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The Rules

American Mahjong in plain English. Every tile reads in English on its face, and discards are called the way they are at a real table — "Three Bam", "Five Crak", "Soap".

Calling your discard

When you throw a tile you say its name out loud so the table can claim it.

  • Number tiles: the number then the suit — "Two Bam", "Six Dot", "Nine Crak".
  • The white dragon is always "Soap". The others are "Red" and "Green".
  • Winds are just the direction: "East", "North".
  • Flowers are "Flower"; a discarded joker is dead and can't be claimed.

The 152 tiles

Three suits of 1–9, four winds and three dragons (four copies of each) — plus 8 flowers and 8 jokers, which are what make the American game different.

Bams

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

Dots

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

Craks

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

Winds

East Wind
say “East”
South Wind
say “South”
West Wind
say “West”
North Wind
say “North”

Dragons

Red Dragon (goes with Craks)
say “Red”
Green Dragon (goes with Bams)
say “Green”
White Dragon (goes with Dots, plays as 0)
say “Soap”

Jokers & flowers

Joker — any tile inside a pung, kong or quint
say “Joker”
Flower — a real tile used by many card lines
say “Flower”

How a hand plays

1

Deal

Everyone gets 13 tiles; the dealer starts with 14 and discards first.

2

The Charleston

Three blind passes — right, across, left — of three tiles each, then an optional second round. Jokers may never be passed. This is where you shed the tiles that fit no card line.

3

Draw and discard

On your turn you draw one tile from the wall and discard one, calling it out. Play moves to the right.

4

Claiming a discard

Any player may take the most recent discard only to immediately complete an exposure — a pung (3), kong (4) or quint (5) — or to win. There are no runs to claim in the American game. An exposure goes face-up on your rack and you then discard.

5

Jokers

A joker may fill any spot in a pung, kong or quint, but never a single or a pair. If you hold the natural tile, you may swap it for a joker showing in anyone's exposure. A discarded joker is dead and cannot be claimed.

6

Mahjong

Call mahjong when your 14 tiles exactly match one line on the card. If the wall runs out first, the hand is a wall game and nobody scores.

Scoring

Each card line is worth its printed value — typically 25 to 75 points. Two bonuses apply on top:

  • Self pick — you drew your own winning tile: +10, and everyone pays double.
  • Joker free — you won an exposable line with no jokers at all: +10.
  • If you win off a discard, the discarder pays double and the other two pay single.

The Mahjong Club Card

Every winning hand must match one of these lines exactly. Numbers repeat as written; letters mean flowers (F), dragons (D for the dragon matching your suit, R red, G green), winds (E S W N) and "any like number" (N). A 0 is the white dragon — Soap. A vertical bar marks a change of suit.

Year 2026

  • FF 2222 0000 666625 pts

    One suit for the 2s and 6s. White dragons (soap) are the zeros.

  • FF 222 000 222 66625 pts

    Twos in two different suits, sixes in the third.

  • FF 2026 2026 202675 pts · concealed

    The full year written out in all three suits. No exposures, no jokers.

  • 2222 0000 2222 6630 pts

    Two suits of twos, a kong of soaps, and a pair of sixes.

2468

  • FF 2222 4444 666625 pts

    All even, all one suit.

  • 222 444 666 888 FF25 pts

    The full even ladder in one suit.

  • 222 444 666 888 DD30 pts

    Even ladder plus the dragon that matches your suit.

  • 222 444 | 666 888 FF30 pts

    First half in one suit, second half in another.

  • 2222 4444 66 88 FF30 pts

    Two even kongs and two even pairs, one suit.

  • 88 666 4444 222 835 pts

    A stacked even hand — pair, pung, kong, pung, single.

  • 22 44 66 88 22 44 6650 pts · concealed

    Seven even pairs across two suits. Concealed.

13579

  • FF 1111 3333 555525 pts

    Odd kongs climbing in one suit.

  • 111 333 555 999 FF25 pts

    Four odd pungs in one suit.

  • 11 33 55 77 99 DDDD35 pts

    Every odd pair plus a kong of your suit dragon.

  • 111 333 | 555 777 DD30 pts

    Low odds in one suit, high odds in another.

  • 99 777 5555 333 935 pts

    Odd ladder descending, finished with a single nine.

  • 1 3 5 7 9 1 3 5 7 9 FFFF75 pts · concealed

    Every odd tile in two suits plus four flowers. Concealed.

Any Like Numbers

  • FF NNNN NNNN NNNN35 pts

    Pick any number, then kong it in all three suits.

  • FF NNNN NNNN NN DD30 pts

    One number, two kongs, a pair, and a matching dragon pair.

  • NNNN NNN NNN DDDD35 pts

    The same number three ways, capped with a dragon kong.

  • NNN NNN NNN DDD FF30 pts

    Three pungs of one number plus a dragon pung and flowers.

Consecutive Run

  • 11 222 3333 444 5530 pts

    Five numbers in a row in one suit, growing then shrinking.

  • 111 222 333 444 FF25 pts

    Four consecutive pungs in one suit.

  • FF 1111 2222 333330 pts

    Three consecutive kongs in one suit.

  • 11 22 33 44 55 66 7750 pts · concealed

    Seven consecutive pairs in one suit. Concealed.

  • 111 222 | 333 444 DD30 pts

    Two consecutive pungs in one suit, the next two in another.

  • 1 2 3 4 5 | 1 2 3 4 5 FFFF75 pts · concealed

    A five-tile run in two suits plus four flowers. Concealed.

  • 1111 2222 33 44 FF30 pts

    Two consecutive kongs and two consecutive pairs.

  • 111 2222 333 DDDD35 pts

    A run of three with a dragon kong.

Winds & Dragons

  • EEEE SSSS WWWW NN30 pts

    Three wind kongs and a pair of the fourth.

  • NNNN EEEE SSSS WW30 pts

    The same idea, rotated around the compass.

  • EEE SSS WWW NNN FF25 pts

    One pung of every wind plus flowers.

  • RRRR GGGG 0000 NN35 pts

    A kong of every dragon plus a wind pair.

  • FFFF RRRR GGG 00040 pts

    Four flowers and all three dragons.

  • EE SS WW NN RRR GGG35 pts

    Every wind paired, then two dragon pungs.

  • EEE NNN 111 999 DD30 pts

    North-south winds with terminals and a dragon pair.

Quints

  • NNNNN NNNNN NNNN50 pts

    The same number five, five, and four times across the suits.

  • FFFFF NNNNN NNNN50 pts

    A quint of flowers plus a number quint and kong.

  • 11111 22222 333350 pts

    Three consecutive numbers, one suit, two of them as quints.

  • RRRRR GGGGG 000055 pts

    Dragon quints — the boldest line on the card.

  • EEEEE NNNNN DDDD50 pts

    Two wind quints and a dragon kong.

Singles & Pairs

  • 11 22 33 | 11 22 33 DD50 pts · concealed

    A short run paired in two suits, closed with a dragon pair.

  • FF 1 3 5 7 9 | 1 3 5 7 9 DD75 pts · concealed

    Every odd tile in two suits, framed by flowers and dragons.

  • 2 4 6 8 | 2 4 6 8 | 2 4 6 8 DD75 pts · concealed

    Every even tile in all three suits plus a dragon pair.

  • FF 11 22 33 44 55 6650 pts · concealed

    Six consecutive pairs plus flowers.

  • 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 FF RRR75 pts · concealed

    A full suit run, flowers, and a red dragon pung.

  • EE SS WW NN RR GG 0075 pts · concealed

    Every wind and dragon paired. The purist hand.

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