in China. The popularity of Doh Di Zhu has increased substantially, from 50,000 in December 2002 to 100,000 in 2004[4] and 17,900,000 players being the loyal fans of the casual game while Dou Di Zhu leading the core place in 2005.[5] There are almost 1 million concurrent Dou Di Zhu players on the Tencent QQ game platform alone.[6]. It is more popular than other Chinese poker games like Chinese poker and Big Two.

Year Popularity in China Source
2002 50,000 players GICQ(ourgame.com)
2004 100,000 players GICQ(ourgame.com)
2005 17,900,000 players being the loyal fans of the casual game while Dou Di Zhu leading the core place. Chinese Online Game Research Report in 2005 made by iResearch
2006 +1,000,000 online player play it concurrently Tencent QQ game platform in China
2008 roughly 1,450,000 online players per hour in Tencent QQ game platform Tencent QQ game platform in China
2008 roughly 76,000 online players per hour in GICQ GICQ

[edit] References

  1. ^ AceNuke. Tutorial of AceNuke. Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
  2. ^ 刘, 祥夫 (2003). 斗地主, 新型智力扑克牌游戏. 安徽人民出版社, 1. ISBN 7212021830. 
  3. ^ 励, 锦明 (2003). 魔法精灵"斗地主". 上海科学普及出版社, 1. ISBN 7542723030. 
  4. ^ 晶合时代. 联众"斗地主"同场竞技人数突破10万大关. Retrieved on 2004-02-14.
  5. ^ iResearch. 1790万人疯狂，征途斗地主真相调查. Retrieved on 2006-05-18.
  6. ^ 北京商报. QQ新联网斗地主玩家近万. Retrieved on 2006-10-25.
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