o Learn the three stages of a Mah-Jongg hand. I am still working on this strategy.I've always thought of it as two stages (as can be seen by various mentionsof "early in the hand" and "late in the hand" in this FAQ). If you think ofthe hand as occurring over three stages instead of two, your strategy ismoving nicely towards the upper levels.
1. Opening --> DEVELOP
2. Middle game --> ATTACK or BUILD
3. End game --> DEFEND
Opening moves: DEVELOP your hand by removing isolated pieces. Keep your options open; much depends on what you draw.
Middle game: ATTACK with your hand by deciding on a goal (choosing one option), and building your hand towards that goal.
Endgame: DEFEND your game by making sure no one else wins. In the last third of the wall, the danger increases that an opponent is ready to pounce on your discard for the win. Your great hand will be useless if someone else wins! Assess the danger based on what's visible on the table to determine where danger might lurk.
The boundaries between the three games is not a mere count of discards,of course. You have reached the middle game when your hand is "clean" and you have to decide; go for tanyao or go for pinfu? You have reached the endgame when you areworrying more about discards than draws.
Here's another (more detailed) view on the three stages and how they applyto strategies described in this FAQ:
STAGE ONE -- Opening (FIRST SEVEN TURNS OR SO) -- DEVELOP:
Evaluate the potential of your hand. If you have a lot of pairs, plan totry for an all-pairs hand or an all-pung hand. Determine as early aspossible what hand you think you can get. Consider whether you want to throwaway terminals or simples.
In this stage, don't take somebody else's discard unless you have a clearplan for your hand and that discard advances the hand closer to a Win.
Be mindful of your wind and the prevailing wind. Hang onto those winds inthe early part of a hand until you can see that they're hopeless or yourhand is shaping another way.
Your wind (when it's not the round wind) may well be an "anpai" (Japanese:"safe tile") to discard. If a pair of dragons has already been thrown, thethird and fourth are probably safe to discard (it's rare, but not unheardof, for someone to go out waiting for a dragon pair). Keep it to use laterwhen it's getting dangerous.
Try to go out waiting for multiple tiles (not just one). A two-way call isbetter than a one-way call. Learn to shape the hand into calling patternsthat give you multiple chances to win.
American game, or games that use jokers: Save your jokers for later in thegame. Early melding of jokers just lets others redeem them.
American game, or games with a set of required hands: After someone exposesa pung or kong, study the card carefully and see what the player is doing.If it is early in the game, discard tiles which you think they may be ableto use but probably can't call.
STAGE TWO -- Middle game (AFTER THE 6TH-8TH TURN, +/-) -- ATTACK:
Keep a Pair. It's harder to make a pair if you have only one tile than it isto make a Pung if you have a pair.
Be flexible. If your Stage One plan is not working, switch plans.
If you're getting close to going Out, don't let your body language give thatfact away.
[American/NMJL] Redeem a joker from someone else's hand even if you don't need it. You canalways throw it out and prevent someone else from getting it.
STAGE THREE -- Endgame (AROUND 12-16 TURNS IN - the wall is getting shorter)-- DEFEND:
If you realize you won't be able to make your targeted hand, focus onpreventing others from winning.Especially, you don't want to "feed" a high-scoring hand. Never discard to athird exposure, even ifyou have to break up a good hand.
Know what's safe to discard. The "1-4-7 rule" is a good playing strategy(for all forms of Mah-Jongg except American/NMJL in which there are no "chows").
When the danger is high, it's generally safe to follow a discard with the identical tile from your own hand. But what if you don't have one? Let's say the player before you discards a 4, and you don't have one ofthose to discard, you (might) be all right if you discard a 1 or a 7. A player who's holding a 2 and a 3 is looking for a 1 or a 4 to chow for mah-jongg, let's say.
Watch the discards and don't discard any tiles whose twins you do not see in thediscard area. There are four of each tile. How many do you see? If none, that could be dangerous to discard (depending on how close you are to the end of the wall). The danger increases as the wall nears its end. Know what tiles are dangerous to throw.
[American/NMJL] Throw away your jokers if you don't have anything safe to throw, and youknow you're not going to win. It's a safe discard.
From the ...
>Name = lee
>Date = 30- march 2005
>Comments = Hi,
>
>I have recenty learned to play CC I think. I learnt to play in Malaysia and was told it was "Tiwan" style, but we only use 13 tiles. Anyway dont think it has any bearing.
>
>The question is which are the better statistics
>
>To collect a pung, which you can claim at any time althought there are only 2 tiles left or to collect a chow where you need a tile either side of say a 4&5, although you have 8 tiles left, assuming none are already discarded.
>
>I assume the chow if you are waiting for out, but not sure during play.
>
>And just to clarify we only play to win, no scoring involved. We are not ready for that yet
Hi Lee,
It took me a while to figure out what your question was - I'm a little slow this morning. (^_^) Here, consider this illustration.
As you noted, for the pung you can claim from anyone. But prior to the hand being complete, you can only chow from one of the three other players. So the seeming advantage of eight possibilities has to be divided by three. 8/3=2.66. So the odds of making the chow are still higher than the pung (2.66 being more than 2). Also, consider that the suit tiles outnumber the honor tiles by more than 3 to 1. It's basic strategy to go for chows rather than pungs. If you haven't read FAQ 8, why not have a look? Click the link above left.
This is such a good question I'm adding this to FAQ 8.
May the tiles be with you! - Tom
Tom Sloper
Los Angeles, CA (USA)
March 30, Year of the Rooster
>Name = tabstop
>Date = March 31
>Comments = In regards to your answer to Lee on this board, it looks like you've both ignored actually drawing the tile your own self. The way I think of it is, in every set of four tiles from the wall, two of them you can use for a chow (the one from your upper house, and the one you pick yourself), but all of them can be claimed for a pung. (I'm assuming that the tiles are just thrown, because actually trying to deal with which tiles your opponents hold can't be done in the abstract, I think--and if you actually have no information as to what your opponents hold then it doesn't matter whether they keep or throw, it's random to you.) So the proper multiplier is 1/2, not 1/3. Of course, the conclusion that chows are easier to come by is certainly true, but it looks more like 2:1, I think.
>
>Also, this is all a red herring if we're looking for out, since you can claim the last tile from anyone anyway; in that case the odds really are 4:1. (Speaking personally, I don't think that if I had 223 and had to throw one and wait for the last set, that I would ever throw the 3 unless I could see pungs of 1 and 4, or was trying for the double for all pungs.)
Hello, um, "tabstop" --
I'm not a mathematical kinda guy, so I may need you to explain some of your points for me. But let's take your points one at a time.
>...you've both ignored actually drawing the tile your own self.
Well, Lee's question wasn't about drawing the tile yourself, so I didn't discuss drawing the tile yourself. He or she specifically asked about claiming, so I answered the question that was asked.
>The way I think of it is, in every set of four tiles from the wall, two of them you can use for a chow (the one from your upper house, and the one you pick yourself)
You lost me there.
>...but all of them can be claimed for a pung.
But you have to be holding two of them first, so there are only two left. Regardless of whether someone throws it or you pick it, there are only two tiles out of the total 144 (disregarding for the moment how many are in others' hands, how many dead tiles are on the floor, and whether or not the last 14 in the wall will be played or not) that can make a pung.
>So the proper multiplier is 1/2, not 1/3.
I'm still lost, sorry!
>Of course, the conclusion that chows are easier to come by is certainly true, but it looks more like 2:1, I think.
If we consider that any one of four players (including yourself) might provide you one of the two pung tiles, or any one of two players (including yourself) might provide you one of the eight chow tiles prior to being ready for mah-jongg, let's see (I'm not a math dude)...
So yeah, 4 tiles is twice as good as two tiles, so it's twice as easy to make the chow as the pung. So it's 4:2 (2:1) rather than 2.66:2. Does my math agree with yours now?
>Also, this is all a red herring if we're looking for out, since you can claim the last tile from anyone anyway; in that case the odds really are 4:1.
Lee and I both already acknowledged that the "for mah-jongg" call is a different case. His or her question was specifically about the pre-ready call (as a call and not without consideration of self-pick).
>(Speaking personally, I don't think that if I had 223 and had to throw one and wait for the last set, that I would ever throw the 3 unless I could see pungs of 1 and 4, or was trying for the double for all pungs.)
Absolutely. If the rest of the hand is complete (three sets and a pair), and you have 223, it's best strategy to discard a 2 for a double-ended chow call rather than the 3 for a "back-to-back" (two-pair) call.
May the tiles be with you, "tabstop" - Tom
Tom Sloper
Los Angeles, CA (USA)
March 31, Year of the Rooster
Holding out for the bigger win
>From: Ray
>Sent: Sunday, October 14, 2012 7:20 AM
>Subject: Taking a risk...
>Oh my, I hope you don't mind me asking yet another question...this one too is a little complex (well, complex to me at any rate). I hope my explanation is understandable!
>Again, I was playing Chinese Official rules.
>I was on for two high scoring fan, a Pure Straight (1 through 9 in one suit) and a Full Flush (all tiles of one suit).
>My hand, after many rounds, showed the following:
>1,2,3,4,4,5,5,6,7,8 Bams. I'd already declared a Chow of 1,2,3 Bams.
>On the table, having been discarded by the others, were 1,5,5,6,6,6,7,8,9,9 Bams. So I knew there were sufficient Bams left to enable me to get the two high scoring scoring fan.
>I'd need a 9 and then to do something about a pair. I couldn't get a pair through the 5 Bams as the other two had been discarded and I needed one of my 5 Bams for the Pure Straight. But the 4 Bams was possible (but so were others if I managed to self draw a 2, 3, 7, 8 or 9 and then either get the pair from a discard or another self draw).
>Then a 4 Bams was discarded.
>I can go out on a Full Flush right now, but not the Pure Straight yet. A dilemma!
>If i took the 4 Bams I'd have 1,2,3; 1,2,3; 4,4,4; 6,7,8 and a pair of 5 Bams. Should I ignore the 4 and hope that I get the tiles needed for the two high scoring fan. I couldn't wait too long to decide!
>I took the decision to go out there and then and sacrifice the extra fan, along with all those extra points.
>So...bearing in mind there was so many Bams yet to appear, did I make the right decision? Should I have bided my time...was it worth the risk of someone else going out and me finishing with nought? There was about 20 tiles left in the wall, so there was time.
>I suppose the balancing of risks comes better with experience..and whether the extra points are really needed. As it was I still scored 24 for the Full Flush, 1 for the Pure Double Chow and I had 5 flowers for some extra points too. So it was a pretty good outcome!
>Looking through your FAQs, I couldn't see anything on this balancing of risk...but there is so much information (wow! what a fantastic resource you have established) that I could easily have missed it...if I have then you have my apologies. I suppose knowing when to take the risk is part of becoming a decent player!
>Regards,
>Ray H
Good morning, Ray.
This is not a complicated question at all. You're asking, "should I take the win now or hold out for the bigger score?" It's a classic conundrum. Your analysis of the situation is exactly right. With that hand, 4B and 9B were your needs for the big win (5B being dead). And I absolutely would have taken the 4B for the win as you did. The chances are too great that somebody else will win before you make the bigger one.
<!/font>May the tiles be with you.
Tom Sloper
Creator of these Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
October 14, 2012
When you need 2 more points, part 2
>From: Ray
>Sent: Wednesday, November 7, 2012 6:16 AM
>Subject: Easy to learn Fan combinations part two
>Hi Tom,
>Your reply to my question [Nov. 6, 2012: "Best thing to do when you need 2 more points?"] about 6-point hands [in MCR] and the necessity to include 2- or 1-point fan combinations, said to go for 1-point Chows.
>Can I imply then going for 6-point (and 4-point) hands should be by preference Chow based rather than Pung based (for example, hands such as Mixed Shifted Chows, rather than All Pungs, or to build Half Flush with Chows, not Pungs?)
>Sorry if the question is vague...I'm recovering from my all night Presidential Election Mah Jong Party session!
>Regards
>Ray H
Good morning, Ray.
I just realized that FAQ 8 omits a very basic general strategy pointer for unAmerican variants: the importance of chows. Many players of Western/British/Indian mah-jongg prohibit the use of more than one chow, but in the other unAmerican variants, the strategy mostly revolves around the use of multiple chows.
The reason chows cannot be made from all players' discards during play is that the game would be too easy. The prevalence of numbered suit tiles makes chows very powerful. Read Hatsune and Kajimoto some more, and look at the strategies they discuss around chows.
Most of the time, the tiles you're dealt and that you pick are going to lead you to an all-chows hand, and most of the time, in the middle of the suit (the most common win is all chows, all simples, win by discard). Chows enable two-way waits, and even more (as discussed in FAQ 8).
When you have incomplete non-chow parts of your hand, your chances of finishing the hand decrease.
Of course, chows are cheap, so if you always "go with the flow" (and "seek the path of least resistance"), you won't be making huge wins. But a steady diet of cheap wins can make you come out ahead, especially if you recognize opportunities for going for big wins (and take them).
<!/font>May the tiles be with you.
Tom Sloper
Creator of these Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
11/7/2012
Chinese/Hong Kong/Western Mah-Jongg Strategies
1. Go for the high-scoring combinations (pure, clean, and if applicable,special hands). You only need a few high-scoring hands to win the game.
2. Be flexible. If one plan is not working, switch plans.
3. Be careful of what you discard later in the game. Even if there is nopenalty for throwing the winning tile, your secondary goal should still betoprevent others from winning.
4. Don't be too quick to chow or pung. Even if chicken hands are OK youstand a better chance of getting a good score if you keep your handconcealed.Laying your tiles down (melding) lets people see what you're doing, too.
5. Watch the discards and try to figure out what other players areholding. Remember that other players can do that too.
6. Be mindful of your wind and the prevailing wind. Hang onto those windsin the early part of a hand until you can see that they're hopeless or yourhand is shaping another way.
7. If you're using flowers and playing for minimum fan scores, watch yourflowers. If you have the right flowers, you can go out with an otherwisechicken hand if necessary.
8. Watch the flowers and the seasons. Be aware if it's possible foranyone to get a bouquet (all 4 Flowers, or all 4 Seasons). It might affectyour plan.
9. Don't let Kong opportunities sway you from your targeted hand. My firstdraft of the FAQ said that Kongs were good things (because they let you getan extra draw from the wall) but it was kindly pointed out: "Kongs areespecially worthless, since they do not contribute to your hand (except invariants where they earn extra value, or if you Win, or if you are tryingfor the All Kongs special hand that some variants recognize)."- Kong from a discard gains you nothing unless the kong has value or you goout on the supplement tile.*- Kong from self-pick is different. The Kong is considered concealed inmany forms of Mah-Jongg, and it does afford you an extra pick from the wall.- Conversion of a melded Pung to a Kong is likewise not bad, but it issubject to being Robbed.
* It also costs nothing because it is still your draw.That is, if you have three white dragons in hand and the player beforeyou discards the fourth, you gain by making a kong if the kong is worthmore than the pung (which depends on the form of Mah-Jongg that you are playing).You'llstill get to draw the same tile, and you'll have an exposed kong insteadof a concealed pung. (You do lose if exposing the kong puts you at adisadvantage for other reasons.)If the kong is not worth more than the pung and you aren't ready to goout, there's no point in making this kong; you don't need to telleveryone else at the table that you have a kong of white dragons.
10. Get more cautious as the wall gets lower and lower. Don't discardtiles that haven't previously been discarded.
11. Another strategic reason for not claiming discards to make a meld --making melds means you make fewer picks from the wall. If you useFlowers/Seasons as bonus tiles, and if your Flowers/Seasons have not yetbeen used up, you want to increase your chances of picking these tiles fromthe wall.
12 Strategies for Japanese Mah-Jongg(Listed in no particular order)
1. Early on, evaluate the potential of your hand. If you have a lot ofpairs, plan to try for an all-pairs hand or an all-pung hand. Considerwhetheryou want to throw away terminals or simples.
2. Determine as early as possible what yaku you think you can get. Knowif you have Dora or not but don't count on it for a yaku (it isn't). Don'tforget that Reach is a yaku too.
3. Do not be too quick to jump on somebody's discard -- take it only ifyou've already got a plan for what yaku you're shooting for. (See next twoforspecifics.)
4. Don't meld Chows unless you have a definite yaku plan.
5. Don't meld Pungs unless you decide Reach is out of your reach.
6. Shoot for the really really big yaku hands. Pure, Clean, All Honors,etc. You only need one "really really big" hand to win the entire game.Two"just really big" hands can win the entire game too.
7. Know when to give up on your plan -- watch the discards and melds tosee if it'll be impossible to get the tiles you want.
8. As the wall decreases, wariness and caution shouldincrease. Late in the hand, do not discard anything that nobody else hasdiscarded. Even tiles discarded early in the hand can be dangerous, late inthe hand.
9. If you can't win, at least try to go tenpai -- but not at the expense ofletting somebody else win. When there are 20 or less tiles remaining, andyour hand isn't that good, consider melding like mad so you can at least betenpai (but watch out what you discard).
10. If your chances of winning are low (and/or if your score will be low)shift your strategy to defense. Try to figure out what other players needtowin, and do not discard that, even if it means having Noten.
11. Know your wind and the prevailing wind. Hang onto those tiles untilyou think they can't be used or conflict with your shaping hand.
12. The 1-4-7 rule is a good playing strategy. If the player to your rightdiscards a 4, and you can't throw an identical tile, it might be "not toounsafe" (^-^) for you to throw him a 1 or a 7. Remember these sequences:1-4-7, 2-5-8, 3-6-9. ... A player pointed out to me: "[it's] only reallysafe going from 4 to 1, or 6 to 9. A discarded 1 is not from 1-2-3, butcould be from 1-3-5, which is a combination worth holding for a while."Discarding tiles IDENTICAL to what another player discards is always good,if you can.
(I lied about there being 12 strategies)
13. Be aware of your ranking among the other players at the table. If youarein 3rd place, it's better to have the 2nd-place player to have to pay youoffthan the 4th-place player.
14. New one. Don't do what I do! If you're playing against real players,think real good about whether or not your hand really is one tile away fromcomplete before declaring Reach. You don't want to have to pay a Chombopenalty! Computer games may or may not allow you to make Chombo, but inreal life it's real easy to do! :o(
15. Try to go out waiting for multiple tiles (not just one). Imagine thatyou have three chows and two pairs. One pair is 2-bams, and you draw a3-bam from the wall -- which tile do you discard now? In this situation,many experienced players will discard a two, keeping 2-3. A two-way call isbetter than a one-way call. (And this example would also put you in linefor pinfu (all chows), a popular and easy yaku.)
16. Be aware of how many tiles you need to become tenpai (such tiles arecalled "shanten" by Japanese players) and work to get that number (theshanten count) increasingly lower and lower. The best way is to try toincrease the number of possible winning tiles.
17. Win. If you get a chance to declare "Ron" or "Tsumo", you'd better doit.
18. At times it is important to ignore these strategies. You might nevermake certain special yaku if you never take chances that go against theprevailing wisdom.
American Strategy (NMJL)
As stated atop this FAQ, there is usually no single "best" or "right" strategy for a particular situation. Strategies must be adjusted depending on the situation (considering the probabilities, the other players, the length of the wall, how lucky you feel, etc.). The skilled player always uses a flexible strategic approach.
1. As soon as you get the first deal, sort your tiles on the sloping front of your rack. If you take a look at my strategy column, you can see how I organize my tiles -- flowers at the left, then by suit (numerically within each suit), then dragons and winds and jokers. Suits are extremely important, so you always need to separate the tiles by suit. Suit order (which suit at the left, which suit at the right) is not important at this stage.
I recommend you read the weekly column if you are reading this. There's a link to the column in the nav frame at left, and there are purple banners linking to the column on many pages of this website.
Once your tiles are sorted, look for pairs and triples first, andsee if they suggest a particular section of the card. If not, see if any ofthe singles do. If you have ones and eights and nines, you might go for the1998 section. [Note: that was written in 1998.]Look at your winds and dragons and flowers -- do they suggestany particular section of the card? Most players don't find uses for windsin particular, and you probably don't either, but what if other players wereto pass you winds in the Charleston? But don't spend too much timethinking -- the others want to move on to the Charleston.
New, 2016: I have described my "Four Step system"for Charleston strategy in columns 630 and 631.
2. During the first Charleston, pass tiles that don't help you make a handin the section of the card you have targeted. See if the tiles that getpassed to you do help.
3. During the second Charleston you'll most likely see mostly the same tilesyou saw in the first one. So consider whether you ought to change your handbased on the tiles that are being passed. Or even whether you ought to stop the Charleston. Here's a Charleston-stop decision flowchart you can use:
Don't be one of those people who stops the Charleston too much - that can make other players mad at you. See FAQ 28.
4. Don't be too quick to take a discard in the early part of the game. Mostlikely there will be more chances later. You don't want to tip your handtoo early. Sometimes one meld will tell everybody very clearly exactly whathand you are targeting!
5. Save your jokers for later in the game. Early melding of jokers justlets others redeem them -- you don't want to help your opponents, now, doyou?
6. As you near the end of the hand (as the wall gets short), watch the discards -- you don't want to discardany "raw tiles" (tiles that are not present among the discards) and give someone the win. You pay double when you give someone the win.
7. Try to keep your hand concealed. Showing completed sets gives valuable information to your opponents, who can use that information to thwart your efforts.
8. Go for the high-scoring hands. You won't succeed most of the time, but you only have to get a few good scores to be the big winner! Lose small and win big. 9. When you've reached the point where you can see that you can't make your hand, you can't call yourself dead. But you can discard any tile from your hand that you think is safe, while you focus on preventing others from winning. Breaking up your hand is called "dogging" the hand. If you keep a poker face (meaning if you don't telegraph what you're doing, via utterances or body language), maybe nobody will even know what you're doing. But don't discard the safest tiles first; save those silver bullets* for last. Like jokers, for instance. Jokers are the safest discard in the deck, because jokers die the instant they're discarded, and nobody can use them. 10. As mentioned previously, jokers are safe to discard (since nobody can ever claim a discarded joker). And sometimes it's necessary (when you can't use it, because you need to complete a pair or fill a single). When discarding a joker, many people say "same." It's encouraged to say "same" because the practice encourages other players to keep their eyes open, not only their ears. You can even just say the name of the previous tile (you don't even have to say "same"). And there is a strategic reason for not just saying "joker" when discarding a joker. An opponent who is foolishly only listening, and not looking, will probably miss the fact that you have discarded a joker, and won't even know it until she happens to see it on the discard floor later. Or when she hears you say "same," she might think you had discarded a joker, and will scan the table looking for it, then might even ask what just happened. Either way, by saying "same," you have taken advantage of some players' bad habits. 11. Consecutive Runs hand #2 is perennially the easiest hand on the card to make. Consider: the easiest section on the card is Consecutive Runs, for a simple reason: this section is based on consecutive numbers, and number tiles are the most numerous type of tile in the mah-jongg set. Consec. #2 is the easiest hand in Consecutive Runs to make, because it needs only two suits, it has no pairs (meaning you can expose, and use jokers in, any grouping in the hand), and you can use any four consecutive numbers to make it. It's very flexible (meaning you can switch within it, or switch to it, if necessary) - and it is easy to fool opponents with ambiguous exposures. I call Consec #2 "the most powerful hand on the card," and I've written about it in my column. 12. Did I ever mention that I write a mah-jongg column? Learn special strategy tips, like "joker bait"! See Column 423. Bookmark the column and check in every month. It's written more frequently when there's a new card. Here's more American strategy, from Linda Fisher: 1. After someone exposes a pung or kong, study the card carefully and seewhich hands are possibilities. If it is early in the game, discard tileswhich you think they may be able to use but probably can't call becausethey've either used their only joker on the first exposure or haven'tcollected enough tiles to make a second exposure. However, discard to asecond exposure at great risk and never discard to a third exposure, even ifyou have to break up a good hand. 2. During the Charleston, pay attention to which tiles *don't* come back toyou. Try to determine (without being too obvious) which tiles therecipient keeps. 3. If you play with the same people on a regular basis, try to determinetheir playing style (i.e., are they cautious, always playing "easy" hands?Do they take risks?) 4. Try to find one hand and stick with it. The best advice my aunt gave mewas "You can't play everything." 5. Study the card at a time when you're not playing. Knowing which way togo on the fly can give you an advantage. 6. Redeem a joker from someone else's hand even if you don't need it. Youcan always throw it out and prevent someone else from getting it. 7. Remember that the pairs are the most difficult to get since they cannotbe exposed. It's better to play a hand where the pairs are in place and youneed a kong or pung rather than the reverse. So there you have some strategy pointers. Just keep these things in mind: Got a question? Ask it on the ! You'll get answers! Like this: Is it good strategy to call a player dead? (American mah-jongg) >From: Mary Ann C One away from mahj but picked another player's hot tile >From: Paul A P.S. I had second thoughts about the advice I gave Paul - see Column #704 - Tom Should I sacrifice my game? >From: Dolores M You posited a situation in which you "only need one more tile." I assume that means you are holding 13 tiles, none of which are expendable, and you are waiting for your mah-jongg tile. You furthermore said your opponent is in the exact same position, and you even know what tile she needs. You and she are therefore in equal positions - you are both waiting, and you are equally dangerous to one another. Exactly like the situation between Rachel and Eleanor. It would be silly to throw your hand if you don't have to. And assuming you are not being thwarted in your desire to continue your relationship with your opponent's son against her wishes, it would furthermore be silly to knowingly give her her winning tile. Or maybe you are holding 14 tiles (you just picked one), and you have 13 non-expendable tiles. If your expendable tile is your opponent's winning tile, then you are in a classic quandary. Paul A asked about that situation on May 9 ( Earlier in the movie, Rachel teaches her Game Theory students that playing to win is better than playing "not to lose." But when your "best" move is to break up your hand so as not to give a winning tile, maybe not losing is a form of winning. It's not unusual to take a lot of verbal abuse from the other non-winners if you throw the winning tile, and who wants that? As I wrote in column 704. So. The short answer: you shouldn't discard your opponent's winning tile, if you know what it is. If what you're discarding is one of her hot tiles, you take a chance. You can weigh the cost of losing versus the amount you could win, if your discard doesn't give her the win. But all rules (not that this is a "rule" per se) can be broken, depending on other circ*mstances. Defensive strategy in the Charleston On Wednesday, July 29, 2020, 08:37:10 AM PDT, L S wrote: She always wants to look at what I didn't win on >From: C ████ Being observant: poor etiquette? >From: Marsha C Exhaustive list of Asian Mahjongg calling hands >From: "Alec.Stephenson American strategy >From: heaton.ray <!/font>May the tiles be with you. THANKS to the following folks for their contributions to this FAQ: J. R. Fitch Update log: * Silver bullets, because you're vampires who don't want to be captured alive. (That's the only explanation I can come up with for that weak joke.) This FAQ copyright 2000, 2001, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2012-2023 by Tom Sloper. All rights reserved. Replication/reproduction by permission of the author only.
- There is a difference between a rule and a strategy. If you see somebody violating a strategy, you cannot call her out on it and tell her, "you can't do that." If you want to help her with some strategic pointers, do that away from the table, not during a game, and do it with a clear awareness that strategies are not rules.
- One strategy can be overruled by another strategy. A strategy can be overridden by circ*mstances. Hardly any strategy should be used 100% of the time under any or all circ*mstances.
>Sent: Friday, July 6, 2012 10:41 AM
>Subject: Question
>Color me stupid if you have already answered this question and I apologize, but I cannot find it.
>Do YOU think it is good strategy to call a player dead and why? She may have the tile you need for Mah Jongg and may discard it if you let her continue to play You don't have to worry about her calling Mah Jongg.
>Thanks, Mary Ann Hi, Mary Ann. You asked:
if you have already answered this question and I apologize, but I cannot find it.
>Do YOU think it is good strategy to call a player dead and why?
Coincidentally, I stated my reasoning in this week's strategy column. But tell you what, I'll add it to the strategy FAQ. She may have the tile you need for Mah Jongg and may discard it if you let her continue to play Well, let's talk about that. 
Consider the odds that she has your tile -- since the dead discards are out of the running, you can do a comparison between the number of tiles in her hand (13) against the number of tiles in the wall. If there are 13 tiles in the wall, then yes, you're right, the odds are about 1 in 4 that she has the tile you want. The odds of that are 1 in 4, or 25% (you know it's not in your hand, but it could be in hers, or the wall, or in one of the other two players' hands) - if there are 13 tiles in the wall. The odds are less than 25%, if the wall is longer than 13 tiles (6½ stacks).
Now, consider whether she is likely to discard your tile. Let's assume that you have no exposures, so she cannot guess what tile you need. So now the likelihood of her discarding a particular tile depends on how far you are into the game; she's less likely to discard your tile (whatever it is) the farther you go into the game (a tile's "temperature" increases with time). Since you've determined that she's dead, it's likely not very early in the game. I can't calculate any odds for you, but I hope I've made a reasonable point.
Since you're not worried about her calling mah-jongg, and are hoping she'll throw your tile, you're permitting her to keep on picking. Let's assume that you do have exposures, or that it's possible for her to have been watching your discards and deduce what you are doing. She could well pick the tile you need, and, knowing it to be dangerous, hold onto it. If she was dead, another player (one who doesn't need your tile and still hopes to win) could throw your tile.
Tom Sloper
Creator of these Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
July 6, 2012
>Sent: Wednesday, May 9, 2018 9:30 AM
>Subject: Strategy question: One tile needed for Mahj and you draw someone else's very hot tile
>Hi Tom,
>Scenario:
>You only need one tile for Mahj and you know you are likely to get it at some point. Its apparent to you that another player is very close to winning (exposures, dropping jokers, and whatever other tells you are aware of). You draw a tile that is likely very hot for this other player.
>Whats your move? Do you risk it and discard the hot tile? Correct me if Im wrong but I think the only other option is to forgo any chance of winning and play defense, right?
>Thanks,
>Paul
Hi, Paul.
In this situation, there are classic lines of dialogue that apply:
Clint Eastwood, "Dirty Harry": "Do you feel lucky, punk?"
Tom Sloper, umpteen times: "It depends."
Confucius: "Flip a coin."
It all comes down to a very simple calculation that will probably not give you a useful answer: either you are going to pay 2x value (I assume you play American rules, since you used the word "mahj"), or you might win, 4x value if by discard, 6x value if by self-pick. There is also a chance that another player might win, not from your discard (in which case you pay 1x value).
And then there's the question of what "value" is. Or maybe that doesn't matter. How about it? Do you feel lucky? By the way, I was kidding before. Confucius never said "flip a coin." But I imagine that at some time in his life, he probably said something similar (in some ancient Chinese dialect).
<!/font>May the tiles be with you.
Tom Sloper
トム·スローパー
湯姆斯洛珀
Creator of the Sloper On Mah-Jongg column and the Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
May 9, 2018, 9:45 AM
>Sent: Thursday, September 6, 2018 4:28 AM
>Subject: Mah-Jongg Q+A
>My mah-jongg question or comment is: if I only need one more tile? to win and I know what my opposite needs should I sacrifice my game? Hi, Dolores!
Based on the way you worded your question, I would have to say no. The way you worded your question, you would sacrifice your game even if your winning tile comes to you. Like Rachel did in Crazy Rich Asians. Have you seen Crazy Rich Asians? In the mah-jongg scene, Rachel sacrifices her game - throwing her own lucky winning tile to Eleanor, who promptly won on it. Then Rachel revealed her own tiles, proving that she was a lot smarter than Eleanor gave her credit for - and earning Eleanor's begrudging respect, after which Eleanor stopped undermining Rachel's relationship with Eleanor's son. See, I just said you shouldn't do it, but Rachel did, and she got her man. So maybe I should say "no, don't, unless your impending engagement can be won thereby." 
below above), in "One away from mahj but picked another player's hot tile." I told Paul: "It all comes down to a very simple calculation that will probably not give you a useful answer: either you are going to pay 2x value (I assume you play American rules...)." In Paul's case, he wasn't positive that his expendable tile was definitely his opponent's winning tile. It makes no sense to knowingly discard an opponent's winning tile. Which is what makes Rachel's play in the movie so extraordinary. In my reply to Paul in May, I went on about the possibility that his expendable tile was not his opponent's win: "... or you might win, 4x value if by discard, 6x value if by self-pick. There is also a chance that another player might win, not from your discard (in which case you pay 1x value)."
<!/font>May the tiles be with you.
Tom Sloper
トム·スローパー
湯姆斯洛珀
Creator of the Sloper On Mah-Jongg column and the Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
September 6, 2018 9:15 AM
Mah-Jongg Q+A
My mah-jongg question or comment is:
I looked over many of the questions so if this one has been asked, I apologize.
During the Charleston, how do I avoid stacking someone's hand while I prepare for my own. For example: I have more evens than odds and hope to go for an even hand. In order to do that, I have to give away many odds. Even when I try to distribute them around the the passes, I worry that they will end up helping someone win. And sometimes, they do. I see it in the end.
Leslie S
Good morning, Leslie.
Personally, I don't worry too much about defense in the Charleston, most of the time. Until you have received tiles from a player, you don't (and can't) know what kind of tiles s/he's getting rid of. But after you've received tiles from a player, there's an opportunity in the 2nd dance to adjust what you give that player... if able.
If somebody is collecting winds, that is sometimes apparent by the 2nd dance. I've been in games with players who share information at this point ("Somebody's collecting winds!"); I don't agree with such table talk (which occurs mainly when playing in-person, which I'm not doing again until after I've gotten the covid-19 vaccine), but you see my point.
As I said, I don't focus on defense in the Charleston, especially if my tiles are promising. The purpose of the Charleston is to build one's own hand - not to worry about others' hands.
I think this is a good question, so I'm adding this to FAQ 8, the strategy FAQ. <!/font>Play safely and stay healthy. And may the tiles be with you.
Tom Sloper
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Author of the Sloper On Mah-Jongg column and the Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
July 29, 2020
Los Angeles, California, USA
>Sent: Thursday, April 19, 2018 7:51 PM
>Subject: Asking about another's hand
>Hi Mah Jongg King, (Just want to show my deference!)
>I have a friend that asks to see my hand at the conclusion of every hand, when I am not the winner. If I defer and say I was playing a 3/6/9 for example (not the correct one) she will insist I wasnt based on one of my discards. I explained to her today that this was my way of politely telling her I did to want to show her my hand. She was undeterred. So I followed up with its bad strategy to show your hand for the variety of reasons. I think she still thinks I am being rude. Do you have a FAQ on this.
>I thought I had seen it in the past, but have spent several hours searching with no luck. I apologize if a repeat. Thanks so much for your thoughts. C████ Hi, C████!
You know this is not a question of rules, but is it therefore a question of strategy? There is a third thing involved, which is etiquette. She is not showing good etiquette by asking to see your hand. And if everybody at the table shows their hands, then you are not showing good etiquette by refusing. If someone asks what I was doing, I tell them. Good relations with other players outweighs any strategic advantage they're likely to get by knowing what hand you were doing, after the fact. Besides, if you ever had a fifth player, you would have to let the bettor watch what you're doing. And the bettor always changes (all your opponents will have a chance to watch you play). I don't see harm in it.
<!/font>May the tiles be with you.
Tom Sloper
トム·スローパー
湯姆斯洛珀
Creator of the Sloper On Mah-Jongg column and the Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
April 19, 2018 8:35 PM
>Sent: Thursday, June 21, 2018 1:43 PM
>Subject: Mah-Jongg Q+A
>My mah-jongg question or comment is: Lets say I pass a Wind and two non-Wind tiles, placing the Wind in middle of the three. Is it poor etiquette to watch the player and see if the player puts the Wind on her rack? Hi, Marsha!
Great question! It wouldn't be good etiquette to crane your neck,* but nobody can fault you for what your eyeballs focus on or pass over. If somebody sees your eyeballs watch your neighbor, then that person has a wandering eye herself! A cagey player might use her peripheral vision to observe what the neighbor does. Another cagey player might mix up the tiles after picking them up from your pass and before choosing some to keep. And yet another cagey player might assume that somebody is keeping winds if winds are rare in the Charleston. If the first pass contains no winds, the player at your left might be keeping winds. If the first across contains no winds, your across could be collecting winds. If the first left pass contains no winds, then the player at your right could be collecting them.
*I had this fleeting image of the cartoon wolf, you know, the one from the forties and fifties, with his eyeballs flying sideways and up to see the tiles. But I decided not to mention that. Oh wait, I just did.
<!/font>May the tiles be with you.
Tom Sloper
トム·スローパー
湯姆斯洛珀
Creator of the Sloper On Mah-Jongg column and the Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
Summer Solstice, 2018
>Sent: Sunday, March 17, 2019 6:29 PM
>Subject: calling/ready hands list
>Dear Tom,
>I could not find an exhaustive list of (non-American) Mahjong ready/calling hands on the web so I created one myself using computer generated tables.
>Each hand also gives the required tiles for hand completion and the number of outs.
>It is as attached. If you feel it would be of interest to your readers please feel free to include it on the strategy section of your site.
>Best,
>Alec Stephenson
>Senior Research Scientist, CSIRO
>Adj Prof, Swinburne University
>Attachment: emh.pdf Very nice, Alec!
For my readers who may be interested, I'm renaming the file to make it discoverable in one's own local download folder or documents folder, or mahjongg folder (if they have one). I'm calling the file CallingPatterns-AsianMJ.pdf.
The file is located on the Web at sloperama.com/downlode/ (in the "mahjongg" folder).
Some info about the file for the readers on this board:
Very cool project, Alec! Thanks very much for sharing it. I'm copying this post to FAQ 8.B.. <!/font>May the tiles be with you!
Tom Sloper
トム·スローパー
湯姆斯洛珀
Creator of the Sloper On Mah-Jongg column and the Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
Los Angeles, California, USA
St. Patrick's Day, 2019
>Sent: Thursday, May 2, 2019 2:56 PM
>Subject: Beginning American
>Hi Tom,
>I've started playing American at last: after about two weeks of playing NMJL rules, I'm still finding the Charleston a bit odd, but having Jokers is a boon!
>A couple of questions have occurred to me over the couple of weeks...
>If you have no flowers at the end of the Charleston, is it worth the risk of pursuing a hand that requires a flower pair? My thinking is it is (if you have sufficient other tiles towards the target hand) as there's a good chance of drawing at least one flower then perhaps going out on a discarded flower.
>How close to a target hand should you be at the end of the Charleston to have any real chance of achieving it? I suppose rather closer for a closed hand or one that majors in pairs.
>Thanks in advance for any advice!
>Regards,
>Ray Hi, Ray. Wow, venturing into no-man's land! You are a brave soul. You wrote:
If you have no flowers at the end of the Charleston, is it worth the risk of pursuing a hand that requires a flower pair? My thinking is it is (if you have sufficient other tiles towards the target hand) as there's a good chance of drawing at least one flower then perhaps going out on a discarded flower.
All I can tell you is that I've tried that many times. Sometimes it works, but more often I never get that second flower. How close to a target hand should you be at the end of the Charleston to have any real chance of achieving it? I can't give you a number. This is a strategic principle each player decides for him- or herself. I suppose rather closer for a closed hand or one that majors in pairs. For a concealed hand, yes. For a pairs hand, you want the majority of your pairs complete - and you want a fallback hand. I'll append this exchange to FAQ 8.
Tom Sloper
Author of the Sloper On Mah-Jongg column and the Mah-Jongg FAQs -- <!b>donations appreciated<!/b>.
Author of "," the definitive book on Mah-Jongg East & West.
May 2, 2019
Los Angeles, California, USA
Alan Kwan
ksr (Tanaka Keishiro)
David Grabiner
Wei-Hwa Huang
Steve Lin
Linda Fisher
[Your name can go here!]
June 23, 1999 -- further differentiated "American" from other forms of Mah-Jongg
October 18, 2000 -- added newsgroup/usenet header info indicating thegameguru.net home of these FAQs
December 8, 2000 -- changed FAQ URL to sloperama.com
June 25, 2001 -- Converted the FAQ to HTML format. Fixed a typo (changed "the" to "they").
Subsequent updates are logged at http://www.sloperama.com/mjfaq/log.html
Stopped updating log in 2019.
