Are you intrigued by the click of the tiles, the strategic planning, and the exciting calls of “Mah Jongg!”? If so, you’re in the right place. This comprehensive guide will provide you with everything you need to learn American Mah Jongg, even if you’re a complete novice. Whether you’re looking to pick up the game yourself or teach it to a friend, this guide will equip you with the foundational knowledge to get started.
We’ll cover the rules, mechanics, and essential strategies, so you can confidently approach your first game. And once you’ve mastered the basics, be sure to check out our more advanced resources.
Mah Jongg is a captivating game of skill and chance that originated in China. While many variations exist, this guide focuses specifically on American Mah Jongg, adhering to the rules set by the National Mah Jongg League (NMJL). You’ll often see it spelled “Mah Jongg” or simply called “mahj.”
Throughout this guide, you’ll find images of tiles from online Mah Jongg games. Remember that tile designs can vary, so your physical set might look slightly different.
The Tiles: Building Blocks of the Game
A standard American Mah Jongg set consists of 152 tiles, each with unique characteristics.
Numbered Tiles: Suits and Numbers
These tiles feature both a symbol (representing the suit) and a number, creating a diverse range of playing options. There are three distinct suits – Craks, Dots, and Bams – each with numbers ranging from 1 to 9. Crucially, there are four identical copies of each numbered tile.
Craks
Dots
Bams
Note: The One Bam tile is traditionally represented by a bird.
Winds: Cardinal Directions
The four Wind tiles represent the cardinal directions: North, East, West, and South. Like the numbered tiles, there are four instances of each Wind tile in the set.
Dragons: The Mystical Tiles
There are three types of Dragon tiles: Green Dragon, Red Dragon, and White Dragon (also known as Soap). And, you guessed it, there are four of each!
Each dragon is also associated with a specific suit:
- Bams with Green Dragons
- Craks with Red Dragons
- Dots with White Dragons (Soap)
This association becomes important when interpreting the Mah Jongg card.
Note: The White Dragon, or Soap, also represents zero in the game.
Flowers: The Bonus Tiles
A Mah Jongg set includes eight Flower tiles. Their designs can vary, sometimes depicting different flower types or even seasons, but in American Mah Jongg, all Flower tiles are interchangeable.
Jokers: The Wild Cards
In addition to the standard tiles, the set includes eight Jokers. These act as wildcards, substituting for any tile when forming a hand. However, there are specific rules and restrictions governing their use, which we’ll explore later.
The Card: Your Guide to Winning Hands
Unlike some other Mahjong variations, American Mah Jongg relies on a card that lists the valid winning combinations of tiles, called “hands.” Your goal is to create a hand that matches one of these combinations.
This adds a unique strategic element, as you need to familiarize yourself with the card to quickly identify potential matches with your dealt tiles. To add to the challenge, the NMJL releases a new card each year, requiring players to adapt and learn new hand combinations!
While other organizations produce cards, the NMJL is the most widely recognized. Due to copyright, we can’t display the card here, so you’ll need to purchase one from the NMJL directly. However, this section will teach you how to interpret the card and understand the valid tile combinations.
Understanding Hands
Each line on the card represents a different winning hand, comprised of 14 tiles. Colors and specific notes further define the requirements for each hand.
Common Abbreviations
To save space, the card uses a set of standard abbreviations:
- 1 – 9: Numbered tiles
- D: Dragon
- F: Flower
- N, E, W, S: North, East, West & South winds
- 0: Soap (White Dragon)
Tile Combinations: Building Blocks of a Hand
A hand is built from groups of identical tiles, forming different combinations:
- Single: One tile
- Pair: Two identical tiles
- Pung: Three identical tiles
- Kong: Four identical tiles
- Quint: Five identical tiles
- Sextet: Six identical tiles
For example:
- A Pung of West winds is written as WWW.
- A Kong of 3s is written as 3333.
- A Quint of Flowers is written as FFFFF.
Note that these combinations must be made of identical tiles. The card also features sets of different tiles grouped together, but these should be considered individual tiles. For example, NEWS (North, East, West, South) isn’t a Kong but a set of four single Wind tiles. Similarly, a Year hand (e.g., 2024) comprises four single tiles.
Colors: Decoding the Suits
The Mah Jongg card uses three colors: blue, red, and green. These colors don’t represent a specific suit; instead, any color can represent any suit. However, within a single hand, tiles of the same color must belong to the same suit.
Example: 222 444 6666 8888
In this case, the 2s and 4s must be in one suit, while the 6s and 8s must be in a different suit. For instance, the 2s and 4s could be Dots, and the 6s and 8s could be Craks, or vice versa.
When Dragons are included in a combination and are the same color as other tiles, they must match the associated suit:
- Green Dragons with Bams
- Red Dragons with Craks
- White Dragons (Soap) with Dots
Example: 22 444 DDDD 666 88
Here, all characters and numbers share the same color, meaning they must belong to the same suit, with Dragons matching that suit. For instance, a winning hand could be a pair of 2-Craks, a Pung of 4-Craks, a Kong of Red Dragons, a Pung of 6-Craks, and a pair of 8-Craks.
Sometimes, Dragons are in a different color, indicating they shouldn’t match the other suits (this is called “opposite dragon”).
Example: 22 44 666 888 DDDD
In this case, you’ll need one suit for the 2s and 4s, another for the 6s and 8s, and the Dragons should match the third suit. A winning hand could be a pair of 2-Dots, a pair of 4-Dots, a Pung of 6-Craks, a Pung of 8-Craks, and a Kong of Green Dragons.
Sections: Organizing the Hands
The hands on the card are organized into sections, which remain consistent from year to year:
- Year: These hands incorporate the current year, using numbered tiles and Soaps.
- 2468: These hands feature only even numbers.
- Any Like Numbers: All numbers are identical (e.g., all 3s).
- Quints: These hands include a Quint (five-of-a-kind).
- Consecutive Runs: These hands feature numbers in sequence (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5).
- 13579: These hands feature only odd numbers.
- Winds and Dragons: These hands primarily consist of Winds and Dragons (though some include numbers).
- 369: These hands incorporate the numbers 3, 6, and 9.
- Singles and Pairs: These hands exclusively feature single tiles and pairs.
- Multiplications/Additions: Some cards may include sections based on multiplications or additions (e.g., FFFF 5555 x 3333 = 15).
Important Notes:
- Hands in each section may also include Dragons and/or Flowers.
- In “Any Like Numbers,” the numbers are represented as 1s but can be any number.
- In “Consecutive Runs,” the numbers start from 1, but can be any sequence (unless otherwise indicated).
For example, FFFF 1111 22 3333 could be a Kong of Flowers, a Kong of 4-Craks, a pair of 5-Craks, and a Kong of 6-Craks.
Concealed Hands
Hands marked with an “X” are exposed, while those marked with a “C” are concealed. When playing a concealed hand, you can’t call a discarded tile unless it’s the final tile needed for Mah Jongg.
Notes: Clarifying the Rules
Each line on the card includes a note in parentheses that clarifies the hand’s specific requirements. These notes are essential when there’s ambiguity in the hand representation.
For instance, line 1 of “Consecutive Runs” often includes the note “These numbers only,” indicating that only the specific numbers listed are allowed for that hand.
Another example is FFFFF DDDD 11111. Since the numbers are in a different color than the Dragons, you might assume they must be different suits. However, the note “Any number, any suit, any dragon” overrides this assumption, making suits irrelevant.
Therefore, reading the notes carefully is crucial.
Points: Valuing the Hands
The final element on the card is the point value assigned to each hand, indicating how many points you’ll receive for winning with that hand. You can also earn bonus points, as we’ll see later.
Playing the Game: From Setup to Mah Jongg
Now that you understand the tiles and the card, let’s learn how to play American Mah Jongg.
Setting Up the Game
In online games, the setup is automatic, but here’s how to set up a physical game:
- Arrange four players around a square table.
- Place a rack in front of each player.
- Place all tiles face down in the center and shuffle them.
- Each player builds a “wall” of tiles, 19 tiles long and 2 tiles high, in front of their rack.
- Players roll dice, and the highest score is designated “East.”
- East rolls the dice again and breaks their wall at the position indicated by the dice, starting from the right.
- East takes the next four tiles after the break.
- Moving counter-clockwise, each player takes four tiles until everyone has 12 tiles. Tiles are initially picked from East’s wall and then from the next wall in a clockwise order.
- East takes two more tiles from the wall (the first and third on top), and the other players each take one tile in counter-clockwise order.
- East now has 14 tiles, and the other players have 13.
- Tiles are placed on the tilted side of each player’s rack, visible only to them.
At this point, players organize their tiles, analyze their options, and start planning their hands.
The Charleston: Passing Tiles
The Charleston is a unique feature of American Mah Jongg, involving passing unwanted tiles between players.
First Charleston (Mandatory)
- All players pass three tiles to the player on their right.
- All players pass three tiles to the player across from them.
- All players pass three tiles to the player on their left. This time, players can pass anywhere from zero to three of their own tiles, supplementing with tiles received from the player on their right. This is known as a “blind pass.”
Second Charleston (Optional)
If all players agree, another Charleston is conducted, starting with a pass to the left. If even one player wants to stop, players move to the Courtesy Pass.
- All players pass three tiles to the player on their left.
- All players pass three tiles to the player across from them.
- All players pass three tiles to the player on their right, again supplementing with received tiles (blind pass).
Courtesy Pass
Each player tells the person opposite them how many tiles they want to pass (0-3). Players exchange tiles equal to the lower of the two numbers.
Note: Jokers cannot be passed during the Charleston.
Once the Charleston is complete, the game begins. Remember, the goal is to create a hand matching one on the card.
Order of Play: Taking Turns
Here’s the general sequence of play:
East, with 14 tiles, starts by discarding a tile. The turn passes to the player on their right, who picks a tile from the wall and discards a tile. Any player can call a discarded tile to create an exposure (see below). The calling player then discards a tile. Play continues counter-clockwise, with each player picking and discarding until someone calls Mah Jongg or no tiles remain (a “wall game”).
Walls: Managing the Tiles
Walls are pushed out in turn once all tiles from the previous wall have been picked. This moves clockwise, with the right-most end of the wall pushed towards the center, leaving the left-most end closest to the player pushing.
Drawing & Racking: Adding to Your Hand
A player starts their turn by drawing a tile from the active wall, selecting it from the end closest to the center of the table and placing it on their rack (visible only to them). Racking the tile signals that the previously discarded tile can no longer be called.
Once all tiles are picked from the active wall, the next wall (clockwise) is pushed out, and tiles are picked from it.
Discarding: Releasing a Tile
After drawing (or calling a discard), players re-examine their hand and choose a tile to discard, placing it face up on the table and announcing it verbally (e.g., “one bam” or “north”).
Discarding a tile signals the end of the player’s turn, and it cannot be taken back.
Calling a Tile: Building Your Hand
After a tile has been discarded, players can call it before the next player picks from the wall, if they need it to complete a combination for their hand (pung, kong, or quint).
To call a discarded tile:
- Announce the call verbally (“call” is sufficient).
- Place the called tile face-up on your rack and add matching tiles (including Jokers) to make the required combination. This is called an “exposure.”
- Discard a tile from your hand to complete your turn.
- Play moves to the person on your right, unless your discarded tile is called.
If a player calls a discarded tile and it’s the last tile they need for Mah Jongg, they call “Mah Jongg” and place all their tiles on their rack for verification.
There are several rules for calling a tile:
- You can only call a tile between the time it’s discarded and the time the next player racks their tile.
- You can only call the most recently discarded tile.
- You can only call a tile to complete a combination of three or more tiles (pung, kong, quint), not a single or pair UNLESS it’s the final tile for Mah Jongg.
- You can use Jokers in place of regular tiles in your exposure.
- You can never call a discarded Joker.
- You can’t call a tile for a concealed hand UNLESS it’s the final tile for Mah Jongg.
- Once exposed, you can edit the exposure (e.g., from a pung to a kong) until you discard a tile.
- If two players call the same tile, the player closer to the discarding player (counter-clockwise) takes precedence, unless a player is calling for Mah Jongg.
Using Jokers: The Flexible Tiles
Jokers can substitute for regular tiles in combinations of three or more tiles (pungs, kongs, quints), never for singles or pairs. Sequences like NEWS or 2024, though grouped on the card, are four single tiles, so Jokers can’t be used for them.
Swapping a Joker: Trading Tiles
When it’s your turn, you can swap an exposed Joker for the corresponding tile in your rack.
For example, if Mary has exposed two 5-Craks and two Jokers, and you have a 5-Crak, you can exchange your 5-Crak for Mary’s Joker. If you had two 5-Craks, you could exchange both for both Jokers. You can also swap a tile from your hand for a Joker in your own exposure.
Mah Jongg: Declaring Victory
When a player has 14 tiles that match a hand on the card, they declare “Mah Jongg,” placing their tiles on their rack for verification.
The winner receives the points for the hand (on the card), plus bonus points if the hand is Jokerless or if the last tile was self-picked. Players discarding the winning tile may be penalized.
Wall Games: No Winner
If players run out of tiles before someone declares Mah Jongg, it’s a draw, called a “Wall Game.”
Dead Hands: Out of the Game
A player’s hand can be declared dead by other players, preventing them from participating further.
A hand is dead if:
- The player incorrectly calls Mah Jongg.
- The hand is no longer viable based on exposures.
- The player ends up with the wrong number of tiles.
Further Learning: Expanding Your Knowledge
This guide has provided a foundation for learning American Mah Jongg. To continue your learning journey:
