A Beginner's Guide to Japanese Mahjong

A comprehensive guide that covers all the basics of Japanese Mahjong.

Introduction

Hello and welcome to a Beginner's Guide to Japanese Mahjong! If you've clicked this link, it means you have an interest in Japanese Mahjong, which is fantastic. If you clicked this link by mistake, stick around. You may discover a wonderful new game you can enjoy for a long time.

The purpose of this guide is to provide a comprehensive and complete guide for beginners on Japanese Mahjong. Ultimately, with this guide, you will transform from this...




Into a champ. Except for mahjong.

Disclaimer

This guide contains a lot of text, as it is geared towards people with little to no knowledge about mahjong. I tired to break it up as often as I could with pictures, but some sections still contain large amouts of text. This guide also contains puns. Just a heads up.

Also, the part about being a champ? Totally not true. Even though it would be amazing to be the John Cena of the Saki universe. Or John Cena in general. Speaking of Saki, the anime is fantastic. It was what got me into mahjong in the first place. If you like anime and you like mahjong, I highly recommend it.

Ready? Let's go!

What is Mahjong?

Japanese Mahjong (麻雀 or 麻将) is a table game similar to Poker that can be played with two to four people. Also known as Rīchi Mahjong, it is a variation of traditional Chinese Mahjong. Mahjong was brought to Japan in 1924 by a soldier named Saburo Hirayama, where it grew in popularity and eventually became the most popular table game in Japan. It is a game that is easy to learn and rewarding to master.

Mahjong Terminology

Before you can begin playing Japanese Mahjong, you first need to learn some terms and rules. Below are a list of terms that you may encounter while playing mahjong or using this guide.

Equipment

Table

The area where the game is played. More advanced tables have high-tech features, such as automated tile dealing and score-keeping capabilities.

Tile

What mahjong is played with. They can be compared to a deck of playing cards. A typical set of Japanese mahjong tiles consists of 136 tiles. The next part of the guide focuses entirely on these.

Round Indicator

A two-sided flat tile used to show what round the game is currently in.

Tenbou

Also called point sticks, these are sticks used to keep score. The number of dots on each stick determines its point value.

• The stick with 8 dots is worth 100 points
  
• The stick with 1 dot is worth 1000 points
  
• The stick with 5 dots is worth 5000 points
  
• The stick with 9 dots is worth 10000 points

Honba

Any hand that ends with the same dealer position (either a draw or the dealer wins) results in the addition of a honba, or bonus counter. Bonus counters are extra point sticks temporarily taken from the dealer and placed into the middle after a hand where the dealer position does not change or after an exhaustive draw. Honba are worth a different amount of points depending on how the hand is won. All honba are removed after a non-dealer win.

Dice

Dice are used to determine several things in mahjong, including who starts off as dealer, where people sit, and how the tiles are divided.

Game Mechanics

Seat

In mahjong, your seat determines when you are dealer and where on the table you sit. There are four seats at a mahjong table, one for each of the four Cardinal Directions (North, South, East, West.)

Wind

The direction of the wind gives players bonus points. There are two types of winds. Seat winds are the wind tiles that match the seat you are sitting in. The prevalent wind is the wind of the round you are currently in. A player gets increased bonus points if both winds are the same.

Dealer

The dealer is the player that draws the first tile each turn. The dealer gains and loses more points than the other players. The dealer always shares the same wind as the current round. The dealer is also referred to as the parent, while the non-dealers are called children.

Hand

The tiles you are currently holding. A hand in mahjong contains 13 tiles, meaning you cannot hold more that 13 tiles at a time. When you add or remove tiles, it is referred to as building your hand. A hand is also a complete turn of mahjong (from the time the first tile is drawn to either a win or draw.)

Round

A round in mahjong consists of 4 turns. When all four players have gotten to be the dealer, the round ends. A typical game of Japanese mahjong last four rounds, but the length of a game can vary from two rounds all the way up to 20 rounds.

Go-Around

A go-around is a complete cycle of all players drawing and discarding a tile. If you win a hand on the fifth go-around, it means you have won before everyone has drawn five extra tiles.

Draw

The process of adding tiles to your hand is referred to as drawing tiles.

Discard

Any tiles that you do not need in your hand are considered discards. Discards are placed vertically in 3 rows, with 6 tiles per row in front of you. Your pile should be placed in front of the wall.

Closed Hand

A hand that does not use any other players discards to complete their hand is refered to as a closed hand.

Open Hand

A hand that use one or more discards from other players to complete their hand is refered to as an open hand. Open hands have certain win restrictions placed on them.

Wall

Where tiles are drawn from. It can be compared to a deck of cards. The wall forms a square in the middle of the table. Sometimes it is referred to as the live wall.

Dead Wall

The part of the wall where tiles are not drawn from under normal circumstances. Players may only draw a tile from the dead wall during special conditions. The dead wall also shows the bonus tiles for the hand.

Ornithology 101: From Cardinals to Charlie Parker

Rounds in Japanese mahjong are named after the four Cardinal directions: North, South, East, and West. The rounds always follow the same order: East (1,) South (2,) West (3,) North (4.) At the start of the game, it is always the East Round.The dealer determines the hand of the round. For example, if the West player is dealing during the East Round, it would be considered East Round, Hand 3.

A round consists of at least four turns, or hands. If each player wins once while they are not dealer, the round is finished and the players move on to the next round. So, if there were only four hands in the East Round, the game would move on to the South Round. If a player wins while they are dealer, however, a bonus hand occurs. A bonus hand, or renchan (連荘,) allows the current dealer to remain as dealer and gives bonus points to the winner of the bonus hand. The more consecutive wins a player has, the more bonus points they can get. There are some rules that grant a yakuman (a very high point hand) to a player that reaches eight consecutive wins.

An average game of mahjong lasts for 2 East-South rounds, which are called hanchan (半荘.) A 2-hanchan game consists of two combined rounds of East and two combined rounds of South. This is most easily explained the following way:

Assuming there are no bonus hands

Round	Hand
East 1	1-4
South 1	1-4
East 2	1-4
South 2	1-4

Players can choose to make the game as long or as short as they wish. The trick to remebering the number of hands per round corresponds to the total number of rounds the players want to play.

Round	# of Hands per Hanchan
East	8
East-South	16
East-West	24
East-North	32
East-East	40

In case you were wondering, yes, the title of this section is a bad pun. Ornithology is the study of birds, and cardinals are a type of bird. Ornithology is also the title of a Charlie Parker song, who's nickname was the Yardbird. So he's also related, even though he's not a real bird. It's funny, I swear.

Mahjong Tiles

A typical set of Japanese mahjong tiles consists 136 tiles. There are five main types of tiles.

• Pin (筒子, pinzu,) or Circle tiles are the tiles with the red and blue circles.
  
  
• Sou (索子, sōzu,) or Bamboo tiles are the tiles with the green and red bamboo. The 1 tile of this suit has a red and green peacock.
  
  
• Wan/Man (萬子, wanzu, or manzu,) or Character tiles are the tiles with the red and black characters. Characters are the written system of Chinese (both Cantonese and Mandarin) and Japanese.
  
  
• Wind Tiles (風牌, kazehai) are the tiles with the large black characters.
  
  
• Dragon Tiles (三元牌, sangenpai) are a bit random. One is blank, one has a large green character and one has a large red character.

A hand containing all five types of tiles. From left to right, there are 3 Wan tiles, 3 Pin tiles, 4 Sou tiles, 2 Wind tiles, and 1 Dragon tile.

Suit-Based Tiles

The first three types of tiles are suit-based tiles, meaning they consist of tiles numbered one through nine. Counting the Pin and Sou tiles are relatively simple, as the number of circles or bamboo on the tile equals the value of the tile. The only exception to this rule is the 1-Sou, which features a peacock.

The Wan tiles are a little more complicated for those unaccustomed to Chinese or Japanese. Tiles 1 - 3 follow the rule of the other two suits. Tiles 4 - 9, however, do not.





A winning hand containing every Wan tile. From left to right, the Wan tiles are arranged numerically from 1-9. The 5-Wan is the winning tile for the hand, located on the right.

Honor Tiles

The last two types of tiles do not follow a numerical suit. Instead, they follow a specific pattern and repeat when they reach the end of the pattern. These tiles are called Honor Tiles.

There are four different Wind tiles, one for each of the Cardinal directions. Like Wan tiles, they can be difficult for those unfamiliar with Chinese or Japanese.

• Ton (東,) or East
  
  
• Nan (南,) or South
  
  
• Shā (西,) or West
  
  
• Pei (北,) or North

The pattern for Wind tiles begins with the East Wind, and proceeds clockwise. A complete cycle is East --> South --> West --> North, before returining once again to East.





A hand showing all four Wind tiles. The Wind tiles are the last four tiles in the player's hand and are arranged in the order following the cycle written above. From left to right, the Wind tiles read East, South, West, North.


Dragon tiles are less dificult to read that Wind or Wan tiles, as each one is distinctive. There are three different Dragon tiles.

• The blank tile is the White Dragon (白.) It is also refered to as Tofu.
  
  
• The tile with the large and complicated green character is the Green Dragon (發.)
  
  
• The tile with the large and simple red character is the Red Dragon (中.)

The pattern for the Dragon tiles begins with the White Dragon, followed by the Green Dragon, and ending with the Red Dragon. A complete cycle is White --> Green --> Red, before returning to White.





A Hand containing all three Dragon tiles. The Dragon tiles are the last three tiles in the player's hand and are arranged following the cycle written above. From left to right, the Dragon tiles read White, Green, Red.

Mahjong Terminology Part 2 - Electric Boogaloo

Meld

A series of three tiles that form a patttern in some way. Melds can be either three consecutive numbers (1-2-3) or 3 of a kind (three 5's.)

Pair

Two of the same tile (two 8's.)

Quad

Four of the same tile (four 8's.)

Terminals

Any tile that has a value of 1 or 9 is considered a terminal tile, or end tile.

Honor Tiles

An honor tile is any of the non-numerical tiles. Both the Wind tiles and Dragon tiles are honor tiles.

Simple Tiles

Any tile that has a value of 2 through 8 is a simple tile.

Call

A call is when you use a tile discarded by your opponent to complete one of your own melds. Calls can only be performed under certain circumstances and change the state of your hand from closed to open.

Wait

A wait is the tile you need in order to complete your hand and win. A hand can have multiple waits.

Winning Hand - Yaku - (役)

In Japanese mahjong, a winning hand is called a yaku. A yaku consists of four melds and a pair. Each yaku has its own point value. To win, a hand must meet the requirement of at least one yaku. There are also hands which are very hard to get and worth a lot of points. These are called Yakuman (役満.)

Tsumo - (自摸)

Winning a hand by drawing the tile needed to complete their hand from the wall. When you win by tsumo, the point value for the hand is divided among the other three players. Winning by tsumo is a yaku.

Ron - (栄)

Winning a hand by using a discard from another player. When you win by ron, the point value for the hand is taken from the player who discarded the tile. Winning by ron is not a yaku.

Exhaustive Draw

If no players win a hand during the current round, the round is considered a draw. Players receive points depending on their standing at the end of the hand.

Abortive Draw

An abortive draw occurs during certain situations. If an abortive draw occurs, players discard their entire hands and begin a new hand. There are 3 types of abortive draws

• If all four players discard the same wind tile on the first go-around, if no calls are made, the hand is a draw.
  
• If all four players declare rīchi, the hand is a draw.
  
• If 4 four of a kinds are made, the hand is considered a draw.

Tenpai

When a player completes their hand, but does not get the tile they are waiting for, they are considered to be in Tenpai. In the case of an exhaustive draw, players in tenpai receive points from the players who are not. No points are given if all players are in tenpai.

No-Ten

When a player does not complete their hand, they are not considered to be in tenpai. Instead, they are considered No-ten. In the case of an exhaustive draw, players in no-ten give points to the players who are in tenpai. No points are given if all players are in no-ten.

Furiten - (振聴)

If a player is in tenpai, but has discarded a copy of the tile they need to win the hand, they are considered to be in furiten. For example, if a player is waiting on a 2-Pin to complete a pair or sequence, they cannot win if another player discards a 2-Pin. A player in furiten can only win if they drawing the tile they need from the wall themselves. If the player changes their wait to a new tile, they can leave furiten, provided they haven't discarded a copy of the new wait or declared rīchi.





Because the player discarded the 3-Pin earlier, they have placed themselves in furiten and are unable to win the hand using the discard of another player.

Rīchi - (立直)

If a player needs only one tile to complete their hand, they may declare rīchi, meaning they have a ready hand. Rīchi is a kind of yaku and allows a player can win on a discard even when the hand does not meet any other yaku. In order to declare rīchi, two conditions must be met. First, the player's hand must be closed, meaning the player cannot have made calls to open their hand. Additionally, the player must pay a deposit of 1000 points. After rīchi, players may no longer change their hand.

When a player declares rīchi, they must say "Rīchi" loud enough for the other players to hear and acknowledge it.









The process for declaring rīchi.


There is an exception to this rule however. If a player draws a tile needed for a quad, they may call the quad if, and only if, the extra tile does not change the wait of the hand.





Here, the player is able to make a quad of the four 6-Pin even after declaring rīchi, as it does not change their waits.

Dora - (ドラ)

Not to be confused with the world-class explorer of the same name, dora are bonus tile that adds points to a hand. Every kind of tile can become a dora tile. Additionally, the same tile can be worth multiple dora. Which tiles are dora are indicated by their place in the wall and their place in the tile pattern.

Dora follows a sequential pattern, so if the dora indicator shows a one, two will be considered a dora, because it is next in the pattern. If two is the dora indicator, a three will be considered a dora, and so on. This continues all the way through nine. If nine is the dora indicator, the pattern loops back around and repeats from one. Dragon tiles and Wind tiles both follow their own unique cycles.

Some mahjong tile sets feature numerical tiles (the fives) colored all red. These red tiles are considered dora and do not need any dora indicator. If a four of the same suit is a dora indicator, the red five is worth two dora instead of one. A set of tiles can have anywhere from 3 - 6 red tiles.




A winning hand with four dora. In this hand, the 9-Sou and White Dragon are considered dora indicators, meaning the next tiles in the sequence are worth bonus points. Here, the Green Dragons are considered dora, because they come after the White Dragon in the sequence. The fourth dora is the Red 5-Sou. Because this is a special tile, it does not need any dora indicators.

Dora are not counted as yaku, meaning that a player cannot win unless they have another yaku in their hand. Dora can also be created through the use of quads.

Ura-Dora - (裏ドラ)

When a player wins after declaring rīchi, the tiles underneath the dora indicators are flipped after the win and become additional dora indicators. The same rules apply to these tiles as regular dora indicators. The dora of the flipped tiles are called ura-dora.




Because the player called rīchi and won, an ura-dora was created. The new ura-dora indicator is the 4-Wan, meaning the new dora is the 5-Wan, giving the hand a total of 2 dora.

Mahjong Terminology 33 1/3: Exhaustive and Abortive Draws (and some other stuff that wouldn't fit in the above section)

As some readers have pointer out, a few of the above rules are incompletely explained, so I added this section as a means to help clarify the rules. Also, it wouldn't fit in the previous section due to the character limit. Bonus points to you if you get the title reference.

Special thanks to user saruman for bringing this issue to my attention.

Exhaustive Draw

If no players win a hand during the current round, the round is considered a draw. Players receive points depending on their standing at the end of the hand. During an exhaustive draw, players should check whether they finished in tenpai or no-ten and give points accordingly. After doing so, they should add a bonus counter and rotate the dealer position if needed.

- If all players are in tenpai, no points are awarded. A bonus counter is added and the dealer position remains the same.

- If no players are in tenpai, no points are awarded. A bonus counter is added and the dealer position rotates to the next player.

- If players are both in tenpai and no-ten, the players in no-ten give points to the players in tenpai. Dealer position only changes if the dealer was no-ten. A bonus counter is always added in the case of an exhaustive draw.

Abortive Draw

An abortive draw occurs during certain situations. If an abortive draw occurs, players discard their entire hands and begin a new hand. A bonus counter is added to the next hand after an abortive draw. There are 3 types of abortive draws

If all four players discard the same wind tile on the first go-around, if no calls are made, the hand is a draw.
If all four players declare rīchi, the hand is a draw.
If 4 four of a kinds are made, the hand is considered a draw only if the 4 four of a kinds are spread out among at least two players. If one player has declared 4 four of a kinds, the hand is considered a normal hand.

Additionally, on a player's first turn when no meld has been called if a player has nine different terminal and honor tiles, they may declare the hand to be an abortive drawn. This is called kyūshu kyūhai - (九種九牌,) However, because the player can still choose to play the hand, this call is optional .

Tenpai/No-ten Point distribution

In the case of an exhaustive draw, players may receive points from other players depending on their hand at the time. The total amount of points exchanged during an exhaustive draw is always 3000.

• If all players are in tenpai, no points are awarded.
  
• If one player is in tenpai, the players in no-ten give 1000 points each to the player in tenpai.
  
• If two players are in tenpai, the players in no-ten give 1500 points each to the players in tenpai.
  
• If three players are in tenpai, the player in no-ten give 1000 points each to the players in tenpai.
  
• If everyone is in no-tenpai, no points are awarded.

Tiles and the Walls

The number of tiles in the walls (both live and dead) can affect certain rules within the game.

• If there are less than four tiles remaining in the live wall, rīchi cannot be called.
  
• If there are no tiles remaining in the live wall, Kans cannot be called, as the dead wall must always have 14 tiles.

Setup

So, now that you've learned some basics, it's time to get ready to play. If you're playing on a computer or console, the setup is easy. Just launch the program and you're good to go. A little more work is required for real mahjong. Before you start, you need to make sure you have the following:

Checklist

A table
Four chairs
A complete set of Mahjong Tiles (136)
97 point sticks
2 dice
1 round-indicator tile
Some paper and pencils
A calculator

If you don't have any point sticks, dice, or round indicators, don't worry. Since this is the modern age, you can use your phone or a computer for math calculations, score keeping, and anything else you might need. For a round indicator, you can use any durable two-sided, two-faced object, like a coin or poker chip.

Determining Seating

To begin, sit at the table. Find and mix one of each Wind tile and one White Dragon tile, face down. Have each player take one tile. If a player draws the White Dragon, they draw a second tile. If no player draws the White Dragon, the last player who drew a tile takes the White Dragon.

Now that each player has a Wind tile, see which player has the White Dragon. The White Dragon determines the location of the East seat. So, for instance, if you drew both the South Wind and the White Dragon, you will need to move one seat counterclockwise (to your right.) Everyone now should be sitting in the correct seat, following the pattern of the four Winds. Using the above example, if the South player was originally on the right side of the table, the final seating would be

East	Right
South	Top
West	Left
North	Bottom

Rules and Points

Now that you have found your seat, you will need to decide on the rules for the round. If you're just starting out, there are only two things you should decide on: the length of the round and the number of points each player starts with. An average game of Japanese mahjong is 2 East-South rounds. The average number of points is 25,000. For a 25,000 point game, give each player 10 100-point sticks, 4 1000-point sticks, 2 5000-point sticks, and 1 10000-point stick. The round indicator (or its equivalent) should be placed on the East Side by the dealer.

Constructing the Wall

After making sure the tiles are shuffled face down, the next step is to organize the tiles into four rows. Have each player take tiles and place them face down in a row in front of them. The completed row of tiles must be 17 tiles long and 2 tiles high (17 x 2) for a total of 34 tiles. After all players have completed their rows, the East player rolls both dice. The number on the dice determines which wall will be broken.

For example, if the dealer rolls a 3:



The walls are counted counterclockwise starting with the dealer.



Count the same number of tiles from the right side of the wall relative to the player. Break the wall here.



From the break, count 7 tiles to the right (continuing to the next wall if needed) and place another break here. This separate section is the dead wall.



Count three tiles to the right from the original break and flip over the top tile. This is the dora indicator, which determines the dora for the hand.

Drawing your Hand

Almost done. The East player takes two stacks of tiles from the wall nearest the dora indicator, for a total of four tiles. The tiles are always taken from the left of the dead wall. Tiles should then be taken by the South player, the West player, and the North player in that order. Don't forget that tiles are taken in a clockwise pattern. Players repeat this pattern a total of 3 times. All players should now have 12 tiles. Have the dealer separate 2 more stacks of tiles from the wall and have each player take one tile in turn from the stacks. This gives each player their 13th tile. Each player should arrange their tiles vertically in front of them, with the picture on each tile facing the player.





Finally, you are ready to start playing mahjong. Marvelous!

Additional Rules

Or not. Here are some optional rules you can play with if you choose.

Fissure/Split - Wareme - (割れ目)

Wareme is an optional rule that doubles point losses and gains. Wareme is applied to the player in front of whom the wall was split to indicate the end of the dead wall. The point doubling is applied after the points for the hand are calculated. If the player whose wall is broken is the dealer, it is called oya-ware (親割れ.)

Roasted Chicken - Yakitori - (焼き鳥)

Yakitori is an optional rule. If a player did not win a hand in a match, that player pays a penalty. After each player wins a hand, a marker is flipped to show they have won a hand. Much like with the round indicator, a coin or poker chip can be used.

Win and Finish - Agari-yame - (あがりやめ)

If the dealer in the last hand of the last round wins, they can select to end the game immediately or to play an additional hand.

Tobi - (鳶)

Tobi is an optional rule which allows play to continue if a player falls below zero points.

The One Responsible Pays - Sekinin Barai

If a player wins with a tsumo after an open kan, the player who provided the extra tile must pay the entire sum of the hand themselves.

Penalty - Chombo (チョンボ)

A chombo is a penalty the player pays under certain conditions. A non-dealer pays 4,000 to East and 2,000 to the other two players, while a dealer pays 4,000 to each. Any rīchi bets are returned to the players after the end of a chombo hand. Chombo occurs for any of the following:

• Invalidly claiming a winning hand.
  
• Winning on a discard while in furiten.
  
• Declaring rīchi with a hand that is not in tenpai.
  
• Calling a quad after declaring rīchi if it changes the content of the hand.
  
• Having more than 14 tiles in your hand. The exception to this rule is if a player has declared four quads.
  
• Crashing the wall so that it cannot be recovered.

Kyūshu Kyūhai - (九種九牌)

On a player's first turn when no meld has been called, if a player has nine different terminal and honor tiles, the player may declare the hand to be an abortive drawn.

Kuikae - (喰い替え)

This rule applies to calls. If kuikae is in effect, a player cannot discard a copy of the tile called that turn to complete the meld. For example, if a player calls a red 5-Pin to complete a 3-4-5 Pin sequence, they cannot discard a regular 5-Pin that turn. There is also a variation of kuikae in which none of the tiles used to complete a sequence can be discarded. Under full kuikae, if a player calls a red 5-Pin to complete a 3-4-5 sequence, they cannot discard any 5-Pins or 2-Pins, since the 2-Pin can also be used to complete the sequence.

Ryan Han Shibari - Honba Yaku Limit

A rule that states that any time the table has 5 or more honba on it, a winning hand must have at least 2 han.

Now you are ready to play mahjong.

Rīchi for the Top - Building Your Hand

Terrible pun aside, its now time to start forming your hand.

Begin by having the dealer (the player sitting East) draw the first tile from the wall. Next, the dealer should choose a tile to discard. After the dealer finishes their turn, the player sitting to the right of the dealer (the player sitting South) should draw and discard one tile. The player sitting West should go third, followed by the player sitting North. After everyone has gone, the cycle repeats. This repeats until one of four things happens.

Situation 1 - Someone calls a tile

At some point during the hand, one player may discard a tile that the other player wants to use. If the tile can be used to complete a sequence, the tile may be called. The player who calls the tile removes it from the discard pile and places it with the other tiles of the sequence. The sequence is then placed in the bottom-right corner relative to the player. The player who calls the tile then proceeds to discard a tile, and play resumes with the next player in line. For example, if the East player calls a tile discarded by the West player, the North player is skipped. After the East player discards a tile, play resumes from the South player.

Situation 2 - Someone declares rīchi

At some point during the hand, one or more players may declare rīchi. When declaring rīchi, a player must place 1000 points on the table and place the tile they are discarding sideways in their pile. Play resumes as normal.

Situation 3 - Someone wins the hand

This commonly occurs after a player declares rīchi. When a player draws a tile or another player discards a tile needed to complete a winning hand, the hand is considered over. The player must reveal their winning hand and add up the total score. The winning player collects all rīchi sticks and play resumes with a new hand. If two people can win off the same discard, the person who discarded the tile must pay the value of both hands. If three people can win off of the same discard, the hand is considered a draw.

Situation 4 - No one wins the hand

If no players can complete a hand before tiles run out, the hand is considered a draw. If a player is in tenpai, they reveal their hand. Those who are not in tenpai do not have to reveal their hand, but can do so if they desire. Players in tenpai receive points from those not in tenpai. If everyone is in tenpai or not in tenpai, no points are awarded. Play resumes with a new hand.

Let's take a look at a random hand and walk through its developement.




Not the best, but not the worst either. We can see that this hand has a pair of South Winds. Because we are sitting South, the South tiles give us bonus points. The hand has a 1-Sou, which is a dora and gives bonus points. There is also a sequence of the 3-4-5 Pin, along with a pair of 3-Wan and a 4-Sou. With these tiles, this hand has a possibility of scoring with a iipeikou (A double set of the same sequence in the same suit. In this hand, the 3-4-5 Pin) or a sanshoku (A set of the same sequence in all three suits. In this hand, the sequence would be 3-4-5 Pin, 3-4-5 Sou, and the 3-4-5 Wan.) There is also the chance to score with a ryanpeikou (The same double sequence in two suits) because of the 3-4-5 Pin and the pair of 3-Wan.





Here, the 7-Wan is swapped out for an 8-Sou.





Here, the 6-Sou is swapped out for another 8-Sou.





This time, the player has drawn another White Dragon. Much like the South Wind tiles, the pair of White Dragons give the player bonus points. The player decides the best tile to discard would be the North Wind tile. The player already has two pairs of Honor tiles, and one North Wind has already been discarded.

Looking at the tiles, two of the 3-Sou have been discarded already, making the possibility of an iipeikou limited. Additionally, none of the 4-Wan and 5-Wan or the 3-4-5 Pins have emerged on the table. The player decides that changing their wait would be the best option.





By this time, the West player has reached tenpai and declared rīchi. The East player then discards a South Wind tile. Having two already, the player decides to use the tile to complete a triplet of the South Wind by calling the tile.





The player draws another 1-Sou, giving them an additional dora. The player has three pairs in their hand at this point; a pair of 3-Wan, a pair of 8-Sou and a pair of White Dragons. Discarding the White Dragon would lower the value of the hand, so that would not be the best solution. Discarding the 3-Wan would be risky, as none of the 3-Wan have appeared on the table. This measn that a person could be waiting to win off the 3-Wan, both as a sequence and as a triplet. However, two of the 8-Sou have appeared on the table. Since the player has the other two, it means that a person cannot be waiting for a triplet or a pair on the tile. Because two of the three ways to win off of the 8-Sou do not exist, this makes the 8-Sou the safest tile to discard.





The North player discards a White Dragon tile. As with the South Wind tile, the player completes a triplet of the White Dragons by calling the tile. The player then proceeds to discard the other 8-Sou. Thanks to the two calls made by the player, they are now in tenpai. This leaves the player with a wait on both the 3-Wan and the 1-Sou.





The West player discards a 1-Sou, which is one of the winning tiles needed. Success!

Closed vs Open

In mahjong, players have the ability to add the discards of other players to their own hands. In real Mahjong, the time to call tiles is limited until the next player takes their turn. In computer mahjong, however, there is no time limit. There are three different types of calls.

3 Sequential Tiles - Chi - (吃)

If a player has two tiles of the same suit of a numerical sequence (i.e. 3-4, 6-8) they are able to make an open sequential meld using a tile discarded by the left player (the player who went before them.) Players place the meld face up on the table, usually on the right side of their hands, with the discard placed sideways on the left of the meld. This type of call is called chī.





Here, we see that the 5-Pin of the player on the left was called to complete a 5-6-7 Pin sequence. Chi calls are most effective when going for consecutive sequences in the same suit (1-2-3, 4-5-6, 7-8-9) or multiple copies of the same sequence (2-3-4, 2-3-4, 2-3-4) in any suit.

3 Repeating Tiles - Pon - (碰)

If a player has two the same tiles (i.e. two 9-Pins) they are able to make an open meld using a tile discarded by any player Players place the meld face up on the table, usually on the right side of their hands, with the discard placed sideways depending on which player it was taken from (left=left, middle=across, right=right.) This type of call is called pon.





Here, we see that the Green Dragon of the player on the left was called to complete a triplet sequence. Pon calls are most effective when your hand has a lot of pairs. They are particularly good for getting triplets of honor tiles.

Four Repeating Tiles - Kan - (槓)

The last type of call that can be made is called a kan. A kan consists of a meld of four of the same tiles (i.e. four White Dragons.) Kans are unique when compared to the other types of calls. After calling a kan, the next adjacent dora indicator tile is flipped, and the player who called the kan must draw an extra tile from the end of the dead wall. There are three different types of kan.

A Closed Kan can be made using the same four tiles from their own hand. The player reveals the meld on the table with the two inside tiles facing up and the two outside tiles facing down. Declaring a closed quad does not open a hand. A player does not have to declare the closed kan, but must if they want to draw an extra tile from the dead wall.





Here, we see that the player has drawn all four of the 9-Pin. This allowed the player to call a kan. Because a kan was called, a new dora indicator is revealed. The new indicator is the 9-Wan, meaning the new dora for the hand is the 1-Wan.


An Open Kan can be made using an open qusing another player's discard and the same three tiles in their hand. The player reveals the meld on the table with all four tiles faced up, with the discarded tile facing the player it was taken from. Open kans cannot be made using an open meld of three tiles, meaning if you have three 1-Sou tiles and someone discards the fourth, you cannot make the Kan.





Here, we see that the Red Dragon of the player on the top was called to complete the quad. Open Kans can be used in the same situations as a pon call.

If the player has performed a pon and draw the fourth tile themselves, they may add the extra tile to form a Delayed Quad, called kakan (加槓.) The extra tile is added sideways on top of the sideways tile in the open meld.





Here, we see that both the 1-Pin and North Wind were called to complete a triplet sequence. The player drew the fourth 1-Pin, and thus was able to complete the quad. Additionally, the player got lucky and drew the last North Wind as their extra tile, which can be used to complete the second quad

There is an order of importance for each type of call. A ron call has the highest priority and cancels all other calls on the tile. Kan and Pon are the next highest priority. Chi has the lowest priority. For Kan and Pon, only one type of call can take effect. If more than one player calls on a tile, it is always the player to the right of the discard that takes priority (being the next player to draw a tile.)

Calling tiles has certain disadvantages, however. Calling a tile means you are committing to and revealing part of your hand. This makes it easier for opponets to read your hand. Additionally, it reduces the overall score of your hand and prevents you from winning with certain types of hands. A player with an open hand cannot declare rīchi.

Does that mean you should never open your hand? Opening you hand can be advantageous if you are building certain types of hands (i.e. all triplets, 1-9 of the same suit) or going for a quick win. Opening your hand can also be used to place yourself in tenpai near the end of the hand if your hand is not developing to receive some points or keep your seat as dealer.

Explode! - Winning a Hand

To win a hand in Mahjong, it needs to fill certain requirements. A winning hand, regardless of point values, consists of four groups of three and a pair and must contain at least 1 yaku. Patterns and repetition are good indicators for determining if a hand has a yaku.





A winning hand that consists of one sequences (6-7-8 Pin), three triplets (Red, Green and White Dragons) and a pair (West Winds) and fulfills the requirement for three yaku: yakuhai, hon'itsu and shousangen. However, because the hand is a yakuman, these yaku are not counted in the final score of the hand.

There are certain hands that are exceptions to this rule. These hands, called yakuman (役満) are very difficult to get and worth a lot of points. Additionally, there are 3 special hands which do not follow the rule for four groups of 3 and a pair: Seven Pairs - Chiitoi – (七対,) Honorable Discards - Nagashi Mangan – (流し満貫,) and Thirteen Orphans - Kokushi Musou – (国士無双.)

One of the most fun things about mahjong is saying all of the yaku of your winning hand aloud. It makes winning all the more satisfying, and nothing beats stringing together chains of words that make you sound fluent in another language to anyone passing by (which is sure to impress them.) If not, try doing this instead. Works every time.

But seriously, don't do this. It is extremely poor table manners and can ruin your table and tiles (despite how awesome it makes you look.)

Calculating Score

So, you've won a hand. Congratulations! Now comes the worst part of mahjong: Math.

There are two criteria in determining the winning points: han - (飜) and fu - (符,) which correspond to a points table. Han is the unit for the value of yaku. Fu is the value of melds, waits and how the last tile is gotten.

Basic Steps

To calculate the value of a winning hand:

1. Count the han. If it is five han or more, the counting of basic score is omitted.
2. Count the fu. If the combined total of han and fu is greater than 5 han,the counting of basic score is omitted.
3. Calculate the basic points based on the fu and han
4. Multiply the basic points depending on whether the winner was the dealer or non-dealer, and whether the hand was won by tsumo or ron
5. Add bonuses based on the number of counters
6. Adjusting the payment by the wareme rule if you are using it

Counting Han

The total number of han for a hand depend on two things: The type of yaku and the number of dora. Each dora (ドラ) increases the han value of a hand by 1. Dora are not regarded as yaku.

If there is more than one way to arrange the winning hand, the arrangement with the highest han is used. For example, if a hand has both a ryanpeikou (two sets of identical sequences, worth 3 han) and chītoitsu (Seven Pairs, worth 2 han,) the hand would have a value of 3 han. Additionally, there are some yaku have their han value reduced if the hand is open.

Counting Fu

Fu is counted in the order below and rounded up to the tens. If you are adding up the fu and find your hand is worth 3 han and at least 70 fu or 4 han and at least 40 fu, you do not need to calculate basic points.

1. Fūtei - (副底) - A winning hand is automatically awarded 20 fu.
2. Menzen-Kafu - (門前加符) - Ten fu are added if one wins by claiming a discarded tile with a closed hand.
3. Fu of the melds and the pair.
4. Fu of the waits.
5. Tsumo - (自摸)/Pinfu - (平和) - Add two fu if one wins by tsumo. However, if the winning hand includes the yaku of a no-points hand, pinfu, the hand is counted as a total of 20 fu.
6. Seven pairs - Chītoitsu - (七対子) - A seven pairs hand is coutned as 25 fu. The value is not rounded up to the tens.

An exception to this rule is if one wins by claiming a discard with an open hand with melds and waits to which no fu is awarded, the hand is not 20 fu but counted as a total of 30 fu for an open pinfu instead.

Fu value of melds

Minkō - (明刻) - Open Triplet
2 fu for simples, 4 fu for terminals and honors

Ankō - (暗刻) - Closed Triplet
4 fu for simples, 8 fu for terminals and honors

Minkan (明槓) - Open Kan
8 fu for simples, 16 fu for terminals and honors

Ankan - (暗槓) - Closed Kan
16 fu for simples, 32 fu for terminals and honors

Shuntsu - (順子) - Sequence
0 fu

Toitsu - (対子) - Pair
2 fu for seat wind tiles, prevailing wind tiles or dragon tiles, 4 fu when the seat wind and prevailing wind are the same. All other tiles are 0 fu.

Fu value of waits

Ryanmen - (両門) - Sequence waits for both sides
For example, a player has a 4-5 Pin and are waiting on either a 3-Pin or a 6-Pin. Worth 0 fu.

Kanchan - (嵌張) - Sequential wait for a middle tile
For example, a player has a 4-Sou and a 6-Sou and are waiting on the 5-Sou. Worth 2 fu.

Penchan - (辺張) - Sequential waits for a right or left side tile
For example, a player has a 1-Wan and a 2-Wan and are waiting on the 3-Wan. Worth 2 fu.

Tanki - (単騎) - Single waits for pairs.
Worth 2 fu.

Shanpon - (双碰) - Single wait for triplets.
Worth 0 fu. However, because a triplet is made, the value of a triplet meld is added.

Calculating Basic Points

The basic points of a hand are calculated as follows:

Basic points = fu × 2^(2+han)

Point Total Rules

The total number of points a player receives for winning a hand depends on both how they win and if they are the dealer or not. The actual points given are rounded up to the nearest 100. Even if the values of han and fu are the same, the points received for tsumo and ron wins differ due to rounding.

• When a non-dealer wins by tsumo, the dealer pays the winner 2x the basic points, the other two non-dealers pay the winner the basic points.
  
• When a non-dealer goes out by ron, the discarding player pays the winner 4x the basic points.
  
• When the dealer goes out by tsumo, all the three non-dealers pay the winner 2x the basic points.
  
• When the dealer goes out by ron, the discarding non-dealer pays the winner 6x basic points.

Bonus Counters

Each bonus counter on the table when a player wins a hand is worth an additional 300 points. If the hand is won by tsumo, the honba are worth 100 points from the other three players. If the hand is won by ron, the honba are worth 300 points from the player who discarded the tile. So, if a player wins with a 2000 point hand in the 4th bonus round, the total score would be 3200 points (2000 + (300*4)).

Total Hand Values

If you are adding up the fu and find your hand is worth 3 han and at least 70 fu or 4 han and at least 40 fu, you do not need to calculate basic points. This is due to the point rounding used in mahjong.

Three han with 70 fu or more = 70 × 2(2+3) = 2,240 > 2,000.
Four han with 40 fu or more = 40 × 2(2+4) = 2,560 > 2,000.
Five han, regardless of fu since 20 fu × 2(2+5) = 2,560 > 2,000.

Basically, anything over 2,000 points has a set value, meaning you do not need to count the fu for that hand, only the han. These types of hand have their own names and point values based on the number of han.


Mangan - (満貫) - At least 3 han 70 fu, at least 4 han 40 fu, 5 Han

A mangan is worth the base 2,000 points. A mangan is worth 12,000 points for a dealer and 8,000 points for a non-dealer.

Haneman - (跳満) 6 han, 7 han

A haneman has a base point value of 3,000. A haneman is worth 18,000 points for a dealer and 12,000 points for a non-dealer.

Baiman (倍満) - 8 han, 9 han, 10 han

A baiman has a base point value of 4,000. A baiman is worth 24,000 points for a dealer and 16,000 points for a non-dealer.

Sanbaiman - (三倍満) - 11 han, 12 han

A sanbaiman has a base point value of 6,000. A sanbaiman is worth 36,000 points for a dealer and 24,000 points for a non-dealer.

Yakuman - (役満) - Special condition, han not counted

A yakuman is a rare hand that is difficult to achieve. Because of this, the han are not counted and instead are given the maximum value. A yakuman has a base point value of 8,000. A yakuman is worth 48,000 points for a dealer and 32,000 points for a non-dealer.

A hand can also be worth multiple yakuman if it fulfills the requirement for each yakuman. For example, if a hand has four closed quads of wind tiles plus a pair of dragon tiles, that hand would be worth six yakuman if waiting on a single tile.

Counted Yakuman - Kazoe-Yakuman - (数え役満) - 13+ han

Any hand with 13 han or above is considered a counted yakuman and is worth the same amount of points as a regular yakuman.

Because calculating the score for winning hands below a mangan is tedious, you can use a scoring table as a quick reference to determine the value of your hand.

Example Hands

Here are a couple of example hands that shows how the math works.

Example 1

The player on the right of the dealer goes out by self-draw. The winner's hand is closed and has a closed triplet of Souths. The player also has two White Dragons as the pair and the winning tile is a White Dragon. The yaku for the hand are tsumo and and honor tiles, and they yield a total of two han. The sum of the fu is 20 (fūtei) + 8 (a closed triplet of Souths) + 2 (a pair of Whites) + 2 (pair wait) + 2 (tsumo) = 34 fu, rounded up to 40 fu.

The basic points for the hand are 40 × 2^(2+2) = 640. The dealer pays the winner 640 × 2 = 1,280, rounded up to 1,300 points. The other two non-dealers pay the winner 640, rounded up to 700 points.

Example 2

The same player goes out by the same hand, except this time the winning tile was discarded by the player on the right. The resulting hand has one yaku, honor tiles. The number of fu is 20 (fūtei) + 10 (ron with a closed hand) + 8 (a closed triplet of Souths) + 2 (the pair of Whites) + 2 (pair wait) = 42 fu, rounded up to 50 fu.

The basic point is thus 50 × 2^(2+1) = 400. The discarder pays the winner 400 × 4 = 1,600 points. The other two players pay the winner nothing.


Don't worry if you can't get the hang of scoring right now. It takes time to learn the point values and memorize the yaku. Just keep practicing and it will become second nature to you. Also, to help you relax after being bombarded with words and math, here's a picture of a girl poking a penguin.




Better? Great! Let's move on to the next section.

Recognizing Possibilities - How to Make the Most of a Hand

The most effective way to win a hand is to have mutiple waits within the hand. Let's take a look at an example.



We can see that the player won using a wait on the 6-Pin. This was not the only wait the player could have won with. If we look at the hand without the winning tile, we see that the player has a triplet of the 5-Wan, a quad of the East Wind, and a total of seven Pin tiles. Because the Pin tiles are all in sequence, this gives the player more tiles to win from. For this hand, the player could also have won from a 3-Pin or a 9-Pin, making it a 3-Sided Wait.





Even with a many-sided wait, the first winning tile that emerges may not always be the best. Sometimes, it is better to wait for the right tile to maximize the amount of points for the hand. This hand had a 2-sided wait on the 8-Wan and the 5-Wan. If the player had chosen to win using the 8-Wan, the value of the hand would only have been worth 18,000 points. However, because the player chose to wait for the 5-Wan instead, the value of the hand was 24,000 points, as it gave the hand an additional yaku.


Another effective tactic is to make use of dora. While this relies heavily on luck, it is always important to keep the dora indicators in mind, as they can help transform your low-value hand into a high-yield bomb.





Thanks to some luck with the dora indicators, the player managed to transform a 3900 point hand into a 24,000 point monster.


Just because a player can choose their waits, however does not always mean they should. A trap some players may fall into is passing on a winning tile discared by another player after they are in tenpai. If a player has not declared rīchi, they will place themselves in a state of temporary furiten until their next draw. This is done to prevent specifically targeting one player. If a player has delcared rīchi and pass on a winning discard, then they have placed themselves in a permanent state of furiten, meaning the only way to win is by tsumo. If players choose their waits carefully, they should avoid this issue all together.

Keeping Your Lead - How to Defend Against Opponents

Sometimes, you will be extremely unluckly and have an opponent declare rīchi very early on. When this happens, it can seem a little unnerving.



In mahjong, there are several different techniques players can use to reduce the chances of another player winning off of one of their discards. Mahjong is not about winning every hand: it is about winning as many hands as possible while playing safe to minimize your losses.

Defensive Terms

Bailing - Betaori - (ベタ降り)

Betaori is also referred to as bailing. When a player decides to betaori, they giving up any chance of winning, while decreasing the chances of discarding a winning tile. Betaori is the safest tactic a player can use.

Safe Tile - Anpai - (安牌)

A tile that cannot be won off of by the opponent. For example, if the opponent discards a 4-Sou to declare rīchi, the 4-Sou would be considered a safe tile, as they cannot win off of the tile.

Cautious Discards - Uchi-mawashi

Uchi-mawashi is when a player discards tiles that have a good chance to be safe while working on building their own hand. Players can easily transition from this to betaori if they need to.

Full Offense - Kanzen Shinko

Kazen Shinko is when a player ignores any opponent's tenpai and discards any tile without hesitation.

Discard Reading

Examining the tiles your opponent has discarded in order to determine their hand. While this can be useful, it is not something that should be the sole factor in determining what tiles to discard. For example, if a player is building a hand that contains a lot of one suit (i.e. Wan tiles,) their discard pile will probably have a lot of Pin and Sou tiles and few Wan tiles. This may not always be the case, but it can help give you a general idea of what their hand contains.

Discard Theory

Every tile in mahjong has a relative level of safety when used as a discard against players in tenpai, called suji (筋.) The suji of a tile is determined by the discards of your opponents. Below are some general rules for what tiles to discard in a given situation. These rules are not foolproof, as an opponent may be using a bad wait on purpose. These rules are more of a guide to steer you in the right direction to minimize your risk of dealing into a hand.

Genbutsu - (現物)

A genbutsu is a tile that a player is furiten on, meaning it is 100% safe. Always look to discard these first if you can.

Dealer or Round Wind or Dragons with 2 or more already discarded - Yakuhai

These tiles are safe except in cases of odd waits and are usually cheap even if you deal in. For example, if there are two or more North Winds tiles discarded and are sitting North, a North Wind would be a very safe discard.

Non-Dealer or Non-Round Wind with 1 or more already discarded - Otakaze - (オタ風)

These tiles are safe except in cases of odd waits and are usually cheap even if you deal in.

Suji Terminals

These tiles are safe except in cases of odd waits. Usually cheap even if you deal in.

Non-Dealer or Non-Round Wind with none discarded

Safe except in cases of odd waits. Usually cheap even if you deal in.

Double Suji - Two or more 4-5-6 Tiles discarded

Fairly safe. A fairly uncommon wait for a rīchi.

Dealer or Round Wind or Dragons with 1 discarded

Big if you do deal in but are usually safe. Generally, you don't want to discard these during betaori unless you can get into tenpai.

Suji 2-8 Tiles

Generally safe.

Suji 3-7 Tiles
Generally safe. Not much different from 2-8 tiles. Discard the one that has more of the tiles around it already discarded. For example, if there are many 1, 2, 4 and 5-Pin discarded, the 3-Pin would be the better of the two to discard.

Dealer or Round Wind or Dragons

Discard if you have a big hand.

Suji 2-3-7-8 Tile of rīchii or the discard prior to the rīchi

Discard if you have a big hand.

Terminals

These can be discarded if you have a great hand, but are generally dangerous.

Single Suji - 4-5-6 Tiles

These can be discarded if you have a great hand, but are generally dangerous.

Dealer or Round Wind or Dragons - Dora

Low probability of dealing in, but big if you do deal in.

2-8 Tiles

Very dangerous tiles to discard.

3-7 Tiles

Very dangerous tiles to discard.

No-Suji 4-5-6 Tiles

The most dangerous tile to discard, about twice as dangerous as 1-2-3 and 7-8-9 tiles. Only discard these if someone else has discarded one after rīchii has been declared

Suji

Suji - (筋) is the principle of using the numerical intervals of the three suit-based tiles to determine which tiles are safe. The intervals (1-9) of each suit can be arranged into three-tile sequences. From right to left, the three main intervals are

1-4-7
2-5-8
3-6-9

Using the above chart, we can determine when it is safe to discard a specific numerical tile.

If 4 is discarded, 1 and 7 are suji
If 5 is discarded, 2 and 8 are suji.
If 6 is discarded, 3 and 9 are suji.

The reverse is also true.

If 1 and 7 are discarded, 4 is a suji.
If 2 and 8 are discarded, 5 is a suji.
If 3 and 9 are discarded, 6 is a suji.

For 4-5-6 to be considered a suji, both of the other tiles in the sequence must be discarded. For example, if a 1-Sou is discarded, 4-Sou is not a suji, as a player could still be waiting on a 4 or 7-Sou.

Safety in Numbers

As more time passes, the number of safe tiles decreases. This can make it more difficult to keep track of which tiles are safe and which are not. Generally, the more copies of tiles you see discarded, the safer the tile is.

If a tile has not been discarded, tiles are generally safer the farther to the edge of the sequence you get. 4-5-6 are the most dangerous, whereas 1 and 9 are the safest.

Ending a Game

A game of mahjong ends after the selected number of rounds have been completed or someone's score goes below 0. If you are playing a typical game, this would be after two hanchans. However, if no player has reached the point baseline, an additional round is played. The player with the highest score at the end of the game is the winner.

Example

Players begin a game with 25,000 points. The scores at the end of the game are :

A: 56,800
B: 32,400, rounded to 32,000
C: 19,100, rounded to 19,000
D: -8300, rounded to -8,000

So, to calculate the final score of each player, you must first examine the point baseline. The baseline may vary depending on the scoring. For a normal game, the baseline is 30,000 points. Each losing player rounds their score to the nearest 1000 and compares it to the baseline. The losing players then follow a simple formula to determine their total score.

(Total Points - Baseline)/1000

Using this formula, we can determine the scores for the losing players.

• Player B - (32,000 - 30,000)/1000 = +2
  
• Player C - (19,000 - 30,000)/1000 = -11
  
• Player D - (-8,000 - 30,000)/1000 = -38

The winning score can be found by totaling the scores of the three losing players. This score is always positive.

Player A = - (2 -11 - 38) = +47

Additional points can be transferred based on the players' final places. This is called uma. Like the point baseline, the amount can vary, but always follows the same rule: Last place gives points to first, and third place gives points to second.

If an uma of 5 was applied to the above game, the final scores would be

Player A: +57
Player B: +7
Player C: -6
Player D: -48

Yaku

Know that you know how to keep score, its time to learn the different types of scoring hands, or yaku. When you first start learning all of the yaku it can feel a bit overwhelming, especially when you combine it with the other information in this guide. It may make you feel like this.





Don't worry. With practice and time, you will become familiar with them. This part of the guide contains a list of all possible yaku in Japanese mahjong, organized into types based on their requirements. I've also included pictures to help clarify each yaku. Hopefully, my explainations will prevent you from repeatedly slamming your face into a table.

Special Yaku

These Yaku are miscellaneous yaku that do not fall into a particular category.

Ready Hand - Rīchi – (立直) - 1 Han - Closed only

Rīchi was covered in depth earlier in the guide. In case you need a refresher, here's a summary.

• If a player needs only one tile to complete their hand, they may declare rīchi.
  
• Rīchi is a kind of yaku.
  
• In order to declare rīchi, the player's hand must be closed.
  
• In order to declare rīchi, the player must pay a deposit of 1000 points.
  
• A player must say "Rīchi" loud enough for the other players to hear them.
  
• After rīchi, players may no longer change their hand, except when forming certain closed quads.
  
• If a player wins by rīchi, ura-dora are flipped and added to the hand.
  
• If a draw occurs after rīchi, all rīchi sticks remain on the table until a player wins a hand.

Seven Pairs - Chiitoi – (七対) - 2 Han - Closed only

A hand composed of seven pairs. This hand is one of the three exceptions to the rule requiring winning hands to have four melds and a pair. It also has its own special rules for scoring (a fixed fu value of 25.) Chiitoi does not count iipeikou when three pairs are in sequence.






Honorable Discards - Nagashi Mangan – (流し満貫) - Mangan - Closed/Open

This yaku is unique, as it is applied to a player's discards instead of their hand. A nagashi mangan cannot be combined with the other yaku and can only occur if:

• A player's discards are all terminals and honors.
  
• The hand is be a draw. Abortive draws do not count.
  
• No other player called any discard from the player's discard pile.

If a player wins with a nagashi mangan, it is considered a win by tsumo. The value of the hand is considered a mangan.

Luck-Based Yaku

These yaku are based on luck and are all worth 1 han.

Self-Draw - Tsumo – (自摸) - Closed only

When a player has a closed hand and draws a winning tile from the wall or the dead wall, one han is added. Like rīchi, tsumo can be considered a yaku by itself.





One-shot - Ippatsu – (一発) - Closed only, riichi only

If a player declares rīchi and then completes their hand within one go-around of play, it adds one han to the hand’s value. The winning tile can be either a ron or a tsumo. If another player calls a tile, the ippatsu no longer counts.








Last Tile from the Wall - Haitei Raoyue – (海底撈月) - Closed/Open

If a player wins by tsumo with the last tile from the wall, the hand’s value increases by one han. Haitei Raoyue means "to scoop up the reflected moon from the seabed."








Last Discard - Houtei Raoyui – (河底撈魚) - Closed/Open

If a player wins by ron with the last discard from the last player, the hand’s value increases by one han. Houtei Raoyui means "to scoop up a swimming fish from the riverbed."








Winning Tile from the Dead Wall - Rinshan Kaihou – (嶺上開花) - Closed/Open

If a player draws a winning tile from the dead wall after declaring a kan, it adds one han to the hand’s value. Rinshan Kaihou means "a flower that blooms on a mountaintop".









Robbing a Quad - Chankan – (搶槓) - Closed/Open

If a player forms a delayed quad with the tile you need to win, you can steal the tile to win. Doing so increases the hand’s value by one han.





The winning tile for this hand was a 7-Pin taken from the player's quad.


A chankan can also occur during a closed quad, but only to complete the yakuman kokushi musou.

Example: Player A makes a closed quad out of four West Wind tiles. Player B is waiting for a West Wind to complete a kokushi musou. Player B calls a chankan and wins on the West Wind tile. In this instance, the yaku is not counted since the hand has a yakuman value.


Double-Ready Hand - Daburii – (ダブリ) - Closed only

If a player declares rīchi within the first go-around of a hand, they can call "daburu rīchi" to declare a "double ready" for two han instead of one. All other conditions are the same as a normal rīchi.

Sequence Yaku

These yaku are all based on numerical sequences.

No-Points Hand - Pinfu – (平和) - 1 Han - Closed only

This is a very common yaku, since it is rather easy to get. A no-points hand is a hand that is worth no additional fu-points whatsoever.

A pinfu hand must:

• Have no triplets or quads
  
• Not contain any pair of dragons, player’s own wind, or wind of the round
  
• Be waiting for multiple winning tiles that can make a sequence such as having number 2 and 3 and waiting for 1 or 4.

A pinfu hand cannot be open or be waiting for a pair or edge wait. If a hand has both the pinfu and tsumo yakus, the 2 fu for the tsumo do not count.

When the hand is won by drawing from the wall, as an exception, in most rules the two fu for the self-drawing are not awarded.





One Set of Identical Sequences - iipeikou – (一盃口) - 1 Han - Closed only

One set of two sequences of the same numbers in the same suit.





Three Color Straight - Sanshoku - (三色) - 2 Closed, 1 Open

Three sequences of the same numbers in all three suits.





Straight - iittsuu - (一通) - 2 Closed, 1 Open

A straight from number 1 through 9 of one suit.





Two Sets of Identical Sequences - Ryanpeikou - (二盃口) - 3 han - Closed only

One set of identical sequences, and another set that can match the first. The seven pairs yaku is not counted in this case, because this yaku is actually composed of sequential melds, rather than pairs.

Triplet/Quad Yaku

These yaku involve triplets or quads and are always worth 2 Han.

All Triplet Hand - Toitoi – (対々) - Open only

The hand consists of all triplets or quads; no sequences.





Three Closed Triplets - San ankou - (三暗刻) - Closed only

Three sets of triplets or quads formed without calling on any tiles. The fourth set can be an open triplet or quad, or a sequence.





Three Color Triplets - Sanshoku doukou - (三色同刻) - Closed/Open

Three triplets consisting of the same numbers in all three suits.

Three Kans - San kantsu - (三槓子) - Closed/Open

Three quads in one hand, which can be open or closed.

Terminal/Honor Yaku

These yaku all consist of terminals and/or honor tiles (or lack there of.)

All Simples - Tan'yao – (断么) - 1 Han - Closed/Open

A hand containing only simple tiles (2 through 8.)





Honor Tiles - Yakuhai – (役牌) - 1 Han - Closed/Open

Any triplets or quads of dragons, the player’s wind and the prevailing wind. If a wind is both the player’s wind and the prevailing wind, it is worth 2 Han per group. Each triplet or quad is worth 1 Han.





Terminal/Honor Tile per set - Chanta – (チャンタ) - 2 Han Closed, 1 Han Open

This hand contains triplets and sequences with either terminals (1 and 9) or honor tiles (Winds and Dragons.) The sequences in the hand must be 1-2-3 and 7-8-9, and triplets and the pair must be 1’s, 9’s and honor tiles. The hand must contain at least one sequence.





Terminals in each set - Junchan – (純チャン) - 3 Han Closed, 2 Han Open

This hand contains only triplets and sequences with terminals (1 and 9.) The sequences must be 1-2-3 and 7-8-9, and triplets and the pair must be 1’s and 9’s. The hand must contain at least one sequence.





All Terminals and Honors - Honrou – (混老) - 4 Han* - Closed/Open

This hand contains all terminals and honors and is always either composed of all triplets or seven pairs. The yaku from Honru is always added to the 2 Han of an All Triplet hand or Seven Pairs hand, making the value of this hand 4 Han.





Little Three Dragons - Shousangen – (小三元) - 4 Han* - Closed/Open

This hand contains two triplets or quads of dragons, plus a pair of the third. The yaku from Shousangen is always added to the 2 Han from the two Yakuhai of the Dragons, making the value of this hand 4 Han.

Suit-Based Yaku

Both of these yaku involve a single suit of tile and lose 1 han when open.

Half-flush - Hon'itsu – (混一) - 3 Han Closed, 2 Han Open

A hand containing tiles from only one suit and honors. A hon'itsu hand may contain more than one sequence of honor tiles and may be a Seven Pairs hand.





Full Flush - Chin'itsu – ( 清一) - 6 Han Closed, 5 Han Open

A hand containing tiles from only one suit.

Yakuman

The following are special sets of hands so difficult to attain that they are worth the limit of points just for having them. The limit value, along with the hands themselves, are called yakuman (役満.) Counts of han no longer apply to them. Certain hands can have double the value under certain conditions, in which case it is called a double yakuman.

If a normal hand reaches the han-limit of 13, it is counted as a yakuman. This type of hand is called a kazoe-yakuman (数え役満), or counted yakuman.

To give you an idea of how rare these hands are, in my copy of Mahjong Pretty Girls Battle, I have only gotten a total of four yakuman in around 400 games. It all comes down to chance when you are in tenpai for a yakuman, but the feeling when you reveal it to you opponents is ecstatic.

Thirteen Orphans - Kokushi Musou – (国士無双) - Closed only

Roughly translates to "a peerless distinguished individual in a country." This hand consists of one of each Dragon tile, one of each Wind tile, a 1 and a 9 from each suit, plus any double of the previous tile. If the hand wins on a 13-way wait for the pair, it is considered a double yakuman.





A hand in tenpai for a Kokushi Musou, with a wait on the 9-Pin.

Four Concealed Triplets - Suu ankou – (四暗刻) - Closed only

A hand that has four closed triplets and quads. If a player is waiting on two pairs, only a tsumo win will count as a yakuman hand. In the case of a single wait for a pair, a player can win either by tsumo or ron. Winning on a single wait makes the hand a double yakuman.





Big Three Dragons - Daisangen – (大三元) - Closed/Open

A triplet or quad of each type of Dragon tile.





Little Four Winds - Shousuushii – (小四喜) - Closed/Open

A hand consisting of three triplets/quads of Winds and a pair of the fourth Wind.





Big Four Winds - Daisuushii – (大四喜) - Closed/Open

A hand consisting of four triplets/quads of Winds.

All Honors - Tsuuiisou – (字一色) - Closed/Open

A hand composed exclusively of Wind and Dragon tiles.

Big Seven Stars - Daichisei – (大七星) Closed only

A Seven Pair hand composed exclusively of Wind and Dragon tiles. This hand is considered a double yakuman.

All Terminals - Chinroutou – (清老頭) - Closed/Open

A hand containing only Terminals (1 and 9.)

All Green - Ryuuiisou – (緑一色) - Closed/Open

This hand containins only green tiles (2, 3, 4, 6, and 8-Sou and Green dragons.) The hand does not have to include Green Dragons.

Red Peacock - Beni Kujaku - Closed/Open

A variation on Ryuuiisou. Contains only red Sou tiles (1, 5, 7, and 9-Sou) and Red Dragons.

Nine Gates - Chuuren Poutou – (九蓮宝燈) - Closed only

A hand composed of 1-1-1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-9-9 of one suit, plus any other tile of the same suit. It is considered a double yakuman if the player was waiting on nine different tiles.





Four Kans - Suu kantsu – (四槓子) - Closed/Open

Four quads in one hand by a single player. Play continues until the player wins. If a fifth kan is made by another player, the hand ends in an abortive draw.

Special Yakuman

These yakuman are only available on the first go around. Because of this, they are extremely hard to get as they are entirely reliant on luck, moreso than other yakuman.

Heavenly Hand - Tenhou – (天和) - Closed only

If the tiles the dealer is dealt Iis dealt 13 tiles that are one tile away from completing a hand, and then draws the fourteenth tile from the dead wall on the first draw, it is considered a yakuman, regardless of its contents.

Hand of Earth - Chiihou – (地和) - Closed only

If a non-dealer is dealt 13 tiles that are one tile away from completing a hand, and then draws the fourteenth tile from the dead wall on their first draw the hand is considered a yakuman, regardless of contents. This yakuman can only occur if no calls have been made.

Hand of Man - Renhou – (人和) - Closed only

If a non-dealer is dealt 13 tiles that are one tile away from completing a hand, and the fourteenth tile is discarded by another player, the hand is considered a yakuman, regardless of contents. This yakuman can only occur if no calls have been made.

Helpful Links

Here are some helpful links that can help you if you want to know more about mahjong or need help scoring.

HanaYoriUta's Guide to Mahjong

Very clear and detailed. This was the guide I used when I first started playing. I have not seen a better guide for Japanese Mahjong on the internet than this one. You should definitely give it a watch if you didn't learn anything from my guide. 11/10, Would watch again, 100% satisfaction or your money back, guarenteed! Not really. But seriously, this guide is amazing.

Mahjong Hand Calculator[jbcs.info]

A very handy tool for keeping score in your mahjong games. Good for beginners or if you want to double check your own math.

Buy your own Mahjong set[www.japanese-games-shop.com]

This is a good website if you are looking to buy your own set of tiles for a reasonable price. They also sell stuff for other Japanese games. such as Hanafuda cards and Shogi sets (Japanese Chess.) All payments are done through PayPal.

Watch the Saki anime here[www.crunchyroll.com]

Watch Saki: Achiga-hen here[www.crunchyroll.com]

You can use these links to watch the Saki anime, along with a lot of other anime, for free.

Akagi[www.crunchyroll.com]

Another mahjong anime. Special thanks to user Sanbaiman for recommending this.

FAQ

Q: What's with the picture of the girl eating the taco?
A: Because the cursed blood of the taco lover runs through my veins. Who doesn't love tacos?

Q: Help! I can't find ____! It's not in the guide!
A: Check the table of contents or use Control + F to find what you're looking for. If it's not in the guide, leave a comment below. I'll get back to you as soon as I can.

Q: Why isn't there a picture of ____ yaku?
A: Certain yaku, particularly yakuman, are hard to get. It can take people thousands of hands to get yakuman. Some people may never get them. Because I want to keep things consistent, I would like to get them all in Mahjong Pretty Girls Battle for the sake of consistency. This may take a long time, but I'll post them when I get them.

Q: I read your guide and I don't understand ___. Can you explain it to me?
A: If you read my guide and don't understand something, I can try to explain it to you. Leave your question in the comments section and I will try my best to help you understand it. If you still don't understand, I recommend you watch HanaYoriUta's Guide to Mahjong.

Q: Will you add more sections to the guide?
A: As of now, no. The only thing I plan on adding to the guide are pictures of missing yaku and yakuman. However, if enough people request something that I don't have in the guide right now, I can add the requested topic to the guide.

Final Thoughts

If you've stuck with me this long, I thank you. Hopefully, this guide has taught you all you need to know about Japanese Mahjong, how to look good doing it, and most importantly, how to have fun playing it. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. I appreciate any feedback you can give.




But before you run off, I would like to give a very special thank you to user saruman, who provided excellent feedback and information for rules I was missing and helping to clarify parts of the guide that were uncertain.

You are the best :)

And to everyone who took the time to view this guide, I say



Now get out there and enjoy some Mahjong!

Best wishes,

BeefsteakPrime

[Exxor: Killer Drake]

Difficult to strategize in this client. It does not tell for instance, how many of each color dragon is left in the wall, if you want to call Riichi when in tenpai for shousangen/daisangen. It does not tell you how many of any tile is left to wait on. No 7s tiles left to wait on for example? It tells you to call, without telling you there are no 7s tiles left, perpetual riichi while none are in discards. If that's not frustrating. If known, you might be able to change the wait to something likely to be discarded, or something you know you can draw. It says you're the dealer after you are no longer the dealer. Bug riddled masterpiece.

[Exxor: Killer Drake]

Time certainly flies doesn't it? Got back into it with the advent of Mahjongsoul and Riichi City. I have improved a lot. Found Jenn Barr's book, "Riichi Mahjong:the only way to play." My username in both games mentioned is DeathXIII, and Death13 respectively. Gotten many yakuman and up to sanma 3rd dan in Riichi city, out of 7th dan. Come back to this game yonma is still challenging. Much higher rank in sanma.

[Lovely Luhi]

That sounds most likely. If you are planning on winning with an open hand, you want to go for easy yaku, like an iipeiko (one set of two sequences of the same numbers in the same suit,) sanshoku (three sequences of the same numbers in all three suits), or iittsuu (a straight from number 1 through 9 of one suit.)

[Exxor: Killer Drake]

I guess none of them were worth any yaku

[Exxor: Killer Drake]

I guess ended up having to put myself in furiten that game, when I had the four sets open, and the pair of 7 pin in my hand.

[Lovely Luhi]

Hard to say without seeing a picture, but from what I'm reading, it sounds there are two possible issues. The first and most likely issue is that the hand you have is not worth any yaku. While a basic hand does indeed consist of four sets of 3 and a pair, the hand must also contain at least one yaku to win (i.e. 3 three-of-a-kinds or riichi.) The second possibility is that you are putting yourself in furiten. If you need a 7-pin to win, by discardin a 7-pin earlier in the round, you cannot win off of other people, and can only win by tsumo (self-draw). There is also the possibility that it is a combinaiton of the two, where you have an open hand and are in furiten, which can make it more difficult to both win and fufill the yaku requirement. Haven't played a game myself in a good amount of time, so I might be forgetting something, but these are the most likely issues you are having. If you run into the issue again, let me know.

[Exxor: Killer Drake]

This is from a game where my pair ends up being two 7 pin tiles, as an example.

[Exxor: Killer Drake]

I know it's almost been two years now, but I have a question. I've played games where I have the four melds and one pair necessary to win. Sometimes I steal a tile from another player to complete my fourth meld, and still have the one pair needed, in my hand. The problem I've been running into is I end up discarding the other 7 pin tile, without being able to take the Win or Ron action. Not sure why this is going on. I must be missing something.

[Lovely Luhi]

Thanks for letting me know, Saruman. Link has been fixed.

[saruman]

HanaYoriUta's guide has been reuploaded to a new channel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlnC2rgIPrc