GNAU
Game Rules
The card game Gnau or Ngau or "Ngao" (British Chinese), which means Ox in English, is a card game played in Malaysia, where it originated. It is played mainly in China and Malaysia.
Setup
One player volunteers to be the dealer. The dealer then shuffles the cards and distributes them in a clockwise or counter clockwise manner to all players, 5 cards for each. The extra cards are put aside.
The counting system is done in what is called Ox. The Ox values of the cards are as follows:
- Ace=1,
- 2,4,5,7,8,9 = respective eye values
- 10,J,Q,K = 10
- 3 = 3 or 6 (the player can flexibly decide for which value the card stands, depending on what makes the most sense for the turn).
- 6 = 3 or 6 (the player can flexibly decide for which value the card stands, depending on what makes the most sense for the turn).
Gameplay
The objective of the game is identify 3 of the 5 cards that Ox values sum up to a multiple of 10, that is 10 or 20 or 30. If a player is able to do so, he is said to have an Ox. The other two cards show "how powerful" his Ox is. Because 3's and 6's are interchangeable, there may be more than one way to form an Ox. The player should choose a way that makes the Ox most powerful.
Ranking of Oxen:
Here shows the ranking of oxen from lowest to highest:
- No Ox: Player is unable to form an Ox, that is no 3 cards sums up to multiple of 10.
- Ordinary Ox: ranked by the sum of the other 2 cards (if the sum is greater than 10, take the remainder after subtraction of 10)
- Double Ox: if the other 2 cards are equal in face values (not Ox values). ranked by the face value of the double.
- Ngau Tonku: if the other 2 cards having Ace spade & picture (J,Q,K). If the Ace is others, that is called nenku and only count as 1.
- Five Dukes: if all five cards have values 10.
Hierarchy of Oxen:
- 5 Dukes
- Ngau Ton Ku (Ace Spade + Duke)
- Double-Ox K
- Double-Ox Q
- Double-Ox J
- Double-Ox 10
- Double-Ox 9
- Double-Ox 8
- Double-Ox 7
- Double-Ox 6 (3 can be changed to 6 & can be inter-paired, if designated)
- Double-Ox 5
- Double-Ox 4
- Double-Ox 3 (3 can be changed to 6 & can be inter-paired, if designated)
- Double-Ox 2
- Double-Ox Ace
- Ox of 10
- Ox of 8
- Ox of 7
- Ox of 6
- Ox of 5
- Ox of 4
- Ox of 3
- Ox of 2
- Ox of 1
Scoring
You can score by winning Oxen.
- No Ox: 0 point
- Ordinary Ox: 1 point
- Double Ox: 2 points
- Ngau Tonku : 5 points (triple pay)
- Five Dukes: 10 points
End of game
The players play with the dealer and not with each other. So if your ox cannot beat the dealer's ox, the dealer subtracts the number of points the dealer's ox is worth from you and adds it to his total. Or vice versa, if the player's ox can beat the dealer's. If both have Five Dukes, it is a draw.