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Most come in three suits, numbered one to nine. There are also winds, dragons, flowers and jokers. The next lesson shows every one of them.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/goal/01-tiles-c266bb861bee.mp416yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/goal/02-east-0324146d3108.jpgAmerican Mah Jongg basics: Who is East, and the wallFour people play: you and three opponents. First, each player rolls the dice. The highest roll is East, the dealer for this game. This time, you rolled highest, so you are East. All the tiles are turned face down and mixed. This is called washing. Each player builds a row against their rack: nineteen stacks, two tiles high. The rack is as long as the row. The four rows make up the wall. When a row is needed, its player pushes it toward the middle with the rod on their rack.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/goal/02-east-0324146d3108.mp436yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/goal/03-deal-fcdc692bf293.jpgAmerican Mah Jongg basics: The dealEast rolls again and counts that many stacks from the right end of their row. The wall is split there, and those stacks are saved for the end of the game. The tiles are dealt from the other side of the split. Everyone gets thirteen. East gets fourteen. Your tiles stand on your rack, facing you. Only you can see them.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/goal/03-deal-fcdc692bf293.mp423yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/goal/04-play-48d4ed6201a3.jpgAmerican Mah Jongg basics: Play, and how you winBefore anyone throws a tile, the players pass tiles to each other. This is called the Charleston. Don't worry about it now: it has a whole lesson of its own. East has fourteen tiles, so East starts by throwing one into the middle. Then each player in turn draws one tile from the wall and throws one. A thrown tile is called a discard, and everyone can see it. Every tile drawn comes from the wall, so the wall gets shorter as the game goes on. Each year a card lists the hands that win. You win by making one of them with fourteen tiles and calling Mah Jongg.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/goal/04-play-48d4ed6201a3.mp441yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/tileshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/01-suits-46764495ad9b.jpgThe tiles: The three suitsMost tiles come in three suits, and each suit runs from 1 to 9. The first suit is Bams: sticks of bamboo. The 1 Bam is drawn as a bird, but it is still a 1. The second suit is Craks. You never need to read the writing: the number in the corner tells you which tile it is. The third suit is Dots. The circles count the number.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/01-suits-46764495ad9b.mp424yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/02-four-b23404d062fb.jpgThe tiles: Four of every tileThere are four of every tile. Four 5 Bams, four 5 Craks, and four 5 Dots. Three suits, nine numbers, four of each. That makes 108 tiles.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/02-four-b23404d062fb.mp414yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/03-honours-1a75922e2732.jpgThe tiles: Winds and dragonsFour tiles are winds: East, South, West and North. They have no number and no suit. Like every tile, there are four of each wind. Three tiles are dragons: Red, Green and White. Players call the White dragon Soap. Each dragon goes with a suit. Red goes with Craks, Green with Bams, and Soap with Dots.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/03-honours-1a75922e2732.mp424yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/04-flowers-4af40613ae4d.jpgThe tiles: Flowers, jokers, and all 152There are eight flowers. In some sets each one has its own picture, but any flower counts as a flower. There are eight jokers. A joker stands in for a tile you are missing. The next lesson shows where a joker can go. Altogether: 108 suit tiles, 16 winds, 12 dragons, 8 flowers and 8 jokers. 152 tiles.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/tiles/04-flowers-4af40613ae4d.mp427yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/groupshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/groups/01-groups-8c1631142c9c.jpgPairs, three of a kind, and more: Groups of the same tileEvery hand on the card is made of groups. Two of the same tile is a pair. Three of the same tile is three of a kind. Players call it a pung. Four of the same tile is four of a kind, called a kong. Five of a kind is called a quint. There are only four of each tile, so a quint always has a joker in it.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/groups/01-groups-8c1631142c9c.mp423yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/groups/02-jokers-68ab7dd074f4.jpgPairs, three of a kind, and more: Where a joker can goJokers can be used to make three of a kind or more, but not pairs. This is allowed: two 4 Craks and a joker make three 4 Craks. This is not allowed: a 9 Dot and a joker can never be a pair.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/groups/02-jokers-68ab7dd074f4.mp417yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/groups/03-hand-9e123075cf17.jpgPairs, three of a kind, and more: A hand adds up to fourteenA hand on the card is a few groups that add up to 14 tiles. This one is a pair of flowers, four 3 Dots, four 4 Dots, and four 5 Bams. Two, four, four and four. That makes 14.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/groups/03-hand-9e123075cf17.mp417yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/cardhttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/01-print-94adc8f1d9ce.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 1: How the card writes a handThis is a winning hand. It has 14 tiles in four groups. Two flowers, four 2 Bams, four 4 Bams, and four 6 Bams. The card prints this hand in one line, like this. F means a flower. Four 2s are printed as 2 2 2 2. Each part of the line is one group of tiles.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/01-print-94adc8f1d9ce.mp422yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/02-one-colour-237452fc3ab7.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 1: One colour means one suitThe card never says which suit. When every number in a line is the same colour, they are all one suit, and you choose which. Here is the same hand in Bams. In Craks. And in Dots.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/02-one-colour-237452fc3ab7.mp418yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/03-two-colours-c137adf892be.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 1: Two colours mean two suitsThis line is printed in two colours. The 1s, 3s and 5s are one colour, so they are one suit. Here, Dots. The 7s are the other colour, so they are another suit. Here, Craks. Four 7 Dots would not fit this line. They are the same suit as the rest.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/03-two-colours-c137adf892be.mp420yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/04-jokers-d9b7d5a4940d.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 1: Where a joker can goJokers can be used to make three of a kind or more, but not pairs. A joker in the four 6s is allowed. A joker in the pair of flowers is not.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card/04-jokers-d9b7d5a4940d.mp413yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/card2https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/01-dragons-f052c9a6986b.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 2: D is a dragonOn the card, D means a dragon. Each dragon goes with a suit. The Red Dragon goes with Craks. The Green Dragon goes with Bams. And the White Dragon goes with Dots. When D is the same colour as the numbers, it is the dragon of their suit. In another colour, it is the dragon of another suit.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/01-dragons-f052c9a6986b.mp425yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/02-soap-73c215dbd651.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 2: 0 is the White DragonIn the year hands, the card writes 0 for the White Dragon. Players call it the Soap. So 2 0 2 6 is a 2, the White Dragon, another 2, and a 6.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/02-soap-73c215dbd651.mp414yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/03-winds-aa13a9950fa3.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 2: N, E, W and S are the windsThe card writes the winds by their first letters. N for North, E for East, W for West, and S for South. So N N N N is four North winds.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/03-winds-aa13a9950fa3.mp413yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/04-runs-5d91908b6a8f.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 2: Some hands start on any numberSome lines can start on any number. This line is printed with a note: any 3 numbers in a row. So 1, 2, 3 makes it. And so does 5, 6, 7. Only the numbers change.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/04-runs-5d91908b6a8f.mp416yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/05-value-c843608ebb8f.jpgReading a Mah Jongg card, part 2: What a hand pays, and C for concealedThe number at the end of a line is what the hand pays. A C means concealed. No group goes face up before you win. You may take a thrown tile only if it is the last one, the tile that wins.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/card2/05-value-c843608ebb8f.mp416yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/charlestonhttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/01-passes-e2f3ddde963d.jpgThe Charleston: Right, across, leftBefore the first turn, the players pass tiles to each other. This is called the Charleston. Each pass is three tiles, face down, and everyone passes at the same time. First, three tiles to the player on your right. Then three to the player across. Then three to the player on your left.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/01-passes-e2f3ddde963d.mp427yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/02-blind-06d521df8832.jpgThe Charleston: The blind passOn that last pass to the left, you may pass blind. Keep a tile you need, and pass on one or two of the tiles coming to you, without looking at them.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/02-blind-06d521df8832.mp412yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/03-second-add8cd789e43.jpgThe Charleston: The second Charleston and the courtesy passThen the players may pass again the other way round: left, across and right. Anyone can stop this second Charleston before it starts. If nobody does, all three passes happen. Last comes the courtesy pass, with the player across only. You each choose up to three tiles, and you trade the smaller number.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/03-second-add8cd789e43.mp429yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/04-what-ce1dc04759de.jpgThe Charleston: What to passNever pass a joker. Keep the tiles that fit the hands you might make, and pass the ones that fit none of them.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/charleston/04-what-ce1dc04759de.mp411yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/turnshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/turns/01-turn-f5a4359c85d4.jpgA turn: draw one, throw one: Draw one, throw oneEast has fourteen tiles, so East starts by throwing one into the middle, face up. Then the turn goes to the right. Each player draws one tile from the wall and throws one. On your turn, draw one, then throw one and say its name out loud.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/turns/01-turn-f5a4359c85d4.mp420yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/turns/02-call-86f6bf0238a7.jpgA turn: draw one, throw one: Calling a thrown tileA thrown tile can be taken by any player, not just the next one. You have two 6 Craks, and a 6 Crak is thrown. Say call, and show the three 6 Craks face up in front of you. Then throw a tile. You do not draw. Anyone between the thrower and you loses that turn, and play goes on to your right. You may call a tile only to make three of a kind or more. Never for a pair, unless that tile finishes your whole hand.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/turns/02-call-86f6bf0238a7.mp431yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/turns/03-dead-779a822ca655.jpgA turn: draw one, throw one: A thrown tile nobody takesIf nobody calls a thrown tile before the next player draws, it stays in the middle for the rest of the game, and nobody can take it later.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/turns/03-dead-779a822ca655.mp411yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/jokershttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/jokers/01-swap-39b34bd0cbb4.jpgJokers: Taking a joker backThe player across has three 7 Dots face up, and one of them is a joker. You hold a real 7 Dot. On your turn, you may put your 7 Dot in their group and take the joker. Their group is still three 7 Dots.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/jokers/01-swap-39b34bd0cbb4.mp417yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/jokers/02-rules-b573baa28b04.jpgJokers: Two more joker rulesA thrown joker is dead. Nobody can pick it up, not even to win. And a joker never stands for a single tile: not half of a pair, not in North East West South, and not in a year like 2026.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/jokers/02-rules-b573baa28b04.mp417yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/winninghttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/winning/01-win-eac4ccb497c3.jpgWinning and paying: How you winThe card lists the hands that win, and the number beside each hand is what it pays. When your fourteen tiles make one of those hands, you win. Here you need one more 6 Bam. When it comes, say Mah Jongg, and lay your tiles face up for everyone to check.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/winning/01-win-eac4ccb497c3.mp419yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/winning/02-pay-3ade17ba4fac.jpgWinning and paying: Who pays whatThis hand pays 25. If you win on a tile someone throws, the player who threw it pays double, 50. The other two pay 25 each. You collect 100. If you draw the winning tile yourself, all three pay double, 50 each. You collect 150. And if your hand has no jokers in it, every payment doubles again.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/winning/02-pay-3ade17ba4fac.mp429yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/winning/03-wall-eb3ee1a6af1a.jpgWinning and paying: When the wall runs outSometimes the wall runs out before anyone wins. That is a wall game. Nobody pays, and the tiles are mixed for the next game.https://mahjonggschool.com/lesson-media/lessons/winning/03-wall-eb3ee1a6af1a.mp412yeshttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/rackhttps://mahjonggschool.com/lessons/apphttps://mahjonggschool.com/libraryhttps://mahjonggschool.com/library/moveshttps://mahjonggschool.com/cards/065b0b3ba6bahttps://mahjonggschool.com/cards/nmjl2023https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/nmjl2024https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/nmjl2025https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/bigcard2026https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/nmjl2020https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/nmjl2021https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/nmjl2022https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/ams2026https://mahjonggschool.com/cards/month-2026-10