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Learn How to Play Mah Jongg

Tips on How to Play Mah Jongg: Table, Rules, and Play Game

The tile game of Mah Jongg (often simply referred to as Mahjong) is a cultural treasure that traces its roots back to the Ming dynasty in China. Over the years, it has evolved into several variations, including the Chinese, Cantonese, American, Taiwanese, Japanese, and Western styles. However, the fundamental question many ask is: “what is Mah Jongg?”

Mah Jongg is mainly compared to the rummy game, with the difference that Mah Jongg makes use of tiles instead of cards.  Learning how to play Mah Jong is about knowing how to build sets and get the highest points among other players. And to create a set, you must select and discard Mah Jongg tiles until you make a complete set of combinations.

The game of Mah Jongg is exciting and fun to play with friends and family. It is available for players worldwide to play at any online casino too. The game is one of the popular games that also engage people in playing either online or at land-based casinos.

Let’s get started on how to learn Mah Jongg and how to play Mah Jongg.

Tips on How to Play Mah Jongg: Table, Rules, and Play Game

Mah Jongg is also one of the numerous table games available to play at Slots Paradise and is necessary to understand the layout of the table and tiles if you want to know how to play Majong. Therefore, when playing Mah Jongg you will require equipment: the Mah Jongg tiles and a Mah Jongg table.

On the table, there are 144 tiles, and they are grouped in the following manners:

  • Three suits: Each suit contains 36 tiles, making 108 suit tiles in total. The suits are the circle suit, bamboo suit, and character suit numbered from 1 to 9 with four tiles of each of them.
  • Honor tiles: These tiles make a total of 24, and they are: Dragons: Green, Red, and White, with four tiles each. Winds: East, South, West, and North, with four tiles of each of them.
  • Eight flowers: Flour flowers and flour seasons make up the eight flowers, but they are generally called flowers. Both of them are numbered from 1 to 4.

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Rules on How to Learn Mah Jongg

  • Four players are required to play Mah Jongg.
  • A total of 144 tiles and two dice are used.
  • The “East seat” is where the dealer position is. Every player also takes turns to be a dealer.
  • The dealer can retain the east seat if he wins or ties the game. Only when the dealer loses can the seat be lost.
  • The dealer seat is rotated counterclockwise.
  • A round is finished once each player has held the dealer’s position.
  • There are two ways to choose a dealer. One is for each player to roll the dice, and whoever has the highest number automatically becomes the dealer.  The second way is for any player to roll the dice, and the rolled number is counted counterclockwise from the same player till it lands on the rolled outcome. Whichever player it lands on becomes the dealer and holds the east seat.
  • The other seats are chosen by shuffling the wind tiles. Then, the dealer rolls the dice, and the outcome is counted counterclockwise until it falls on a player. Then, the player takes a tile to indicate a seat.

How to Play Mah Jongg

To win in the Mah Jongg game, a player must create precisely four sets of three tiles and a pair. Here’s how to play Mah Jongg to achieve the set goal:

1. Choose a dealer

Once the tiles have been placed facing down on the board and shuffled, a dealer is chosen. And there are two ways to select a dealer, as stated earlier. Either by the player with the highest score after the dice have been rolled or for the rolled number to be counted counterclockwise until it ends on a player. 

The dealer has an East seat out of the wind directions seats. And for where players will sit, the dealer will shuffle the wind tiles, and each player will draw a tile and chair according to the tile he has drawn. So the wind directions are North, West, South, and East.

2. Deal the tiles

The North and South player will then shuffle the tiles before every player takes 34 tiles and arranges them as a wall. It is set two tiles high and 17 tiles long, with all tiles facing down. All four players will then push each wall together to form the great wall of china.

The dealer will roll the dice, and the outcome will be counted from the right edge of the wall and begin dealing tiles from the left of where the number stops. Each player will then be issued 13 tiles to create a hand. Finally, the tiles are made visible to the player alone.

3. Discard Tiles

The dealer will start by discarding a tile in the middle of the walls by facing it up. Then, starting from the player on the dealer’s right hand, every player will also draw and discard tiles until the 14th tile is used to form four melds (sets) and a pair (eye). Tiles can be picked from discarded ones or the wall.

The tiles picked are to help form the Pung, Chow, or Kong sets and, most importantly, the Mah Jongg hand. There are also small series of unique hands that a player can make use of to win. The question of how to learn Mah Jongg also depends on the hands you form, and below are the hand combinations you can create:

  • Single: This is a single tile.
  • Pair: A pair combines two identical tiles.
  • Pung: A Pung combines three identical tiles.
  • Kong: A Kong combines four identical tiles.
  • Quint: A Quint combines five identical tiles
  • Sextet: A sextet combines six identical tiles.

Take an example to understand the combinations for learning Mah Jongg. 

  • A Kong of South winds is represented as SSSS
  • A Quint of West winds is defined as WWWWW
  • A Sextet of flowers is defined as FFFFFF.

The process of picking tiles keeps going clockwise until all the tiles have been used or a player shouts “Mah Jongg.”

4. Score

Once Mah Jongg has been declared or the tiles are exhausted, the total score will be announced, and the winner will be revealed.

Final Thoughts

If you are a lover of online casino games but not particularly interested in playing card games, then visit Slots Paradise casino. With games like Mah Jongg, you can delve into unique cultural experiences. While many know of its existence, understanding how to play mahjong game can truly elevate the excitement it offers.

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FAQs

What is the most straightforward version of Mah Jongg?

There are several variants of Mah Jongg, and the easiest of them all is the Chinese variant. It doesn’t have many unique hands or complex scoring compared to the American variant.

Can I play Mahjong without knowing Chinese?

Yes, you can play Mah Jongg without understanding Chinese. You only need to understand the rules and a few words. It is possible to play without understanding Chinese, so don’t be scared.

What is the basic objective of Mah Jongg?

The primary objective is to form a complete set of combinations using the tiles, typically four sets of three tiles (either three of a kind or a sequence) and a pair, before your opponents.