How to play

American mahjong is played by four people with 152 tiles and the current year's National Mah Jongg League card. This is a short overview. The League's card and rulebook are the official source.

The tiles

• Bams, Craks and Dots, numbered 1 to 9, with four of each tile (36 per suit)
• Four each of North, East, West and South Winds (16 in all)
• Four each of Red, Green and White Dragons (12)
• 8 Flowers and 8 Jokers

Fourteener sets come with 160 tiles: these 152, plus 2 spare Jokers and 6 blanks.

The card

The League publishes a new card each year listing the winning hands. Every hand is 14 tiles. You can buy the card from the National Mah Jongg League.

Setup

Each player takes 13 tiles, and East takes 14.

The Charleston

Before play, everyone passes three tiles right, then across, then left. A second round (left, across, right) happens only if everyone agrees. After that, you can swap up to three tiles with the player across. Jokers can't be passed.

Play

East starts by discarding. Then players take turns drawing a tile and discarding one. You can call another player's discard to complete a group, which you place face up.

Jokers

A Joker can stand in for any tile in a group of three or more identical tiles. It can't be used as a single tile or in a pair.

Winning

The first player to complete a hand from the card calls "Mahjong." If the tiles run out first, the game is a draw.