There’s Strength in Numbers: The 5- and 10-point Patterns of Zung Jung

“5 points? 10 points? Who really cares? If I go for those, in a few hands one of my opponents will blow me out of the water with some 40-point pattern! In fact, you just had an article all about that! What gives?!”

Yes, well I did just talk about the Top Ten patterns to focus on. Yes, the Par Score de-emphasizes smaller-scoring hands/patterns. But that’s not to say to forget about the low-scoring patterns. Small individually, but mighty together, they are not to be overlooked. Sometimes the hand you’re working toward never comes together. Sometimes, your hand is so bad you don’t even know where to begin. When the big patterns shoot you down, look to these patterns to lift you back up again – they are stronger than they look.

Note: For purposes of this article we will be ignoring the Category 9 Incidental Bonuses patterns, many of which are 10 points, because they are, well, incidental and therefore unreliable to build a hand around.

The 5- and 10-point Patterns

• 1.1 All Sequences (平和) : 5 points
  The hand contains 4 sequences; no triplets/kong.
• 1.2 Concealed Hand (門前清) : 5 points
  A regular hand which is concealed, without melding any exposed sets before winning. Winning on discard is okay. Concealed kong are okay.
• 1.3 No Terminals (斷么九) : 5 points
  The hand consists entirely of middle number tiles (2 to 8); no terminals or honors.
• 3.1 Value Honor (番牌) : 10 points per set
  A triplet/kong of your Seat Wind or Dragons
• 4.2.1 Two Concealed Triplets (二暗刻) : 5 points
  The hand contains two concealed triplets/concealed kong.
• 4.3.1 One Kong (一槓) : 5 points
  The hand contains one kong. (Irrespective of whether it is exposed or concealed)
• 5.1.1 Two Identical Sequences (一般高) : 10 points
  Two sequences in the same suit in the same numbers.

Of course, you can make a hand with just one of these patterns and win some quick points. At times, you may want to do just that. However, the key to unlocking the potential of these patterns is in combining them. It may take you an extra turn or two to make two (or more) of these patterns, instead of one. Nevertheless, since the nature of the scoring system is getting paid out by every player, the net advantage created by even slightly higher-scoring hands is usually worth the small risk.

A hand with Two Identical Sequences would be silly not to at least try for 2 more sequences to add All Sequences into the mix. Even better if you avoid using terminals, then you can add another 5 points. They’re already more difficult to make sequences with in the first place. And all said and done 20 points is a respectable hand. Alternatively, Two Identical Sequences and a Value Honor get you to the same score of 20 (and if you get lucky, it may end up turning into a Mixed One-Suit with that Value Honor).

With Two Concealed Triplets, you’ve already done half the work, so keeping your entire hand concealed is a worth a shot. If you were able to make one of those triplets out of dragons or your seat wind, perfect – another 20 point hand.

And never forget, since Zung Jung has an additive scoring system, to count these patterns in your higher-scoring hands as well. There is no sense in leaving points on the table. You never know when those points may end up making the difference between first and second place.

-ZJMJ

Have a new found appreciation for the little guys? Or have they done more harm than good in your game? Comment below and let’s hear your thoughts!