Lessons
Short lessons that teach the game one idea at a time.
The scoring card — every hand and what it is worth, on one page.
Beginner
What is mahjong?
A game from China, four people at one table, and tiles instead of cards. Start here.
Meet the tiles
The three suits, the seven honour tiles, and the flowers and seasons.
What winning means
A winning hand is four sets and a pair. Take one apart and see.
Quiz
Quiz: the game, the tiles and the winning shape
5 questions on the lessons above.
Chow, pung and kong
The three kinds of set, how to spot one in a jumble, and what is not one.
The table
Four seats, the wall, the deal, and the order everybody plays in.
Draw, decide, discard
The three steps that every turn is made of.
Quiz
Quiz: sets, seats and turns
5 questions on the lessons above.
Claiming a discard
Take a tile somebody else let go, and finish the set in front of everybody.
Reading your own hand
Some tiles are already working together. Some are on their own. Tell them apart.
Your first full hand
Play a hand all the way through, from the deal to a finish.
Quiz
Quiz: claiming and playing a hand out
5 questions on the lessons above.
What a win is worth
A win has a size, and the shape of the hand decides it. This hand is worth more than most.
Enough to win
A finished hand is not always a win. At this table it must also be worth at least 3 faan.
Etiquette and flow
You do not have to take every discard, and once you let one go it is gone.
Quiz
Quiz: worth, the minimum and manners
5 questions on the lessons above.
Claiming a kong
All four copies at last. Take the fourth from the table, and see what the wall owes you.
Practice hands
Fewer prompts, more of the hand left to you.
Play a hand on your own
One full hand, nothing narrowed. Play it through to a finish.
Quiz
Quiz: kongs, practice and playing on your own
5 questions on the lessons above.
Intermediate
0 of 9 lessons complete
Counting before you throw
A tile you keep is a commitment to tiles you have not drawn. Count how many are left, then throw.
Committing to a direction
At some point you stop keeping every option and pick one hand to build. That choice has a price.
What the discards tell you
Every tile anyone throws stays face up. That is a free look at what they are not keeping.
Quiz
Quiz: counting, committing and the pool
5 questions on the lessons above.
Not feeding the winner
The player who throws the winning tile gives up the points for it. Counting the pool is how you throw fewer of them.
Fast and cheap, or slow and big
Two different hands live in these fourteen tiles. One finishes soon and scores little.
What makes a hand special
The hands worth more do not arrive by accident. You can see them coming from here.
Quiz
Quiz: throwing, speed and value
5 questions on the lessons above.
The claim that hurts you
A set you can claim always looks like progress. Count before you call it.
Where you sit matters
The player on your left feeds your runs, your own throws feed your right, and a claim bends the turn order.
Playing without the whisper
A whole hand with the coach quiet. It answers when you ask, and not before.
Quiz
Quiz: claims, seats and playing alone
5 questions on the lessons above.
Assessment
Intermediate assessment
Win 2 hands out of 10 at the table, with no coach and no take-backs.